Homemade ingredients come together beautifully in this rustic sourdough stuffing recipe. Dutch oven sourdough bread and venison sausage soaked in a butter and homemade stock mixture, tossed with fresh herbs and garden veggies make this side dish the perfect addition to any holiday meal.
Why You'll Love This Recipe:
Unique Flavor Profile: This classic recipe with a few wild additions has so much flavor you'll love every bite! From the rustic flavor of homemade sourdough bread with crispy edges and chewy texture to the herby venison sausage all coated in butter and homemade stock, this stuffing recipe can't be beat!
Comforting: Is there anything more comforting than a pan full of homemade, buttery stuffing? I don't think so. This stuffing recipe is the ultimate comfort food with so many homemade ingredients.
Perfect for Leftovers: Don't worry if you have leftover stuffing, it's even better the next day! Store it in an airtight container and heat it up when you need it. It's great for any meal of the day!
Ingredient Notes:
- Sourdough: This recipe is a great way to use stale sourdough bread or day-old bread. If your loaf of bread is fresh, it will need to be dried out before you use it in stuffing. See the instructions below for how to prepare fresh bread for stuffing. Other sturdy breads like French bread, artisan bread, or hearty white sandwich bread will work as a substitute.
- Venison Sausage: Homemade venison breakfast sausage is used in this recipe. You can substitute it with another type of breakfast sausage, pork sausage, classic country sausage, or your favorite kind of sausage.
- Stock: I used homemade pheasant stock for this stuffing because it's what I had on hand. But, you can use chicken stock, chicken broth, turkey broth, or vegetable broth instead.
- Herbs: Fresh sage leaves and thyme sprigs give this stuffing its signature flavor. However, you can substitute other fresh herbs or dried herbs as well. Fresh rosemary, marjoram, or oregano would make nice additions.
Step by Step Instructions:
How To Prepare Bread for Stuffing:
Fresh bread can be used for stuffing but it needs to be dried out first otherwise you'll have soggy stuffing.
Step 1: To dry bread for stuffing, cut the bread into 1-inch cubes.
Step 2: Then, spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet and leave the pan of bread cubes on the kitchen counter at room temperature for a day or 2 to let them dry out fully. This only works if you live in a dry climate.
Step 3: Alternatively, you can bake the bread cubes in a 200°F oven for 1-2 hours.
Step 4: Once your bread cubes are fully dried, you're ready to make stuffing!
Pro Tip: If you have a few slices of stale bread, cut them into bite-sized pieces and freeze them in a ziploc bag. Add to it as you get more bread and once the bag is full, make this stuffing recipe!
How to Make Sourdough Stuffing with Sausage:
This stuffing recipe is fairly traditional with the addition of a couple of wild ingredients like venison breakfast sausage and homemade pheasant stock. You can use whatever sausage or stock you have available to you. Read below for how to make this delicious stuffing recipe!
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish or 2 8x8 baking dishes with butter.
Step 2: Place dried bread cubes in a large mixing bowl or into the greased 9x13 casserole dish. If you're making 2 smaller pans, it is easier to mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and then divide the stuffing between the 2 pans.
Step 3: Heat a cast iron pan or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add in breakfast sausage.
Step 4: Break up the meat until it makes a layer on the bottom of the pan. Let it cook for a while (3-5 minutes) before stirring or flipping it.
Step 5: Once the bottom layer of meat has a nice crisp to it, flip the meat and redistribute it in the pan. Continue cooking until all meat is browned, about 3-5 minutes longer.
Step 6: Add the browned sausage to the bowl or baking dish with the bread cubes.
Step 7: Reduce the heat to medium-low. Melt butter in the pan.
Step 8: Add in onions, celery, and garlic. Season with salt and black pepper. Stir to coat the vegetables and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until softened.
Step 9: Add chopped sage and thyme to the vegetable mixture in the pan. Stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.
Step 10: Add 1 cup of stock to the pan and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Step 11: Add the vegetable and stock mixture to the bowl or baking dish with the sausage and bread mixture.
Step 12: Combine the remaining 1 cup of stock with the egg. I like to use a jar and shake up the stock and egg but you can also use a bowl and a whisk.
Step 13: Add the stock and egg mixture to the bowl with the stuffing mixture. Stir to coat the bread cubes in the stock mixture and make sure all ingredients are evenly distributed in the stuffing.
Step 14: Transfer the stuffing mix to the prepared baking dish(es) if necessary. Cover with aluminum foil.
Step 15: Bake stuffing in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.
Step 16: Remove the foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F and the top is golden brown and crispy. Serve hot and enjoy!
