Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe - HalfPastHungry (2024)

Published: Nov 13, 2023 by Briana · This post may contain affiliate links where I may receive compensation. Please see my disclosure for details.

A classic Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe that is full of flavor and loaded with onions, celery, and bell peppers. It’s a Thanksgiving family favorite and it's perfect for your holiday dinners.

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This old-fashion southern cornbread dressing is a classic dish that’s perfect for your holiday dinner. Dressing is one of my personal favorite side dishes among many others, like my baked mac and cheese. It could easily be the star of the table for your Thanksgiving dinner and it’s sure to satisfy your family and guests.

Made with a mixture of buttery cornbread, sautéed vegetables and creamy canned soups, this easy cornbread dressing is the perfect addition to your holiday table. It's flavorful, moist and filling and better than any store-bought cornbread mix.

There’s no harm in having a big bowl of the dressing all by itself, because it’s just that good! But you can also pair it along with many other holiday side dishes like collard greens or sweet potato casserole.

What Is Cornbread Dressing?

Cornbread dressing is a simple side dish that’s typically served during the holiday season. Traditional cornbread dressing is loaded with crumbled cornbread, a mix of vegetables such as onions, celery, and bell peppers. It can contain various seasonings and is moistened with chicken or vegetable stock and canned cream soups, to help add a rich flavor.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s tried and true and a recipe my family has used forever.
• It’s simple and easy to make and calls for just a few ingredients.
• The best cornbread dressing is made from scratch with cornbread and a combination of onions, celery, and bell peppers, cream of celery, and cream of mushroom.
• Simple ingredients with a delicious comforting flavor.
• It's a perfect side dish for your holiday meal.

The Difference Between Cornbread Stuffing and Dressing

Is it Stuffing or Dressing? They both contain some kind of bread filling, sauteed vegetables, seasonings and chicken or vegetable broth. Here is my take on the controversial subject.

Although dressing and stuffing are pretty much the same thing, they are used in different ways. The true definition of stuffing is when a bird, such as a turkey, is actually stuffed with the side dish and cooked. While dressing is cooked outside the bird, usually in a casserole.

Equipment Used

• Large cooking pan - for sauteing the vegetables
• Toaster - to toast the bread before adding it into the mixture
• Large bowl - to mix all of the ingredients in
• Baking Dish – a 9×13 inch casserole dish is a good size or your favorite medium sized baking dish.

Ingredients You’ll Need

To make cornbread dressing you only need a handful of simple ingredients.

• Cornbread muffin mix - The most important part of this recipe is the cornbread. Cornbread as the base of this stuffing adds a buttery flavor and the cornbread itself adds great texture and helps to soak up any additional liquid. I like using Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix for the dressing.
• Bread - Any kind of sandwich bread will do: white bread, wheat bread, sourdough, gluten-free. You just need at least 3 slices to be used as a filler. Old stale bread works great for this.
• Cooking oil - to saute the veggies. You can also spread a little in the baking dish you’ll use for the dressing.
• Onions, bell peppers & celery - helps to add tons of flavor as well as some texture. Do not skip them.
• Canned soups - cream of celery and cream of mushroom are both great for flavoring and helping to keep the dressing moist while it’s baking.
• Vegetable broth - I used vegetable broth for this recipe to keep it vegetarian however chicken broth also works well.
• Ground pepper - While I don’t add salt to this recipe, I do add freshly ground black pepper. The vegetable broth used in this recipe has added salt in the broth. If you are using a store-bought broth, go for low sodium so that you don't risk over-salting.

What Kind of Cornbread Do You Need?

You will need a single batch of cornbread for this recipe. It doesn't have to be any fancy cornbread. Whichever store bought cornbread mix you prefer you can use. If you prefer to make a homemade cornbread, that will also work for this recipe.I like usingJiffy Corn Muffin Mixfor the dressing.

How to Make Southern Cornbread Dressing

Getting the consistency right before you bake it is really important for the texture of the finished product. You don’t want the dressing to be too dry but also not too soupy. And since there are no eggs in the recipe, there’s no harm in grabbing a taste before baking it to make sure it’s seasoned just right.

1. Prepare and bake the cornbread according to the directions on the box.
2. Dice the onions, celery and bell peppers. Preheat a large skillet over medium heat and add olive oil or your favorite neutral cooking oil of choice .
3. Sauté the onions, celery and bell peppers until soft then remove from heat.
4. Break up the corn bread with a spoon and allow it to cool then crumble the cooked cornbread in a large mixing bowl.
5. Add into the large mixing bowl with the crumbled cornbread, the small pieces of toasted bread, vegetable mixture, cream of celery, cream of mushroom and ground black pepper.
6. Stir everything together. As you're stirring, add in a little bit of the vegetable broth to help loosen the dressing mixture. Mix everything together well. Be careful not to make it soupy! It should still be stiff but easy to mix.
7. Pour mixture in the prepared baking dish, spreading it evenly.
8. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the middle is set.

How to Store the Dressing

• Storing - Any leftover dressing can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
• Freezing - you can also freeze it for later use. Place the dressing in a freezer friendly, airtight container and cover with plastic wrap before sealing it. It can be stored for up to 3 months.
• Reheating - Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and reheat it in the oven on bake 300 degrees F until warm.

How Do I Serve Southern Dressing?

I enjoy eating the dressing plain, by itself, because it’s just that good! On occasions I like to make a homemade gravy to drizzle over the top, which also tastes amazing. If you prefer a store-bought gravy, you can try Primal Kitchen's No Dairy Mushroom Gravy. Some may also serve the dressing with a side of cranberry sauce, which adds a bit of sweetness to the dish.

What to Serve with the Side Dish?

During the holidays, I like to serve the cornbread dressing with my meatless collard greens, potato salad, sweet potato casserole and of course my baked mac and cheese recipe. All make a wonderful filling side dish that serves large crowds.

See Also

Old Fashioned Southern Cornbread Dressing RecipeSouthern Cornbread Dressing RecipeTraditional Southern Cornbread DressingSouthern Cornbread Dressing Recipe

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