Shirley's Sausage Stuffing

Name: Shirley's Sausage Stuffing
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 25 min
Yield: 10-12 serving(s)
Ingredients: 2 (1 lb) rolls Jimmy Dean sausage; 1 1/2 cups margarine or 1 1/2 cups butter; turkey gizzards, chopped fine (optional) or turkey gizzard, ground (optional); turkey neck, heart, chopped fine (optional) or turkey neck, heart ground (optional); turkey liver, chopped fine (optional) or turkey liver, ground (optional); 1 1/2 cups onions, chopped fine; 6 celery ribs, chopped fine; 12 cups bread, crumbled; 1 (16 ounce) box nabisco saltine crackers, crushed; 3 -5 teaspoons poultry seasoning, to taste; 1 teaspoon salt, to taste; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, to taste

Community Pick

Submitted by Lindas Busy Kitchen

"My mom made the BEST stuffing, which always made our holiday dinners complete. Here is her recipe, and mine as well. There is enough stuffing in this recipe to stuff up to a 25 pound bird, and still have some left over to bake in a casserole dish or aluminum foil, the last hour of cooking, so that you have plenty for everyone. Great to use for leftovers along with some sliced turkey and cranberry sauce, for a DELICIOUS sandwich... Enjoy!"

Download

photo by Jonathan Melendez

Ready In:: 3hrs 25mins
Ingredients:: 12
Serves:: 10-12

ingredients

2 (1 lb) rolls Jimmy Dean sausage
1 ¹⁄₂ cups margarine or 1 1/2 cups butter
turkey gizzards, chopped fine (optional) or turkey gizzard, ground (optional)
turkey neck, heart, chopped fine (optional) or turkey neck, heart ground (optional)
turkey liver, chopped fine (optional) or turkey liver, ground (optional)
1 ¹⁄₂ cups onions, chopped fine
6 celery ribs, chopped fine
12 cups bread, crumbled
1 (16 ounce) box nabisco saltine crackers, crushed
3 -5 teaspoons poultry seasoning, to taste
1 teaspoon salt, to taste
¹⁄₂ teaspoon black pepper, to taste

