Easy Sausage & Herb Stuffing
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
A family favorite for the holidays, this easy sausage and herb stuffing uses store-bought stuffing cubes, eliminating the step of slicing and drying out the bread.
I used to host elaborate Thanksgiving celebrations, where I’d cook for days on end, only to be completely exhausted by the time my guests arrived on Thanksgiving day. After one glass of wine, I’d be nodding off at the table and dreaming of my pillow. I finally wised up by simplifying my side dishes and desserts. This rich sausage and herb stuffing relies on store-bought stuffing cubes, which eliminates the step of slicing and drying out the bread. Believe me, when you’re using a pound of sausage and an entire stick of butter, and pairing the dish with turkey gravy and cranberry sauce, the type of bread does not matter!
What you’ll need to make Sausage Stuffing
I’ve made this recipe using stuffing cubes from the supermarket (usually made by Arnold or Pepperidge Farm) and “fresh” dried stuffing cubes from Whole Foods — both work well, but if you can get the ones from Whole Foods, they add a bit more texture (they are sold in a plastic bag labeled “stuffing cubes”).
As for the sausage, try to find bulk Italian sausage, which is simply sausage without the casings. If you can’t find it, just buy regular Italian sausage and remove the casings; the best way is to cut straight through the sausages with kitchen shears and then peel the casings off (this is much more efficient than trying to squeeze the meat out).
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by melting a stick of butter in a large sauté pan. Add the chopped onions and celery.
Cook until soft, about 8 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook a few minutes more.
Transfer the vegetables to a large bowl. In the same pan, cook the sausage until browned.
As it cooks, use a  metal spatula to break it apart into small pieces.
Add the sausage to the stuffing cubes and veggies. Then add the broth, egg, herbs, salt and pepper.
Mix well.
Transfer the contents to a buttered 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Bake for 65-75 minutes, until the top is golden brown and crisp.
Enjoy!
Video Tutorial
You may also like
- Cornbread and Sausage Stuffing
- Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes
- Challah, Wild Mushroom & Herb Stuffing
- Best Thanksgiving Side Dishes
Easy Sausage & Herb Stuffing
A family favorite for the holidays, this easy sausage and herb stuffing uses store-bought stuffing cubes, eliminating the step of slicing and drying out the bread.
Ingredients
- 8 cups (400g) store-bought unseasoned stuffing cubes
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter
- 1½ cups diced yellow onion (from 1 large or 2 small onions)
- 1 cup diced celery (from 3 large celery stalks)
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 pound bulk sweet Italian sausage (i.e., sausage with the casings removed) -- see note below
- 2¾ cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped sage
- ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with butter.
- Place the stuffing cubes in a large mixing bowl.
- In a large sauté pan, melt the butter. Add the onions and celery and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft. Add the garlic and cook 2 minutes more. Add the vegetables to the stuffing cubes. (Don't wash the pan but scrape out every last bit of vegetables, otherwise they will burn in the next step.)
- In the same pan, cook the sausage over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, until browned and cooked through, breaking up the sausage with a metal spatula while cooking (the largest pieces should be no greater than ¼-inch). Add the browned sausage and fat to the bread cubes and vegetables.
- Add the chicken broth, egg, rosemary, sage, parsley, salt and pepper to the bread cube mixture and mix until the bread is soft and moistened. Transfer the stuffing to the prepared baking dish and bake for 65-75 minutes, uncovered, until deeply golden and crisp on top.
- Note: If you can't find bulk sausage, simply buy regular sausage and remove the casings.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The stuffing can be assembled up to a day ahead and refrigerated until ready to bake; follow the baking instructions in the recipe. It can also can be frozen after baking, tightly covered, for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to serve it, defrost in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Reheat it, covered with foil, in a 325°F oven until hot.
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Per serving (10 servings)
- Calories: 467
- Fat: 28 grams
- Saturated fat: 10 grams
- Carbohydrates: 40 grams
- Sugar: 5 grams
- Fiber: 6 grams
- Protein: 15 grams
- Sodium: 1,063 mg
- Cholesterol: 57 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.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I just made your dressing tonight and will freeze it for 2 days then thaw on Wednesday for about 24 hours. I assume that I should thaw in the fridge and reheat at 350 degees for about 30 mins. Does that sound about right? Thank you!!
Hi Jenna, I’d actually reheat it at 325°F, covered. And I would guess it would take about 30 minutes as you mentioned. Enjoy!
Hi Jenn. Great recipe. My aunt used to make something like this but I think using hot Italian sausage. I would like to have some kick to it if possible. Would this work with both hot and sweet sausage?
