This Keto Sausage and Bread Stuffing is going to be the star of your Thanksgiving table! Made with my famous low carb cheesy skillet bread and plenty of sausage, it’s full of traditional stuffing flavor without all the carbs.
It’s about time I finally gave this popular keto stuffing an update! Except I didn’t actually change anything. My Spicy Sausage Stuffing has always been one of my most popular low carb holiday recipes and you just don’t mess with that. So I simply made it again and took some pretty new pictures.
This is by far my family’s favorite stuffing recipe. I’ve made a few others and they were pretty great too. But this is the one my family requests year after year. This is the keto stuffing we serve to guests and everyone raves about it. I would even go so far as to say that this may just be the best keto stuffing recipe out there.
Yeah, I am bold like that. And pretty darn confident that you will love it as much as we do.
Traditional Sausage Stuffing
When you ask someone what Thanksgiving dish they miss most on their low carb or keto diet, the overwhelming majority say stuffing. And can you blame them? That delectably moist, savory bread pudding that soaks up the turkey juices and gravy so well. I totally get that. My first few years on low carb, I simply skipped the stuffing altogether and its absence was sorely felt.
But last year, I came up with a truly low carb, gluten-free stuffing that instantly became a family favourite. It was such a hit with my kids, they seem to like eating it more than the turkey. And it’s been our standard recipe for 5 years running now.
While it might seem like an oxymoron to call this a traditional sausage stuffing, that’s what the end result is like. Yes, you have to use keto bread but that’s really the only difference. Beyond that, it uses almost all of the same ingredients you would find in conventional sausage stuffing, and you make it much the same way.
The end result is virtually indistinguishable from the high carb stuff. It’s everything you want in a stuffing recipe: the bread is soft and soaks up all the other flavours, but the top has crispy bits from baking in the oven.
How To Make Keto Stuffing
- Start with some really good keto bread. The whole recipe is based on my Cheesy Skillet Bread, which is perhaps one of my best savoury creations of all time. Not exaggerating – that stuff is heavenly. Soft and tender in the middle, crispy around the edges, and it dries out well, allowing it to soak in all the other flavors.
- Cut the bread into small cubes and dry it out in a warm oven. This is an important step for any sausage stuffing recipe, as you want the bread to absorb the eggs and cream.
- Brown your sausage. We like spicy Italian and we buy bulk sausage so we can easily cook it in a pan without having to remove the casings. Try to find sausage that doesn’t have a lot of additives or any sugars.
- Saute the celery, onions, garlic, and herbs in the fat left behind from browning the sausage. All the flavors combine so well that way and the fats make the stuffing all the more luscious.
- Add some chicken broth, eggs, and cream to help bind the stuffing ingredients together.
- Bake uncovered so that the top gets a bit crispy while the middle stays soft and tender. Like any good Thanksgiving stuffing.
- Serve with turkey and all the trimmings, and enjoy all the goodness the holiday has to offer!
Make Ahead Keto Stuffing
Are you one of those planner types who likes to get half of your holiday feast cooked in advance? Good news! This low carb stuffing recipe freezes really well. I’ve made it several weeks in advance and just thawed it on Thanksgiving day and it’s just as good.
Simply prep and bake the stuffing in whatever dish you plan to serve it in. Then let it cool and wrap it up tightly with foil or plastic wrap. It’s good in the freezer for several weeks. Thaw it at room temperature and then place it in a low temp oven until warmed through.
You can also freeze any leftovers wrapped up tightly as well.
So that’s it, my friends! It’s really not hard to make and this keto stuffing recipe has all the traditional flavor and texture of classic sausage stuffing. I daresay that your guests will have no idea they are enjoying a healthy version of their favorite Thanksgiving side dish.
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you have a wonderful keto feast.