directions

In a saucepan over med. heat, boil the fresh pork sausage and gizzards, along with the margarine, onions, and celery, in 1 quart of water, for 30 minutes Strain, saving water.
Put the onions, celery, and sausage in a lg. bowl, and set aside.
Put the gizzards, and meat picked from the neck, in a blender, and press chop. (Do it quickly, and stop to mix meats, then pulse for 1-2 seconds again. You do not want it to be mushy). When all is chopped fine, put in the lg. bowl, along with onions, celery, and sausage.
You may also grind the gizzards, and other meat parts in a meat grinder instead of the blender if you have one.
Add to the sausage, onion and celery.
When ready to stuff the bird and bake:
In a lg. bowl crumble your bread, crust and all, (I roll the bread between my hands to crumble it).
Crush the crackers right in the closed sleeves, (but be careful not to push too fast or you may open the pkg). When crushed, open the sleeve and put in the bowl, along with the bread. Mix up well.
Mix the meat mixture with the dry mixture.
Add enough liquid from the sausage, gizzards, heart and neck stock (a little at a time), to make the stuffing to the desired consistency, of if not using these parts, use some chicken or turkey broth.
Toss with a fork, until well mixed. Gently knead the mixture to distribute the ingredients.
(The stuffing should have enough liquid so it holds together in a ball if you squeeze it in your hands, but not mushy, especially if you are stuffing your turkey, as the juices from the turkey make it moist as it is cooking.
Add poultry seasoning, tasting as you go, to get it the way you like it.
Salt and pepper, to taste.
Stuff the bird right before putting it in the oven. DO NOT stuff the bird and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator.
The stuffing should be warm or room temperature when you are ready to put it in the bird.
Plan to use 3/4 cup stuffing for each pound of turkey.
To stuff the neck, first pack it loosely with stuffing.
Pin the neck skin over the exposed stuffing with a skewer, or flip the wing tips up to hold it in place.
Spoon stuffing loosely in the main body cavity.
Cover exposed stuffing with a swatch of aluminum foil or a piece of bread.
Roast turkey using desired method. I bake mine at 350, and go by the pounds on the turkey label for the hours needed to roast.
Baste turkey with pan drippings at least 3 times during cooking time to get nice crispy skin, and help to keep turkey moist.
Use a meat thermometer to make sure the center of the stuffing reaches 165 degrees F before removing from the oven.
Keep in mind that a "pop-up" thermometer that comes with a turkey won't tell you the temperature of the stuffing.
Place any extra stuffing in a baking dish coated with cooking spray. Cover, and refrigerate until ready to bake, NO MORE THAN 8 hours before cooking the bird.
Pour 1/2 cup turkey or chicken stock over the extra stuffing, and bake at 350, for 30-60 minutes covered with aluminum foil.
After the turkey is done roasting, remove stuffing immediately from the bird, and place in a bowl. (I use an aluminum bowl and cover with aluminum foil to keep it nice and hot, until serving time.
Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours of taking out of the oven.
Store leftover turkey and stuffing in shallow containers with covers, and use within 2-3 days.
You may freeze but use within 3 months.
Tips & Warnings:
Avoid pre-stuffed fresh turkeys, and DO NOT stuff birds to cook on a grill or smoker, or if you plan to deep fry.
Always stuff a bird just BEFORE roasting.
The stuffing should be warm, NOT hot or cold, when you pack it in the bird, otherwise the roasting time will be off, and the temperature will not reach 165 degrees F before the rest of the bird is done.
Don't overstuff the turkey, because the stuffing will expand as the bird roasts.
Following these simple steps is the safest way to stop airborne bacteria from invading your turkey and stuffing and making you sick.

Questions & Replies

Got a question? Share it with the community!

Reviews

Perfect stuffing! It was delicious and so easy to make. I'll be adding it to my thanksgiving menu.

Jonathan Melendez
This recipe converted me! I've never liked stuffing, but I make it for the fans in my family. I taste it each year, hoping my taste buds have changed...and this recipe is the one that converted me to a fan. Totally delicious! The only change I made was to cut the recipe in half, since I was not stuffing the bird. I did use half of the chopped turkey bits; the rest could be reserved for giblet gravy.

Vicki #4
This was a great stuffing recipe. I tried it twice... once with bread and once with prepared bread cubes (that were dry already). I felt like the prepared bread cubes stood up to the moisture and baking time better than just the bread. I followed the recipe as is, minus using the neck and gizzards. Solid recipe!

Dine Dish
This was ok, but tasted a bit too much like saltine cracker

mommymakeit4u
This was a crowd pleaser at Thanksgiving this year.. I let my wife prepare the gizzards, livers, sausage, onions, etc. Once she got that done, I prepared the stuffing and we stuffed the bird and preheated the oven. The stuffing has a great flavor and we love this stuff!!! Previous Review: I had to try this out before Thanksgiving to see how good it was. The family said they loved it, so we will be adding this to our Thanksgiving table this year! I loved the sausage in it and it has great flavors from the meat drippings from cooking it inside an oven roaster chicken. We can't wait to try it with turkey soon!