Yep, definitely. 🙂
I love your recipes when I am looking for something and Once upon a chef comes up I don’t look any further. I bought good white bread to dry will that change the texture?
So glad you like the recipes, Barbara! Your white bread will work as long as you dry it out to the consistency of croutons (you could toast it in the oven, too).
Can you used herb seasoned bread stuffing cubes?
Yes — just cut the added seasoning and salt in half and then add more to taste if needed. Enjoy!
After reading such great reviews I really want to give this a try. I thought I purchased plain cubed stuffing but it is Pepperidge Farm Herb seasoned. Can I use this instead?
Yes, but you’ll need to cut the salt and herbs in half. Just add more to taste if necessary. Hope you enjoy!
Hi 🙂 I can’t wait to try this for Thanksgiving! My question is, can I substitute apple sauce for the large egg? If so, how much apple sauce would you suggest?
Yes, Ali, I think you could use applesauce in place of the egg (make sure it’s unsweetened). You’ll need about 1/4 cup. Please LMK how it turns out!
This sounds like a recipe my mother made. But she used a combination of ground beef and pork sausage. I want to try it. Do you suggest using one pound of each? Also, she did not precook the meat. Instead, she mixed it all up and baked into a casserole dish. Any suggestions?
Thanks.
Hi Rose, I think all sausage will give you the best flavor but if you wanted to try half ground beef, it will work. I would cook them both first though.
What about venison sausage bulk?
That will work 🙂
I forgot to rate this in my last comment. It is 5-star plus!!! The last stuffing/dressing recipe you’ll ever need to search for. I sometimes sub the Italian sausage for breakfast sausage, both are amazing. Thanks for sharing a wonderful recipe that now is a part of our family tradition!
I plan to make this for thanksgiving this year, but I was wondering if I could ditch the celery?
You could just omit it or replace it with something else — some nice options are peeled and diced apple or diced fennel. Hope you enjoy!
Made this recipe for our family Thanksgiving this weekend and everyone loved it. I doubled the batch as we had 8 adults and 4 kids. I also added a pound of bacon as well and everyone said it had great flavor. Next time I might used powdered garlic or already minced garlic because it stunk up my house and was kinda messy to handle. But this one will definatly go in the must use again recipes. Just make sure you have plenty of time to prep, as stuffing from scratch takes a while to prepare. Thanks for sharing.
Morning Michele, I was wondering if I could use sage sausage? Dot
Sure, Dorothy – just omit the sage in the recipe. Enjoy!
Hello – this recipe sounds great and similar to what I typically make, but I have not yet tried it. I was just wondering if it would be ok to use croutons (I have Chatham Village sea salt and butter) instead of the stuffing cubes? I don’t see why not, but do appreciate your opinion!!
Hi Kathy, Croutons will definitely work but if they are salted, I’d cut the salt in the recipe in half. Hope that helps!
Can you use dried herbs?
Hi Wendy, You can use 1 teaspoon each dried sage and rosemary. I wouldn’t use dried parsley though; you can just leave that out if you don’t have it. Hope that helps!
i am planning on using this recipe ..and then i read way down on the comments! it said.. NOT sourdough bread!.. yikes..i just bought 2 big bags of them from Costco .. one for house and one for church donation! why not recommended? anything i can do to correct a flavor if not good to use?
thanks Nora
Hi Nora, I wouldn’t worry – the sourdough will still be good without any changes. I saw the comment you’re referring to and I was just trying to suggest something that would be closest in flavor to the unseasoned plain stuffing cubes. Hope that helps!
Hello,
I am planning on making this. Is the egg absolutely necessary?
Hi Rebecca, The egg moistens the stuffing and binds it together, but it will still work without it. Hope you enjoy!
One of our family members always made sausage dressing for holidays, it was always the talk of the dinner But after finding this recipe I believe I now hold the top honors for the best dressing on the holidays. 🤓
can this recipe be used to stuff the turkey?
Yes, but I’d reduce the broth by about 1/2 cup so it isn’t too soggy (the turkey’s cavity will add moisture to the stuffing). Hope you enjoy!
Would this recipe be good with adding sun-dried tomatos? If so would you do anything special and how much would you add?
Thank you!
Sun-dried tomatoes sound like an unconventional addition to this, but I suppose it would work. If they are dried, you’d want to rehydrate them first. If they’re packed in oil, I’d drain off any oil. Either way, I would dice them before incorporating. 🙂
I hope this isn’t too late for my question.
