These Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms topped with Italian seasoned breadcrumbs are an explosion of flavor in your mouth! The creamy Italian sausage filling is packed with flavor and is made with cream cheese, sautéed onion and fresh parsley. The crunchy golden breadcrumb topping is the perfect added touch. These stuffed mushrooms are the perfect appetizer, game day food, or party food recipe!

It’s safe to say sausage is my favorite meat! I love it in everything like soup (Sausage and Tortellini Soup and Zuppa Toscana), in pasta (Deconstructed Pizza casserole and Baked Ziti)… I can go on and on! If you aren’t a big sausage fan yet, these recipes will definitely convince you that sausage can make anything taste better! 😀

Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms topped with bread crumbs, on a plate against a white background.

Why This Recipe Works

  • Only 15 minutes of prep time. These sausage stuffed mushrooms are pretty quick to make. They only take 15 minutes to prepare and the rest of the time they are just baking away in the oven. It’s such an easy appetizer recipe because it doesn’t take much time to prepare at all!
  • Creamy sausage filling. These stuffed mushrooms are super creamy thanks to the cream cheese in the filling! 
  • Punchy Italian flavor. By using Italian sausage and Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, the Italian flavor really comes out in these mushrooms. 
  • Plenty to share. For some reason stuffed mushrooms seem to be a really fancy appetizer because they are often served in limited numbers. You don’t frequently see a large platter filled with stuffed mushrooms. Well, this recipe makes plenty of stuffed mushrooms to share! 

Ingredient Notes

Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms ingredients laid out on a gray background.
  • White Whole Mushrooms: I use just the regular white mushrooms — ones you’ll find at every single grocery store. I don’t use cremini mushrooms for this. I have tasted cremini mushrooms and I like them. Haven’t tried them on this recipe though.
  • Onion: I used a yellow onion, but you can use a sweet onion if that’s what you have on hand. The diced onion gives an additional flavor and texture in the stuffed mushroom filling. 
  • Italian Sausage: Remove the casings. I used the mild Italian sausage, but if you want to add a spicy flavor to the stuffed mushroom recipe, then use hot Italian sausage. 
  • Cream Cheese: Using room temperature cream cheese will make stirring the filling together much easier. The cream cheese binds the filling together and adds a creaminess and tangy flavor to the mushrooms. Without it, the filling is too dry and there wouldn’t be a binding for the sausage. 
  • Parsley: I love how the fresh parsley adds a bit of color and freshness to the Italian sausage stuffed mushrooms. I’d recommend using fresh parsley over dried parsley because the flavor is more pronounced. 
  • Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs: You can buy the bread crumbs pre-seasoned at the store or you can make your own Italian seasoned breadcrumbs by adding some Italian seasoning to plain breadcrumbs. This adds a nice crunch to the top.   

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. Clean the mushrooms. To clean the mushrooms, take a slightly damp paper towel and gently wipe off the tops of each mushroom. 
  2. Remove the mushroom stems. To remove the stem, gently twist and pull out the stem or use a knife to cut it out. Either way works. Place the mushrooms on a parchment lined baking sheet, gill sides up.
White mushrooms on a parchment lined baking sheet, gill sides up.
  1. Cook the onion. Add the olive oil and diced onion to a skillet and cook over medium heat until translucent and slightly golden, about 8 minutes. Transfer the onion to a large bowl.
  2. Cook the sausage. Add the sausage to the now empty skillet. Cook and break apart until browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. After this, drain the grease and dab the sausage with a paper towel to remove as much grease as possible. Transfer the sausage to the bowl with the onion.
  3. Mix the Italian sausage mushroom filling. Add the cream cheese, chopped parsley, and pepper to the sausage mixture. Mix until fully combined. 
A sausage mixture in a glass bowl for making Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms.
  1. Fill the mushrooms. Spoon or pipe the sausage mixture into the mushrooms. Note: if you’re going to pipe the filling, you will need to cut a large hole in a ziplock bag in order to get the sausage filling out with ease.
  2. Top with breadcrumbs. Sprinkle some Italian seasoned bread crumbs over the tops of the stuffed mushrooms.
  3. Bake. Cook the mushrooms at 350°F for 15-18 minutes or until warmed and golden in color. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley, if desired.
Italian Sausage and cream cheese Stuffed Mushrooms, gill sides up on a baking sheet.

Recipe Tips

This recipe doesn’t use the mushrooms stems in the filling, however you can do so if you’d like. Simply chop the mushroom stems and cook them with the diced onions. Mushrooms don’t take as long to cook as onions do. So after 4 minutes of cooking the onions, add the chopped mushroom stems to the skillet and let them continue to cook alongside the onions. The mushrooms should soften. Note: Doing this will result in a lot more filling. You may have some left over that won’t fit into the mushroom caps.

If you don’t have breadcrumbs, don’t sweat it! This is optional and not necessary for this recipe. However, if you have breadcrumbs and you’d like to season them, then add a few shakes of Italian seasoning to the breadcrumbs and you’ll be in business.

To achieve a nice crisp top, broil for 1-2 minutes prior to removing the mushrooms from the oven.

If you want to make these spicy use hot Italian sausage, add diced jalapeño or some red pepper flakes.

Variations: Sprinkle on some parmesan cheese on top after the mushrooms are done and broil for 1 minute. 

Make Ahead, Storing, and Freezing

I wouldn’t make this specific Italian stuffed mushroom recipe ahead of time because they don’t last very long in the fridge. 

