Looking for a homemade Stuffing Recipe that is moist, packed with flavor, and beautiful on your holiday table? Then you have come to the right place! But maybe you are wondering how it got the name “World’s WORST Stuffing”? Read on my friend.
World’s Worst Stuffing Recipe
So you actually came here looking for a GOOD stuffing recipe, right? Well, you are in the right place. This stuffing recipe is one that has been perfected over many years of trial, error, and feedback from family and friends.
It all started many years ago when I hosted my very first Thanksgiving. I had never done it before, had no clue what to do, and relied heavily upon pre-packaged options, like stuffing. I prepared the stuffing just as the bag told me and served it to a table full of hungry family members, all who were expecting homemade. The look on their faces was priceless when they tried it… they were less than impressed. (To be fair, it was dry and bland.) One of my cousins blurted out, “this stuffing is the WORST!”. I didn’t know what to do, so I laughed. We all did! And then we all devised a plan as to how to make the world’s BEST stuffing. Everyone offered what they loved most about stuffing… the moisture, the cranberries, the bacon, the celery, the flavor, the type of bread… we discussed every detail. Even down to what pan to make it in. And THAT is how this recipe was born.
The next year when the family arrived they joked, “are we going to have the worst stuffing this year?” But after trying the new homemade recipe, everyone agreed. It was the BEST!
I still get requests for my “world’s worst stuffing” and am happy to oblige!
Stuffing Recipe
So technically the recipe below is a dressing because I did not specify that it has to be stuffed into the turkey. (Although we do love it that way!) A stuffing recipe goes into the bird, a dressing recipe gets cooked in a pan. However, I am from the midwest and we call it stuffing no matter where you cook it.
I like to use yellow, white, or sweet onions in this recipe. You don’t need any extra color as the cranberries provide a beautiful pop of deep red and you don’t need the extra sweetness a red onion can provide.
My favorite thing about this recipe is how moist it is. I have had (and made!!) dry stuffing and there is nothing worse then crunching down on bread that lacks flavor. You will not have that problem with this recipe.
Another thing of note, this is a big recipe. Stuffing is the favorite side dish of 3 of my 5 children so I always make enough for leftovers!
Skillet Stuffing
I love what cooking this recipe in a skillet does. All that amazing flavor from the bacon and onions and seasonings gets cooked to perfection when using a cast iron skillet. Other than in the bird itself, it’s the only way I prepare stuffing now. Once you try your stuffing in a skillet, you will be hooked too!
How to Reheat Stuffing
Remove stuffing from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature. Then, warm it in a 350°F oven, covered, for about 30 minutes. If the stuffing looks too dry, add chicken stock, leftover turkey drippings, or gravy. I have also added a couple of tablespoons of butter to my skillet, let melt, then added the stuffing and cooked for about 10 minutes stirring frequently.
I do not put stuffing in the microwave, I just don’t particularly enjoy the texture of the heated stuffing. It’s all soft and sort of melts in your mouth.
World’s WORST Stuffing Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick or 113g) salted butter
- 2 medium onions, cut into ¼-inch dice (about 3 cups)
- 6 ribs celery with leaves, cut into ¼-inch dice (about 2 1/2 cups)
- 4 slices thick cut bacon, cut into small chunks
- 2 loaves (9-inch each) of french bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
- ⅓ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 teaspoon celery salt
- 1 teaspoon dried sage, crumbled
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 4 cups warm chicken stock, divided
Instructions
- In 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, add butter and cook until melted. Add bacon to skillet and cook 5-10 minutes until bacon is cooked through and starting to get crispy. (There should be a lot of liquid in the pan.)
- Stir in onion and celery, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally for about 5-10 minutes. You want onions to be translucent. Transfer the onions and celery to a large bowl (the bigger, the better).
- Add bread cubes, parsley, celery salt, sage, rosemary, thyme, cranberries, salt, and pepper.
- Stir in 3 ½ cups warm chicken stock.
- If using to stuff turkey: Use immediately to fill cavities of turkey.
- If baking entire recipe as side dish: Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Transfer all ingredients back to original skillet. Drizzle with an additional ½ cup hot stock. Cover with aluminum foil and bake until heated through, about 30 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
I like the look of EVERYTHING on that table. Love your recipe’s.
Do you dry the bread crumbs???
How many cups of cubed bread does your two 9-inch loaves equate to? The French bread I bought is longer but after cubing it up, does not look at all to be enough. A measurement in cups would be very helpful for me!
4-5 cups
I would love to try your World’s Worst Stuffing Recipe it looks very good!
Just wondering if you are drying your breadcubes?
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a massive hit! I used two 15 inch french loaves chopped into 1.5cm cubes air dried the day before making the stuffing. I was worried the extra bread would dillute the flavour but it turned out great! Making again for Christmas due to popular demand.
Could you use Pepperidge Farm Stuffing instead of French Bread?
So funny how different we all call food. We say dressing here in the south and it is made with corn bread.
Your background story reminds me of my first attempt at putting together a Thanksgiving dinner. Found a wonderful recipe for stuffing using sausage, apples, nuts and rice. It was superb, but I had made a lot of it for a big bird and every time I reheated it, with the gravy, it swelled and I ended up with as much as I started with. Delicious but…This was in pre-freezer days, so we
ate that stuffing until it was gone. As I recall, it was fairly near Christmas when we finished…
Would love to try this recipe – however one of my daughters has a very serious allergy to celery (I know – strange – however the allergist explained it is not common but can be deadly – so very serious). My question is do you have any suggestions to use other than celery as well as the celery salt. Very difficult to find a stuffing recipe that does not use celery.
I just omit it! I am not a big celery fan so when I am making stuffing for myself I don’t use it. 🙂
Hi, can I use a regular skillet rated for the oven if I don’t have a cast iron?
Yes!