Could I use Italian turkey sausage rather than pork sausage without making a huge different in the flavor?
By the way, thank you for the many wonderful, never-fail recipes. Many of them have become staples for my family.
Happy Thanksgiving
So glad you like the recipes, Mary! It’s perfectly fine to substitute turkey sausage without any other adjustments. Happy Thanksgiving!
Hello! Could I use seasoned stuffing instead of plain stuffing?
Yes, Briana — I would cut the salt and herbs in half, then add more to taste before baking if necessary.
How about breakfast sausage in this recipe?
That would work – hope you enjoy!
I really wanna make this for Thanksgiving but want to use dried herbs instead. How much dried herbs of each should I use instead of fresh?
Hi Mandi, I’d recommend about 1 teaspoon each of the rosemary and sage, but I’d recommend sticking with the fresh parsley. Happy Thanksgiving!
This stuffing is amazing. I never cared for stuffing and I have made this twice for my family and my mother in-law called me last week and said for my to make the stuffing this year again!
How do you feel about adding apple to the recipe?
I think apple would be a great addition! 🙂
Could you elaborate and tell where to add apples? Sounds delicious
I’d dice and add them in with the onions and celery so they can all be sauteed together. Please LMK how it turns out if you make it with the apples!
Hi Jen,
I usually make stuffing and add raisins, do you think it would work well with this recipe ?
Thanks, N.
Sure, Nazela – I don’t see why not. Hope you enjoy!
I made this recipe last Thanksgiving for my nephew who did not like our traditional meat stuffing. He loved it and so did the rest of the family, so this recipe will be used every year with our Thanksgiving feast! Thank you for the all the recipes you share with us!
Hi, this recipe looks wonderful and I am going to try it this year for Thanksgiving. Thanks for posting it. Can I substitute some dried cornbread cut into small pieces for half of the stuffing cubes? I would use the same amount of dried bread ingredients just substitute corn bread for half of it.
Sure, Rhonda, that will work. You may also want to take a peek at my cornbread stuffing. Hope you enjoy whatever you make!
I just realized that the Pepperidge stuffing I bought is not cubed. (…yikes!). I’ve not opened the package but it seems more like crumbs. Will this be a problem? (It says Herb Seasoned Classic Stuffing).
Hi Gabe, that stuffing will work — just omit the salt and sage from the recipe and season to taste. Hope you enjoy!
I have used this recipe the last 2 thanksgivings and plan on using it for many years to come. I even had someone tell me they don’t usually eat stuffing because it’s soggy and flavorless; but they loved this one. I definitely prefer The Whole Foods stuffing cubes for the texture. I used a food processor for my onions, celery, and garlic… I also add a carrot for a little sweetness.
Hi Jenn, I cannot wait to try your sausage and herb stuffing but I have two questions: 1) Can I make this ahead of time? and 2) if I decide to omit the sausage would that alter the recipe any? Thank you!
Hi Anna, Yes, you can make this ahead of time but the sausage in the recipe adds a ton of flavor, so you want to omit it, you may want to check out this recipe instead.
Hi jenn,
I am also interested in making this ahead of time (the day before) since I will be traveling to celebrate with family a couple hours away. How do you recommend reheating it the next day without drying it out?
Hi Deb, Reheat it, covered with foil, in a 325°F oven until hot. (The foil will keep it from drying out.) Enjoy! 🙂
So do you recommend baking it first and then refrigerate- then cover and reheat the next day? I am making tonight for a 6:00 pm dinner tomorrow! Thanks!
Ideally I would prep it tonight, refrigerate, and bake it tomorrow. But if you’re not able to do that, I’d bake it tonight, refrigerate, and reheat tomorrow. Hope that helps!
Can I stuff the turkey with this recipe? It sounds delicious, my nonna made a similar stuffing. Can’t wait to try.
Sure, Barbara – it will work. Just reduce the broth by 1/2 cup so it isn’t too soggy (the turkey’s cavity will add moisture to the stuffing). Hope you enjoy!
Hi! I would like to make this for Thanksgiving but am a little confused by the measurements for the bread cubes. It says 8 cups or 14 oz……….isn’t 8 dry cups 36 ounces? Can you please clarify? Thank you so much!!
Hi Nancy, 14 oz is correct (it’s referring to the weight of the cubes, not the volume). Hope you enjoy! 🙂
Can I cook this recipe in the crockpot?
Hi Stacie, I don’t own a crockpot so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out. But if you’d like to give it a try, here are some conversion tips that may help. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you make it!
I absolutely love this recipe! It has become the only stuffing that I make now.
