Alright, I’m going to tell you a secret… I hate, HATE, cooking whole birds. I’m not sure what part I hate the most, but I just don’t enjoy it… which kinda puts a damper on the Thanksgiving dinner thing! Enter this baked Turkey and Stuffing Casserole.
One of my awesome readers, Meredy, sent me this awesome tip from this article by Denise Vivaldo. Instead of roasting an entire turkey for Thanksgiving, you can cut up a turkey into pieces (or buy pre-cut pieces) and bake them on top of a dish full of stuffing. 🤯 The herb infused steam from the stuffing bakes into the meat and the drippings from the turkey flavor and moisten the stuffing… and it all takes a fraction of the time that it takes to cook a whole turkey! Perfect!
I can’t say enough about how easy and delicious this was. The stuffing was a cinch and was packed with flavor. The turkey turned out moist with a nice crispy skin. I’ll probably never roast a whole bird again.
Easy Baked Turkey & Stuffing Casserole
Where Can I Get Turkey Pieces?
The most difficult part of this recipe will be either finding turkey pieces or cutting the turkey yourself. I found pre-cut turkey pieces at Whole Foods and, of course, I paid an arm and a leg for them. A whole turkey will usually cost less than $1 per pound and I paid $2.49 per pound for my pieces. To me, it was worth it. If it’s not worth it for you, you can follow these step by step photo instructions on how to cut your own turkey into pieces. I just wasn’t that ambitious this weekend! Plus, turkeys can take a couple days to thaw and I threw this together last minute.
Is This Turkey and Stuffing Casserole Healthy?
“Healthy” is subjective, but if you’re looking to make this more healthy, you can definitely skip the bacon and sauté vegetables in a touch of olive oil or broth. Enough fat drips into the dressing from the turkey that the bacon fat wasn’t all that necessary in the end… but it sure did taste good!
Can I Use Leftover Turkey?
No, unfortunately this recipe only works with raw turkey pieces. You need the turkey to bake on top of the dressing so all the rendered fat and flavor soaks into the dressing. Using pre-baked turkey would over bake the turkey pieces and not yield the same results.
How to Store the Leftovers
After baking, make sure to divide any uneaten portions into single servings so they cool quickly in the refrigerator. Your Turkey and Stuffing Casserole will stay good in the refrigerator for about four days. So you can enjoy the leftovers for days!
Turkey And Stuffing Casserole Recipe
Servings 6Ingredients
- 6 oz bacon ($1.65)
- 1/2 bunch celery ($0.65)
- 2 medium apples ($1.19)
- 1 medium yellow onion ($0.30)
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic ($0.04)
- 1 tsp dried sage ($0.05)
- 1 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)
- salt and pepper (as needed) ($0.05)
- 1 large loaf french bread ($1.59)
- 1 tsp chicken base ($0.07)
- 1/2 bunch fresh parsley ($0.40)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.11)
- 6 lbs bone-in turkey pieces ($12.80)
Instructions
- Cut the bacon into small pieces by cutting across the strips. Cook bacon in a large pot until crispy. While the bacon is cooking, wash and cut the celery, onion, and apples into a dice.
- Add the onion, apples, celery, and garlic to the cooked bacon. Saute just until slightly softened (about five minutes). Turn off the heat and add the thyme, sage, freshly cracked pepper, and salt to taste.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If your bread is fresh, slice it and place it in the oven as it heats up to dry it out. Or, buy the bread a couple of days ahead of time and allow it to dry out or get stale on your countertop. Once the bread is dry, cut it into small cubes. Also wash and roughly chop the parsley. Add the cubed bread and parsley to the cooked vegetables and bacon. Stir until everything is well mixed.
- Mix one teaspoon of chicken base with one cup of hot water. Pour this over the bread mixture and stir until everything is well coated. Transfer the stuffing mixture to a large 9×11 inch glass casserole dish.
- Unwrap the turkey pieces and rub the skin with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and freshly cracked pepper. Arrange the turkey pieces over the stuffing in the casserole dish. Place the whole dish in the oven and let roast, uncovered, for one and a half hours. The turkey skin should be brown and crispy and the stuffing should be bubbling around the edges. Allow the casserole to rest for about 10 minutes before serving. This will allow the stuffing to soak up some of the moisture and solidify, as well as the turkey juices to redistribute within the meat.
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Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Turkey and Stuffing Casserole
Cut the bacon across the strips to yield small pieces. Again, you can probably skip the bacon if you want because the turkey renders enough fat the keep the dressing nice and moist. …but it tastes good, if you want it!
