Southerners love cornbread, and so it’s only natural that many classic Southern turkey stuffings or pan dressings feature cornbread as the base.
“Back in the day” as the kids now say, Southern cooks baked up cornbread on a real regular basis. So, there’d be plenty of cornbread along with yeast breads and store bought breads for mixing up holiday stuffing.
Cornbread for Stuffing
Today, it’s much more common for cornbread to be baked specicially for cornbread stuffing recipes. Times they have a changed.
For classic cornbread stuffing, you can use mixes. But, most of those boxed cornbreads are awfully sweet. It is fine to buy Jilly Cornbread mixes and make up cornbread for dressing, but the traditional homemade cornbread really does make a nicer stuffing.
If you really want to speed up the process, you can buy cornbread. It’s a good idea to try various brands from different bakeries or groceries and find one that you like. The cornbread really is showcased in stuffing made with cornbread.
You need the cornbread before you begin the stuffing recipe. Bake or buy the cornbread ahead, so you can quickly mix up this easy, basic cornbread stuffing.
Classic Southern Cornbread Stuffing Recipe (for your holiday turkey)
- 3/4 cups onion chopped fine
- 1 1/2 cups of celery chopped (can use the leaves as well as stalks)
- 1 cup butter (margarine can be used)
- 9 cups cornbread cut in cubes or crumbled by hand
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp sage (or more to taste)
- 3/4 tsp thyme (also to taste)
Directions:
- Melt butter in large skillet.
- When butter is hot, stir in onions and celery and cook until tender and aromatic.
- Add part of the cornbread to the butter mixture. Depending on the size of the skillet, aim for about 1/3 of the cornbread. Stir this in to coat and remove from heat immediately.
- Pour your warm skillet mixture of butter and cornbread into a large mixing bowl.
- Add the rest of the cornbread plus the salt, pepper, sage and thyme and stir well.
- When you’re ready to stuff your turkey, simply spoon the cornbread stuffing inside. You should have plenty for a 12 to 14 pound turkey (a good size for baking).
- Follow directions for baking the turkey like the Basic Turkey Baking Guide.
There are many types of stuffings and dressings, and most are good. This easy Southern stuffing recipe is excellent. It can also be dressed up with choppped giblets, sausage, chopped apples, chopped oysters or other basic dressing ingredients. Just reduce the cornbread by a cup or so and add your own favorite extras.
Other Favorite Southern Stuffing or Dressing Recipes:
Southern White Bread Stuffing - If you have and want to use white bread but want a really special stuffing, then try this one that features sausage. Very tasty.
Southern Oyster Stuffing Recipe - You don't have to love (or even like oysters) to adore this favorite Southern stuffing recipe.
Cyndi Allison - Southern born and fed, Cyndi Allison is a college lecturer and newspaper advisor as well as being a freelance writer. She writes on ...
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