More keto thanksgiving recipes you might like:
Keto Spicy Sausage and Cheddar Stuffing
Ingredients
- 1 recipe Cheesy Skillet Bread
- 12 ounces spicy Italian sausage
- 1 cup diced celery
- ½ cup diced onion
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- A day or two in advance, make the skillet bread and cube into ½ inch pieces. Preheat oven to 200F.
- Spread bread cubes on a large baking sheet and bake 2 to 3 hours, until well dried and crisp. Let sit out overnight to continue to dry.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add sausage; sauté until just cooked through, about 6 minutes, breaking up large chunks with a wooden spoon.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a large bowl. Add celery, onion, garlic, sage, salt and pepper to skillet and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add to sausage.
- Preheat oven to 350F and butter a large 13x9 inch glass baking dish. Add cubed bread to sausage mixture. Add chicken broth and toss to combine.
- In a medium bowl, whisk eggs with cream and pour over mixture in bowl. Toss until well combined and transfer to prepared baking dish. Bake 35 minutes, uncovered, until top is crusty and browned.
Val says
This is a super recipe! It took some extra time, because I had to make the cheese skillet bread, but is well worth the effort. I made this 2 weeks before Thanksgiving and froze 2/3 in a casserole and we tried the rest…yum, yum. I thawed it for Thanksgiving and brought it to our family dinner. I didn’t try to replace the “standard” Sausage Stuffing, just asked if everyone would try it and tell me what they thought. Well guess what…you got super reviews (not a surprise as all your recipes are well over the top). I doubt anyone will run out and prepare this recipe, but, they all ate it and my husband and I loved it.
Your recipes have made so much easier to embrace the Keto life style, eat most things we want, and eat gluten-free which has bee our goal for over 6 years now.. We haven’t discovered a single recipe you make unsatisfactory, and I will keep cooking.
Carolyn says
That’s wonderful to hear!
Sarah says
This one was so fun to make at Thanksgiving. It turned out great. My mom would traditionally make two stuffings. One would be the traditional style…recipe on the bag of bread crumbs, type. It was tasty! And the other one was more tart with lots of cranberries. I realized I missed the cranberries. So I added them to your stuffing upon reheating and wa-la! It was terrific to combine a keto stuffing with a taste memory and have it work out! Thank you!
Carolyn says
Sounds fabulous!
Joy Blake says
Hi Caroline, I love this recipe and want to make it for our Christmas stuffing, but my granddaughter is allergic to eggs. Do you think I could substitute something else for the eggs?
Thanks
Carolyn says
I really can’t say how well that will work. It will be tasty but it won’t hold together like stuffing.
Becky says
Stuffing is one of my Thanksgiving “must-haves.” I made this recipe and was so pleased with it! In fact, if someone else had served it to me, I don’t think it would have crossed my mind that it wasn’t really bread stuffing. Great flavor and texture!
Julie says
Amazing! Made this as written, using ground Chorizo for my sausage. We seem to be doing Thanksgiving in pieces this year, as it is just the two of us and the turkey didn’t defrost as expected, so I had no turkey drippings to baste the stuffing with as I usually do with stuffing outside the bird. I will do that when I cook the turkey, which should help make the stuffing more moist. I found it dry for my taste, though admittedly, I like my stuffing in the bird and richly moist. Also found it to be salty, which could very well be due to my choice of sausage. I will lower the salt content next time. There will ABSOLUTELY be a next time, and I am done making two batches of stuffing…one keto and one regular. Keto all the way. YUM!
Carolyn says
Excellent!
Allison Keith says
Loved the flavors. We like our stuffing moist, so I ended up using a whole 14.5oz can of chicken broth. Used keto bread, not sure how many cups of bread to use since I didn’t make the skillet bread. Next time I think I might add pecans and ripe olives.
Dave says
Carolyn,
I’ve just pulled the Cheesy Skillet Bread out of the oven as prep for making the stuffing tomorrow- it smells amazing!
Two quick questions, can I substitute butter for the heavy cream? And do I need the eggs as a binder? If I don’t use them what will happen?
