So how do you make your stuffing?

[latebloomer]

I'm making it for the first time-- my mother-in-law gave me her recipe, but I'm not super-crazy about her stuffing. Maybe something including sausage?

[The empressof all]

1. Here's the killer Easy Sausage stuffing recipe

Cook up one tube of Jimmy Dean (or other brand) sausage. Break into small bits while cooking --When done--Set aside---do not pick at it!

Chop one very large sweet onion
Chop 2 Celery stalks
Chop 1 large Apple

Melt one stick of butter in large pan. Lightly saute onion, celery and apple until onion is soft and translucent.

Empty contents of one bag of seasoned stuffing mix. (Not stovetop) The kind that comes in a bag. You want the one with the cubes not the crumbs. Get the seasoned one---This is all about being easy

Combine sausage, stuffing mix, sauteed vegetables in butter in large bowl. Add a handful of chopped nuts (optional-but delicious) I use cashews or Pecans. Also add a small handful of raisins or dried cranberries. (I soak these in chicken broth for about 15 minutes to make them soft)

Beat two eggs and combine with bread/sausage mixture.

Add Chicken Broth until mixture is soft but not soggy. Mix well.

I cool this prior to stuffing the bird or you can cook it in a casserole dish. I cover mine with foil and bake till heated through.

The eggs are important in this stuffing as they keep it very light and fluffy----The butter makes it rich and lusious.

[Neecy]

2. sounds good

This is pretty close to what I make - just a few differences. It's a basic sage stuffing with sausage.

I saute a chopped large white onion and 2-3 celery stalks in about a stick of butter until they're soft. While this is happening, I cook link breakfast sausage (although you can use any kind of sausage - this is just very mild and doesn't overwhelm the dressing).

I let the vegetables and sausage cool, and then I take 2 bags of basic, plain hamburger buns and hand-tear them into a large bowl. Chop the sausages into small pieces, then add the vegetable and sausage to the bread mixture and sprinkle liberally with dried rubbed sage and a small amount of salt. Add a couple of eggs and chicken stock until moist but not saturated.

For some reason, using hamburger buns makes an extremely fluffy dressing. My mother made it that way, and I've yet to break out and do something radical with my own stuffing :)

[The empressof all]

3. You know you gave me an idea

I think I'll use a half a loaf of Challah Bread in mine this year along with the seasoned cubes. What your mom did with the hamburger rolls makes a heck of a lot of sense. I like the seasoning in the cubes so I don't think I'll abandon them but adding a soft bread sounds terrific.

Try adding apples, or some dried fruit and nuts to yours- You'll be pleasantly surprised.

The stuffing and the gravy is the best part of Thanksgiving!

[matcom]

4. i NEVER stuff my bird

make the stuffing seperate. if you MUST stuff the bird (don't know why), put the stuffing in a cotton bag and put the WHOLE THING into the cavity. cook it that way

problem with stuffing the bird is 1) its difficult to make sure that BOTH the bird and stuffing are done at the same time. 2)if the stuffing ISN'T cooked all the way, its been sitting there soaking up salmonilla for hours.

i think stuffing is WAY overrated and potentially dangerous if not done right

[The empressof all]

7. I totally agree about stuffing the bird

I never stuff my bird anymore. It's potentially too dangerous and it ruins the turkey soup I make from the carcass

I do love stuffing though so I just make plenty of it on the side! I make it the night before, make extra then I get to pick on it all day long. Can't imagine Thanksgiving without the stuffing!

[chefgirl]

12. There is a good way to avoid that problem

Make your stuffing ahead, that is, fully cook it and keep it in the fridge until its completely chilled and you're ready to stuff the bird.

Also, when you are cleaning out the cavity of the bird, rinse it with ice cold water, then slosh about a cup of white wine around inside the cavity. Pour it off, then add just a splash more wine before you stuff the bird. The alcohol helps to kill any bacteria that may begin to grow, as does keeping the stuffing, as well as the bird, cold until the last minute.
I would also suggest not packing the stuffing in too tightly, as this can prevent the heat from circulating correctly inside the cavity.
Finally, be sure not to cook the turkey at too low a temperature for too long. This could cause the turkey and stuffing to hover in the 'temperature danger zone' for too long, allowing bacteria to grow.

My father was a chef before me, and he did it that way all our lives. I've been doing it that way for years myself and I've never had a problem.

-chef-

[DemBones DemBones]

15. From a scientific standpoint, I don't know that the wine

kills many, or any, bacteria, but it contributes a bit to flavor, so why not use it as a final rinse?

I never heard of rinsing the turkey with wine before, but it's certainly important to rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water, and to cook at a high enough temperature. 325 is what I use; I'm not sure you can go below that safely. I also agree that stuffing shouldn't be packed too tightly in the cavities.

