Making your own stuffing/dressing is not as hard as you would think, and tastes so much better than the boxed stuff! Round out your holiday meal with this classic.
Jump to RecipeI can’t believe we are already planning for Thanksgiving! Where has this year gone?!? Seriously. This year has flown by. Although I am not the one cooking Thanksgiving Dinner, I wanted to share a recipe for the best stuffing recipe that is sooooo much better than the boxed stuff you find at the grocery store!
Or I guess, technically, this is a recipe for dressing since I don’t put it in the turkey. I’ve always called it stuffing, though, and I’m not changing! Either way, this is a holiday classic and should not be overlooked on your Thanksgiving table with all of the other delicious side dishes.
Tyler had a great time making this with me since he got to tear up the bread. The size doesn’t matter too much, and the pieces don’t have to be uniform so it’s a great task for kids. The only thing I will suggest with the bread is making sure that they aren’t shredded to tiny bits. That’s what Tyler started to do at first, but then I showed him what we needed and he did much better. You can also purchase fresh bread cubes, but that takes away the fun of tearing it all up by hand.
You can also use cheap bread for this since it is going to have so many other flavors mixed into it. One loaf of bread is enough to make a 9×13 casserole dish full of homemade stuffing. Or you can make your own bread. We used a cheap loaf of white bread, but French bread or Italian bread would also work well. Any type of bread will do, and you can even use slightly stale bread.
This classic stuffing recipe calls for a few different herbs. We like to use fresh herbs whenever possible as it adds the most delicious flavor to the meal.
Homemade Stuffing Step by Step
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter
- 1 onion (chopped)
- 1 loaf white bread
- 1 tbsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp thyme
- 2 tbsp parsley
- 1 tsp celery seed
- 1 tsp celery leaves
- 5 oz chicken broth (or chicken stock)
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350F. In a large skillet, over medium heat, melt the butter. Dice the onion and add it to the melted butter and saute for about 10 minutes, until the onions are soft and slightly translucent.
Meanwhile, break the bread apart into bite-sized chunks and sprinkle with a bit of water. Put all of this in a very large bowl. You may need more than one bowl, depending on the size of the bowl.
Pour the onion mixture over the damp bread. Add the seasonings and stir to combine (I find using your hands works the best as long as it isn’t too hot). I am giving a suggested amount of seasonings, but you can increase or decrease depending on your preferences.
Grease a 9×13 casserole dish and gently pour the bread mixture into the dish. Don’t pack the bread down or stir it around, just make sure it is in a mostly even layer. Sprinkle the bread with the chicken broth.
Bake uncovered for about 40 minutes until the bread is golden brown and crunchy on the outsides.
Homemade Stuffing Leftovers
Storage: Store leftover stuffing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Let it come to room temperature before storing.
Reheating: The best way to reheat leftover stuffing is in the oven. For best results, to prevent dry bread, sprinkle with a bit more chicken broth before reheating.
Freezing: Homemade stuffing can be frozen in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. I suggest putting it in small containers so you can thaw only what you want at the time.
Homemade Stuffing Recipe
Originally Published On: November 23, 2016
Last Updated On: June 16, 2023
Homemade Stuffing
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter
- 1 onion (chopped)
- 1 loaf white bread
- 1 tbsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp thyme
- 2 tbsp parsley
- 1 tsp celery seed
- 1 tsp celery leaves
- 5 oz chicken broth
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F
- In a large skillet, over medium heat, melt the butter
- Dice the onion and add it to the pan and saute for about 10 minutes, until the onions are soft and slightly translucent
- Meanwhile, break the bread into bite-sized chunks
- Sprinkle the bread with a bit of water to dampen it and place it in a very large bowl
- Pour the onion mixture over the bread and add the seasonings
- Stir to combine (I find using your hands works best as long as it isn’t too hot)
- Grease a 9×13 casserole dish and pour the bread into it without packing it down
- Sprinkle the bread with chicken broth
- Bake uncovered for about 40 minutes, until golden brown and crunchy
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutrition content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
More Thanksgiving Recipes
- Leftover Turkey Tortellini Soup
- Turkey Gravy from Scratch
- Smooth and Creamy Mashed Cauliflower and Potatoes
- Instant Pot Turkey Roasted to Perfection
- Grandpa’s Sweet Potato Casserole
- Buttermilk Biscuits
- Ambrosia Salad
- Roasted Butternut Squash
- Pumpkin Pie
- Cranberry Sauce Leftovers in Mini Jello Cups
- Homemade Stuffing or Dressing Recipe with Fresh Bread
- Creamy Homemade Mashed Potatoes
- Easy Apple Pie
- Chicken and Dumplings
we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving here although i like to celebrate Friendsgiving! I always gather with my best friends during November weekends to celebrate my bday on different saturdays 😀
That still sounds like a great reason to get-together! We are going to do a Friendsgiving this year with a group of friends before the actual holiday.
A very timely recipe! I will have to refer back to it if we ever do NOT go to my in-laws’ for T’giving, since my FIL has his own way of doing bird and stuffing so no one else ever gets to touch those…
Hah, I totally understand! There are a few things that we have family members make like that, too. For example, my grandpa is always in charge of the squash that he makes.
LOLROTF! In this case, it is more my FIL (and my hubby for that matter) are as possessive of “their” kitchens for “big” meals as anything else! This year, though, we may just get to host T’giving since my mama will probably still be with us while recovering after her recent surgery…
I love love stuffing but have had no idea how to make it from scratch without a turkey or chicken, so this is perfect! Definitely something I will try!
I’ve never actually made it in the bird! My family has always had it on the side like this.
Yum you always make delicious looking food! Fresh herbs, bread and butter, its hard to go wrong with this home stuffing recipe!
It’s so easy to put together, and so few ingredients really, but it ends up so much better than the packaged stuffing!
I agree, year is almost gone and I didn’t turn around yet. I do home something very similar to this. It is delicious. I will try your recipe too. 🙂
It’s crazy how fast the year seems to fly by us! I hope you enjoy this version as much as your own 🙂
Thanksgiving Day is one tradition I wish we had in my country. But again we don’t need a day, we can express our gratitude every day I believe. That stuffing looks delicious and easy to make.
I couldn’t agree more! We should be thankful and grateful every day for what we have. I try to practice that philosophy myself and with my boys. But having a day for a delicious feast and reason to get together with the entire family is always a bonus.
Stuffing is one of my favorite parts of the holiday meals. This looks like it would be so delicious!
Mine too, the stuffing and the mashed potatoes are usually piled high on my plate!
I love stuffing! My hubby always makes his own – it’s so much nicer than the packet stuff, isn’t it! Will get him to give your recipe a try for a change…
Oh my gosh, yes, homemade is so much better. It’s fresher and usually has more flavor, too. I hope you guys like this take on it when you try it!
I am a huge fan of stuffing and have never made it myself. I would love to change that and I like that you didn’t need a bird to make it happen!
My family has had stuffing as a side dish a lot when I was growing up. But it was always the boxed package. I don’t know that I’ve ever had it from the bird!
I love Thanksgiving dinner! This recipe looks super easy. I’m going to have to try it out.
It’s much easier than I thought it would be to make from scratch. And it tastes so much better than packaged stuffing.
The stuffing looks so delicious! I would love to do it for Thanksgiving, so easy.
I’ve made it a few times for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It’s easy to do and tastes much better than boxed stuffing.