Stuffing recipe?

[NotUrsula]

I make a sausage/oyster stuffing that is done 1/2 in the bird and the rest in a casserole, as the texture comes out a bit different each way. I also usually make rice dressing as well, because it's traditional where I grew up, and kids tend to like it a lot. (I can't stand cornbread dressing, even if that's a sacrilege in the South.)

I mix my recipe to taste as well, but here's what's in it. This recipe feeds about 8, and it's very popular with my family & guests. (Everything is pre-cooked, so there are no raw ingredients going into the turkey; you could eat the uncooked stuffing with a spoon if you wanted to, though I wouldn't recommend it for texture at that point.)

It's made with two types of herb-seasoned stuffing crumbs, one crouton style, one crumb-style; these go in last; I'm not picky about brand.

I make the stuffing seasoning the night before, when I make the stock. To do that, boil the neck, giblets and heart of the turkey for about 1/2 hour, seasoning with at least 1 tsp. of cajun seasoning of your choice (Tony Chachere's, Slap ya' Momma, etc.) I don't include the liver because that cooks to mush, so it's a special pet treat, along with the cooked heart. I strip the neck of meat and finely chop the gizzards; that meat will go into the stuffing and the gravy. Cool the stock and skim off the fat. Save 3 cups of stock for the stuffing mix, a bit less if you're not feeding a crowd.

Brown 1 lb of loose mild italian-style sausage, drain WELL on paper towels (press down to remove as much grease as possible) and set aside, keeping the drippings in the pan. Add 1/2 dozen raw oysters to the sausage pan drippings, and fry until cooked; they will shrink considerably. Set aside on paper towels. Put the drained italian sausage and the fried oysters into a food processor or grinder and chop to a paste-like consistency. Set aside. In a saucepan, melt 1/2 stick butter, and in it, brown 1/2 onion, a stick of celery, 1/2 a red bell pepper, and 4 cloves of garlic, all finely chopped. Once these have softened, add 2 cups of broth, half the chopped giblets and neck meat, and the sausage/oyster paste. To this, add a little more salt or cajun seasoning to taste, 1 tsp of poultry seasoning, a 1/2 tsp of sage, and black pepper to taste; simmer about 10 minutes. (BTW, I have made this with oyster mushrooms when someone allergic to shellfish was present. It was nice enough, but I missed the flavor of real oysters. That's what people love about this recipe, you get the flavor of real oysters, but not the slippery texture you get when you leave them whole. Also, it's much cheaper and more food-safe than full-on oyster stuffing.)

In a large shallow bowl, combine both types of crumbs and mix well, then roll up your sleeves and make sure your hands are very clean and free of jewelry, because you're going in. Gradually add the liquid/meat mix to the crumbs, mixing thoroughly until it reaches your desired consistency (I use the croutons to add a bit of air space in the stuffing, it makes it less mushy when hot air bubbles can form on the inside.)
If it's too dry when you've added all of the flavoring slurry, add a bit more of the reserved stock. Mix it all well but keep it dry enough that you can lightly form a ball that won't immediately collapse.

This can be stuffed loosely inside the turkey (inside patted dry), or baked in a covered casserole dish, for which I recommend about 30 minutes at 350. I do both, and the casserole version will be a bit less moist when cooked, as the turkey's juices are not cooking into it, but it will still taste very good.

 

[Tommy Mo]

I make a sausage/oyster stuffing that is done 1/2 in the bird and the rest in a casserole, as the texture comes out a bit different each way. I also usually make rice dressing as well, because it's traditional where I grew up, and kids tend to like it a lot. (I can't stand cornbread dressing, even if that's a sacrilege in the South.)

I mix my recipe to taste as well, but here's what's in it. This recipe feeds about 8, and it's very popular with my family & guests. (Everything is pre-cooked, so there are no raw ingredients going into the turkey; you could eat the uncooked stuffing with a spoon if you wanted to, though I wouldn't recommend it for texture at that point.)

It's made with two types of herb-seasoned stuffing crumbs, one crouton style, one crumb-style; these go in last; I'm not picky about brand.