I never cook my stuffing in advance. I use homemade bread, homemade cornbread, raw onions and celery, sage, salt, pepper, and pecan halves. I sometimes mix it all together and refrigerate overnight but I never add liquid until I'm about to stuff the bird. I use milk as the liquid in my stuffing, as my mother did. I don't know how I would like it made with broth. My husband hated his mom's cornbread and broth dressing (it was mushy and not well-seasoned) but loves my dressing so I figure why mess with success? :7

[chefgirl]

16. Well, as with anything else

There are a million ways to cook just about anything.

Just to clear something up though, the alcohol in the wine does inhibit the growth of bacteria, the same way rubbing alcohol inhibits its growth in an open wound. Probably not all, this is true, and you're right, it also helps to flavor the bird.

Also, when I said make sure the stuffing is cooked, what I meant was all the ingredients (celery, onions, etc..) I don't 'cook' my stuffing before hand either. My mistake if I didn't communicate that clearly enough. :)

I've never had bread stuffing that was moistened with milk, by the way. I might try that the next time I make a stuffed chicken.

-chef-

[fortyfeetunder]

17. Wine? Maybe some 80 proof vodka or gin

I'd want the alcohol content up a bit before I'd consider it a disinfectant. After all, the turkey won't be busted for cooking while intoxicated!

[meegbear]

11. I just saw that on Good Eats!

Seemed a bit odd, but sounded right.

I make mine in the crockpot and do the bird on the grill.

[DS1]

13. Damn, and I just bought a shotgun and a 50pack of empty shells

Fucker, thanks for ruining MY Thanksgiving :grr:

[DemBones DemBones]

14. I ALWAYS stuff my bird

and people rave over both my roast turkey (never dry, never rubbery, always yummy) and my dressing/ stuffing. A tasty stuffing adds a lot to a turkey, chicken, Cornish game hen.

Sure, stuffing is "potentially dangerous if not done right," but that's true of many things. Millions of women get it right year after year. And, by the way, you can get Salmonella from your unstuffed bird. It's all about proper handling.

To do it right, you don't let the bird sit out of the refrigerator for any length of time, you don't stuff the cavities until you're ready to put the bird in the oven, and you don't fool around with low temperature slow-cooking methods. You use a slice of bread as a door to seal the dressing into the body cavity, keep it from falling out, if that's your reason for the cotton bag. You cook a turkey at 325, use a good meat thermometer to check temperature in center of dressing as well as deep in the bird's thigh when it has cooked enough time to be done theoretically. You want the temperature of the bird anf the stuffing to be somewhat above the safe level for poultry.

You don't leave the stuffing in the bird to refrigerate, or leave the meat on the bones, either. Cooks have to work after dinner, too.

You wouldn't "think stuffing is WAY overrated" if you ever ate the ones I make. ;-)

DemBones "Cooking perfect turkeys since 1968"

[Eurobabe]

5. I already cut up my stuffing veggies and cooked them...

Let them sit in the fridge for a few days to let the flavors meld together.

Lg. bunch of celery
Fresh finely chopped parsley (big handful)
Onions (2 medium)
Crushed garlic (1 clove)

1 stick of butter
Salt and pepper
Poultry seasoning and sage

Cut everything up and saute this for about 30 minutes. (Can't tell you quantity for herbs, you'll have to taste, but you can be generous with sage.) Day of stuffing, take this out and reheat it, then add your cubes, chopped giblets, etc. Season to taste.

Joy of cooking has best stuffing recipe FYI, and advice re: roasting bird. High heat to sear, and then reduce temp.

[cally]

6. Thanks

I've wanted to cook the vegetables today but wasn't sure it would work this early. I'm off to cook my onions and garlic.

My stuffing:

Cook 4 bacon strips. Remove bacon and use some of the grease to saute an onion, garlic, celery and parsley. When this cools, add bread cubes, apple chunks and walnuts. Chill and stuff in the turkey. Yumm.

[Cadence]

8. Here's a dressing recipe that people rave about

You take a whole loaf of sliced white bread and lay them out individually on sheets of wax paper. Sprinkle them generously with sage, salt, pepper and onion powder. Leave them out in the air for 24 hours until they harden.
Crumble the bread in large baking dish and add 1 to 2 cans cream of celery soup and 1/2cup of diced onion. Add 1 cup chicken broth (best if you use a cup of the broth from the almost finished turkey) and bake in a 400 degree oven for about an hour.

Absolutely delicious! Been in my family for years and everywhere I take it people die over it.

[latebloomer]

9. Thanks everybody!!

Great ideas! And a happy T-Day to all!!

[meegbear]

10. In the crockpot (so actually it's dressing)

Lotta great recipes for it.

[fortyfeetunder]

18. Stone-ground cornmeal as a base

I only use stone-ground cornmeal (either plain or self-rising). I make a batch of cornbread the night before. It's a low fat, about a tablespoon of olive oil and 2 eggs, along with non-fat milk powder and water.

The next day, I cube it up, add sauteed celery, onions, parsley and mushrooms, herbs, and 2 cans of broth, mixed it up then baked. This year, I added "fiber" to my mix by adding some oat bran...No one knew the difference.

ON EDIT: This is the only I can enjoy this without guilt.