Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe
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Southern Cornbread Dressing makes a comforting, classic dish for the holidays! This cornbread dressing recipe is moist, delicious and so easy! An heirloom family favorite recipe that makes the perfect side dish!
Cornbread dressing could easily take center stage at my family’s table during the holidays, especially at Thanksgiving. On that special day, the cornbread dressing really rivals the turkey for attention.
There’s just one rule.
No stuffing in this house, and no funny stuff in our dressing. I think I’d no longer be allowed to make it for my family if I “messed” with this traditional family cornbread dressing recipe.
But you know, every family makes their recipes a little bit differently, and that’s what makes family recipes so special, I think! The special touches to suit your family’s taste preferences help you know that those recipes were made with tons of love and care for each person who would gather at the table to enjoy them.
This recipe makes enough for two 9×13 dishes. You can easily half the recipe to make just one or use the freezer-friendly instructions to prepare one to bake now and one to freeze and bake later.
Table of Contents
Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe
For our cornbread dressing, we use my Grandmother Verdie’s recipe that she got from her own mother. It is a definite heirloom family recipe that my family treasures! It is so incredibly moist and tender and so delicious! Once you taste it, you’ll understand why it is a must-have family favorite recipe.
Southern Cornbread Dressing Ingredients
Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.
To make it, you’ll need the following ingredients.
- Cornbread – It starts with a skillet of southern buttermilk cornbread. While it only takes 30 minutes to make, you can also easily make it ahead if you’d like. You can prepare it up to two days ahead and keep it covered tightly on the kitchen counter until ready to make your dressing.
- Biscuits or Bread – Likewise, we use leftover biscuits from the day before, but you can also use sliced white bread, as my Grandmother showed me one day when Granddaddy had grabbed the last couple of biscuits she’d stashed away for her dressing as a “snack.” The bread works perfectly, too!
- Seasonings – Salt and pepper add so much flavor to this dressing. If you like the flavor of sage in your dressing, include it as well.
- Eggs – You’ll need three large eggs for the full recipe. If you are making a half recipe, use two eggs.
- Onion – You’ll need one medium-diced onion. The onion adds so much flavor to the recipe. If you do not care for onions, you can omit them or do as I do and have one pan with onions and one without.
- Celery – Two diced stalks of celery are perfect in this recipe.
- Butter – The butter not only adds flavor, but it adds moisture to this cornbread dressing as well. You will slice the butter so that it mixes more easily into the dressing.
- Cream of Chicken Soup – I prefer to use my homemade Cream of Chicken Soup recipe, but you can absolutely use store-bought if you like.
- Chicken Stock or Broth – You will need a good bit of chicken stock or broth. It adds so much moisture to the dressing! If you do not have enough in your dressing, it will make for a dry dressing. Here, again, you can use homemade or store-bought chicken stock or broth, whichever you prefer.
How to Make Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe
- Crumble. Crumble your cornbread and biscuits or bread into small pieces in a large bowl. You’ll want to use the largest bowl you have so that you can really mix this up well. A large stockpot also works well if you do not have a large enough mixing bowl. As a child, this was the part Grandmother let me help her with in making the dressing. It is one of my fondest memories in the kitchen.
- Mix. Now add in the salt, pepper, sage (optional), onion, butter, cream of chicken soup, and chicken stock or broth. Mix well until all of the ingredients are well combined and the mixture is smooth.
- Bake. Pour the mixture into two 9×13 baking dishes and bake until the cornbread dressing is browned and is set, about 30 – 45 minutes.
Recipe Variations
Southern Chicken and Dressing Recipe – Mix about 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken into the dressing mixture and bake as directed for a delicious cornbread dressing with chicken recipe.
Southern Turkey and Dressing Recipe – Stir about 2 cups of cooked, shredded turkey into the dressing mixture and bake as directed.
Storage Tips
To store leftovers: Wrap 9×13 pan(s) with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Make ahead cornbread dressing: Prepare the dressing without baking and store it in the refrigerator two days ahead or the freezer up to 3 months in advance. If frozen, thaw in the refrigerator two days before you are ready to serve to ensure that it is fully thawed. Bake as directed.
To freeze unbaked cornbread dressing: Wrap 9×13 pan(s) with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To bake, remove from the freezer and thaw in the refrigerator. Then, bake the dressing as directed.
