Challah, Wild Mushroom & Herb Stuffing
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This stuffing crispy on top and loaded with an earthy, buttery mix of onions and vegetables.
There are as many versions of Thanksgiving stuffing as there are cooks who make it. The truth is, as long as you stick to the basic bread-to-liquid ratio, you can pretty much add any vegetables or seasonings that you like. This challah stuffing, modestly adapted from Mrs. Wheelbarrow on Food52, reminds me of the one my grandmother used to make. It’s golden and crispy on top and loaded with a flavorful and earthy mix of onions and wild mushrooms. A few tips: buy the “poultry blend” of fresh herbs if your supermarket carries it, as it contains all the herbs you’ll need, and buy your mushrooms pre-sliced to cut down on prep time.
What you’ll need to make Challah, Wild Mushroom & Herb Stuffing
How to make Challah, Wild Mushroom & Herb Stuffing
Cut the challah into 1-inch cubes and spread onto a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake for about 25 minutes, or until dry and lightly toasted. Set aside.
Melt the butter in a large sauté pan. Cook the onions over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent.
Add the celery, herbs, mushrooms, salt and pepper.
Cook until celery is slightly softened, about 5 minutes more.
In a large bowl, combine bread cubes, onion/vegetable mixture, and chicken stock.
Toss well.
Transfer the stuffing to the prepared baking dish and cover with foil.
Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until golden, about 25 minutes more. Serve immediately.
You may also like
- Easy Sausage and Herb Stuffing
- Cornbread and Sausage Stuffing
- Chipotle Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
- Potatoes Au Gratin
- Best Thanksgiving Side Dishes
Challah, Wild Mushroom & Herb Stuffing
This stuffing crispy on top and loaded with an earthy, buttery mix of onions and vegetables.
Ingredients
- 1 large loaf challah (about 1 pound)
- 1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for buttering baking dishes
- 2 cups yellow onion, diced (from 2 medium onions)
- 2 cups celery, diced
- 2 cups wild mushrooms, diced
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary (or ¼ teaspoon dried and crumbled)
- ½ teaspoon finely chopped fresh sage (or ¼ teaspoon dried)
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 cups chicken broth
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Butter a 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Cut the challah into 1-inch cubes and spread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until dry and lightly toasted. Set aside.
- Increase the oven temperature to 350°F.
- Melt the butter in a large sauté pan. Cook the onions over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent. Add the celery, mushrooms, herbs, salt, and pepper and cook until celery is slightly softened, about 5 minutes more.
- In a large bowl, combine the toasted bread cubes, onion/vegetable mixture, and chicken broth and toss well.
- Transfer the stuffing to the prepared baking dish. Cover the dish with buttered foil and refrigerate until ready to bake (up to overnight).
- Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until golden, about 25 minutes more. Serve immediately.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: This dish can be prepared (but not baked) up to 1 day ahead of time. Cover the dish with buttered foil and refrigerate. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until golden, about 25 minutes more. Serve immediately.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: This dish can be frozen after baking, tightly covered, for up to 3 months. Defrost it in the refrigerator overnight then reheat it, covered with foil, in a 325°F oven until hot.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (10 servings)
- Calories: 259
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated fat: 7 g
- Carbohydrates: 29 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 7 g
- Sodium: 448 mg
- Cholesterol: 50 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Hi
My dsughter is vegetarian. I plan to sub vegetable broth. Is there something else I should add to punch up the flavor or will the mushrooms provide enough umami flavor?
Hi Shelley, the stuffing will still have plenty of flavor with vegetable broth. Hope everyone enjoys!
Coildn’t find challah, will brioche be a reasonable substitute?
yep, definitely!
Can I use rehydrated dried mushrooms?
Hi Diane, I’ve never tried it, but I think it should work. Enjoy!
This is such a delicious recipe. I think I have made it three times in the last month. My husband and I both consider it a special treat. I had to substitute a different bread. I used farmed mushrooms. Even so it was excellent. I only used thyme and sage not rosemary. Jenn has created a classic that I am so pleased to have now in our favorite meals rotation. I even crumbled some pre-cooked ground turkey on the bottom of the casserole dish before adding the stuffing. Next I plan to serve this with turkey gravy.
