Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe
Whenever I think about Thanksgiving the one dish that epitomizes the South is Southern cornbread dressing (or cornbread stuffing) served with Giblet Gravy, of course. I never really knew that any other kind of stuffing existed....except that stuff in the box that no one I knew had ever purchased.
We never put the dressing in the actual turkey though I saw people do that on TV. It never bothered me though because I never really understood cooking inside a bird (later I learned to love white bread stuffing made in a turkey from my Mother in Law).
Oh, and cornbread dressing isn't just for Thanksgiving. We also had it for Christmas and occasionally as an everyday main dish with chicken or ham chopped up in it.
Before you make cornbread dressing ....you have to make cornbread. My skillet cornbread recipe is perfect for making Southern cornbread dressing but you can also use your favourite cornbread recipe. The key is to make sure whatever recipe you use has NO SUGAR! Stuffing is supposed to be savory, not sweet. You can use either yellow or white cornmeal to make your cornbread.
The key to cooking scrumptious cornbread is cooking it in a cast iron skillet. Whatever oil the recipe calls for, pour it in the skillet and then put the skillet in the oven during preheating. When the oven is heated, carefully take out the pan, pour the oil into the mix & quickly stir it. Then pour the mix back in the pan and into the oven, it goes. This ensures a brown & crispy crust. Yum!
This is what it should look like when you pour it into the skillet… Bubbles!
Here's what it looks like after baking.
Now for the Cornbread Stuffing! You won't regret adding it to your Thanksgiving or Christmas menu!
Looking for more great ideas? Try out our 39 Thanksgiving Dinner Side Dishes and make your turkey on the grill this year. And if you prefer white bread stuffing, try out my Cranberry Stuffing made in the Instant Pot. And last but not least, don't forget the pumpkin pie!
Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe:
Southern Cornbread Dressing
Cornbread Stuffing is the perfect side dish for Thanksgiving or any turkey dinner.
Ingredients
- 2 skillets cornbread, 9 inch, cooled & crumbled
- 1 medium onion, chopped fine
- 4 stalks celery, chopped fine
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 cans condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
- 2 eggs
- 1 liter Chicken Broth, or quart
- 2-3 tablespoon sage, to taste
- Salt & Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Melt butter in a frying pan. Cook onions and celery until soft and starting to brown.
- Crumble cornbread into a large bowl. Add cooked onions & celery. Add condensed soup and eggs. Stir. Add enough chicken broth to moisten it to a mud-like consistency (I know, I know....I'm trying to be descriptive but it totally depends on how dry your cornbread is).
- Add seasonings to taste.
- Pour into a buttered 9X13 baking dish.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until middle is set and top is starting to brown. Serve with turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce. Yum!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Amount Per Serving: Calories: 526Saturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 1050mgCarbohydrates: 8gSugar: 1gProtein: 4g
What recipe really stands out when you remember holidays from your childhood? Do you cook it for you and your family today?
I will have to try this sometime. I love dressing...it's the best part of a turkey dinner IMHO. I'm intrigued to see if I will like this kind too. Thanks for sharing:)
We always had green onions chopped as well as white onions in our dressing
@Marlene Sinclair, yesssssssssssss
This is the closest recipe to the way I was raised making dressing that I've found but I've never used cream of chicken in mine. And I have to raise a bone of contention here...none of us in the south call it stuffing, or at least no one that I've ever known! It's always called dressing...in fact, I almost didn't even look at this because I saw it called 'stuffing'. As I was raised, 'stuffing' was what they made up north and not the same thing. I don't know if that's true or not but I'm nearly fifty so I'm set in my ways, lol!
I call it dressing too. When I wrote this recipe up originally, I picked the word stuffing b/c I thought more people would search for that. I've since changed it back to say dressing because it is TOTALLY dressing. 🙂
Stuffing and dressing are the same thing, one is called stuffing because many people stuff it inside the turkey. Out West it is always called stuffing. Dressing is what we put on salads. 🙂
You are absolutely correct! Dressing in the South and some concoction of stuffing in the North.
I was born and raised in the north, and we have always called it dressing.
