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Grandma’s Old Fashioned Stuffing Recipe is back for Thanksgiving! Made with day old French bread and fresh sage, let the memories of yesteryear flood in! Serve with delicious roast turkey and homemade turkey gravy along with all of your favorite Thanksgiving dishes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
Grandma’s recipes often carry a strong sense of nostalgia. The familiar taste and aroma can transport us back to fond memories of family gatherings and the holidays, creating a comforting experience. This recipe is no different. The balance of flavors and the texture of this stuffing might be exactly what you remember (and crave!) during Thanksgiving or Christmas time.
Stuffing vs Dressing
Some people call this side dish dressing while others call it stuffing. The reason is because a stuffing recipe is usually stuffed inside the raw turkey and cooked along with it. While dressing is the version of stuffing that is baked outside of a turkey and in a casserole dish.
So technically this is a dressing recipe, but for simplicity and for consistency with my other stuffing recipes, I’ll call this dish, stuffing, throughout the post.
Ingredients Needed
Here is a list of every ingredient needed to make this classic stuffing recipe for your Thanksgiving dinner. It’s the best stuffing recipe using very simple ingredients.
- olive oil and butter– used for flavoring and to sauté the vegetables.
- onion and celery– a classic combo that brings tons of flavor
- French bread– day old, stale bread. Other white bread can also be used, like ciabatta or wheat bread. Just make sure it’s dried out a bit and cut into small pieces. Bonus points for baking your own homemade bread earlier in the week!
- poultry seasoning– a blend of thyme, sage, black pepper, marjoram, rosemary and nutmeg- a classic seasoning used in stuffing.
- salt and black pepper– seasoning for flavoring
- chicken stock or turkey stock- used to moisten the cubed bread. Chicken broth or turkey broth can be used. Try making your own bone broth to take this dish over the top with delicious flavor! Grandma probably did!
- whole eggs– binds all the ingredients together
- fresh sage– brings an earthy, lemony, slightly peppery flavor to this dish. 1 tsp of ground sage can be used substituted.
How to Make Grandma’s Old Fashioned Stuffing Recipe
This old fashioned stuffing recipe is full of classic flavors and is a family favorite of ours. For full recipe details including ingredients and measurements see the printable recipe card down below. Here is step by step what you can expect when making this recipe:
Preheat Oven + Prep Casserole Dish
Preheat your oven to 350° F. Spread melted butter around the bottom and sides of a large casserole dish (9×13 pan). Set Aside.
Saute Onions + Celery
Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat to medium-high heat.
Add olive oil and melt butter in a hot pan and swirl to coat. Add diced onion and celery and sauté until tender, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove pan from heat and add the sautéed vegetables to a large bowl with dry bread crumbs.
Add in poultry seasoning, fresh sage, salt, pepper and half of the chicken stock.
Crack eggs into a small bowl. Whisk together and add to the bread mixture. Stir well.
Add in the remaining chicken stock (or as much as you think it needs to get it moist). Spoon dressing mixture into buttered 9×13 casserole baking dish. Dot the top with tiny cold butter pieces.
Cover With Foil + Bake
Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350° F for 30-45 minutes or until golden brown. Remove foil towards the end if you like crispy pieces. Serve warm.
Storing Leftover Stuffing
Allow stuffing to cool to room temperature. Store leftover stuffing in an airtight container and into the fridge for up to 3-4 days. To reheat, yes you can just heat in the microwave until heated through.
The best way to reheat stuffing is to transfer back to an oven safe dish, cover with foil and bake at 350° F until heated through (probably 20-40 minutes). If you feel like the stuffing is too dry, add a splash or two of stock to it. If you want some crispier pieces, remove the foil for the last 10 minutes.
Make Ahead
Although you can make this stuffing recipe ahead of time it is best fresh out of the oven! I totally get the need to make some dishes the day before or to eat as leftovers.
So to make ahead of time, follow the directions accordingly. Then seal the casserole dish with its lid or by tightly wrapping the top with plastic wrap. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
To reheat, add a little bit of broth on top (to keep from drying out) then bake for 20 minutes or until heated through in an oven at 350° F.
FAQ About Grandma’s Old Fashioned Stuffing Recipe
Generally the fresh herbs to dried herb ratio is 1 TBSP to 1 tsp. So in this recipe you would use 1 tsp of ground sage.
Yes!
To Freeze. Follow the directions and bake your stuffing. Let cool completely then cover your casserole dish (lid or plastic wrap). Pop in the freezer and it should stay good for about a month.
To Reheat. Thaw in your refrigerator overnight. Once thawed add a little bit of broth on top of your stuffing (to keep from drying out). Then bake for 20 minutes or until heated through in an oven at 350° F.
Stuffing should be moist, but not wet. If you have a puddle of broth in the bottom of your casserole dish, you’ve added too much. You can add more bread crumbs to soak up the excess liquid.
More Thanksgiving Stuffing Recipes to Try!
More stuffing recipes if you’re looking for the perfect side dish for your Thanksgiving table-
- Cornbread Stuffing
- Pork Sausage Stuffing Recipe
- Cornbread Sausage Dressing
- Wild Rice Stuffing Recipe with Bacon
- Chicken and Stuffing Casserole (Friendsgiving Casserole)
I hope you enjoy my Grandma’s Old Fashioned Stuffing recipe. It’s a simple homemade stuffing recipe that has stood the test of time. Sometimes it’s the simple touches that mean the most to a holiday meal with friends and loved ones.
Oh and don’t forget the pumpkin pie! 😉 The printable step-by-step recipe card is below. Happy Thanksgiving, friends! 🙂
If you make this recipe, I would really appreciate it if you would give it a star rating and leave your review in the comments! If you have a picture of your finished dish, post it on Instagram using the hashtag #laurenslatest and tagging me @laurens_latest.
Grandma’s Old Fashioned Stuffing Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 cup onion finely diced
- 3 ribs celery finely diced
- 12 cups French bread day old, cubed
- 1 tsp poultry seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock or turkey stock
- 2 whole eggs
- 1 tbsp sage fresh, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp butter cold
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat.
- Add olive oil and butter to hot pan and swirl to coat. Add diced onion and celery and saute until tender, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Remove pan from heat and add sauteed vegetables to a large mixing bowl with bread cubes.
- Add in poultry seasoning, fresh sage, salt, pepper and half the chicken stock.
- Crack eggs into small bowl. Whisk together and add to the bread mixture. Stir well.
- Add in remaining chicken stock (or as much as you think it needs to get it moist). Spoon dressing into buttered casserole dish. Dot the top with tiny cold butter pieces.
- Cover with foil and bake at 350° F for 30-45 minutes. Remove foil towards the end if you like crispy pieces. Serve warm.