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Fresh is always best with stuffed mushrooms in my opinion! 

I wouldn’t recommend freezing them either due to the cream cheese in the filling. Frozen and then thawed cream cheese will change in texture, becoming grainy. This will affect the mushroom filling.

Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms lined on a baking sheet.

FAQs

How do you keep stuffed mushrooms from getting soggy?

One trick begins with how you clean the mushrooms. If you remember from my step-by-step instructions, clean just the tops ofthe mushrooms with a slightly damp paper towel. Mushrooms absorb water. So if you run the mushrooms under the faucet to clean them, the mushrooms will soak up some of that water, meaning they will more easily get soggy. If you are worried about not being able to fully clean the mushrooms, do what’s called a dry clean on the mushrooms by taking a dry paper towel and wiping clean the mushrooms. The other trick is to remove literally as much of the grease from the sausage as possible. This is why I instructed to have you drain the grease and pat dry with a paper towel in order to remove as much grease as possible. 

How do you remove a mushroom stem? 

Either cut around the top of the stem or twist the stem and pull. Either way works. 

Are these Italian sausage stuffed mushrooms gluten free?

No they are not. You can make them gluten free with some minor changes. The Italian seasoned breadcrumbs are optional. Remove those or use a gluten free breadcrumbs instead. Be sure you purchase an Italian sausage that is gluten free as well as occasional brands can have gluten in it. 

Does this stuffed mushroom recipe have cheese?

Sorta. Haha! There isn’t any shredded cheese in the filling, but there is cream cheese. This isn’t a dairy free stuffed mushroom recipe. 

What mushrooms are used in stuffed mushrooms? 

Commonly used mushrooms for stuffed mushrooms are white button mushrooms or baby bella mushrooms (also known as baby portobello mushrooms.) Regular portobello mushrooms are really big, so the white mushrooms are a better size for this dish. They are all the same species of mushroom, just think of them like you would think of different ages of mushroom: baby, youth, adult.

Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms on a plate against a white background.

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Three Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms on a tan plate against white background.
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5 from 2 votes

Italian Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms

Mushrooms are stuffed with a cream cheese and Italian sausage mixture. Each mushroom is topped with seasoned bread crumbs and fresh parsley. These stuffed mushrooms are absolutely delicious and the perfect party or finger food!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 34 servings

Ingredients
 

  • 24 oz white whole mushrooms
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 small yellow onion - small diced (about 3/4 -1 cup)
  • 1 lb Italian Sausage - casings removed
  • 1 garlic clove - minced
  • 8 oz cream cheese - softened
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1-2 tablespoons Italian seasoned bread crumbs - optional

Equipment

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Clean the mushrooms by wiping the tops of each mushroom with a damp paper towl. Remove stems from mushrooms by gently twisting and pulling, or by cutting them out with a knife. Place mushrooms on a parchment lined baking sheet, gill sides up. Lightly sprinkle the mushrooms with salt. Set aside.
  • In a skillet set over medium to medium-low heat, add olive oil and the diced onion. Cook until translucent and slightly golden, about 7-8 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl, set aside. 
  • Add Italian sausage to the now empty skillet. Cook and break apart until browned. Once cooked through, drain the grease. Add garlic clove to the sausage and cook 1 minute more. Use a paper towl and (carefully!!) dab any excess grease from the sausage. Transfer the sausage to the bowl with the onion. 
  • Add cream cheese, chopped parsley, and pepper to the sausage and onion bowl. Mix to combine. 
  • Spoon (or pipe) mixture into the mushrooms. 
  • Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the tops of the filled mushrooms.
  • Cook mushrooms at 350°F for 15-18 minutes or until warmed and golden.
  • Remove from the oven and sprinkle with additional fresh parsley, if desired. Serve warm.

Notes

This recipe doesn’t use the mushrooms stems in the filling, however you can do so if you’d like. Simply chop the mushroom stems and cook them with the diced onions. Mushrooms don’t take as long to cook as onions do. So after 4 minutes of cooking the onions, add the chopped mushroom stems to the skillet and let them continue to cook alongside the onions. The mushrooms should soften. Note: doing this will result in a lot more filling… you may have some left over that won’t fit into the mushroom caps. 
If you don’t have bread crumbs, don’t sweat it! This is optional and not necessary for this recipe. However, if you have breadcrumbs and you’d like to make them “Italian seasoned” then add a few shakes of Italian seasoning to the breadcrumbs and you’ll be in business. 
To achieve a nice crisp top, broil for 1-2 minutes prior to removing the mushrooms from the oven. 
If you want to make these spicy use hot Italian sausage or add diced jalapeño or red pepper flakes. 

Nutrition

Calories: 79kcal (4%)Carbohydrates: 1gProtein: 3g (6%)Fat: 7g (11%)Saturated Fat: 3g (15%)Cholesterol: 17mg (6%)Sodium: 193mg (8%)Potassium: 110mg (3%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 1g (1%)Vitamin A: 119IU (2%)Vitamin C: 1mg (1%)Calcium: 11mg (1%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Course: Appetizer, Snack
Cuisine: Italian
Did you make this recipe?Leave a star rating and review on the blog post letting me know how you liked this recipe! Take a picture and tag @saltandbaker on Instagram and Facebook so I can see what you’re making!

This recipe was originally published on Feb. 10, 2020. It was republished on Jan. 25, 2022, to include additional information and photos.