I’m thinking about having this with crown roast this weekend. do you think this would pair well and what is the best way to place it within the center of the roast..cook first then scoop into center?
Yes, I think that would be the way to go – please LMK how it turns out!
I’ve never been much of a stuffing person, but this recipe sounded good and easy, so I used the make-ahead instructions, and everyone absolutely loved it (including several others who never really cared about stuffing before). The flavor is incredible, and the texture is the best – crispy on top but chewy and decadent inside. A simple but fabulous recipe!
Jenn
I plan to make this stuffing but cannot find a combination package of wild mushrooms. Can I use baby bella or will that be bland? I did see shiitake -is that better to use?
Thanks’
Hi Debbie, I’d go with the shiitake. Hope you enjoy!
Hi! Most stuffing recipes call for an egg or two as a binder. Do you not use it here because you are using challah, a softer bread? Or can I throw in an egg?
Thanks!
Liza
Hi Liza, I didn’t think eggs were necessary here because challah already contains eggs and the stuffing is rich enough and binds well without them. That said, feel free to add an egg if you’d like. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Jen,
Can I add leeks to this for more flavor? If so, how much do you suggest and would I have to adjust the amount of onion?
Thanks!
Hi Liza, if you want to use leeks, I would just replace the onion with the same amount of leeks. BTW, I don’t think it will significantly impact the flavor. Hope you enjoy!
Thank you so much for this recipe! It’s super easy to make and delicious! I have been making it the last couple years and it’s a hit every time!
Apologies if this has been asked, but what particular types of wild mushrooms have people used? thank you! Excited to try this for this coming Thanksgiving!
Hi Maggie, Chantarelle, Morels, and Oyster mushrooms will all work. (I usually buy the blend of sliced wild mushrooms that’s available around the holidays.) Hope that helps!
I made this a day ahead. I plan to make it again, because it was quite tasty, and my family enjoyed it, but next time, I plan not to add the chicken broth until shortly before I bake it, or perhaps not initially add as much and monitor the dressing for moistness during cooking. We thought the challah was too soggy. Or I might try a stale rustic white bread in lieu of the challah.
Hi Jenn
Can you substitute challah dinner buns for the loaf or would it be better to use another type of bread. I’m unable to purchase the challah loaf.
Thanks Nicole
The challah buns would be fine here — enjoy!
This stuffing is delicious! And I haven’t even baked it off yet! 😊 Thanks Jenn for another keeper! Happy Thanksgiving!
LOL — happy Thanksgiving to you! 🙂
Oh no! I got all the ingredients for this stuffing except for challah which is sold out at the store. Can regular sourdough stuffing breadcrumbs be used instead? If so, how many cups should I put in? Thanks!
That’s fine, Kira. I’m guessing it’d be about 10 cups. 🙂
Hi Jenn! Happy Thanksgiving! Just wondering if this recipe would work without the mushrooms? Thanks!
Hi Marissa, Another option that may work here in place of mushrooms is cauliflower, chopped into very small pieces, but I also think you could get away with just omitting the mushrooms. The onions and celery will provide plenty of flavor.
Hi Jenn,
If I substitute canola oil for the butter when I make the challah stuffing, how much canola oil should I use?
thanks!
Hi Carol, I’d use the same amount. Hope you enjoy!
Hello Jenn! We just cooked this stuffing for a test run, I could not get challah so I use a French brioche. I live in Colorado so it’s high altitude that can affect cooking time. We’ve been cooking the stuffing for a total of 1hr and 15 minutes and it’s like soup. Do you have any recommendations? I know this is delicious and I really want to make it for thanksgiving! Perhaps cutting the chicken stock in half?
Thank you!
Hi Julie, sorry to hear you are having a problem with this! I don’t have any experience with high altitude baking so not sure how much it would impact this but are you sure you didn’t make a measuring error? If not, yes I would cut the chicken broth by 1/4 to 1/2.
Hi Jean,
Sorry to bother you again about Stuffing recipes!! The Challah recipe is going to be perfect. I just have ONE more question. Since I’ve already frozen the brioche type bread cubes, how should I defrost them to use in the stuffing? I’m afraid to freeze the whole thing – baked – as it might be too soggy upon reheating. I’m just not sure I will have the time the day before (Weds) to make it. I CAN make it Weds. and leave in fridge for one day and think that would probably be best. It’s just going to be a busy day!!
