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–+ servings
Cornbread Dressing

Southern Cornbread Dressing

Cornbread dressing with day-old cornbread, buttery onion and celery, sage, and chicken broth, baked golden in a 9x13.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Southern
Servings: 10 servings

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 7 cups crumbled day-old cornbread from one 9-inch skillet or 8x8 pan
  • 2 cups torn day-old white bread or crumbled biscuits
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 large yellow onion diced
  • 3 stalks celery diced
  • 1 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
  • 1 tsp rubbed sage
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 4 cups chicken broth divided
  • 3 large eggs beaten

Instructions

  • Crumble the breads: Break the day-old cornbread into a very large bowl with your hands, then tear in the white bread or biscuits. You want coarse crumbs and a few pea-sized pieces, not a fine powder.
  • Soften the vegetables: Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring now and then, until they're soft and translucent with no crunch left. Pour the whole thing, butter included, over the crumbs.
  • Season and wet it down: Sprinkle in the poultry seasoning, sage, salt, and pepper and toss. Pour in 3 1/2 cups of the chicken broth and stir gently until every crumb is soaked. It should look loose and soupy, like thick oatmeal. Add the last 1/2 cup of broth if any dry spots remain.
  • Stir in the eggs: Add the beaten eggs and fold them through until you can't see any streaks. The eggs are what set the middle so it slices instead of scoops.
  • Bake uncovered: Heat the oven to 350°F. Spread the mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish and bake uncovered for 45-50 minutes, until the top is golden brown, the edges pull slightly from the sides, and a thermometer in the center reads 165°F.
  • Rest before serving: Let the pan sit for 10 minutes. The center firms up in that time and the servings hold their shape on the plate.

Notes

Use plain, unsweetened, day-old cornbread and make the mixture loose and soupy before it goes in the pan. Cornbread absorbs broth as it bakes, so a mixture that looks correctly moist in the bowl bakes up dry. Bake uncovered at 350°F for 45-50 minutes, until the center reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.