This Thanksgiving stuffing recipe is the classic, never fail stuffing recipe! It’s flavorful, moist, (can be made in advance 🙌🏼) and a must-have on your Thanksgiving dinner spread!

Homemade Thanksgiving Stuffing in a casserole dish.

Stuffing is by far one of my favorite dishes at Thanksgiving. I also love sweet potato casserole! I’ve told you before that I’m super big on texture, and there is just something about the texture of stuffing that just … mmmm … I just love it! 

You really can’t go wrong with this stuffing recipe. The onion and celery adds that bite to the stuffing, and the sage and poultry seasoning makes it FAR from bland. 

But, if you’re looking for one with more vegetables or sausage, be sure to try out my vegetable stuffing recipe. 

Ingredients

Ingredients used to make homemade thanksgiving stuffing on a marble counter.
  • French bread loaf — You’ll need 1 pound worth of bread.
  • Unsalted butter
  • Veggies — yellow onion and celery, both chopped.
  • Poultry seasoning
  • Ground sage
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Chicken broth — can substitute vegetable broth. 

Step-by-Step Instructions 

  1. Prepare the bread.
    Cut the French bread loaf into 1-inch cubes, then set them on a baking sheet to dry out overnight. (Scroll down to see an alternative under “recipe tips.”) 
  2. Cook the veggies until soft.
    In a dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted, add the onion and celery and cook until soft, about 6-8 minutes. Season with poultry seasoning, sage, salt, and pepper. 
    A dutch oven with chopped onion and celery cooking in melted butter.
  3. Add the dry bread.
    Stir in the dried-out cubed bread until evenly coated. 
    Cubed bread in a large dutch oven with a wooden spoon sitting in the pot too.
  4. Stir in the broth.
    The key to this step is to add the broth, little by little (**hint hint: SLOWLY!) while mixing the stuffing so that the bread doesn’t become too wet or soggy. Mix well. 
    Cubed bread in a large dutch oven.
  5. Transfer to dish.
    Place in a buttered 9×13-inch casserole dish. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until ready to bake. I have chilled mine for various amounts of time, the most being 6 hours, and it was really good. 
    Homemade Thanksgiving Stuffing in a 13x9 inch baking dish.
  6. Bake until golden brown.
    Bake uncovered at 350°F for 30-40 minutes. The top of the stuffing should be golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve warm. 
    Golden brown thanksgiving stuffing in a 13x9 inch clear baking dish.

Recipe Tips

If you like moist stuffing, bake covered for 15 minutes, and then remove foil and bake uncovered for the last 20-30 minutes. 

You can add cooked sausage to this recipe as well! Depending on how much meat you want, you can use 8 oz or 16 oz of plain sausage or sage sausage. (Yes, they have sage sausage, have you tried it?!)

FAQs

  • If I’m using meat in my stuffing, does it need to be cooked before mixing it with the cubed bread? — Yes. Cook the meat before stirring it into the remaining ingredients.
  • What’s the difference between turkey stuffing and turkey dressing? — Nothing at all. I’ve heard people use those terms interchangeably. People call the stuffing mix dressing since it’s usually put inside the turkey to help add flavor to the turkey from the inside. 
  • Can I use this recipe to stuff my turkey? I don’t recommend it. You would need to alter the recipe a great deal.  I am weary of stuffing a turkey because the stuffing touches the raw bird. For the stuffing to be safe to eat, it would need to be cooked to 165°F, which means the bird will be overcooked.
Thanksgiving stuffing on a small white plate with a fork on the plate too.
Homemade Thanksgiving Stuffing in a casserole dish.
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Thanksgiving Stuffing Recipe

So flavorful and perfect for your Thanksgiving meal! It's easy to make and can be made in advance. 🙌🏼
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 40 mins
Total Time: 50 mins
Servings: 8 servings

Ingredients
 

  • 1 large French bread loaf - 1 pound worth.
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 large yellow onion - chopped
  • 5 stalks celery - chopped
  • 3 teaspoon poultry seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground sage
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 cup chicken broth - see notes

Equipment

Instructions
 

  • Cut French bread loaf into 1” cubes, then set on a baking sheet to dry out overnight. Alteranativey, if you don't want to do this, you can cube the bread, place on baking sheet, and bake in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes (may need more time) or until they are lightly golden.
  • In a dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted, add the onion and celery and cook until soft, about 6-8 minutes. Season with poultry seasoning, sage, salt, and pepper. 
  • Stir in the dried-out cubed bread until evenly coated. 
  • SLOWLY stir in the broth while mixing the stuffing so that the bread doesn’t become too wet or soggy. Mix well. 
  • Place in a buttered casserole dish 13×9”. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until ready to bake. Mine usually chills for 4-6 hours (because I like to make it in the morning).
  • Bake uncovered at 350°F for 30-40 minutes. The top of the stuffing should be golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve warm. 

Notes

You can use vegetable broth in place of the chicken broth. 
If you like moist stuffing, bake covered for 15 minutes, and then remove foil and bake uncovered for the last 20-25 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 203kcal (10%)Carbohydrates: 10g (3%)Protein: 2g (4%)Fat: 18g (28%)Saturated Fat: 11g (55%)Cholesterol: 46mg (15%)Sodium: 483mg (20%)Potassium: 141mg (4%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 2g (2%)Vitamin A: 664IU (13%)Vitamin C: 4mg (5%)Calcium: 34mg (3%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
author: Whitney Wright
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
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