Cook the bacon down until it’s nice and crispy.
While the bacon is cooking, wash and cut the celery, apples, and onion into a small dice. I ended up using half of the bunch of celery, or about 5 stalks.
Add the chopped celery, apples, onion, and minced garlic to the cooked bacon. Stir and cook this for about five minutes or until it’s just barely softened.
Wash and roughly chop the parsley while the veggies are cooking in the bacon fat.
After the veggies cook, turn off the heat and add the thyme, sage, salt, and pepper (to taste). Stir to combine.
It’s time to cut the large loaf of french bread into cubes. Fresh bread will not cut into small cubes, it will just squish and tear. So, you can either buy the bread ahead of time and leave it exposed on the counter top for a couple of days (which I did) or slice it and place it in the oven while it preheats. Once it’s dry and crispy (but not toasted), cut it into small cubes.
Add the bread cubes (and all of the crumbs) as well as the chopped parsley to the pot of bacon and vegetables. Stir until everything is very well mixed.
Next mix up some chicken stock by combining 1 tsp of chicken base with one cup of very hot water. You’ll notice in the picture that I actually made 2 cups. As it turns out, I dramatically underestimated the amount of juices that the turkey would give off and 2 cups was far too much. So, despite what the picture tells you, only use one cup of stock.
Pour the stock over the stuffing mixture and stir everything really well again.
Transfer the stuffing mixture to a large glass baking dish.
Prepare the turkey pieces by rubbing the skin with olive oil and sprinkling generously with salt and pepper. I ended up purchasing three turkey thighs and two wings. The thighs were so huge that each one was larger than a standard chicken breast. Turkey breast was also available at the butcher, but I like dark meat so this is what I chose.
Arrange the turkey pieces over the stuffing.
Can’t you just tell how awesome this is going to be? The herb infused steam from the stuffing will rise up into the turkey meat and the turkey juices will drip down into the stuffing adding moisture and flavor… It’s just fabulous.
And then all you have to do is place it in a preheated 350 degree oven for about an hour and a half or until the skin is nicely browned and crispy. So easy. No basting required.
The skin on the cooked turkey was deliciously crispy while the meat under it stayed nice and moist. What more could you want?
It definitely made the whole dinner so much easier to prepare!
Awful – turkey was dry and stuffing was mush. This recipe was such a waste of money – very disappointed.
Can you do just turkey legs?
How would cooking time change?
It just depends! They’d for sure need the full 1.5 hours, maybe two. I would just start checking the internal temp at an hour and a half and go from there!
Can I make day before and then warm up the next day???
I haven’t tried that, unfortunately, so I’m not sure how long it would need to be in the oven to reheat.
I’ve made this recipe at least 5 times. It’s perfect for smaller families like mine. Plus this stuffing is SO delicious, I’ve made it alongside a full turkey in the past (and this year as well) substituting the turkey pieces for bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. Seriously, if you haven’t done so yet, try this recipe. It will become a staple!!
Hello – This looks amazing. Do you think this would work with just turkey breast or do the dark meat pieces provide the flavor and moistness? THANKS!
The dark meat definitely adds more, but it will still be flavorful with the turkey breast. The only other thing to consider is that turkey breast will be much larger than these dark meat pieces, so cooking time may need to be increased.
Hi Beth
Is there any other seasonings I can add with the salt and pepper to season the turkey parts.
A general poultry seasoning blend would be great! Or you can mimic the seasoning that is in the stuffing portion, by adding some sage and thyme. :)
I got turkey breasts, that are still together, for a great price and I am wondering if that would change the cooking or if I should separate them. They did come with the “done popper”…
I bet you could do this in the slow cooker really well although you won’t get crispy skin on the turkey
Solo Thanksgiving this year so thought I’d give this one a whirl. Had some chicken legs in the freezer and decided to roll with that, came out great! A little unconventional, especially for today, but whatcha gonna do? :) Last night I made Beth’s Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes recipe, so it turned out to be a nice little feast with plenty of leftovers for the weekend.
Love the site.! Keep up the fine work and Happy Thanksgiving!
Does the stuffing underneath turn out crispy or soggy?
It’s moist. Since the turkey covers it almost completely, you don’t get any of that dry heat air touching it to make it crispy.
Has anyone made this but JUST the stuffing? Will you need to use the full 2 cups of broth for this? Looks delish!!
Is this something that you could freeze–maybe before baking? I’m trying to prep something to leave behind for a friend who can’t travel home for the holidays and this seems like it could be a great option!
