Make-Ahead Southern Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage

5 from 3 votes

Make-Ahead Southern Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage

Looking for the perfect side dish to complete your holiday feast? This Make-Ahead Southern Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage is a flavorful, crowd-pleasing favorite. Made with Southern-style cornbread, savory sausage, and a blend of fresh herbs, this dish brings a comforting Southern twist to traditional stuffing.

Prep Time20

Cook Time1 50

Drying of cornbread1

Total Time3 10

Course: Christmas, Side Dish, Thanksgiving

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 570kcal

Author: Chula King

Equipment

10-inch cast iron pan
half-sheet pan
Large Skillet
Large Bowl
9 x 13-inch casserole dish

Ingredients

Southern-Style Cornbread (See Tip 1)

1 ¼ cups (10 ounces) Buttermilk, room temperature
4 Tablespoons (2 ounces, ½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 cup (5.5 ounces) yellow cornmeal
1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Southern Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage

1 recipe Southern-style cornbread from above
1 pound (16 ounces) breakfast sausage (See Tip 2)
¾ cup (6 ounces) unsalted butter
2 cups Onions, chopped (1 large onion)
1 ½ cups Celery, chopped (6 to 8 stalks)
¼ cup (2 ounces) apple cider vinegar
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth, divided
1 cup (4 ounces) chopped pecans, toasted (See Tip 3)
½ cup flat-leaf parsley, minced
2 tablespoons fresh sage, minced
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, minced
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs

Instructions

Southern-Style Cornbread

While the cast iron skillet is preheating, add the melted butter to the buttermilk. Then, whisk in the eggs. Set aside.
Whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir just until combined
Remove the skillet from the oven. Brush the bottom and sides with the vegetable oil. Pour the cornbread batter into the prepared skillet. Bake in a preheated 425°F oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cover. (Tip 4)
Cut the cornbread into 1 ½-inch pieces. (See Tip 5).
Yield: 9 cups of cornbread cutes.

Southern Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage.

Preheat oven to 250°F. Transfer the cornbread cubes to a rimmed half-sheet pan in a single layer. Bake, stirring halfway through, until dried out, about 1 hour. Let cool. Transfer to a very large mixing bowl.
Meanwhile, cook and crumble the sausage in a large skillet over medium heat until browned. Drain well on a paper towel-lined plate. Add to the cornbread, but do not stir.
Heat ¾ cup butter in same skillet; add onions and celery and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add to cornbread in bowl, but do not stir.
Return the skillet to the stovetop over medium heat. Add the vinegar; cook, scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pan, for 1 minute. Pour into a bowl with cornbread. Gently fold in 1 ½ cups broth, pecans, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Allow to cool.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
Whisk 1 ½ cups of chicken broth and eggs in a small bowl. Fold gently into the cornbread mixture until thoroughly combined, taking care not to break up the cornbread (the mixture will look wet). Transfer to prepared dish, cover with foil, and bake in the preheated 350°F oven for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and uncover. (See Tip 6)
Return to the oven, uncovered, for 45 minutes longer until set and the top is browned and crisp.
Yield: 10 servings.

Video

Notes

I'm including my recipe for Southern-style cornbread, but feel free to use your favorite. For this recipe, you will need around 9 cups of cornbread cubes.
I used Jimmy Dean Hot sausage, but feel free to use your favorite sausage.
Spread the pecan pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 8 minutes, watching carefully to ensure that the pecans don't burn.
Cornbread works much better if it's a day old. Once it reaches room temperature, store it in a Ziploc bag.
I used a pizza cutter to cut the cornbread, but you could also use a bread knife.
If desired, this can be made up to one day ahead. Let cool to room temperature. Then, cover and refrigerate. If chilled, add an additional 10 to 15 minutes to the final baking time.

Nutrition