Cornbread Dressing has tender, sweet cubes of cornbread tossed with crusty sourdough and the perfect combination of fresh seasonal herbs.
Add this cornbread dressing to your Thanksgiving menu with Wild Rice Salad, Mashed Potatoes, and Dinner Rolls.
The Best Cornbread Dressing
This is my absolute favorite dressing recipe and a must-have on my Thanksgiving table every year. If I’m honest, I’d even pick this over the turkey!
The cornbread adds such a great depth of flavor and slight sweetness to the dressing; it perfectly complements the sourdough bread.
The veggies are slowly sautéed in melted butter and tossed with a bunch of fresh herbs such as rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano, and parsley. This combo of herbs not only makes your cornbread dressing smell incredible; it makes your entire home smell amazing!
Ingredients
- Sourdough and Cornbread: Bake the cubes until dry to avoid a soggy dressing.
- Unsalted Butter: Unsalted butter lets you control the salt level.
- Onion and Celery: Cook until lightly browned for extra flavor.
- Garlic: Gives delicious smells and flavor to the cornbread dressing.
- Herbs: A pre-packaged poultry herb blend can save you time and money.
- Chicken Stock: Broth works as well. For vegetarian use veggie broth.
- Eggs: Whisk eggs thoroughly with the stock before adding to the mix.
Quick Tip
Make sure to get flat-leaf Italian parsley, as opposed to curly for this recipe. Flat-leaf parsley has a more robust flavor and curly parsley is used more commonly as a garnish.
How to Make Cornbread Dressing
- Dry Bread: Cut sourdough and cornbread into cubes and bake until dry.
- Cook Veggies: Cook onions, celery, and garlic in butter.
- Add Herbs: Stir in herbs, salt, and pepper.
- Mix Liquids: Beat eggs with chicken stock.
- Combine: Pour egg mixture over veggies, then gently mix in the bread.
- Bake: Put in a baking dish and bake. Serve right away.
Storage
Prep Ahead: Plan for at least an hour to dry and bake. Make the bread and cornbread the day before and keep them at room temperature.
Make Ahead: Put together the cornbread dressing, store in the fridge, and bake it the next day, giving it a bit more time.
Storage: Best enjoyed fresh. Leftovers lose their texture and don’t freeze well, so try to eat them within a couple of days.
More Thanksgiving Recipes
- Thanksgiving Salad
- Sweet Potato Casserole
- Turkey & Cranberry Salad
- Roasted Carrots
- Thanksgiving Cookies
Cornbread Dressing
Equipment
- Baking pan 9 x 13-inch
- Sheet pan 15 x 21-inch
Ingredients
- 6 cups sourdough bread cut into 1-inch cubes
- 4 cups day-old cornbread cut into 1-inch cubes
- 11 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2-1/2 cups finely diced yellow onion 2 medium onions
- 1-1/3 cups thinly sliced celery 6 to 8 stalks
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic 3 to 4 cloves
- 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley finely diced
- 2 tablespoons fresh sage finely diced, see note 1
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary finely diced
- 1-1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme finely diced
- 1 teaspoon fresh oregano finely diced
- Salt and pepper
- 1-1/4 cups chicken stock
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250°F. Generously grease a 9×13-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- Cut the sourdough and cornbread into equal 1-inch-wide pieces (1/2-inch thick); place both on a large, rimmed sheet pan (15×21 inches). Bake for 45 minutes, gently stirring the bread and cornbread cubes every 15 minutes, or until completely dried. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Increase oven temperature to 350°F.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add diced onions, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until veggies are tender and just beginning to lightly brown, about 10–15 minutes. While veggies are cooking, finely chop the herbs.
- Add all the fresh chopped herbs: parsley, sage, rosemary, fresh oregano, and thyme to the butter and veggie mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste (I use about 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper). Remove pan from heat and let it cool slightly.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with a fork until smooth. Pour in the chicken stock and whisk again until smooth. Pour this mixture into the slightly cooled pan with the butter and herbs and gently stir to combine. (If the pot is super hot, you’ll scramble the eggs!)
- Add the cornbread and bread cubes to the pan. Stir very gently until all ingredients are combined and the bread/cornbread is well coated.
- Transfer this mixture to the prepared 9×13-inch baking dish. Bake for 45–60 minutes or until browned and crisp on top. Remove and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can I make this recipe with just homemade cornbread to make it gluten-free?
I did try only cornbread and it didn’t work out super well; I’d recommend doing a gluten-free bread with the cornbread
That looks so delicious- I just tasted cornbread for the first time (Hi from Toronto Canada!) and am obsessed. I need to make this standard in Australia!
Cornbread is the ONLY way to go when it comes to dressing!! It is just so much better!
I can never get enough cornbread either!
Cornbread has always been a favorite of mine, too! It reminds me of staying overnight at my grandparents house. My Grandma would make a skillet of cornbread to go along with breakfast every once in a while. I’m loving this cornbread stuffing, Chelsea! What a great idea to use cornbread instead of regular bread.
I discovered cornbread when I first moved to the states…and it has become a love affair since then. IT IS SO GOOD.
But used in a dressing? That right there is pure genius!
There’s no cornbread in Canada? What??