Sausage Stuffing | Recipe By My Name Is Snickerdoodle (2024)

FAQs

Is my stuffing done? ›

Cook until the center of the stuffing reaches 165 °F as measured with a food thermometer.

"A dry stuffing or dressing is usually dry after baking simply because the recipe lacked enough moisture or fat," confirms Bridget Lancaster, executive editorial director at America's Test Kitchen.

The stuffing should be moist but not wet. If there is a puddle of broth at the bottom of the bowl, you've added too much. Add more bread to soak up the excess moisture. If the mix is still dry and crumbly, add more liquid and toss gently until it starts to clump together.

This recipe for classic sausage stuffing is nicely flexible, so you can adapt it to what you like. Some sausage meat packets already have added spices and you can even use flavoured sausages, squeezed from their casings, to make stuffing.

We recommend adding stock a little at a time--1/2 cup to 1 cup, depending on how much stuffing you're making--and waiting for the bread to absorb the liquid before adding more. Once the bread is moist but not sitting in a pool of stock, it's ready.

If you've stuffed your bird, you also want to be sure the stuffing is cooked thoroughly. Insert a metal skewer into the middle of the stuffing and leave it there for a few seconds. Draw it out and immediately apply it to the inside of your wrist. If it's hot enough to make you remove it quickly, it's done.

If your stuffing is too wet and gummy, turn it out onto a baking pan or cookie sheet. Break it up and spread it in an even layer. Then bake until dried to the desired level.

If you made your stuffing as dry as a desert, don't panic! Melt a little bit of butter in a sauce pot with some stock and add a couple of ladles of it to the dried stuffing. Toss it all together and let it soak. Cover to keep it warm until ready to serve.

But for the Thanksgiving side dish in the South, the term dressing was adopted in place of stuffing, which was viewed as a crude term, during the Victorian era. Although dressing and stuffing are interchangeable terms, the signature ingredient of this Thanksgiving side dish in the South is cornbread.

Does a stuffing mix go bad? If you mean the kind you buy in the store dry (such a Pepperidge Farm, no, it does not. It will last practically forever.

Why put eggs in stuffing? ›

Broth: Chicken broth keeps the stuffing moist without making it soggy. Eggs: Two lightly beaten eggs help hold the dressing together and add moisture. Water: You can add a few tablespoons of water, if you'd like, to achieve your desired consistency.

Sausage Stuffing Ingredients

Vegetables: You'll need finely diced celery and a chopped onion. Bread: The white bread cubes should ideally be slightly stale. If your bread seems too soft, lightly toast it in the oven. Seasonings: Season the sausage stuffing with poultry seasoning and ground black pepper.

Do not refrigerate uncooked stuffing. If stuffing is prepared ahead of time, it must be either frozen or cooked immediately. To use cooked stuffing later, cool in shallow containers and refrigerate it within 2 hours. Use it within 3 to 4 days.

It's fine to eat leftover stuffing cold, or you can reheat it, covered, fully before serving. In the freezer Wait until it's totally cold and then put into a freezer proof container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost thoroughly before reheating.

"It is the undercooked stuffing that poses the real risk," he said. "Bacterial pathogens such as Salmonella may be present in the cavity of the bird and can contaminate the stuffing. If the stuffing is not cooked thoroughly, Salmonella can survive and may infect those who consume it."

On the other hand, overcooked stuffing can dry out quickly and become difficult to eat. Be sure to stick closely to the temperature and baking time instructions in your stuffing recipe. And once again, this becomes a food safety issue as well, especially if you're using eggs in your recipe, which many call for.

A great stuffing should be light and fluffy, and toasted — even a bit crusty — on top but tender inside. And definitely not soggy. A great stuffing should be properly seasoned. A great stuffing should have a variety of textures.

Pour dressing into two 9×13 baking dishes and bake until lightly browned, about 30 – 45 minutes. To test doneness, shake casserole dish lightly. If the center of the dressing moves, then the dressing is not cooked through in the center.