Easy Sausage Cornbread Stuffing Recipe

5 stars from 2 reviews

Sausage Cornbread Stuffing is incredibly moist and delicious! It's the best cornbread stuffing recipe, and you can make it ahead of time!

Author: Donna Elick

Servings:

Prep Time30

Cook Time50

drying time1

Total Time2 20

Ingredients

8 cups Buttermilk Cornbread cubed (1 batch)
1 pound mild Italian sausage
6 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
1 cup diced yellow onion (about 1 medium onion)
1 cup diced celery (about 3 stalks)
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 cups chicken broth or stock
1/2 cup whole milk
2 large eggs beaten
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground sage
Fresh parsley for garnish if desired

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 250°F. Cut the cornbread into 1-inch cubes and spread in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until dried and light brown, about 1 hour. Set aside to cool
Raise oven temperature to 325 °F
In a medium skillet, cook ground sausage until no pink remains. Transfer to an extra large mixing bowl.
To the same skillet, add 2 tablespoons of butter to the leftover sausage grease. Add the onions and celery and saute over medium heat until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and saute for another minute. Transfer the vegetable mixture to the mixing bowl with the sausage.
Add the cooled cornbread cubes to the sausage and vegetable mixture. Toss gently to combine the ingredients.
In a separate medium mixing bowl, whisk together the chicken broth, eggs, milk, salt, pepper, thyme, and sage.
Pour the broth/egg mixture into the bowl of cornbread mixture. Stir gently to combine.
Transfer the stuffing mixture to a greased 9x13-inch baking dish. Cut the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter into pieces and scatter them evenly over the top of the stuffing.
Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until the stuffing is warmed through and the top is golden brown.
Garnish with freshly chopped parsley or other fresh herbs. Serve warm.

Notes

Alternatively, cut the cornbread into cubes and lay it out on a sheet pan at room temperature for 2-3 days to dry out.

No need to drain the extra grease from the skillet before cooking the vegetables - the fat all goes into the stuffing to add flavor and moisture.

Store baked stuffing in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, for 3-4 days. Alternatively, bake, cool to room temperature, transfer to a freezer safe container, and freeze for up to 1 month.

Cornbread does crumble apart more easily than bread. For the least disturbance to the cornbread pieces, you can spread the cornbread, sausage and veggie mixture into the 9x13-inch pan, then pour the broth mixture over the top and use a spoon to gently combine.

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