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Easy-Bake Herbed Stuffing
Let’s face it, stuffing is basically a flavorful sponge to soak up gravy and any stray melting butter that escapes a vegetable. But mincing and sautéing the aromatics that help turn bland bread tasty is a chore. We speed things up – and maximize flavor – by giving butter, fresh herbs and raw shallots a whiz in the food processor, then using the resulting paste to season bread cubes while they toast in the oven. We found that any sturdy, high-quality sliced sandwich bread from the grocer worked well here. As the bread bakes, the raw bite of the shallots cooks off leaving behind a mellow tang. Chopped celery is tossed with melted butter and mixed into the bread, softening as the cubes toast. The mixture then is moistened with chicken broth and a touch of cream before being baked to create a relatively carefree stuffing that will satisfy the even strictest traditionalists.
8
Servings
Tip
Don’t use regular chicken broth. Make sure to use low-sodium, otherwise you’ll end up with an oversalted stuffing. Of course, homemade chicken or turkey stock is even better.
2¼ hours
30 min active
Ingredients
-
1
cup finely chopped celery
-
8
tablespoons (1 stick) salted butter, melted
Directions
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01Heat the oven to 325°F with racks in the upper middle and lower middle positions. In a bowl, toss the celery with 1 tablespoon of the butter; set aside. In a food processor, combine the shallots, sage, thyme, ¾ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper and remaining butter. Process to form a smooth paste, about 30 seconds, scraping the bowl as needed. In a large bowl, combine the bread and shallot-herb paste, tossing gently.
Reviews
November 29, 2025
Best Stuffing!
I’ve tried many different recipes and always come back to this one. It’s easy to assemble
the components ahead of time and it’s not fussy at all. It’s everything a stuffing should be!
November 28, 2025
Best “stuffing” ever!
This is now my go to recipe for making dressing/stuffing. I don’t worry about what kind of bread I get or being very accurate on ingredient amounts but the key of having that butter herb paste bake into the bread is key. I always add some gizzard bits to make it more like the stuffing I grew up eating. It’s always a huge hit at the Thanksgiving table!
November 25, 2025
question on mixing the paste and the bread
I'm excited to make this - is it difficult to get the paste to mix with the bread evenly without tearing the bread (or missing any pieces) - any tips? thanks!
November 22, 2025
Prepare in a crock pot?
This recipe looks delish! Is there any way it can be prepared in a crockpot?
March 29, 2024
Awesome flavor and great for day before prep
This is a great stuffing recipe especially if you have vegetarians to plan for. I like to use the loaf of pane Turano from Aldi. It’s exactly 1.5 lbs. Everyone raves about it and it is great for a make ahead!
Five star recipe! I made this for the first time, and it was the side dish that disappeared the fastest at my Thanksgiving feast. The flavor, texture, and seasoning level were unworldly! I made it up to Step 2 the day before the feasting, which helped tremendously. I was initially worried about the amount of Kosher salt used, and it didn't make the stuffing overly-salty at all. I used the organic, low-sodium Better-Than-Bouillon chicken base for the broth. Definitely a keeper, and will be always offered for any future feasts.
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I need a volume on the 1 1/2 lbs of bread