The Best Traditional Thanksgiving Stuffing — 🧡😋 Nothing frilly or trendy in this recipe. It’s a classic, easy, homemade stuffing that everyone loves!! Simple ingredients with stellar results! It’ll be your new go-to recipe!!
Table of Contents
A Classic Thanksgiving Stuffing Recipe
People love serving this traditional stuffing at Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, and I even receive emails at other times during the year from people who make it and no matter the season — it’s always a hit!
My family are stuffing fanatics for classic and traditional stuffings. No pears, dried fruit and nuts, wild mushrooms, or even bacon or sausage need apply.
Think: old-fashioned stuffing made with day-old bread, onions, celery, butter, and herbs.
The stuffing is lightly crusted and golden on top, soft underneath, full of rich buttery flavor, and well-seasoned from the herbs.
As the stuffing bakes, my house smells exactly like Thanksgiving and like all the Thanksgivings I remember at my mom’s and grandma’s houses growing up smelled. Warm, cozy, comforting, and happy. This is the BEST stuffing recipe ever!
Homemade Stuffing Ingredients
Like I’ve already mentioned, this easy Thanksgiving stuffing recipe calls for simple, straightforward ingredients. Classic, but delicious!
- Onions
- Celery
- Fresh herbs (parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme)
- Butter
- Broth – I use reduced sodium chicken broth, but vegetable broth works too.
- Bread
- Eggs
- Salt and pepper – season to taste
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make the Best Stuffing
This classic Thanksgiving stuffing is easy and straightforward to make, even if you’ve never made homemade stuffing before.
Here’s a quick overview of the recipe:
- Melt the butter in a skillet, then sauté the onion and celery until softened.
- In a large bowl, stir together the dried bread cubes, sautéed vegetables, fresh herbs, and broth.
- Add the eggs last, mixed in with a little broth for easier distribution.
- Turn the stuffing into a greased 9×13-inch baking dish and dot the top with butter. Bake until done.
Time Saving Tip
To save time day of, bake and dry out the bread the night before and leave uncovered on the counter until the morning you’re ready to make the traditional stuffing.
Recipe FAQs
Technically this is a dressing recipe because it’s not stuffed inside the bird, but in my family we still call it stuffing rather than dressing. Our age old mis-naming tradition.
I used a loaf (baguette) of day-old white French bread from my grocery store’s bakery that I cubed, dried in the oven for 45 minutes, and allowed it to sit out overnight.
To save time on the big day, I dry it out the night before but you can do it that morning if time permits. You want to begin with really dry bread because otherwise it’ll turn to mush.
I’ve never pre-made or pre-assembled this classic stuffing recipe, but I think it’d be fine to assemble the night before and bake the day after. Check the stuffing just before baking it. If the bread seems dry at all, drizzle a little extra broth over top. You do NOT want to end up with dry stuffing!
Yes, this classic stuffing recipe tells you to cover the stuffing with foil and bake it for 40 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 40 minutes.
If you need to keep the homemade stuffing warm before serving it, loosely cover it with foil and stick it in a 200ºF oven.
Stuffing is best warm and fresh but will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat gently as desired.
Yes! Once baked, let the Thanksgiving stuffing cool completely before storing in a freezer bag. You can reheat the stuffing from frozen in a 350F oven (don’t let it thaw first, otherwise the bread will turn to mush).
This is our go to recipe for Thanksgiving stuffing. It’s a hit every year. I’ve made it with homemade bread cubes, store bought bakery bread cubes, and packaged Oroweat/Pepperidge Farm bread cubes. They all come out great. — Jody
What to Serve with Homemade Stuffing
Recipe Video Tutorial
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Traditional Homemade Thanksgiving Stuffing
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, divided
- 1 pound day-old white French bread, diced into 1/2-inch cubes and dried
- 1 extra-large, about 2 1/2 cups sweet Vidalia or yellow onion, diced small
- 1 ½ cups celery, diced small
- ⅔ cup Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely minced
- ¼ cup fresh sage leaves, finely minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh rosemary, sticks discarded, finely minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, sticks discarded, finely minced
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon pepper, or to taste
- 2 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth, divided
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250F. Place cubed bread on a baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until dried out, about 45 minutes. You must begin with very dry bread or it’ll turn to mush. Tip – To save time on the day of, bake and dry out the bread the night before and leave uncovered on the counter until the morning you’re ready to make the stuffing.
- When you’re ready to make the stuffing, transfer bread to a very large bowl; set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 9×13-inch pan or 3-quart baking dish with cooking spray; set aside.
- To a large skillet, add 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter and heat over medium-high heat to melt.
- Add the onions, celery, and cook until vegetables have softened and are just beginning to lightly brown, about 10 minutes. Stir frequently. Transfer vegetables to bowl with bread.
- Add the parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, 1 1/4 cups chicken broth, and toss well to combine; set aside. Note about salt – the saltiness level of low-sodium chicken broth varies, and so do personal preferences, so salt to taste.
- To a small bowl, add the remaining 1 1/4 cups chicken broth, 2 eggs, and whisk to combine. Pour mixture over bread and toss well to combine. Turn mixture out into prepared baking dish.
- Dice the remaining 1/4 cup (half of 1 stick) butter into 8 to 10 pieces and evenly dot the butter over the top of the stuffing.
- Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 40 to 45 minutes, or until top is as lightly golden browned as desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Stuffing Recipes:
All of my Thanksgiving recipes!
Slow Cooker Sausage Stuffing — This sausage stuffing is super easy to make since the slow cooker does all the hard work for you! There’s no sauteing or browning required at all and you can FREE UP YOUR OVEN!!
Homemade Stovetop Stuffing — With this easy homemade stuffing recipe, you’ll never need a box of the store-bought stuff again!
Cornbread Stuffing — 🧡💛🙌 Fast and easy homemade cornbread is transformed into a family favorite cornbread stuffing side dish with the addition of celery, onions, garlic, broth, and a bouquet of fresh herbs!
Pull-Apart Stuffing Ring — You’ll never guess the secret ingredient that not only makes this stuffing ring FAST and EASY, but also creates PERFECT texture! The stuffing is soft and tender, buttery and moist, not at all soggy, and seasoned to perfection with sage, thyme, rosemary, and parsley!
Originally published November 5, 2018 and republished with updated text November 20, 2020.
So yummy! A new staple for our family Thanksgiving dinner
I’ve been using this recipe for the last few Thanksgivings and Christmases and everyone always comments on how good it is! Thank you so much! I like to add a couple small diced apples to mine.
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad that this is a hit at your holiday celebrations! The apples sound like a nice touch.
I’ve been using this recipe for the last few Thanksgivings and Christmases and everyone always comments on how good it is! Thank you so much! I like to add a couple small diced apples to mine.
This is amazing! Made a huge batch it last Thanksgiving and it was gone! Have made it again just because and I swear, people who “hate stuffing” love this. I will eat the leftovers straight out of the fridge cold, it’s that good.
Glad this is a huge hit and good enough to make during a non Thanksgiving time of year!
Just wanted to say that I have made this recipe a few times for my family and I have always gotten rave reviews. Stuffing is one of those things that everyone has a preference on, and this recipe is as promised- classic and traditional. I prefer not to stuff my bird and I always double the recipe because it’s so good there usually is never enough!!! Don’t be fooled by its simplicity, it is full of flavor. Thank you for a great recipe!
What a great comment and thanks for the 5 star review! I am so happy you love this recipe and think it’s great that you’re making it even when it’s not a holiday or the traditional time of year that one would make stuffing. Glad it’s a big hit with the family!
Just wanted to say that I have made this recipe a few times for my family and I have always gotten rave reviews. Stuffing is one of those things that everyone has a preference on, and this recipe is as promised- classic and traditional. I prefer not to stuff my bird and I always double the recipe because it’s so good there usually is never enough!!! Don’t be fooled by its simplicity, it is full of flavor. Thank you for a great recipe!
Can this be prepped ahead of time and kept in the fridge till needed and then put into the over?
Many people have asked this and I have given my thoughts about it in previous comments. I have never done it that way but others have.
Thanks for taking the time to answer it again!
Merry Christmas!
No worries and Merry Christmas as well!
Averie I am going to try your stuffing recipie for Xmas! Both of my girls are celiac so I must use gluten free bread which tends to be a little on the dry side. I was wondering if you would recommend this recipie using gf bread and if so maybe just adding a little more broth? Thank you Pat
I really can’t give any pointers because I have only made it with regular bread, as written. I would be careful though bc GF bread can be crumbly/mushy and you don’t want it to disintegrate and get soggy on you. I would add the liquid slowly :)
This looks amazing. I cant wait to try it. It looks like a dryer stuffing that i have seen before too, which appeals to me. I dont want bread pudding style.. :)
We don’t like the bread pudding style soggy overnight french toast style stuffing LOL. And this one is drier and not like what I just mentioned :)
How many cups is a pound of French bread? And how many people does the stuffing recipe feed?
I don’t recall exactly how many cups 1 pound makes but if you use 1 pound, you will have the right amount.
The approximate serving size info is listed at the top of the recipe card.
How much of the sage,time,rosemary and parsley should be used if you are not using fresh?
Hard to say because I used fresh. Generally using about half the amount of dried to fresh is what I do in general but haven’t tried it here.
Do you think this could be made in the crock pot?
Many people have already asked this and because I haven’t tried it that way, I am not sure how the results will be. Good luck if you try it!
In your list of ingredients for stuffing you don’t list thyme but it is mentioned in the amounts to use. Shld thyme be added?
Yes it was an oversight, add it.
How much thyme should be used?
It’s listed in the recipe.
Thanks for your prompt response! I work until 5 tomorrow and have 15 people over for dinner at 6. I figure if I prep the stuffing today and have it ready to go my husband can toss it in the over tomorrow for me… It won’t get to soggy? I made this last year for Thanksgiving and we loved it :)
It could possibly get a little soggy but you could possibly counteract that by putting it in a little oven to warm it up and firm it up. Good luck!
Hi, there, can I prep this the day before and bake the next day? Or, would it just be better to bake today and warm up on Thanksgiving day? Thanks, Laura
For the sake of sanity and oven space, if you want to bake it today, go for it. Otherwise tomorrow is fine obviously.
Once cooked, can I then put the cooked stuffing in the turkey while the turkey cooks?
I’ve never done that but it would probably be fine.