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.
Oh my goodness – your stuffing is THE best!!! I wanted to try a different recipe from my usual stuffing recipe. Everyone raved about your stuffing!!! It was so wonderful – the flavor and texture were amazing. There’s not 1 bite left! I’m going to make it again tomorrow to go with our leftovers. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad my stuffing recipe got rave reviews and there wasn’t 1 bite left! Hope you enjoy another batch again with your leftovers.
Love the flavor. Turned out a little mushier than I prefer. Might back down on the liquid by about 1/2 cup and about 1/4 cup less butter next time.
Excellent recipe. The only things I did differently was add a pound of sage sausage that I browned in a separate pan and then added to the onion/celery mixture. I did not add anymore salt or pepper and the seasoning was perfect. The entire family raved about this dish. My new go to recipe for stuffing for all occasions.
This will be the third year I’ve made this recipe for Thanksgiving! Love it! Thank you!!!
I am glad you love it and that you’ve been making it for three years now!
What are you supposed to do with the broth and seasonings in step 6? It says to mix it and set aside, no future step has you do anything with it. I assume i pour it in with the bread, but if that’s the case, why can’t i just mix ALL the broth, egg, and seasonings together, why do i have to make mix half the broth with the eggs, and separately, half the broth with the seasonings? Not an experienced cook and seeking clarification/understanding. Thank you in advance!
I would just make it exactly as written since you said you’re not an experienced cook and it will turn out great.
So that means we do not cook it in the oven? The wording is unclear
You always cook stuffing in an oven.
That’s why the recipe begins with “Preheat oven…”
So does that mean that i throw out the ingredients prepared in step 6 and never use them? Half the broth and all the seasonings?
Oh my goodness – your stuffing is THE best!!! I wanted to try a different recipe from my usual stuffing recipe. Everyone raved about your stuffing!!! It was so wonderful – the flavor and texture were amazing. There’s not 1 bite left! I’m going to make it again tomorrow to go with our leftovers. Happy Thanksgiving!
Love the flavor. Turned out a little mushier than I prefer. Might back down on the liquid by about 1/2 cup and about 1/4 cup less butter next time.
This will be the third year I’ve made this recipe for Thanksgiving! Love it! Thank you!!!
I’m wondering if I should use the fresh herbs or the dried ones? I know using fresh herbs sometimes over power the taste.
I prefer fresh but use what you prefer.
This is my third (maybe fourth!) thanksgiving in a row making this stuffing. Always delicious. Thank you so much!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad this is a family favorite year after year!
Can I bake this in the same oven with the turkey? Thoughts on time adjustment to do it this way?
I cannot say for sure since I bake separately but I would just put it next to the turkey, keep an eye on it, and it will likely be done in approximately the same amount of time as written but of course, watch it.
This is my third (maybe fourth!) thanksgiving in a row making this stuffing. Always delicious. Thank you so much!
Wondering about using regular, salted butter opposed to unsalted? Would this make a big difference?
It will taste saltier if you don’t cut back on the amount of added salt you incorporate.
Is there anyway to not cool this all at once. Reason I’m asking is because the stuffing won’t fit in the oven with the turkey. So could I cook it in the morning and reheat in the oven that early evening.
Yes totally. I just responded to another person who wants to make the day before and this is my suggestion…I would say keep it at room temp on the counter for an hour or so and then put it in a very low oven 250F ish, cover or uncovered depending on how it’s looking.
And to be honest if you’re making it that morning, I personally wouldn’t even bother putting it in the fridge if you’re serving it for dinner. BUT everyone has different comfort levels with food out of the fridge.
Looking forward to making this for Thanksgiving! Would this be okay to make a day ahead and re-heat? What’s the best way to tackle?
Yes and I would say keep it at room temp on the counter for an hour or so and then put it in a very low oven 250F ish, cover or uncovered depending on how it’s looking.
I really want to try this! Question: If I double the recipe do I have to cook it in separate pans? Or could I cook in one large one? And would I have to increase cooking time? Ok, I guess that’s 3 questions. Lol Thanks!
I would say separate if you can, it will reduce cooking time rather than in 1 huge pan. You would need a super large pan if you’re going to combine it all. Cooking time…that’s going to vary and you’ll have to keep an eye on things.