Thanks in advance,
Joan
P.S.
I’ve already purchased both a gravy strainer and a new baster from Williams-Sonoma based on your suggestions…so their ads are paying off. 😉
Hi Joan, always happy to help! Yes, it’s perfectly fine to make this a day ahead. See the bottom of the recipe for Make-Ahead instructions. Happy Thanksgiving!
I made this for Thanksgiving, along with your brussels sprouts recipe, and both were a huge hit! Thank you!
Love the end result. I made my own challah. Since I follow Weight Watchers, I left out the stick of butter to keep the points low and used a couple of tablespoons of butter flavored olive oil. All the guests enjoyed the stuffing.
Love, love, love your recipes! For this stuffing, would the flavor change a lot if I used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth?
Hi Angela, Chicken broth will always give you a richer flavor, but vegetable broth will definitely work. Hope that helps and happy Thanksgiving!
Hi! What kind of wild mushrooms should we get from the store? Shiitake? Chanterelle?
Hi Natasha, Both of those will work. I usually buy the blend of sliced wild mushrooms that’s available around the holidays.
Hi, I was wondering if I make your challah bread recipe will it be the correct size for the dressing? Also do you think the addition of dried cranberries will work?
Thanks so much!
Hi Elizabeth, the challah from the cookbook will make a loaf that’s almost twice the size of a store-bought one, so if you want to use it for the stuffing, I’d cut the recipe in half. And I do think you could add dried cranberries to this. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
If I were to leave the bread out to stale for a day or two, should I still run them through the oven for 25 minutes to bake or toast?
I think you could skip that step, Kevin. Hope you enjoy!
Can you make this two days in advance?
Sure, Robin. It reheats well.
Can I stuff a turkey with this recipe?
Hi Denise, that’s doable but you may want to reduce the broth by just a bit (maybe by 1 cup) if you prefer a dryer stuffing. (The inside of the turkey will add a lot of moisture to it.) Enjoy!
I made this again for an early Thanksgiving in London. Absolutely stunning.
One more question – Do you suggest chicken broth or chicken stock? I like the idea of stock so I can control the flavors more (since the stock is less seasoned), but I’m worried that since it is richer in texture it will make the stuffing too wet. Thoughts?
Hi Celi, Either is fine here so go ahead and use stock if you like. 🙂
Hi Jenn,
I’ve made Challah stuffing in the past (not your recipe) and I’ve found that the challah itself is such a rich, moist that it makes the stuffing soggy and wet. I always pre-bake the challah to dry it out in the oven so I’m not sure why this is happening. Before I try your recipe, any tips to avoid a soggy challah?
PS – The tops is usually crisp for me, but I cut into it the inside is mushy.
Hi Celi, It’s hard to say without seeing the recipe you’re using. You might give this stuffing a try; unlike most stuffing recipes, it doesn’t call for eggs, which means less moisture.
Hi, Jenn. I’m unable to find Challah bread where I live. Is there another kind of bread that’s similar that can be used as a substitute? I’m eager to try this recipe!
Hi Mary, Brioche would also work nicely here. Enjoy!
Hi Jenn,
This recipe sounds amazing and I want to try it for our meal this year. I want to add some crunch. Would it make sense to add toasted walnuts? How much would you recommend? and can I still prep and refrigerate the day ahead? Thank you!
Hi Kathy, Sure, I think you could get away with adding walnuts to this. I’d recommend 1/2 to 3/4 cups. And, yes you can still prep and refrigerate a day ahead of time. Hope you enjoy!
I made your stuffing last year and it was delicious. Thank you. My question to you is why not any eggs? Some recipes have 2 cups chicken broth and 2 eggs? Just curious?
I didn’t think eggs were necessary here because challah already contains eggs and the stuffing is rich enough and binds well without them. That said, feel free to add an egg if you’d like. Hope you enjoy!
I made this recipe for a Friendsgiving and it was a hit! Bonus points for how easy this was to make!