Very good! I just used one can of cream of chicken, I prefer mine a bit less mud like. Still very tasty! Interesting.. I am from Texas, and so is my whole family. We’ve always called it stuffing; dressing is for salads. In fact I’ve never heard it called dressing until I moved to the Texas panhandle from south Texas and my mother in law called it dressing. I guess it’s who you know! lol
Well, it isn’t mud like after you bake it. Lol. That is like saying a cake is mud like because the batter is.
@Kathleen D, stuffing in Ga means stove top/fake stuff. Lol
@KYM BROWN, 😂😂😂😂😂😂... I agree! When I hear stuffing oh, I think of Stove Top!!!!!! I remember trying that one time oh, and I never ever used it again! It has a totally different flavor than Southern dressing!
@Nikki,......lololol... I think turkey and dressing sounds a whole lot better than turkey and stuffing hahaha
@Kathleen D,
I was always taught that STUFFING is made using bread and bread crumbs, DRESSING is made using cornbread
It is very regional. Many also call anything cooked in the bird stuffing and anything cooked in the pan, dressing.
@Kathleen D,
That is why it is called Southern Cornbread Dressing and not "Salad Dressing"
@KYM BROWN, Stuffing is cooked inside the turkey; dressing is made outside the turkey.
CAN I PLEASE GET THE INGREDIENTS FOR THE CORNBREAD?
There is a link in the post but here it is too - https://merryabouttown.com/southern-cornbread-recipe/
This is super close to to type of dressing I grew up on (Duck dressing), we boil all the veggies with the duck and use that broth, the veggies, and the duck inside the dressing. It’s like a party on your palette!!!😃
I dint understand why you wouldn't put this mixture back in he same skillet so it would be brown and crunchy outside like your original cornbread, seems weird nit to.
You could do that but you would need to halve the recipe. The amount of dressing this makes will not fit in the skillet.
@Kathy Morrison, That direction was for the cornbread recipe, not the dressing. If you heat the cast iron skillet with the oil in it for the cornbread, then pour the hot oil into the cornbread mixture, then pour the cornbread batter back into the skillet to bake, it gives it a nice crunch on the outside when finished baking. That direction is definitely not for the dressing itself. I personally, use a mixture of oil and butter to preheat the skillet, which gives a wonderful flavor and texture to the cornbread.
I like my dressing a little sweet
My grandmother was from Louisiana and she loved cornbread stuffing, which I do too! Can't wait to try your recipe:)
It’s my fave!
Do you use 2 small cans of cream of chicken or 2 large cans?
The regular small cans of condensed soup.
Is the amount of Sage fresh or dried?
Dried
Pleased it was under stuffing, because to us down here in Australia, dressing is what you put on salads, and I never would have found this recipe.
Glad you found it! That is why I use both terms in my post! Enjoy!
Def closest I’ve found to my mom’s! We don’t add sage though.
So glad! The sage is easy to leave out.
Stuffing and dressing are NOT the same. Stuffing is made from toasted bread crumbs and dressing is make from cornbread. When I make stuffed pork chops I make a bread stuffing. You do use some of the same ingredients such as celery, onion and sage, but they are two different things and totally different textures. Both are delicious and a very hearty side dish! Happy Thanksgiving🦃
I always loved my mother and stepmother's cornbread dressing! This recipe is as close to it as you can get! I always loved how they took just tiny bits of turkey and put it in there as well. Happy Thanksgiving 2021 to all! God bless you all!!!
I am so glad to hear it! It was my Granny's recipe!
Oh, hey it's me again!😁 Just wanted to say that I add sage to my dressing, too. I usually start with a tablespoon and then add more to taste.
Y'all please ignore that second comment I made about the sage! I'm such a goofball!
This cornbread dressing is amazing and is sooo close to my grandmas dressing which I was looking for. This is a forever recipe in my family now!
I am so happy to hear that! Merry Christmas!
@Merry Kuchle,
This is basically what my mother, then I, have made as long as I can remember. Our shortcut is to use Pepperidge Farm Classic seasoned stuffing mix perfectly seasoned and you don’t have make cornbread first!
But then you don't get to eat the crispy cornbread crusts!!!