Pro Tip: The stuffing mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance and baked on the day you want to serve it. If you store uncooked stuffing in a casserole dish in the fridge, make sure you preheat the oven with the dish in it so the abrupt temperature change doesn't break your pan! You will need to adjust the cooking time a bit if you're starting with a cold oven and casserole dish.
More Ways to Use Day-Old Sourdough:
What to Serve with Sourdough Stuffing:
This homemade stuffing recipe is the perfect addition to any holiday meal. You can serve it with classic Thanksgiving meal side dishes like mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, roasted squash, sweet potato casserole, etc. Or for a non-traditional holiday menu, pair it with sous vide pheasant, fennel orange salad, and white wine. However you choose to serve it, this is sure to become your go-to stuffing recipe!
Recipe FAQ's:
A sturdy bread like sourdough is great for stuffing because it holds its shape well and doesn't get soggy.
Bread cubes should be completely dry before using them in stuffing. This allows the bread to soak up all the flavorful goodness in the stuffing without becoming soggy.
The bread mixture should absorb most of the wet ingredients with a little bit of moisture in the bottom of the pan before baking. The remaining liquid in the bottom of the pan will be absorbed during the baking process leading to the perfect stuffing texture with soft bread in the middle and crispy edges on the outside.
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Recipe:
Sourdough Stuffing with Venison Sausage
Ingredients
- 9 cups sourdough bread cubes, dried (¾"-1")
- 1 lb venison breakfast sausage
- ¾ cup salted butter
- 2 cup yellow onion, ¼" diced
- 1 ½ cup celery, ¼" diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt (adjust depending on saltiness of stock)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon fresh sage, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, finely chopped
- 2 cup stock, divided (pheasant, chicken, or vegetable)
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Drying Bread Cubes: To dry bread cubes, you can spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a sheet pan and leave the pan of bread cubes on the kitchen counter for a day or 2 to let them dry out fully. This only works if you live in a dry climate. Alternatively, you can bake the bread cubes in a 200°F oven for 1-2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish or 2 8x8 baking dishes with butter.
- Place dried bread cubes in a large bowl or into the greased 9x13 baking dish. If you're making 2 smaller pans, it is easier to mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and then divide the stuffing between the 2 pans.
- Heat a cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Add in breakfast sausage. Break up the meat until it makes a layer on the bottom of the pan. Let it cook for a while (3-5 minutes) before stirring or flipping it.
- Once the bottom layer of meat has a nice crisp to it, flip the meat and redistribute in the pan. Continue cooking until all meat is browned, about 3-5 minutes longer. Add the cooked sausage to the bowl or baking dish with the bread cubes.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the butter and let it melt. Add in onions, celery, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Stir to coat the vegetables and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until softened.
- Add chopped sage and thyme to the pan. Stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.
- Add 1 cup of stock to the pan and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the vegetable and stock mixture to the bowl or baking dish with the bread cubes and sausage.
- Combine the remaining 1 cup of stock with the egg. I like to use a jar and shake up the stock and egg but you can also use a bowl and a whisk.
- Add the stock and egg mixture to the bowl with the other ingredients. Stir to coat the bread cubes in the stock mixture and make sure all ingredients are evenly distributed in the stuffing.
- Transfer the stuffing to the greased pan(s) if necessary. Cover with foil.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F and the top is golden brown and crispy.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe is a great way to use stale sourdough bread or day-old bread. If your loaf of bread is fresh, it will need to be dried out before you use it in stuffing. See the instructions below for how to prepare fresh bread for stuffing. Other sturdy breads like French bread, artisan bread, or hearty white sandwich bread will work as a substitute.
- Homemade venison breakfast sausage is used in this recipe. You can substitute it with another type of breakfast sausage, pork sausage, classic country sausage, or your favorite kind of sausage.
- I used homemade pheasant stock for this stuffing because it's what I had on hand. But, you can use chicken stock, chicken broth, turkey broth, or vegetable broth instead.
- Fresh sage leaves and thyme sprigs give this stuffing its signature flavor. However, you can substitute other fresh herbs or dried herbs as well. Fresh rosemary, marjoram, or oregano would make nice additions.
- If you have a few slices of stale bread on hand, cut them into bite-sized pieces and freeze them in a ziploc bag. Add to it as you get more bread and once the bag is full, make this stuffing recipe!
- The stuffing mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance and baked on the day you want to serve it. If you store uncooked stuffing in a casserole dish in the fridge, make sure you preheat the oven with the dish in it so the abrupt temperature change doesn't break your pan! You will need to adjust the cooking time a bit if you're starting with a cold oven and casserole dish.
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