Thanks for all of your wonderful recipes! I keep a kosher home, so I need to replace the butter. I am not a fan of dairy-free margarine, as it is so processed. Can I replace the butter with olive oil? Canola Oil? If so, how much? Thanks so much.
Glad you like the recipes Elana! Yes, olive or canola oil will work here. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Jenn! I was going to make this a day ahead and refrigerate but I’ve never done this before—I always have made things the day of. Can you walk me through what to do specifically so everything turns out the next day? Like reheating wise? Do I make the entire dish the day before or just make the vegetables and toast the bread? What would you do?! I hope that makes sense! Thanks so much!
Hi Elle, I would assemble the dish (but not bake it) today, then cover the dish with buttered foil and refrigerate overnight. When ready to bake tomorrow, preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until golden, about 25 minutes more. Then serve and enjoy!
Thank you so much! My whole family loves so many of your dishes! We love your book too! You make some delicious food that’s for sure. I also want to make your roasted green bean dish, would you kind enough to tell me what you’d do for that? I was going to comment on that page last night but I forgot! Ugh! We hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season!!! Thanks again! <3
Happy to help (and so glad you like the recipes)! Are you referring to these green beans? If so, you can make them ahead and reheat them in the microwave. You can add all the toppings ahead as well or, if you’d prefer, you can wait until serving to add the cheese, zest and pine nuts. Hope you enjoy!
I think I figured it out for the green beans, I saw someone else asked you! Woohoo! Everything’s ready for tomorrow! Thanks again! I will update with a review after we all shove food in our faces for thanksgiving 🙂
This stuffing is amazing! I doubled the recipe and used onions and celery from a pre-chopped Mirepoix mix (so amounts weren’t exact & they cooked the same amount of time), and I used regular (salted) chicken broth instead of stock (I eased up on added salt and skipped the pepper). I also substituted fresh Crimini mushrooms, using one 8oz container (chopped, with stems mostly removed) in place of each one cup of the wild mushrooms.
I tried this recipe because I was hoping to improve on a similar recipe I’d been using that had more broth and added eggs, but whose texture came out either a bit too gloopy inside or too dry/overdone on top. I love using Challah bread for stuffing, so I wanted a recipe that presumed Challah as the bread being used. With this recipe’s perfect ratio of Challah to liquid, omission of eggs (which are already in Challah), and excellent herb selections, this stuffing recipe delivers exceptional flavor without sacrificing great texture—it’s crisp on top, but moist and not too heavy inside. Using enameled cast iron casserole dishes meant just the right amount of extra crispness all around the sides as well. I flipped the cook times by accident, but it was perfect (25” covered, then 20” uncovered.) I prepared these the day before Thanksgiving, baking one immediately and refrigerating one to bake the next day (adding 5” covered cook time due to the extra chill, so 30” covered then 20” uncovered).
This stuffing was so delicious, my family started eating it as soon as it came out of the oven and enjoyed it at every meal and snack time for 3 days straight, until it was gone 😄
This is a fabulous and moist stuffing. The ‘mushroom haters’ in our family never realized there were mushrooms in the recipe—so don’t let that ingredient deter you from trying it!
I made this fabulous stuffing to accompany our turkey and it was, by far, the best stuffing I’ve ever eaten. My guests raved!
Thank you.
can you stuff your turkey with this recipe?
Hi Jill, you could; you may want to reduce the broth by just a bit (maybe by 1 cup) if you prefer a dryer stuffing. (The inside of the turkey will add a lot of moisture to it.)
Hi Jenn,
I decided to make this stuffing and have had a hard time finding challah bread, so I decided to make the challah from your book. My question is about the challah-I was out of veg oil and so I replaced it with canola. After baking the bread, my husband and I tried a piece (how can you not!) and immediately noticed it had a very noticeable “off” taste. I’m pretty sure it was the canola – can you recommend an oil to sub, or do I really need veg oil? The taste is strong enough that I won’t use the bread for this stuffing,
I’ll need to male another loaf… Thank you!
Hi Karen, Is it possible your canola oil was bad? I wouldn’t think it would make much of a difference.
Yes, I believe it was – that was the first thought that crossed my mind when I woke up the next morning. I threw it out and opened a new bottle. Sigh – learned my lesson about rancid oil!
