I’ve been making this sausage and fennel stuffing recipe for years. This Sausage and fennel stuffing recipe has become a staple at our house. I was looking for a new stuffing recipe to have after my wife and I were married. Traditional stuffing my mom would make is wonderful but it was time for something new. I tried to come up with many stuffing recipes. Cranberry and cornbread (I will still try that one again someday), stuffing with bacon and other meats. However, I still kept coming back to this one.
My family and I are big sourdough stuffing recipe fans and the combination of the fennel, pears, and sausage is just delicious! This recipe is for an 8 x 8 baking dish. I usually make more and stuff our turkey with it which adds tremendous flavor! I’m sure it will be one of your Thanksgiving stuffing recipes!
Make it ahead of time!
The stuffing recipe components can be made a day ahead of time. The first task is to cube and toast the sourdough loaf. You can use any bread you like, however, the sourdough adds a wonderful flavor to the stuffing. The toasted bread cubes can be put into an airtight container or a plastic bag after they have cooled. The pear and sausage mixture is the second part of the stuffing that can be made ahead.
Cook the sausage and then set it aside. Keep all the dippings in the pan. Then add the fennel and onion and cook until golden brown. After that, add the pears and the herbs. When the herbs are fragrant, remove the pan from the stove and let the mixture cool. Place the cooled mixture in an airtight container or cover well and place in the fridge.
When you are ready to make your stuffing, just heat up the sausage and fennel mixture and add the broth. Pour the mixture over the toasted sourdough cubes and mix well. Cover the stuffing until the cubes have soaked up the broth.
Baking the sausage and fennel stuffing
The recipe is meant for an 8 x 8 baking dish. Bake the stuffing for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F. If you plan on putting the stuffing in your turkey, just follow the instructions that come with the turkey.
Don’t forget to include my apple pear crumble pie for dessert!
Please visit my sides and salads page for more ideas!
Ingredients
- 8 ounces of sourdough bread cut into one inch cubes
- 12 ounces of bulk italian sausage
- 3 pears peeled and diced
- 1 fennel bulb diced about two cups
- ½ large onion diced
- 1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil
- 1 tablespoons of dried thyme
- 1 tablespoons of dried sage
- 1 tablespoons of dried marjoram
- 1 ½ cups of turkey or chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon each of sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place cubed sourdough bread on a baking sheet and toast for about 10 minutes. Place toasted cubes in a large bowl when done.
- In a large skillet, heat oil or butter and brown sausage. After browned, place in a separate bowl and set aside.
- In the same pan that the sausage was browned, add diced onion, diced fennel, 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Cook on medium heat until golden brown.
- When golden brown, add browned sausage, diced pears, thyme, marjoram, and sage and cook until fragrant (about 5 minutes) then add stock and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes place in a large bowl containing toasted bread cubes and stir gently.
- Cover bowl with foil or tight lid and let set for about 10 minutes allowing the fennel mixture to soak into bread cubes.
- Gently stir again after 10 minutes and place in a buttered 8×8 pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F