To freeze baked cornbread dressing: Allow it to cool completely, then cover the 9×13 pan(s) with plastic wrap and foil (or store in an airtight, freezer-safe container) and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw in the refrigerator and then reheat.
Expert Tip!
Oven space is at a premium on holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas! Here are a few tips that may help with your cornbread dressing:
- Bake your dressing early in the morning. When done, wrap it well and store it in the refrigerator as your turkey roasts.
- While the turkey rests from roasting, place your dressing back into the oven to reheat thoroughly.
More Favorite Holiday Side Dishes
Frequently Asked Questions
Cornbread dressing is cooked in a baking dish, while stuffing is traditionally “stuffed” or cooked inside the cavity of the turkey.
Making sure your cornbread dressing is done is essential. To test doneness, shake the casserole dish lightly. If the center of the dressing moves, then the dressing is not cooked through in the center. Continue baking in 5-minute intervals until the cornbread is cooked through.
Yes! Adding cooked chicken or turkey to your dressing is another family-favorite recipe! See how to make Chicken and Dressing or Turkey and Dressing in my Recipe Variations above.
Here’s the recipe for my family’s Southern Cornbread Dressing. I sure hope you love it as much as we do. We always like to finish it off with a drizzle of giblet gravy or turkey gravy!
Southern Cornbread Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 full recipe Southern Buttermilk Cornbread
- 3 buttermilk biscuits, or 3 slices of sandwich bread or other soft leftover bread
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon rubbed sage, optional
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 1/2 cup butter, sliced
- 4 cups cream of chicken soup
- 6 cups chicken stock or broth
Instructions
- Prep. Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Mix. Crumble all of the cornbread and biscuits (or white bread slices) into a very large bowl. Add salt, pepper, eggs, onion, celery, butter, cream of chicken soup, and chicken stock. Stir until well-combined.
- Bake. Pour dressing into two 9×13 baking dishes and bake until lightly browned, about 30 – 45 minutes. To test doneness, shake casserole dish lightly. If the center of the dressing moves, then the dressing is not cooked through in the center. Continue to bake until the dressing is set throughout.
Notes
Recipe Variations
Southern Chicken and Dressing Recipe – Mix about 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken into the dressing mixture and bake as directed for a delicious chicken dressing recipe. Southern Turkey and Dressing Recipe – Stir about 2 cups cooked, shredded turkey into the dressing mixture and bake as directed.Storage Tips
To store leftovers. Wrap 9×13 pan(s) with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to a week. To make ahead cornbread dressing: Prepare the dressing without baking and store it in the refrigerator two days ahead or the freezer up to 3 months in advance. If frozen, thaw in the refrigerator two days before you are ready to serve to ensure that it is fully thawed. Bake as directed. To freeze unbaked cornbread dressing: Wrap 9×13 pan(s) with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To bake, remove from the freezer and thaw in the refrigerator. Then, bake the dressing as directed. To freeze baked cornbread dressing: Allow it to cool completely, then cover the 9×13 pan(s) with plastic wrap and foil (or store in an airtight, freezer-safe container) and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw in the refrigerator and then reheat.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
So I followed the recipe and it turned out Great! Everybody LOVED IT!! P.S. Yesterday was my first time EVER making cornbread dressing… Thank You Sooo Much For Sharing Your Recipe…YOU ROCK!!!!
Aww, that’s so great to hear, Natasha! Thanks! xo
Robyn,
I made your cornbread dressing for our Thanksgiving dinner yesterday and it tasted great but I have some questions about the texture. First, a little history. I have been searching for a cornbread dressing recipe like my grandmother’s that would have all the correct measurements (because my grandmother never wrote her recipe down and we have been trying to get it right since she died several years ago). I thought yours might be the solution because your Southern Cornbread recipe is just like ours with the only difference being that we use Lamb’s Stone Ground Course cornmeal and not fine (yay for REAL cornbread and not that sweet, cake like northern stuff). Also, your dressing recipe was very similar to ours with the exception of the Cream of Chicken soup and white bread/biscuit addition (we use a bag of Pepperidge Farm Herb dressing mix and no soup). My question is if your dressing is supposed to be fairly mushy inside after cooking, almost the consistency of cooked oatmeal? We are used to a firmer dressing (but not dry). I used 2 cans of soup (10 oz each) for the 4 cups the recipe calls for because I assumed you meant 4 cups of your homemade soup which you explained you used in a ration of 2 cups homemade to 1 can store bought. Should I have used less liquid to get the correct consistency? I am so glad to have found your site because so many of the recipes remind me of foods my grandmother used to cook. I look forward to trying many more!
