Sausage Stuffing

Sausage stuffing is an iconic Thanksgiving dish, even among Southerners who typically prefer dressing over stuffing. But if you want to add a Southern flair to the classic side, we've found a way: with Conecuh sausage.

Conecuh sausage is a hickory-smoked pork sausage made in Evergreen, Alabama. You'll find a rope of this beloved meat at nearly every meal for Southerners, from sausage rolls to hasselback sausage bites.

Learn how to make Sausage Stuffing for your Thanksgiving spread. You don’t have to spend a ton of time and effort making it, and the flavor and texture are hands-down worlds above anything you’d find in a box or bag. 

Sausage Stuffing Ingredients

You don’t need an arsenal of ingredients to make this tasty side, just a few well chosen ones.

• Soft French bread is the base and bulk of the dish.
• Smoked sausage (we mean Conecuh) offers loads of meaty goodness in every bite.
• Butter lends richness.
• Onion and celery create a savory backbone.
• Herbs and spices: You don’t need the whole “Scarborough Fair” litany of herbs for the classic flavor you want; parsley and sage will do the trick.
• Chicken stock and eggs moisten the dish and bind it together.

How To Make Sausage Stuffing

A few simple steps will ensure success.

• Step 1. First, you cube the bread and toast it; this works wonders for the final texture of the dish, allowing the bread to dry out enough to soak up all the flavors without turning gummy.
• Step 2. Next, you brown the sausage to render some of its fat (which you keep) and add browned, caramelized edges.
• Step 3. Then you cook onions and celery in the sausage drippings and butter until they’re soft; you don’t want to bite into crunchy bits in the finished stuffing.
• Step 4. The final steps are to whisk together chicken stock, eggs, and seasonings with the bread, sausage, and onion mixture, pour into a casserole dish, and bake for just 30 minutes.

What's the Difference Between Stuffing and Dressing?

The answer to this question is more complicated (and pricklier) than you might think. Traditionally, stuffing refers to a mixture that’s used to stuff something—and in the case of Thanksgiving, that would be a turkey—whereas dressing gets cooked outside the bird.

But stuffing the bird has fallen out of favor, for reasons involving food safety and turkey quality, and the same bready mixture is often called stuffing even when it's baked in a casserole dish.

Regional differences seem to dictate what you call this classic Thanksgiving side: If you’re from the South, you tend to call it dressing; if you’re from other parts of the country, you probably call it stuffing (even if it isn’t stuffed into anything).

I also know many Southerners who argue that dressing is made from cornbread, while stuffing is made from bread. And it’s in that spirit that we present to you this stuffing recipe—made with bread, baked in a casserole dish, and great with your Thanksgiving feast.

Can I Substitute a Different Kind of Sausage?

Yes, you absolutely can use a different kind of sausage for sausage stuffing. We love Conecuh for its Southern roots (it’s a family-owned and operated company in Alabama) and its superior quality.

The original variety we suggest is milder than its hickory version, with more pronounced notes of sage that feel appropriate for the holiday. But you could use a different brand of smoked sausage if you’d like, or use crumbled, sautéed breakfast sausage. Either way you go, the sausage will provide most of this stuffing’s robust flavor.

Can I Use a Different Kind of Bread?

You can, with a caveat. We call for soft French bread here, and that’s definitely what you need—not anything dense or hearty like baguette, ciabatta, or artisanal sourdough. You want soft bread with an open, tender crumb; it’ll toast well and soak up the liquid better than those heartier styles. So you could also try soft Italian bread, Cuban bread, or (if you can find it) a soft sourdough.

Can I Make Sausage Stuffing Ahead?

Sort of… This recipe is best when it's mixed and baked shortly before serving, when the interior of the stuffing will be moist and flavorful and the top will have an irresistible crunch.

You can get a head start by toasting the bread a couple of days in advance and storing it in an airtight container. You can also brown the sausage and cook the onion-celery mixture a day or two ahead. Then you can simply stir everything together shortly before the feast and pop it in the oven.

We don’t recommend stirring everything together, like you would a strata, and storing it in the casserole dish a day or so ahead; doing so will give you more of a bread pudding texture than a stuffing texture.