If you’re like me, stuffing is your favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal. Easy Stuffing Recipe for Thanksgiving is quick to prepare and always a crowd-pleaser.

This rich sausage and apple stuffing relies on store-bought stuffing cubes, which alleviates the most time-consuming step of traditional stuffing. Believe me, when you use sausage and butter to make it, and serve it with gravy and cranberry sauce, the type of bread crumbs don’t make that much of a difference. Plus it saves tons of time.

The recipe below assumes a few things about you and your Thanksgiving.

1. Your life is completely crazy this time of year and you don’t have the time, energy, or forethought to make dried breadcrumbs days in advance.

2. You’re having a large crowd of people for Thanksgiving. This recipe uses three (12oz) bags of dried breadcrumbs and 3 (16oz) packages of sausage. We normally have 16 to 18 adults at our Thanksgiving and this recipe is usually enough for leftover holiday sandwiches the next day.

If you have a smaller Thanksgiving crowd or you just want to make stuffing at another time of year, I have included the ingredient amounts for a smaller batch of stuffing in the notes of the recipe card below.

3. You want to make the holiday as easy and enjoyable as possible! By making the stuffing and all the other sides ahead of time, it makes it much easier to just enjoy the day. If you have people coming in from out of town or if you are enjoying other holiday events that week, it’s nice not to spend your entire week prepping. Because this stuffing is freezer friendly, you can make it weeks in advance and stick it in the freezer simplifying your Thanksgiving week.

***Because this stuffing is designed to be made ahead of time, this recipe assumes you are not stuffing your bird.

granny smith apples, chicken stock, bread cubes, sausage, chopped onions, chopped celery

What do you need:

Seasoned Store-Bought Stuffing Bread Cubes:

You need 3 (12oz) bags of store-bought stuffing bread cubes. I make sure to get seasoned cubes because it alleviates another step. If you can only find unseasoned cubes add a teaspoon and a half of poultry seasoning when you’re cooking the onions and celery.

Butter:

Using butter to sauté the onions and celery adds an extra richness to the stuffing.

Onions and Celery:

Sautéing onions and celery creates the backbone of flavor of so many dishes, and this stuffing is no different.

Garlic:

Add the garlic after the onions and celery have sautéed for a few minutes. Garlic is not a dominant flavor in this stuffing but has a nice savory quality.

Apples:

Granny Smith apples add a great crispy texture and a tart sweetness to the stuffing.

Sausage:

Ideally you will use a spicy breakfast sausage for the stuffing. Sometimes this isn’t that easy to find. In that case just use a regular breakfast sausage and add a teaspoon and a half of red pepper flakes. If you prefer, you could use a spicy Italian sausage instead. Either way, make sure that you remove the sausage from the casing and break the sausage into crumbles when you sauté it in the pan.

stuffing in a bowl, cranberry sauce in a bowl

How to make easy Thanksgiving stuffing:

In a large frying pan brown the sausage on medium heat until fully cooked. As you’re cooking the sausage, use a spatula or wooden spoon to break it up into crumbles so that it will mix well into the rest of the stuffing.

Transfer the sausage to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.

In a large pot begin to melt the butter. Add the chopped onions and celer and sauté on a medium low heat until soft, around eight minutes.

Add the garlic and chopped apples and cook for another two minutes. Add the chicken stock to the pot along with the fully cooked sausage.

Once the broth is warmed through, remove it from the heat and add the bread cubes. Using a wooden spoon, fully incorporate all the ingredients.

Depending on the size and shape of your pot it may be easier to transfer the contents to a large bowl so that you can mix the stuffing easily.

Once everything is fully incorporated transfer the stuffing to a casserole dish or a aluminum foil serving tin.

Cover the stuffing in tinfoil and refrigerate (or freeze) until you’re ready to serve.

Reheating from the refrigerator:

Pull the stuffing out of the refrigerator while you preheat the oven to 350F. Reheat the stuffing for 30 to 45 minutes or until he top is slightly crispy and the center of the stuffing is hot.

Make ahead and freezing instructions:

The stuffing can be assembled up to two days ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to bake. It can also be kept frozen for up to three months. When you’re ready to serve, defrost in the refrigerator for 24 hours and reheat he same way.

How to store stuffing leftovers: Everyone loves turkey dinner leftovers! My personal favorite is making a “holiday sandwich” the day after. But if you end up with way too many leftovers to consume that week, you can always freeze the stuffing leftovers. Pack the stuffing in a casserole dish. Before covering tightly with tinfoil, drizzle a little bit leftover Thanksgiving gravy over the top. Store in the freezer for up to four months.

How much stuffing should I make?

One cup of stuffing per person should be plenty for a thanksgiving meal. This recipe makes enough for about 24 servings.

More Thanksgiving recipes:

Did you make this recipe?

I would love to know how it turned out! Please let me know by leaving a review below. Or snap a photo and share it on Instagram and be sure to tag me @balancingbowls.

Recipe

Easy Stuffing Recipe for Thanksgiving

If you’re like me, stuffing is your favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal. This stuffing is quick to prepare and always a crowd pleaser. This rich sausage and apple stuffing relies on store-bought stuffing cubes, which alleviates the most time-consuming step of traditional stuffing. Believe me, when you use sausage and butter to make it, and serve it with gravy and cranberry sauce, the type of bread crumbs don’t make that much of a difference. Plus it saves tons of time.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Ingredients

3 12oz Bags of Seasoned Stuffing Bread Cubes
6 T Butter melted
3 Onions chopped
3 Celery stalks chopped
6 C Chicken Stock
3 Granny Smith apples
3 16oz spicy breakfast sausage
¾ teaspoon Salt
¾ teaspoon pepper

Instructions

In a large frying pan brown the sausage on medium heat until fully cooked. As you’re cooking the sausage, use a spatula or wooden spoon to break it up into crumbles so that it will mix well into the rest of the stuffing.
Transfer the sausage to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.
In a large pot begin to melt the butter. Add the chopped onions and celer and sauté on a medium low heat until soft, around eight minutes.
Add the garlic and chopped apples and cook for another two minutes. Add the chicken stock to the pot along with the fully cooked sausage.
Once the broth is warmed through, remove it from the heat and add the bread cubes. Using a wooden spoon, fully incorporate all the ingredients.
Depending on the size and shape of your pot it may be easier to transfer the contents to a large bowl so that you can mix the stuffing easily.
Once everything is fully incorporated transfer the stuffing to a casserole dish or a aluminum foil serving tin.
Cover the stuffing in tinfoil and refrigerate (or freeze) until you’re ready to serve.

Reheating

Pull the stuffing out of the refrigerator while you preheat the oven to 350F. Reheat the stuffing for 30 to 45 minutes or until he top is slightly crispy and the center of the stuffing is hot.

Notes

Depending on the size and shape of your pot it may be easier to transfer the contents to a large bowl so that you can mix the stuffing easily.

SMALL BATCH:

1 (12oz) Bag of Seasoned Stuffing Bread Cubes
2 T Butter melted
1 Onion chopped
1 Celery stalks chopped
2 C Chicken Stock
1 Granny Smith apples
16 oz Spicy Breakfast Sausage
` ¼ teaspoon Salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Easy Stuffing Recipe for Thanksgiving