Homemade Stuffing Recipe
This traditional stuffing recipe is a must have for any holiday meal! This simple recipe combines crusty bread with onions, celery and fragrant spices to create a mouth watering version of everyone’s favorite side dish.
Stuffing…mmm do I have your attention yet!? In our family, just the mention of stuffing gets our heads turning and noses sniffing, we are obsessed with it! In fact, when I make my Thanksgiving plate it goes something like this: Turkey (20%), Potatoes (5%), Veggies (10%), Cranberry Sauce (20%) and STUFFING (45%) and I am not even joking! I could eat just a plate of this Traditional Stuffing if I didn’t think my family would judge me.
Now I know there is a whole debate out there, to stuff the bird or not stuff the bird…and do you know what I say?! DO BOTH! That’s what we do! I make more than enough stuffing to go in the bird and have a full casserole dish on the side, and the best is to mix them together to really blow your taste buds away.
First Published: October 2017 Last Updated: August 30, 2020
It isn’t the Holidays without Stuffing
Stuffing is probably one of the easiest sides you will have to make for your dinner, and most of it can be assembled a day in advance to leave you with more time to focus on your turkey the day of.
We always buy a couple of fresh loaves of French Bread from our local bakery and I make an evening of getting my stuffing ready.
I like to sit with a glass of wine and my favorite show on TV with a giant bowl beside me as I rip the bread into tiny pieces so it can sit out overnight and get nice and crusty (if you are in a time constraint that is OK too, just stick the bread in the oven for an additional 5 mins from my recipe and you will still have a perfect stuffing every single time!).
Ingredients
- French Bread
- Onions
- Celery
- Poultry Seasoning
- Dried Rosemary
- Dried Thyme
- Butter
- Eggs
- Vegetable Broth
- Salt and Pepper
Frequently asked questions
Do you put Eggs in Stuffing?
While putting eggs in your stuffing is not necessary, they do create the binding you want to ensure your ingredients mix together to create a delicious addition to your turkey. Without the eggs your stuffing would really just be bread with seasoning as it wouldn’t hold together.
Can you Make Stuffing the Day Before?
YES! As we mention in above you can prep your stuffing right until the cooking stage to save yourself some serious time the day of your big meal. You can go so far as cooking it, however keep in mind you will likely need to add additional liquid (broth) the following day when reheating to make sure it doesn’t dry out.
Should I Cover Stuffing when Baking?
Yes, you want to always start by cooking your stuffing with foil or a cover on top to ensure it doesn’t overcook/brown too quickly. Once it has been in the oven for about 45 minutes we suggest taking the cover off and allowing it to cook another 30 minutes without the cover to let it get toasty and brown on top without drying it out.
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Putting stuffing in the turkey is so much easier with a turkey stuffing bag, the juices from the turkey will coat, flavor and cook the stuffing and the bag easily pulls out when the turkey is done (so much easier than trying to scoop out all the good bits!).
Also, you NEED to have a fast read thermometer, you don’t want your oven open for long periods of time or you will lose all the heat. Check out our favorites below.
Okay, that’s enough blabbing on, let’s get started on this classic holiday dish. Keep in mind, as with most of my recipes, this one can easily be adapted for your tastes and preferences! If you like cranberries or pecans in your stuffing, add em in! Prefer whole wheat bread? No problem! Customizing a recipe is what makes it yours, so get creative and dig in.
Easy Traditional Stuffing Recipe for the Holidays
Easy Traditional Stuffing Recipe - A classic stuffing recipe you can make for any Holiday or family gathering that everyone will love!