But I just made it with a 12 oz. bag of cubed stuffing, but never cut back on the chicken broth.
I don’t think the bags come in 14 oz. any longer.
What should I expect???
Thx
Hi Michele, Glad you like this! I’ve heard the same thing from some other readers. I’d cut the broth back to 2 cups to account for the change. 🙂
I’m looking for a stuffing recipe that isn’t dry after it is baked but more on the moist side. How would you rate the moistness of this stuffing?
Hi Diane, The stuffing is pretty moist, but if you get concerned that it’s drying out, you could cover it for the last few minutes of baking. Hope you enjoy if you make it!
I plan on making this for a Friendsgiving but already bought seasoned stuffing cubes and normal (not low sodium) chicken broth. If I omit the additional salt do you think that’ll be okay or still too salty?
Hi Hannah, I think it should still work – I’d just omit the salt and sage. Please LMK how it turns out!
Hi Jenn… I’m planning on making your stuffing recipe for Thanksgiving. I’d like to make a portion of the ingredients and freeze them to minimize my prep time. Can I combine the cooked vegetable mixture with the cooked sausage, freeze the combination and then add the thawed combination to the stuffing cubes, broth, and eggs just prior to cooking?
Hi Joan, I’ve never done that, but I suspect it should work. You can also fully prepare and bake the stuffing and then freeze it if you’d like. See the bottom of the recipe for freezer-friendly instructions.
I also could only find herbed seasoned. Ingredients included rosemary extract. It just mentioned spices, did not mention sage. Should I still include the rosemary and also add the sage? I will be using dried herbs.
Hi Karen, I’d leave out the herbs to start and then just taste before adding to the baking dish. If you think it could use more flavor, add them then.
Can this be cooked and frozen? Thawed and reheated day of?
Yep — see freezer-friendly instructions at the bottom of the recipe. Hope you enjoy!
It looks like Pepperidge Farm stuffing cubes come in 12oz bags now (6.75 cups). Would omitting 2oz of cubes make a big difference?
Hi BK, it should be fine with 12 ounces of bread cubes; just cut the broth back to 2 cups. Hope you enjoy!
I have a large group for Thanksgiving and not all are turkey lovers. I am making both a small turkey and a pork crown roast. I only want to make one stuffing. Would this recipe work for both meats or is there a better choice? Substitute ground pork for Italian sausage?
Hi Joan, I think this stuffing would work for both meats (and I wouldn’t swap out the sausage for ground pork). Hope everyone enjoys!
Oops…I meant pork sausage. But probably stick to the Italian right? Pork sausage may be too much like breakfast. 🙂
Actually, Italian sausage is usually made with pork, so I’d just stick with the recipe. 🙂
I love your recipes. This Thanksgiving I’m going to have my butcher butterfly and debone three turkey breasts and stuff them with an Italian sausage dressing and this one sounds wonderful and just what I need. Do you think this will work? How long and what temperature would you use? Virginia Carter
Hi Virgina, I have a very similar recipe, so I’d follow the baking time and temperature from that one. Hope you enjoy and have a great holiday!
Hello, love your recipes, would it be ok to add brocolli?
I wouldn’t recommend broccoli here – sorry!
I used broccoli stems instead of celery and it turned out amazing. But I didn’t cook them before adding them so they wouldn’t get too mushy 😄
Hi Jen. Thank you so much for the wonderful recipes. If I decided to halve this recipe,what size pan should I bake it in and for how much time? Thanks for your help
Glad you like the recipes! A half recipe of this should fit in an 8 x 8 dish. The baking time should be about the same, but keep an eye on it. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
How would I adjust the herbs if I wanted to use Bell’s poultry seasoning?
Hi Sharon, I’m not familiar with Bell’s poultry seasoning, so hard to say for sure, but if it contains salt, I would definitely reduce the salt in the recipe.
Hi Jenn! I’m in a panic. I made your Easy Sausage & Herb Stuffing and didn’t notice that since I used seasoned stuffing cubes (and didn’t adjust the salt or herbs) I’m afraid it’s going to be too salty and too strong on the herbs. I baked it and put it in the freezer…what can I do when I reheat it on thanksgiving to be less salty and milder herb flavor? Or should I just start over again? Thank you!
Hi Melinda, whether or not you start over depends on how much of a perfectionist you are. 🙂 You can serve this as is – – it won’t be inedible — people just may find it a bit salty.
Do you bake this first and then refrigerate to reheat on Thanksgiving? Or do you just assemble, refrigerate, and then bake on Thanksgiving.