I make the stuffing seasoning the night before, when I make the stock. To do that, boil the neck, giblets and heart of the turkey for about 1/2 hour, seasoning with at least 1 tsp. of cajun seasoning of your choice (Tony Chachere's, Slap ya' Momma, etc.) I don't include the liver because that cooks to mush, so it's a special pet treat, along with the cooked heart. I strip the neck of meat and finely chop the gizzards; that meat will go into the stuffing and the gravy. Cool the stock and skim off the fat. Save 3 cups of stock for the stuffing mix, a bit less if you're not feeding a crowd.

Brown 1 lb of loose mild italian-style sausage, drain and set aside, keeping the drippings in the pan. Add 1/2 dozen raw oysters to the sausage pan drippings, and fry until cooked; they will shrink considerably. Put the drained italian sausage and the fried oysters into a food processor or grinder and chop to a paste-like consistency. Set aside. In a saucepan, melt 1/2 stick butter, and in it, brown 1/2 onion, a stick of celery, 1/2 a red bell pepper, and 4 cloves of garlic, all finely chopped. Once these have softened, add 2 cups of broth, half the chopped giblets and neck meat, and the sausage/oyster paste. To this, add a little more salt or cajun seasoning to taste, 1 tsp of poultry seasoning, a 1/2 tsp of sage, and black pepper to taste; simmer about 10 minutes. (BTW, I have made this with oyster mushrooms when someone allergic to shellfish was present. It was nice enough, but I missed the flavor of real oysters. That's what people love about this recipe, you get the flavor of real oysters, but not the slippery texture you get when you leave them whole.)

In a large shallow bowl, combine both types of crumbs and mix well, then roll up your sleeves and make sure your hands are very clean and free of jewelry, because you're going in. Gradually add the liquid/meat mix to the crumbs, mixing thoroughly until it reaches your desired consistency (I use the croutons to add a bit of air space in the stuffing, it makes it less mushy when hot air bubbles can form on the inside.)
If it's too dry when you've added all of the flavoring slurry, add a bit more of the reserved stock. Mix it all well but keep it dry enough that you can lightly form a ball that won't immediately collapse.

This can be stuffed loosely inside the turkey (inside patted dry), or baked in a covered casserole dish, for which I recommend about 30 minutes at 350. I do both, and the casserole version will be a bit less moist when cooked, as the turkey's juices are not cooking into it, but it will still taste very good.

I really like this, thanks!

 

[karen4546]

i don’t stuff our turkey. I make “chicken and dressing”.

I boil a 3-4 lb chicken (if giblets are in the bag, I cook separately ) with onion and celery- I like to use a lot of celery because it tends to cook down a lot- salt, pepper, and sage to your taste. i put 5 eggs in the broth to boil while the chicken cooks. Remove chicken and debone, peel boiled eggs, and set aside.

cook a 9 x 13 pan of cornbread the night before so that it dries out a little- crumble cornbread and add broth to make a consistency of about what the cornbread mixture was when you made it- it will seem too wet, but it is not. Add chicken and eggs and bake for an hour or 1.5 hrs as needed.

I use YELLOW corn meal when making cornbread it makes for a better aesthetic to me.

you Can use 4 Bone in breasts instead of a whole chicken.

 

[Robber Baron]

My typical stuffing:

Bag of herbed Pepperidge Farms bread cubes
Stick of butter
One diced onion
2-3 diced celery stalks

Sauté the butter, onion, celery until they are all soft. Add either a lot of dried sage, or a julienned bunch of fresh sage to the mix and cook until the room is filled with the scent of sage.

Dump the mix into a large bowl that contains the bread cubes. Add 32 oz. of chicken broth or vegetable broth and mix everything together. You can whisk a couple eggs and add them to the bowl, if you'd like, but it isn't mandatory.

Spread this into a 9x13 baking dish. You'll bake it for 30 minutes at 350 while the turkey is resting.

This is basically the stuffing I have always made.

I pretty much double this to make a larger amount.

I will also mix in an egg or 2 and put some in a loaf pan so I can cut off thin slices for sandwiches.