Ingredients
- 2 loaves French Bread, will need about 15 c cubed
- 2 medium Onions
- 1 c Celery , you can use 1/2 tsp celery seed if you don't have any on hand
- 1 tbsp Poultry Seasoning
- 2 tbsp Rosemary, dried
- 1 tbsp Thyme
- 1 1/4 c Butter, unsalted
- 2 lg Eggs
- 2.5 c Vegetable Broth, or chicken
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions
If prepping ahead of time:
- Preheat oven to 300 F. In a large bowl, tear up your French Bread into small bite sized pieces. Spread onto cookie sheets in a single layer and place in the oven for 10 minutes, until lightly golden. Allow to cool completely and leave out overnight to continue the "staling" of the bread (if you don't have time to leave out, keep the bread in the oven for an additional 5-10 minutes to dry out on day of).
- Finely chop onions and celery, add to a medium pan over medium heat with 1c of the butter. Add in your herbs with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook until onions are translucent. Remove from heat and allow to cool before placing in covered bowl in the fridge.
Day of:
- Preheat oven to 350 F and butter (or spray) a 9" x 13" casserole dish, set aside.
- In a medium pan reheat your onion mixture over medium heat (see above if making same day) and add 1.5 c of broth and allow to come to a low simmer.
- Now in a large bowl, toss bread with your butter and broth mixture, be sure to combine well.
- In a small bowl whisk your eggs with remaining broth (1 1/4 c) and add to the bread mixture.
- Add bread mixture to your casserole dish, topping with remaining butter (cut into small cubes) and bake covered for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 30 minutes (or until top is golden and slightly crispy). Serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
If you prefer fresh herbs you can use those too! We use dried since we always have them on hand, just make sure they are still good guys (we rotate our herbs/spices every 3-4 months since we use them so much!).
If you are going to add some of the stuffing to your Turkey, combine 4c bread with 1/4 of your onion and herb mixture, and stuff into the cavity of the bird. Don't worry about your broth mixture, your butter on top of the casserole will help to keep everything moist.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
10Serving Size:
1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 428Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 106mgSodium: 618mgCarbohydrates: 37gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 11g
*Please note that nutritional values are not always 100% accurate and are to be used as a guide.
More Holiday Side Dishes
Be sure to check out some of my other favorite dishes to go with your holiday meals below;
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Stephanie
Saturday 11th of November 2023
Will this recipe work with Gluten Free French Bread? I just found out some of our family is Gluten Free.
Oliv Blogger
Sunday 12th of November 2023
Hi Stephanie! I don't see why not - though it does tend to have a denser texture so you may find you need to allow it to dry more before using (or if using the oven method I mentioned, just watch how dried out it gets before starting - the more moisture you remove the better it will absorb the butter broth mixture.
Donna
Friday 6th of August 2021
You call for '2 tablespoons Rosemary, dried'. Are you talking about the little rosemary 'sticks' in a jar you buy in the spices section of the store?? If so, do you leave them whole or crush/chop them??
Oliv Blogger
Friday 6th of August 2021
Hi Donna, yes we like to use the dried rosemary that has been removed from the stem. I personally like to leave them as is, but some people prefer to crush them down a little bit first. Either way, it is an essential spice to add to our incredible stuffing recipe!! Enjoy - Melissa
Haley
Monday 23rd of November 2020
Can the French bread be the already baked kind? That is all I have. Thanks!
oliveblogger
Tuesday 24th of November 2020
Hey Haley, by already baked do you mean the bagged dried one? If so, then yes you are good to go!!
Tiffany
Saturday 6th of October 2018
Mmmmmmmm! About to make this recipe, last minute! We have dinner tonight and I insist on stuffing! Even without the Turkey!!!
oliveblogger
Saturday 6th of October 2018
Enjoy, stuffing is my favourite part of the meal by far! <3
Karyl | Karyl's Kulinary Krusade
Wednesday 18th of October 2017
I've absolutely never made homemade stuffing before! When I do have it, I use the stuff in the box.. :( I really need to switch that, and try my hand at the homemade. Thanks for the recipe!
oliveblogger
Sunday 22nd of October 2017
Yes! You have to make this, it is super easy and so so yummy! You will never do the salty boxed stuff again, I promise!