A RECIPE FOR VERY GOOD THANKSGIVING STUFFING

"It's freaking good" - Lucas

Featuring my favorite spoon by unearthen

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Hello!

This month I bring you my favorite recipe for Thanksgiving stuffing. I’ve been playing around with different methods and breads for years and I think I’ve finally landed on my perfect version.

I grew up going to visit my mom’s family in Williamsburg, Virginia almost every year for Thanksgiving. My favorite dishes were always the crab dip with triscuits, freshly shucked local raw oysters from a jar with cocktail sauce served on saltines, and Pepperidge Farm classic herb stuffing. Last year, after many years of attempting to upstage the boxed classic, I decided to just make it from the bag. It was good, but I knew it could be better. So here is my totally home made version, heavily inspired by the box, but with a few tricks that make it the best.

The bread - I like to use a very basic grocery store sourdough. It’s a neutral canvas for the stock and herbs to shine. Do not use a loaf of sourdough from the best bakery in your town - I’ve used those before and the bread is overpowering. Instead, I opt for a sourdough loaf from somewhere like Sprouts or Trader Joes. We are trying to mimic and improve a classic here, and basic, boring bread is really the key. I will note, however, that if you’re in the mood for something more rich I’ve made a version of this stuffing with challah or brioche, which turned out so buttery and delicious.

Cutting the crust off the bread - You gotta get rid of that crust. I’ve made this recipe without cutting the crust off, and to me the neutral taste of white white bread is so important; no whole grains and no crusts are welcome in my stuffing recipe.

The seasonings - I go super traditional, but I tend to increase the quantities that most recipes call for; more butter, more celery and onion, tons of herbs. I also add some less traditional ingredients that I think make this recipe extra delicious - a bit of white wine or vermouth and my new favorite addition: toasted pecans!

The stock - I usually make this stuffing with homemade vegetable stock¹ because my sister is vegetarian. It’s of course also amazing with chicken stock. Here’s the annoying thing, though - store-bought stocks are not very good. I particularly do not like the Pacific Foods stocks that seem to be everywhere. Homemade chicken stock² can be kind of annoying to make, but if you integrate stock making into your life it’s so nice to have around. I keep my stock frozen in 2-cup tupperware so I always have it ready when I need it. And If you insist on using store bought stock I like the trashiest of them all, College Inn :D

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Photos by Ben Turner, whose work you can find here.

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CLASSIC STUFFING serves 6-8 people

Click here for a printable PDF of the recipe without photos

• 14-16oz loaf basic sourdough bread

• 3/4 cup pecans

• 1 stick + 2 tablespoons (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter + 1 tablespoon to butter the dish

• 1 1/2 cup diced onion (about 1 medium onion)

• 1 1/2 cup diced celery (about 6-8 stalks depending on size)

• 3 tablespoons white vermouth, white wine, sherry, or Harvey’s Bristol Cream

• 1 ¼ cup home made stock (you might need a little more depending on the bread you use)

• Salt + pepper to taste  

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage leaves

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves

• 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

• ¾ cup finely chopped parsley - I chop straight through the tender stems

• 2 eggs, beaten

Preheat your oven to 325F. Butter an 8x8 baking dish, set aside.

Lazily cut the crusts off of your bread. Lazily to me means it’s ok if there’s a bit of crust left, but you want like 80-90% removed. Next, cube your bread so you have about 3/4 inch squares. Spread cubes onto a sheet tray and bake for about 20-30 minutes. We are looking for slightly toasted and dried out bread, ideally no color or a light tan, but no major browning happening.

Meanwhile, toast your pecans in the same oven. This should take about 8-12 minutes. Once the pecans have cooled, roughly chop them and set aside.

Once your bread cubes and pecans are out of the oven, turn your oven up to 350F.

In a large pot or dutch oven melt 10 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Now add your diced celery and onion and cook until soft and translucent, about 10-12 minutes. We are not looking for golden brown anything, so if it starts to brown a bit turn the heat down. Season with salt and lots of pepper.

Now you can add your alcohol of choice, turn heat to medium-high and allow alcohol to cook off and liquid to reduce, about 1-2 minutes.

Next, turn off the heat and add in your stock. Now taste the broth - it should be just slightly saltier than you think it should be because we will be adding it to the bread, which is usually just lightly seasoned. Once your stock base is well seasoned, add in about half of your bread cubes and really stir and sort of mash the bread into the stock. We want to break down the bread a bit into smaller pieces. I like to add the bread in two stages so we end up with different textures of bread - some more broken down, and some chunkier. Next, add the rest of your bread cubes, the herbs, the pecans, and the two beaten eggs. Stir well and taste, don’t be afraid of the raw egg, it won’t hurt you!

Once your stuffing tastes perfectly seasoned, pile it into your buttered 8x8 baking dish. Pack it down lightly, but we don’t want the stuffing too smooshed and compact, so be gentle and delicate. Now cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake in your 350F oven for 25 minutes.

Next, remove the foil cover, increase heat to 400F, drizzle with a little more melted butter or olive oil if you want a nice crisp top, and bake for another 20-25 minutes until the top is lightly golden and the edges are crisped.

A few extra notes -

This recipe can be double or tripled or quadrupled easily for a crowd.

If you are competing for oven space on Thanksgiving day you don’t need to be so particular about the oven temperature. Your stuffing will be fine anywhere from 325F-425F. Just make sure to toast your bread cubes and pecans in a low oven so they don’t burn!

You can also make the stuffing 1-2 days ahead of time and par-bake it - bake covered with foil for about 30 minutes. From this point you can refrigerate the stuffing. Be sure to bring the par-baked stuffing to room temperature for about 2 hours before cooking for another 20-30 minutes with the foil off.

1. Here’s an easy “recipe” for vegetable stock -

For 2 quarts vegetable stock you will need about 2 quarts (or 8 cups) of roughly chopped vegetables. Onion/leek/shallot/scallion are important and should make up about 2-4 cups of the total. I don’t like the taste of the onion skins in stock so I always peel them. To me the taste can be a bit muddy.

Then, I always use the classics - carrot and celery. Totally optional and delicious additions are - parsnip, fennel, celery root, zucchini, a few sprigs of parsley, or bay leaves.

I generally do not put any cruciferous veggies in my stocks - cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, turnip all can be quite pungent.

I’m also not really a huge fan of garlic in stocks, but that is a matter of personal preference so add garlic if you’d like!

I generally don’t add herbs like sage, thyme, or rosemary because I like to keep my stocks quite neutral and those can always be added to the final dish.

Some secret ingredients - a bit of onion powder and garlic powder give a nice umami depth. I also love to add a bit of spike seasoning :)

Cover your veggies with 2.5 quarts water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover. Allow to simmer gently for 45 minutes and then strain out the solids. Ta-da!

2. And a “recipe” for integrating chicken stock-making into your lifestyle -

Every time I roast a chicken I save the bones and make a quick batch of stock - cover the bones with 2 quarts of water and simmer, covered, for about 2 hours. Add a peeled onion, and a couple limp carrots and celery if you have them lying around. If you have a pressure cooker it’s even better.