Best Sausage Stuffing

If you think stuffing is just a side dish, think again. This Sausage Stuffing is so good, it might just steal the show at your holiday meal. This Sausage Stuffing has golden bread cubes, savoury sausage, buttery herbs, and a crispy top that’s impossible to resist.

Ingredients

• 1 loaf (about 8 cups) day-old bread, cubed (baguette, sourdough, or rye bread)

• 6 sausages

• ¾ cup butter (1½ stick) 

• 5 sage leaves, full

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 3 celery stalks, finely chopped

• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

• ¼ tsp fennel seeds

• 1 tsp thyme

• 1 tsp rosemary

• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

• 2 ¼  cups chicken broth (low sodium if possible)

• salt and pepper to taste

• ¼ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

Method

1. Prep the bread: Cut the bread into cubes and spread the cubed bread on two baking sheets in a single layer.  Lightly toast in a preheated oven at 300°F (150°C) for 20-25 minutes until dry but not browned. Let them cool.

2. Cook Sausages: In a heated skillet drizzle a little olive oil and then add the sausages after taking out the casing.  Allow the sausage meat to brown and cook.  Remove it from the pan with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl leaving behind the fat that may have gotten rendered. 

3. Cook the herbs and vegetables: In the same skillet, melt one stick of butter which is half a cup over medium heat. Toss in the sage leaves and allow them to fry till they turn crispy and infuse the butter with their flavour.  Remove and keep them aside for garnishing the stuffing.Now to the pan, add the diced onion and celery and cook for 4-5 minutes until soft and fragrant. Add the finely chopped garlic, fennel seeds, rosemary, thyme.  Saute for about two minutes before transferring it to the bowl with the sausage.  Mix them together until well combined.

4. Mix base: Place toasted bread cubes in a large mixing bowl. Pour the butter-vegetable-herb mixture and finely chopped parsley over and toss gently..

5. Add liquids: In another bowl, whisk together eggs and chicken broth. Pour over the bread mixture, stirring until evenly moistened. The bread should feel damp but not mushy. Add more broth only if it feels too dry. 

6. Bake: Transfer stuffing to a well buttered 9x13-inch baking dish. Cover with foil and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) for 50 minutes.  Then remove the foil  and pour a quarter cup of melted butter on the top before placing the stuffing back in the oven and baking it at the same temperature for another 20-25 minutes or until crispy and golden brown on top.

7. Garnish:  Sprinkle the fried sage leave on the top of the stuffing before serving.