You say 1 large loaf of challah. About how many cups of bread cubes is this?
Thank you.
Hi Gail, I’ve never measured it in cups, but I would guesstimate that it would be somewhere between 10 and 12 cups. Hope that helps!
Hi, I just sent a review in, we absolutely love everything that you post! We are preparing for Thanksgiving, and always make the Challah with herb stuffing recipe that you post. However, right now we are finding that all Challah bread is sold out. What can we do if we can not find it???? Can we use use your Honey Challah bread from the cook book to make it right to put in stuffing? I hope it is possible – Jen , you are the absolute best!!!!!!!
Sure, Michelle – that will work but you won’t use the whole homemade challah (it’s huge!). If you don’t want to go to the trouble, it really is fine to substitute another type of bread. Brioche is a good option. Hope that helps!
I have used this stuffing for our family dinner the last few years – absolutely divine! I would never want to make something else: so rich, comforting, there truly are no words for this (and also the brussels sprouts gratin). Your dishes are truly top notch, and I appreciate you so much and the work you put into this. You are a true holiday hero, Jen!!!!!
Hello,
I love your recipes and use them them constantly.
I am having a vegetarian family over for thanksgiving. I would like to use this recipe but they do not like Mushrooms. Any suggestions on what I could use substitute the mushrooms with? I really appreciate your help. Thank You so much.
Hi Rani, Glad you like the recipes! The one other vegetable that may work here in place of mushrooms is cauliflower, chopped into very small pieces, but I also think you could get away with just omitting the mushrooms. The onions and celery will provide plenty of flavor.
Really do not like to use celery but do when absolutely necessary. Can you use the spice of celery seed as a substitute for this and some of your other recipes?
Sure, Carol – that’s fine. You can also just omit it, if you like.
I wonder if these ingredients could be adapted for a stuffed mushroom recipe? They are one of my favorite fall and holiday treats.
I think that’s a great idea!
I found dried wild mushrooms. Can I use them dry or do I have to add water to them?
Thanks!
Hi Mary, I would reconstitute them before using. I’d love to know how it turns out. 🙂
Hydrating the dried mushrooms worked great! My guests loved the stuffing and couldn’t believe that it didn’t come from a turkey.
So glad – thanks for letting me know!
This is by far the best recipe
Hi Jen!
I loved the taste of this stuffing. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite understand what a “large” loaf of Challah bread meant, and ended up buying the only one in the store (I think it may have been “medium” sized rather than “large”). It may be useful to add __cups to the end of the challah bread to know how much we’re working with. 3 cups of chicken broth added to mixture was a bit too much. I might try adding a little bit less chicken broth, maybe 2 cups, to the “medium sized” challah bread just in case, the next time I try this recipe.
It was my first time making stuffing – I love your recipes and I follow yours to learn how to cook, since I recently started living away from my mom that cooked a lot of things for me 🙂 Thanks for all of your awesome recipes!
Hi Jenny, glad you like the recipes (but sorry to hear you struggled with this one). While they may vary a bit based on where you buy them, a good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that the standard sized challah is 16 ounces. If you find you’ve bought a loaf that weighs less than that, you’ll need to cut back on the liquid a bit. Hope that helps!
I would consider including this information directly in the recipe, i.e., that your recipe contemplates that a challah loaf is 16 ounces, especially since the bread to liquid ratio is, as you’ve noted, key. It took some time for me to unearth this vital tidbit in the comments.
Done!
I made this stuffing for myThanksgiving meal this year. I have been making similar recipes for years..probably for around 20 years, and this is now the favorite of my family. I really like the use of challah as it adds a little sweetness. I found the amount of spices to be perfect. And you know what, I can give this recipe 5 stars without making any changes.😃😃😃😃😃
I am certain my family will LOVE your stuffing recipe but I am wondering if I could use vegetable broth instead of Chicken stock?
Sure, Sandy – that’ll work fine. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank YOU! I really meant to say vegetable stock. 😊
Excited to try this recipe! What’s the best way to dry the challah? Do i cut it up and stick it in oven overnight or just leave it in one big loaf? Thanks so much!
Hi Lillian, It’s best to cut it into cubes. Enjoy!