One of the best stuffing recipes you will ever make. This recipe calls for crumbled breakfast sausage that adds a hint of sage, mushrooms, celery and onions. When you make this, your friends and family will be begging for the recipe.
Ingredients
1 (16-ounce) package pork breakfast sausage
2 cups diced celery
2 cups diced onion
2 cups diced mushrooms
1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter
6 to 8 cups cubed chewy French bread or French rolls, plus extra if needed
Up to 1 (32-ounce) carton chicken or turkey broth
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons poultry seasoning, or to taste
1 tablespoon garlic powder, or to taste
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Additional melted butter for the top, optional
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375°F. Butter or grease a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish.
- Melt one stick of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the diced celery, onion and mushrooms.
- Sauté the vegetables until they are very soft and most of the liquid they release has cooked away. Take your time with this step. Cooking off the excess moisture helps prevent soggy stuffing. Especially when it comes to the mushrooms.
- Add the breakfast sausage to the skillet. Cook, breaking the sausage into small crumbles, until it is completely cooked through.
- Season the sausage and vegetables with the poultry seasoning, garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Adjust the seasonings to your taste.
- Add 6 to 8 cups of cubed French bread to a very large mixing bowl. Reserve some additional bread in case you need to adjust the consistency later.
- Add the cooked sausage and vegetables to the bread and toss until everything is evenly distributed.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs. Pour this mixture over the bread and toss well.
- Begin adding the chicken or turkey broth. Do not automatically pour in the entire carton. Start with most of the broth and thoroughly toss the stuffing.
- Allow the bread a moment to absorb the liquid. The stuffing should look very wet and thoroughly saturated, but it should not be swimming in liquid.
- Add more broth as needed. If the mixture becomes too wet, add some of your reserved bread cubes. Different breads absorb different amounts of liquid, so use the appearance and texture of the stuffing as your guide.
- Transfer the stuffing mixture to the prepared 9 x 13-inch casserole dish and spread it evenly.
- For an extra buttery, crispy top, drizzle a little melted butter over the stuffing before baking.
- Bake uncovered for approximately 45 minutes, or until the center is set and the top is golden brown. If the top begins browning too quickly, loosely cover the casserole with foil for the remainder of the baking time.
- Remove from the oven and allow the stuffing to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Choosing the bread: Use a chewy French bread or French roll with a substantial interior and a relatively soft crust. I use Turano French Rolls when they are available to me. Avoid an extremely crusty artisan loaf, which can leave hard pieces in the finished stuffing.
- Do not dry the bread: Unlike many traditional stuffing recipes, I do not intentionally toast or dry the bread for this recipe.
- About the broth: The 32-ounce carton is the amount you should have available, not necessarily the amount you must use. Bread varies tremendously in how much liquid it absorbs. Add the broth gradually and judge the stuffing by its texture.
- The original recipe: I originally developed this recipe using Château Foods Czech bread dumplings. Château Foods is no longer in business. For a version that most closely recreates the texture of my original stuffing, use my Easy Czech Inspired Bread Dumplings in place of the French bread.
- Make ahead: The stuffing can be assembled one to two days before serving. Cover tightly and refrigerate. Remove it from the refrigerator while the oven preheats and allow additional baking time as needed because the casserole will be cold.
- Reheating: Cover leftover stuffing and reheat until hot throughout. If it seems dry, drizzle it with a small amount of chicken or turkey broth. Uncover toward the end of reheating to crisp the top again.
- Mushrooms: The mushrooms can be omitted. Because they contribute moisture and volume, you may need slightly less broth or a little additional bread.