Dave
Carolyn says
Butter is not a good replacement for heavy cream, since it’s almost complete fat. And yes, stuffing needs eggs to hold together. You’re welcome to skip it but you will basically have a loose salad of bread and sausage.
Dinah says
I was looking for a stuffing recipe. I didn’t want use my Keto hot dog buns but it was my plan until I saw the cheesy bread recipe for stuffing. I decided to give it a try. I didn’t have flax seeds so I went ahead without it. OMG It is great. I will make this again many times. I am ordering flax seed right now. Love your recipes.
Nancy says
I have made this for Thanksgiving for the last 3 years and get rave reviews each time. I love stuffing, but not all the carbohydrates from the traditional recipe using white bread or cornbread. This is the only keto stuffing I have made, and I honestly don’t know why I would ever want to look for another recipe. This stuffing is simply the best and it’s one of the recipes that I have handed out repeatedly to my keto and gluten-free friends & family. This has been a game changer for my holiday dinners and I can’t thank you enough!
My mother in-law signed up to bring stuffing this year, but I will be bringing some Keto Spicy Sausage and Cheddar Stuffing for my own plate (and maybe some to share)!
Carolyn says
I am so glad!
Christina says
How do I store this bread until I’m ready to use it for stuffing? Also do I let it dry out before using it forr stuffing? Btw it is delicious and I appreciate all you hard work!!!
Carolyn says
YOu can freeze the bread if you need to keep it for a while. It can also be refrigerated for 5 to 7 days. And yes… dry out ALL breads properly before making stuffing.
Melissa says
This was amazing right out of the oven. I took the drying process too far. When I make it again sill follow the instructions to a T. I made a test batch a week before Thanksgiving. The stuffing was wonderful. I decided to freeze it and reheat the day of. For me, it didn’t reheat well. I need a do over.
Katie White says
Making your cheesy bread for the third time since Thanksgiving, used it for stuffing, found it was a great breakfast food! Made the bread the second time toasting it for breakfast, making it this morning for stuffing again because stuffing is a breakfast food!
Carolyn says
Wonderful!
Aaron McGrady says
Made this in the slow cooker, everybody loved it and devoured it (even the non-keto people).
I cooked it on high for about 45 minutes (will do around 30 next time, it was close to being burnt on the edges that crispy), then on low for a couple hours. Will definitely make it again.
Jenna says
Made this for Thanksgiving as a keto option for my husband, and he rated it 5/5! The cheesy skillet bread is delicious on its own, and that will become a staple moving forward. Will definitely make the stuffing again!
Lisa N says
The flavor was great! I just felt there was too much bread. Or not enough of the egg and cream mixture. The ratio seemed off. I will definitely make again. Next I will use 3/4 of the loaf or double the egg and cream mixture. I used mild sausage. Next time I’d use spicy.
Cheryl R Taylor says
Made this dressing today, it was wonderful! Finally a keto dressing my southern daughter likes as much as the “old” recipe!
Carolyn says
Thrilled to hear it!
Kristin M Mosman says
It was freakin AMAZING!
Carolyn says
YAY!!!
Nic says
Will you please update this recipe to indicate what type of sausage you cooked? Ground or links?
Carolyn says
Did you see the photos? Does it look like links? If you do purchase links, you can always remove the casings.
Stephanie Williams says
Can I cook day before put in fridge and reheat next day?
Carolyn says
Absolutely, this is what I do every time! I am making mine today, baking it, and re-heating tomorrow.
Joy says
How do you reheat it without it drying out?
Carolyn says
The same way you re-heat regular stuffing. 🙂 Microwave or warm oven, with something to cover it.
Kerry says
Outstanding! The cheese bread is the perfect base. I made a few servings to take with me to a family get together. I will not miss out on stuffing this year! I added mushrooms to the sautéed veggies because we always had sausage mushroom stuffing growing up. I dare say this is better than mom’s!