I’ve been making my Grandma’s Southern cornbread dressing for over 20 years. It’s made with all-natural ingredients, contains no condensed soups, and is a family favorite every Thanksgiving. It’s ready in about 40 minutes and can easily be made in advance.
We serve this dressing with the usual holiday favorites: turkey and gravy, spiced cranberry sauce, collard greens, green bean casserole, candied sweet potatoes, roasted butternut squash, maple pecan carrot casserole and classic pecan pie.
What’s the difference between Southern cornbread dressing and cornbread stuffing?
- In the South these terms are not used interchangeably.
- Southern cornbread “dressing” is made with day-old cornbread and is cooked in a large pan in the oven—often called pan dressing.
- Stuffing is typically made with seasoned day-old or stale bread (white or wheat), sometimes with celery and apples, and is traditionally cooked inside the turkey cavity.
Ingredients
For the exact ingredient amounts and step-by-step instructions, see the recipe card below.
You’ll need a total of 8 cups of day-old crumbled cornbread. One package of Jiffy™ cornbread mix yields about 4 cups of crumbled cornbread, so you’ll need two packages or two large homemade loaves.
Note about Jiffy™: it contains a little sugar. To reduce sweetness, substitute the milk with buttermilk in the Jiffy™ recipe—use 1/3 cup plus 2–3 tablespoons buttermilk per package.
This family recipe includes sage-seasoned pork sausage for depth of flavor, but you can omit it if you prefer a vegetarian version.
Other ingredients include: Herb-seasoned stuffing mix (2 cups), pork sausage with sage (optional), chopped celery and onions, salted butter, eggs, chicken broth (3–6 cups depending on dryness of cornbread), poultry seasoning, salt, ground black pepper and ground sage (add carefully if you didn’t use sage sausage).
Prefer to watch a video?
A short video is available in the recipe card below, and a full step-by-step demonstration is also on YouTube.
How to make Southern cornbread dressing
This is an overview; detailed measurements and instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Bake the cornbread, crumble it and let it dry at room temperature (covered) for 1–2 days.
- Brown the sausage in a skillet. In a separate pan, sauté the onions and celery in butter.
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients, starting with 3 cups of broth and adding more as needed until the mixture is moist but not soupy.
- Transfer to a buttered baking dish and bake uncovered on the middle rack until the dressing is set and golden brown on top.
The uncooked mixture should be relatively moist. Taste a tiny bit for seasoning and adjust salt if needed before baking.
Recipe tips
- Use cornbread that has been allowed to dry for two days for the best texture.
- Start with 3 cups of chicken broth, mix, then add more as needed so the mixture is moist but not soggy. Very dry cornbread may need up to 6 cups.
- Ensure your poultry seasoning is fresh. Poultry seasoning already contains sage, so if your sausage is sage-seasoned, add extra ground sage sparingly.
- Avoid overworking the mixture; overmixing can make the dressing gummy.
- Cooked sausage usually doesn’t render much fat, so draining is optional. Omit sausage entirely if you prefer.
Yield and servings
This recipe makes about 12 cups of dressing, which serves approximately sixteen 3/4-cup portions. It’s a dish people often go back for seconds on, so plan accordingly.
Cornbread dressing for large groups
For 20 or more guests, make two batches and bake in two 9 x 13 pans or large aluminum trays. Two pans cook more evenly and finish faster than one very large pan.
Freezing and reheating instructions
- Refrigerate cooked or uncooked dressing up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight container to minimize freezer burn.
- Bring refrigerated or frozen dressing to room temperature before baking or reheating. Bake at 350°F until the center is set and the top is golden brown.
- Cover cooked dressing with foil when reheating. If baking uncooked dressing, do not cover it.
Once you try this easy, flavorful Southern cornbread dressing, it will become a regular on your holiday table. It also pairs wonderfully with roasted or baked chicken and pan-fried pork chops.
Southern Cornbread Dressing
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Equipment
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Big mixing bowl
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9 x 13 or larger baking dish (a large aluminum pan for doubling)
Ingredients
- 8 cups cornbread crumbled and dried out; homemade or packaged
- 2 cups Herb-seasoned stuffing mix
- 1 lb. pork sausage with sage if possible, cooked and crumbled
- 1½ cups chopped celery
- 1½ cups chopped onion
- 1 stick salted butter 3/4 stick for the veggies; reserve remaining to butter the dish
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- 3–6 cups chicken broth start with 3 cups and add to desired texture
- 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ tablespoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon ground sage add if your sausage isn’t sage-seasoned
Instructions
Make the cornbread
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Use two packages of cornbread mix or a double batch of homemade cornbread to yield 8 cups crumbled. Once cool, crumble into a large bowl, cover and let sit at room temperature for a day or two.
Cook the sausage, celery and onions
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Brown the sage-seasoned sausage in a skillet, breaking it into small pieces. Drain only if it’s very oily; set aside.
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In a saucepan over medium heat, melt 3/4 stick of butter, add the chopped celery and onions and cook about 10 minutes until the onions are translucent. Remove from heat and set aside.
Assemble the dressing
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Preheat oven to 350ºF and butter a 9 x 13 baking dish, including the sides.
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Beat two eggs and set aside.
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In a large bowl combine the crumbled cornbread, stuffing mix, cooked sausage, celery and onions, eggs and 3 cups of chicken broth. Mix gently and check texture; add more broth as needed up to 6 cups for a moist consistency.
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Add half the poultry seasoning and pepper, mix, then add the remaining halves and salt. If you didn’t use sage sausage, add the ground sage gradually, tasting as you go.
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Transfer the mixture to the buttered baking dish and bake uncovered on the middle rack for about 25 minutes. If the center is still jiggly, continue baking another 10 minutes, covering with foil if the top browns too quickly. The dressing is done when the center is set and the top is brown.
Notes
- Jiffy™ mixes contain some sugar; substitute buttermilk (1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons per package) to reduce sweetness.
- If not using sage sausage, add 1 tablespoon ground sage in two increments so the flavor distributes evenly.
- Poultry seasoning already contains sage; too much ground sage can tint the dressing green.
- Chicken broth: start with 3 cups and add more as needed. I often use 6 cups when the cornbread is very dry for a moist dressing.
- This recipe assumes salted butter, regular-sodium broth and sausage—adjust added salt if using low-sodium ingredients.
- Two cups of herb-seasoned stuffing mix equals two cups measured in a standard measuring cup before adding to the cornbread.
Make in advance:
- Assemble the dressing a day or two ahead and refrigerate, covered. Allow it to come to room temperature (about 30 minutes) before baking.
- Preheat oven to 375ºF for reheating. Cover cooked dressing with foil to reheat; bake uncooked dressing uncovered.
Freeze it:
- Cooked or uncooked dressing freezes well for up to 3 months when sealed properly. Thaw and bring to room temperature before reheating or baking.
- Cover cooked dressing with foil when reheating; bake uncooked dressing uncovered.
Tip: The easiest way to combine a large batch is with clean hands—this ensures even distribution without overmixing.
Nutrition Estimate
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