Hi Katie,
Yes, it sounds like it turned out as it should have. My dressing is really moist – not a firm or dry dressing. I’m so glad found my site too and hope you enjoy the recipes! Thanks!
I normally don’t leave reviews, but I made this for Thanksgiving and it was perfect. I grew up in South Georgia, and this dressing tasted just like the best I’ve had growing up (minus some of the salt). I made the cornbread and cream of chicken soup that were linked in the recipe as well, which I did the night before to help on Thanksgiving Day. I did end up adding some more salt, and mine still looked a little pale after 45min, so I ended up cooking it for closer to an hour.
Wonderful to hear Amy! I’m so glad you enjoyed it – it’s been a favorite in my southern family for generations. Thanks! xo
My mother passed away a year ago this month. Sad to say, I didn’t have her recipe.
I been asking other people for their recipe but guess theirs were all family secrets…lol
I searched the Internet and found great reviews on your cornbread dressing.
I boiled a chicken, deluted 3 bullion cubes, adding to the water.
My husband can’t stop talking about how delicious my dressing turned out.
How I have my own secret recipe for cornbread dressing…lol
Thank you, Thank YOU, THANK YOU
My deepest condolences on your Mom’s passing. I know it is especially hard during the holidays. I hate that you didn’t have her dressing recipe, but so glad that my Grandmother Verdie’s helped make your Thanksgiving special and that you’ve now taken the recipe as your own family tradition. She would be thrilled that you love it. xo
Hi! Can I just cut the recipe in half if I only need one 9×13 pan? Only cooking for 4, but would love to try this recipe! I know sometimes cutting recipes in half can backfire, so just wondered if you’d tried it. Thanks!
You can cut it in half, but I’d use two eggs. Thanks Heather!
Super excited to taste this! I have it in the oven right now 🙂 The only alteration I made was adding some shredded chicken (not too much) into the mix. I like dressings that have shredded meat so wanted to add that element into this recipe. Happy Thanksgiving and thank you for sharing this!
It sounds like the perfect addition, Mary! My Grandmother Verdie would add some in from time to time as well! I hope everyone enjoys it! xo
Do you sauté the onion and celery before mixing into the dressing?
I don’t saute them. I just put them in raw with the rest of the ingredients, Carolyn. Hope this helps.
I made my dressing mix last night with eggs and everything and immediately put into the refrigerator and put it into the oven about 12:00 this afternoon. Is it safe to eat?? I’m so confused after I read your tips to make thanksgiving dinner it says I could make it up to two days. But now I’m scared with what others are saying? It smells so good. I haven’t ate it yet . But now I’m scared.
Yes, if you refrigerated your dressing mixture before baking immediately, it should be just fine to bake and eat today. I hope you enjoy it!
My mother in law showed me how to make dressing and she baked the onions and celery into the cornbread. This makes sure the vegetables are done and not crunchy.
That is an excellent idea 💡💡💡
Is it possible to mix everything together and freeze it and bake after? Or should I make it bake it and freeze. And let them just rewarm the dressing? We love this recipe and my daughter wants me to make it for husbands family dinner. We can’t attend this year.
You can freeze the dressing unbaked, Karen. Wrap tightly and freeze. Thaw in refrigerator two days in advance and bake on day you want to serve it .You would bake it following the same temperature and baking times listed in the recipe! I hope that helps!
I am making this recipe for the first time and I’ve added everything and put in 4 cups of chicken stock and the mixture is already very soupy.. do I continue with adding the other 2 cups?? Is it supposed to be really runny before baking it???
Yes, it is a very loose mixture before baking.
It seems so simple to make i can’t wait until Thanksgiving to prepare this dish
It is a favorite at my house, Ashley. Hope you and your family love it as much as mine.
Love the recipe- it is in the oven now. Can’t wait to taste it. Thanks for posting.
I hope you all love it, Sue!
I will be using white bread instead of biscuits . How exactly do I do that since white bread does not crumble the way cornbread or biscuits do?
You just tear it into very small pieces, Crystal. Hope you enjoy!