The Best Classic Herb Stuffing

Herb stuffing is the ultimate comfort food side dish that turns any ordinary meal into a celebration! This classic recipe features perfectly seasoned bread cubes, aromatic herbs, and tender sautéed vegetables all baked to golden perfection. It’s buttery, savory, and absolutely irresistible

Love More Dinner Ideas? Try My Thanksgiving Stuffing Balls or this Cranberry Turkey Stuffing Balls next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Warm, savory, and full of comforting flavor, this dish combines toasted bread cubes, aromatic herbs, onions, and celery for the perfect holiday side. Moist on the inside and crisp on top, it delivers that nostalgic homemade taste everyone looks forward to during family gatherings.

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Ingredient List

For the Stuffing:

• 1 cup butter (yeah, the whole thing)
• 2 cups chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme (or grab 2 tablespoons fresh if you’ve got it)
• 1½ teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 12 cups dry, unseasoned bread cubes
• 4 cups chicken broth

Notes on Substitutions:

• Butter: Half butter and half olive oil works if that’s your thing, but butter is where the magic happens
• Bread: I’ve used white bread, sourdough, even that crusty French bread – all good
• Broth: Vegetable broth if you’re keeping it vegetarian
• Fresh vs. Dried Herbs: Fresh thyme needs way more – like triple what the dried calls for

Why These Ingredients Work

The butter here isn’t negotiable – it’s what makes everything taste rich instead of just… wet bread. I learned this the hard way when I tried cutting it in half once (never again).

Those celery and onion pieces get all sweet and soft when you cook them down. That’s the base flavor that makes you go “what IS that?” in the best way possible.

Thyme and poultry seasoning are doing the heavy lifting here. Poultry seasoning is basically sage, thyme, marjoram, and rosemary all mixed up, so you’re getting a whole herb garden without buying six different bottles.

Here’s the thing about dry bread – fresh bread turns into library paste when you add liquid. Stale bread has these little air pockets that soak up the broth but still hold their shape. That’s the difference between stuffing and soup.

The chicken broth brings everything together and adds that savory depth. I’ve tried making this with water before (dark times in college), and trust me, the broth matters.

Essential Tools and Equipment

You probably have all this already:

• Big skillet for cooking the veggies
• Even bigger bowl for mixing (seriously, get the biggest one you own)
• 13×9 baking dish
• Wooden spoon or spatula
• Knife and cutting board
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Foil (maybe, depends on your oven)

How To Make Classic Herb Stuffing

Step 1: Preheat and Prep

Get your oven going at 375°F. Grab your 13×9 baking dish and grease it up with some butter or spray. If your bread cubes are still squishy at all, throw them on a baking sheet for 10 minutes while the oven heats up. Nobody wants mushy stuffing.

Step 2: Melt the Butter and Sauté Vegetables

Dump that whole cup of butter in your skillet over medium heat. Once it’s melted and doing its thing, toss in the celery and onion. Let them cook for about 5 minutes, stirring every now and then. You’ll know they’re ready when the onions look see-through and your kitchen smells incredible.

Step 3: Add the Herbs and Seasonings

Now throw in the thyme, poultry seasoning, seasoned salt, and pepper. Stir it around for maybe a minute. This is when my kids start wandering into the kitchen asking when dinner’s ready.

Step 4: Combine with Bread Cubes

Get all those bread cubes in your big bowl. Pour that veggie and herb mixture over them, then add the chicken broth. I usually just use my hands to mix it all up because spoons don’t really cut it here. Mix until everything looks coated but don’t go crazy – you’re not kneading bread dough.

Step 5: Transfer to Baking Dish

Scoop everything into your greased dish and spread it around so it’s kind of even. Don’t pack it down hard – leave it a little loose and fluffy. Those uneven bits on top are gonna get crispy and golden, which is exactly what we want.

Step 6: Bake to Golden Perfection

Stick it in the oven for 35 minutes. You’re looking for the top to be golden brown and a little crispy on the edges. If your oven runs hot and the top starts getting too dark, just lay some foil over it loosely.

You Must Know

The Bread MUST Be Dry — I can’t stress this enough. Fresh soft bread will wreck this whole thing. Day-old bread sitting on your counter? Perfect. Or just dry it in the oven at 250°F for 15-20 minutes.

Don’t Drown It — The mixture should look moist but you shouldn’t see puddles of broth sitting there. It needs to hold together when you squeeze it but still feel light.

Personal Secret: I always keep back about half a cup of broth and add it little by little at the end. Different breads soak up different amounts, so this way I’m not guessing.

Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

• Make your own bread cubes from whatever bread you’ve got lying around. Cut it up, let it sit out overnight. Way cheaper than those bags at the store.
• Taste your broth first. If it’s the low-sodium kind, you’ll probably need more salt in the stuffing.
• Real butter. Not margarine. This is not the time to cut corners.
• Mix gently once you add the broth. Going all aggressive on it makes the bread break down into paste.
• Before it goes in the oven, grab a handful and squeeze. It should clump but still feel fluffy, not wet and heavy.

Flavor Variations & Suggestions

You can mess with this recipe a lot:

Sausage Stuffing — Brown up a pound of Italian sausage and mix it in. My husband requests this version every year.

Apple Pecan Stuffing — Toss in a cup of diced apples and half a cup of toasted pecans. Sweet and savory thing going on.

Mushroom Lovers — Cook up 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms with the celery and onions. So good.

Cornbread Stuffing — Half cornbread cubes, half regular bread. Very Southern.

Cranberry Orange — Half cup dried cranberries and some orange zest. Festive.

Extra Herby — Fresh sage, rosemary, or parsley. Go wild.

Make-Ahead Options

This is clutch for the holidays when you’re juggling seventeen things:

Day Before: Do everything up until the baking part. Cover it tight with plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge. Next day, let it sit out for 30 minutes, then bake. Might need an extra 5-10 minutes since it’s cold.

Freezing: Wrap the whole unbaked dish in plastic wrap then foil. Freezes for a month. Thaw it overnight in the fridge before baking. Or bake it straight from frozen at 350°F covered for 45 minutes, then uncover for another 20.

Already Baked It? Cool it down, then fridge for 3 days or freezer for 2 months.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

• I like using sturdy white bread or sourdough. Those fancy seeded breads don’t really work for this.
• Room temp broth soaks in better than cold broth right from the fridge.
• Want it extra crispy on top? Drizzle a couple tablespoons of melted butter over before it goes in the oven.
• Fun fact – this is technically “dressing” since it’s not stuffed in a bird. But who calls it that? Nobody.
• Need to feed a crowd? This doubles easy. Just use a bigger pan or two dishes.

Serving Suggestions

Goes with basically everything:

• Turkey or chicken (obviously)
• Pork chops or pork roast – the flavors work so well together
• Even beef roast (I know, weird, but try it)
• Pour gravy over the whole thing
• Cranberry sauce on the side for that sweet-tart thing
• Green beans, Brussels sprouts, glazed carrots

Throw some fresh thyme on top or some chopped parsley if you’re feeling fancy. A little butter melting on top never hurt anyone either.

How to Store Your Herb Stuffing

Room Temperature: Get it in the fridge within 2 hours. Food safety stuff.

Refrigerator: Airtight container, keeps for 4 days.

Freezer: Portion it out in containers or freezer bags. Good for 2 months. Write the date on it because you’ll forget.

Reheating:

• Oven (Best Way): Put it in a covered dish with a splash of broth, heat at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.
• Microwave: Heat it for a minute at a time, stir it around, add a little broth so it doesn’t dry out.
• Stovetop: Heat it in a skillet with some butter over medium-low, keep stirring.

Allergy Information

What’s In Here:

• Dairy (butter)
• Gluten (bread)

Swaps:

• Dairy-Free: Vegan butter or olive oil works
• Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free bread cubes (dry them out good though)
• Low-Sodium: Unsalted butter and low-sodium broth, then add salt yourself

Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Can I use fresh bread instead of dried bread cubes?

Don’t do it. Seriously. Fresh bread gets soggy and gross. If fresh bread is all you’ve got, cut it up and dry it out in a 250°F oven for 15-20 minutes. This step matters way more than you think.

My stuffing came out too dry. What went wrong?

Not enough broth, or your bread was super absorbent. Start with 3½ cups next time, then add more until it looks right. Every bread’s different so you gotta feel it out.

Can I stuff this inside my turkey instead of baking it separately?

Yeah, but make sure it hits 165°F inside or you’re asking for trouble. Stuffing inside the bird stays moister but doesn’t get crispy like the oven version. I usually do both – some in the bird, some in a dish.

How do I know when the stuffing is done baking?

Top should be golden brown with crispy edges. Middle should be hot all the way through (165°F if you’re checking). Should look moist and fluffy, not dried out or swimming in liquid.

💬 Tried this recipe? Leave a comment and rating below! Tell me how it went! Did you add sausage? Go crazy with the herbs? I wanna hear about it.