Hi Liz, you can go either way on this one, so just do whichever is most convenient. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
I need to double this recipe. Do I need to alter anything? What size pan would you suggest?
Hi Nancy, You don’t need to alter any of the ingredients, but for even cooking, I’d use two 9×13-inch baking dishes. (It may take about 10 minutes longer in the oven.) Hope that helps!
Hi Jen. I would like to prep this ahead of time for Thanksgiving so that the only step left would be to bake it, however, I am concerned that by combining all of the ingredients it may turn out soggy. What do you suggest? Maybe I should just bake it and refrigerate then reheat it?
Thanks!!!
Hi Mike, you can go either way, but I think the better way to go is to assemble it in advance and bake it right before dinner. (It won’t get too soggy.) Hope you enjoy!
I’m planning to make this for thanksgiving but need to make it a day ahead. Should i bake it halfway or not at all? Any suggestions? Thanks!!
Hi Lisa, I’d refrigerate it unbaked and then fully bake it before the meal. Hope you enjoy!
This was absolutely delicious and everyone raved about it!
I didn’t have any fresh herbs so I used 1/2 tsp of dried thyme and 1.5 tsp of dried sage. It was amazing. The only problem is that if you don’t have two ovens it makes the timing difficult. I recommend cooking it for only an hour in advance. Then microwave it to warm it right before you take out your turkey. Then when you take out your turkey broil it to get it browned and crispy on top.
Turned out amazing and I am definitely not a cook. This will forever be my staple stuffing!
I’m planning to make stuffing with and without sausage. Does the recipe work as is without the sausage? Will I need to modify? Thank you
Hi Blanca, the sausage plays a really important role here as it adds a ton of flavor. If you want a vegetarian option, I’d suggest this recipe instead.
Question- if I’m making day before, do i cook the sausage before putting in fridge? Or is everything uncooked? Thanks
Yes, you would complete all the steps in the recipe with the exception of putting it in the oven. Hope you enjoy!
Hello
I live in Montreal and I can’t find the Pepperidge farms cubed stuffing. What other kind of bread could I use?
Hi Louise, Arnold also makes a version if you can find those. If not, you can substitute your own bread cubes – I would suggest an Italian loaf (anything but sourdough). Hope that helps!
Hi again,
I was able to find some unseasoned cubes (croutons as we call them here) one package is 150 grams. How many packages should I use? Can’t seem to understand the conversion into cups!
Hi Louise, You’ll need 3 packages. 🙂
Hi! I’ve made this for the holidays the past few years and it’s been a big hit! This year I have someone coming who is allergic to celery. Is there anything you think would be a suitable substitute for it in this recipe?
Hi Mallory, several readers have commented that they’ve used a peeled, diced apple in place of the celery. Diced fennel would also work nicely. Hope that helps!
Can this be made in a crockpot?
Hi Heidi, I don’t have a crockpot — I’ve haven’t tried this in one so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out. That said, if you want to give it a try, here are some conversion tips that may help. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you make it in a crockpot!
Hi Jenn….I love your recipes! I need all the space I can in the oven on Thanksgiving. Can this recipe be adapted to a slow cooker? And if so, do you have any suggestions as to timing etc.?
Hi Janis, I’ve never made this in a slow cooker so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out – sorry! If you do want to give it a try, here are some conversion tips that may help. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it this way!
Tried..too salty using bagged seasoned cubes. Plain bread is better, unfortunately.. I hate the step- the bread takes so long but tried one package of Pepperidge farm and people loved it but said it was way too salty ..I’ll go back to using my plain white bread dried out… Always have poured like 3/4 of a cup of a bag seasoning cubed mix in but never just used it completely.
I plan to have Janksgiving with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving. And since my Thanksgiving attempt at stuffing was awful, I’m going to try your recipe instead. Quick question though, in reading the reviews it appears thyme is one of the ingredients. Yet in reading the recipe, I don’t see it in the list of ingredients. And I love thyme, so I was planning to add it anyway. 1 TBSP? like the rosemary and sage? or is it more like the parsley? 1/4 cup?
Thanks.
Leslie
Hi Leslie, Thyme would definitely be a nice addition here (and like the rosemary and sage, I’d add 1 Tbsp.). Hope you enjoy! 🙂
This was an easy recipe and tasted great. Keeping this in file for another time!
I made dressing/stuffing for the first time using this recipe and got rave reviews! A winner.
I want to make this but all I have is maple sausage. Would that work?
Yes definitely!
Another question…are stuffing cubes the same as stuffing croutons?
Thanks!
Yep!