Description

Crockpot stuffing is a fantastic way to free up some of that precious oven space on hectic holidays like Thanksgiving. You can also use the slow cooker setting on your Instant Pot! This stuffing is even better on the second day (YAY for leftovers!) so you may want to consider making it the day before Thanksgiving and reheating it with some extra chicken broth in the microwave before you serve it with the bird and all the trimmings.

Ingredients

Units Scale

2 lbs country white sandwich bread, cubed into 1/2-inch pieces (or 2 bags of pre-packaged stuffing mix, like Pepperidge Farm) - see notes #1 & #2 below
16 oz Italian sausage (hot, sweet, or both), casings removed
4 tbsp unsalted butter
2 medium onions, minced
3 celery ribs, minced
2 tbsp fresh thyme or 2 tsp dried thyme
2 tbsp fresh sage, minced, or 2 tsp dried sage
2 1/2 - 3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 large eggs
1 tsp table salt
1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper

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Instructions

If using your own bread: Adjust two oven racks to the upper and lower middle positions. Preheat oven to 250° F. Spread the bread cubes out over two large baking sheets and bake for about 45 minutes, until the bread is dried out on the edges and just a tiny bit soft in the centers. Let the bread cool on the pans for 10 minutes then transfer to a very large mixing bowl.
If using pre-packaged stuffing mix: Place the package contents in a very large mixing bowl.
While the bread is in the oven (if you’re toasting your own bread), ready a 6-quart crock pot (see note #3 below) by folding a 16-inch piece of aluminum foil into a 16 × 4-inch long rectangle, then lining around the back and sides of the crock with the foil. Spray the foil, bottom, and exposed front side of the crock with cooking spray. The theory behind using this foil collar is that the back side of many crock pots cook hotter than the rest of the crock does and the foil will help to insulate the stuffing, preventing it from cooking too fast or burning.
Meanwhile, brown the sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Transfer the sausage to the bowl with the bread, leaving the drippings in the pan. Add the butter to the pan, melt, and then add the onions, celery, thyme, and sage. Cook for 8-10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned and softened. Stir in ½ cup of the broth and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Immediately add the mixture to the bowl.
In a large bowl, whisk 2 ½ cups of broth with the eggs, then pour this mixture into the bowl. Season with the salt and pepper. Stir everything in the bowl together until well-combined. Transfer the stuffing to the prepared crock pot, cover, and cook on low for 4 hours (see note #4 below). Turn the crock pot to the warm setting (if yours has this – or off it it doesn’t). If the stuffing seems dry, stir in up to another ½ cup of broth. Season with extra salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or allow to cool slightly, refrigerate in an airtight container, and reheat the next day.

Notes

If you can plan ahead a couple of days, let the bread dry out on the counter – this will prevent the extra step of having to bake the bread cubes to dry them out in the oven.
If you use the bagged stuffing mix, reduce the herbs in this recipe by half, as the stuffing mixes are usually already seasoned.
Half of this recipe fits very nicely in a 4-quart crock pot. Use the same size foil collar that is recommended above.
If your crock pot normally cooks hot, as some do – and you generally know if this is a problem with your crock pot – cook the stuffing for 4 hours then turn the crock pot off until you’re ready to serve the stuffing. Hotter crock pots, even on the warm setting, will likely overcook this stuffing – trust me.

adapted from Slow Cooker Revolution by America’s Test Kitchen

Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Category: Thanksgiving recipes
Cuisine: American