davidthurston1960

see 42 more reviews

RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

Lindas Busy Kitchen

Durham, 69

Hi Everyone, I just don't have the time these days to send out individual thank yous for those that make and review my recipes, but I  just want you to know that you are truly appreciated and it tickles me every time I get a review, knowing you tried my recipes and enjoyed them the way I do. I even appreciate the ones that tried them and for some reason they didn't work out for you.  Everyone has different tastes, and you can't please everyone all the time.   Lots of times people change the recipes, adding things, leaving things out, and not seasoning them to their own taste, and give a bad review...  Recipes are only guidelines, and if you follow mine and don't like it, then it's a personal preference as to why you don't like it, and I appreciate that.  However, if you don't follow my recipe then it is YOUR recipe that you don't like, and my recipe shouldn't be rated. IMHO   Thanks for trying them anyway  :) Hugs, Linda   My name is Linda. I am happily single, and I live in Rochester NH. I just moved back to the town where most of my family lived years ago, and where I lived as a child, after living in NC for 5 years. I have 2 grown sons, a dil, and 2 beautiful grandsons. I really enjoy my time here on Zaar posting recipes, trying new recipes, taking pictures, and reviewing lots of yummy recipes! I love to cook, and share recipes. The recipes that I share are mainly my own creations, or family recipes passed down to me from my mom and grandmother, and other family members or friends. If I post something from somewhere else, it has to sound REALLY good to me for me to post it! Many of the dishes that I prepare are simple, good, down home cooking. Many of them originate from New England, as my grandmother is from Maine, and my mother from New Hampshire. I do also like to try making some gourmet recipes as well, using my creativity along the way. I started cooking at a the age of 8, helping my mother and grandmother in the kitchen. My curiosity for cooking has led me to create many of my own recipes through trial and error. I hope you enjoy them as much as my family and I do :) In my spare time I play on my computer collecting recipes, and have been working on creating a cookbook to publish for some time, but have put it aside for now. I also love to travel and shop. I love to go to the beach and mountains, and as food is a passion of mine, I love to dine out and try many different cuisines in the area, and with friends when I am traveling :) I made my first herb garden in 2008, but have had vegetable gardens for many years in the past. I have done my share of canning and I love those fresh herbs and veggies all summer long! My Rating System: 5 Stars ***** Outstanding recipe that I absolutely loved. It can be down home or restaurant quality, as long as it tastes great and I didn't have to make any changes along the way! Also recipe has to have clear directions. One I would definately make again and again. 4 Stars **** Great recipe that I loved, but one that I may have had to tweak just a bit. Directions may have not been crystal clear. One I would make again and again with my changes. 3 Stars *** I liked the recipe, but had to add ingredients, or add more of a called for ingredient to have the recipe come out the way I like it. I would probably make again sometime. 2 Stars ** This recipe was ok, but I probably wouldn't make it again due to lack of taste, undesireable texture, or unclear directions etc. 1 Star * This recipe was one I didn't like at all. Either the amounts of ingredients were wrong (too little flavor or too much of one/some of the ingredients in the recipe), or the recipe didn't come out right following the directions given. Lack of directions. No Stars - I have tried the recipe in the past and want to make a comment, or I am adding a comment about the recipe posted, possibly a tip or what I feel to be important information about the recipe. <a href=http://www.sparklee.com><img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://img109.mytextgraphics.com/sparklee/2008/06/25/8219d39724611006c824863f62e57014.gif border=0 alt=Glitter Graphics - /></a> <div style=color: #000000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: #ffffff; margin: 7px;> <a href=http://www.sparklee.com> 4-09 Lazyme's Cook-A-Thon  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u208/diner_photos/lazymecookathon.jpg alt= />  2/09 Top Recipes For 2008 Participant  2-09 Newest Zaar Tag Game Participant  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a254/Sharon123/Copyoftag300-banner.jpg border=0 alt=Susie's Banner for Newest Zaar Tag /> 2-09 1-2-3 Hit Wonders Tag Game Participant  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj81/HokiesLady65/Recipezaar%20Album/iplaytagin.jpg alt= />  11-08 My-3-Chefs Participant  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e110/flower753/Food/my3chefsnov2008.jpg alt= /> 10-08 Appreciation Goes To Kathy and Lisa at Recipezaar  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b280/carolinamoon21/Ingredients/Other/Elves-appreciationSTICKER.jpg alt= />  10-08 Zaar Stars Tag Game Participant  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/tgifford/Game%20Room%20Banners/AM%20Banners/ZaarStar-AMBanner.jpg border=0 alt=Photobucket />  6-1-08 My-3-Chefs 2008 Participant  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b2/kiwidutch/My-3-Chefs%20banners/my3chefs2008Small.jpg border=0 alt=Photobucket /> PAC Spring 2008 Paticipation Banner  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/susied214/permanent%20collection/PAC08Main.jpg alt= />  PAC Spring 2008 Adoption Banner  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/susied214/permanent%20collection/adoptedspring08.jpg alt= />  3-08 Auz/NZ Recipe Swap #14 Darwin Stubbies  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://www.satsleuth.com/cooking/Swap14.JPG alt= />  </a><a href=http://s7.photobucket.com/albums/y254/Missymop/?action=view?t=darwinstubbies.jpg target=_blank><img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y254/Missymop/darwinstubbies.jpg border=0 alt=Photobucket /></a>  2-7-08 Chinese/Vietnamese New Year Tag Game  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/susied214/CV.jpg border=0 alt=Photobucket />  2-08 RSC#11  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/DUCHESS13/RSC%20Banners/RSC11-Participant.jpg alt= />  12-30-07 Cooking Photo Swap #7 Cooking Photo Forum  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b280/carolinamoon21/Ingredients/Other/photo-swap-7sticky.jpg alt= />  11-17-07 Candy Swap  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j10/housedaughter/candy.jpg alt= />  11-1-07 I Can't Live Without It Swap - No Banner  11-07 Cook-A-Thon for Cool Monday  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/tgifford/participation%20banners/coolmonday-particiation.jpg border=0 alt=Cookathon for Cool Monday (1) />  10-07 O Is For October Photo Event  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b280/carolinamoon21/Ingredients/Octoberevent.jpg alt= />  PAC Fall 2007 Participation Banner  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/susied214/permanent%20collection/smPACp.jpg alt= />  PAC Fall 2007 Adoption Banner  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/susied214/permanent%20collection/Adopted1smp.jpg alt= />  9-27-07 Christmas Stocking Swap  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b280/carolinamoon21/Stockingswap.jpg alt= />  9-07 Fall Halloween Swap - No Banner  9-07 BBQ Sauce Cook Off  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/DUCHESS13/BBQParticipantBanner-Final.jpg alt= />  9-25-07 Cake-A-Thon For Chef-I-Am  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e347/Saturn6666/Other/tagforpage1.jpg alt= />  9-23-04 RSC #6  <img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/DUCHESS13/RSC%20Banners/RSC6-NoPhoto-Participant.jpg alt= />  <a href=http://www.sparklee.com> <object style=background-color: #ffffcc; background-image: url(/tiny_mce/plugins/media/img/flash.gif); background-position: 50% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 1px dotted #cc0000; width=550 height=293 data=http://www.travbuddy.com/flash/countries_map.swf?id=3640303 type=application/x-shockwave-flash> <param name=data value=http://www.travbuddy.com/flash/countries_map.swf?id=3640303 /> <param name=bgcolor value=#372060 /> <param name=src value=http://www.travbuddy.com/flash/countries_map.swf?id=3640303 /> <param name=quality value=high /> </object> </a><a href=http://www.travbuddy.com/travel-widgets><img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://www.travbuddy.com/images/widget_map_promote.gif border=0 alt= /></a>  <a href=http://www.travbuddy.com/hotels><img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://www.travbuddy.com/images/widget_map_promote_hotels.gif border=0 alt= /></a>  <a href=http://www.amazingcounter.com><img style=border: 0px initial initial; src=http://cb.amazingcounters.com/counter.php?i=2383774&c=7151635 border=0 alt=Amazing Counters /></a><a href=http://www.edatingcentral.com/news/dating-sincerity.html></a> Added September 2008 <a href=http://www.amazingcounters.com><img src=http://cb.amazingcounters.com/counter.php?i=2914309&c=8743240 border=0 alt=Free Web Counters /></a>Added November 24, 2010     </div>

View Full Profile