I really haven’t done any pre-bake freezing with any of my dishes (I tend to like to freeze single portions after baking), so I’m not sure how this would fare. I think you might have some trouble with the larger pieces of turkey thawing and cooking through, though.
It is dangerous to assemble turkey and dressing and then freeze before baking. It can introduce salmonella, etc.
Like others, I also appreciate this recipe which makes it easy to produce a delicious turkey dinner for one or two without having to deal with an entire bird. Today (Canadian Thanksgiving) will be the third time I’ve made it. Thank you so much. I keep trying to give a 5-star rating, but for some reason it will not register beyond 4.
Great recipe and concept! I just made this tonight and its amazing. The turkey on top of the stuffing really makes it; the stuffing tastes so rich and delicious. Thank you!
I made this last night and it was SOOO GOOD!!
I will definitely be saving this recipe and making it again and again! :)
Finally a way for a single person to enjoy a traditional holiday meal! My local store was overstocked on turkeys so they quartered them and sold for 48 cents per pound. I was searching for ideas when I found this recipe. The pieces will be individually frozen so I can make tiny batches of your casserole later. Thanks!
Thank you for this recipe! I made it last night, except I used a separated chicken instead of turkey and used one of my wire cooling racks to suspend them above the stuffing; it was a huge hit and everyone wanted the recipe!
Great job! You really provide amazing recipes here without breaking my bank.
Thanks again for this. :D
Could you use a box stove top dressing in place of actually making the stuffing?
Would i need to cook it first or just put it in the pan with the liquids and let the oven and meat juices do the rest?
i’m wanting quick and easy ;)
I think you could use a boxed mix. I would just combine everything without cooking and let it cook while it’s in the oven with the turkey.
Hi, did you ever try this with the boxed dressing? Thanks!
Can you still make gravy with some of the drippings? I love this idea but also end to make gravy for the family!!?
Nope, that won’t work with this one because all of the drippings get soaked up by the stuffing. :P
Made this tonight for a belated thanksgiving supper. Used a little less than 2 whole cut up chickens in place of turkey ( we were tired of turkey). It was AMAZING. The stuffing was out of this world. The apple along with the sage and bacon was just delicious. I added a sprinkle of old bay seasoning to the chicken for color. It was SOOO yummy. Seriously, this will be a dish I make often as it is yummy, cheap, and rather easy. THANKS a bunch!
I made this today and it turned out great! Super easy and yummy for Thanksgiving, thank you Beth.
I made this and it is awesome! I didn’t have sage (and it cost $8/spice jar to get) so I used herbes de provence that I had in the cupboard. It worked out just great! I also used turkey breast, that’s the part of the bird my family prefers. I left the skin on, but deboned it and it cooked in less time, 1 hour. (I then put the carcass in a pot to make stock!) Also, for those using stale bread, a couple of days will do fine. I used a loaf that I had to hide from the family because baguettes in our house never survive past Day 2. It was day 5 or 6, when I remembered and the loaf was as hard as a baseball bat! After hacking it into small chunks and adding it per the directions it still worked. Next time, I will add olives and some peeled almonds, like my mom used to when she made stuffing and I’m sure it’ll be just as yummy! Thanks Beth, this might just make a reappearance at Thanksgiving dinner this Thursday!
Did you use a 9×13 pan for this? I imagine a whole turkey would not fit in one, hmm? I have a big roasting pan (that I usually use for the whole bird!) but I’m afraid that would be TOO big.
Yes, it was a 9×13 casserole dish. You could maybe double the stuffing and then do the whole bird in the larger roasting pan?
Well, it turns out I won’t be cooking for a bunch of people after all so I think I’ll just go with a standard batch of stuffing and get a few turkey breasts. I’ve never seen cut-up turkey pieces around here (I’d prefer dark) so breasts will have to do! Thanks for this recipe.
Do you think I could make the stuffing and get the casserole dishes ready earlier in the day then refrigerate them until time to go into the oven? Or would the stuffing get too soggy by then?
I think it would work… but I haven’t tested it!
i am such a lurker – and to be honest, I’ve tried your recipes and loved them (dragon noodles are a main-stay in my kitchen when i’m home alone!!! and how many times this summer did i slow cook roasts to make shredded meat!) but anyhoo – this post did it – I am so inspired I have to say something. I HATE cooking the bird. I’ve gotten to the point where I’ll only eat smoked turkey from Honey Baked because it all tastes so… so… birdy… plus, it’s just big and unweilding and no one in my home even likes white meat. This is inspiring. I think I can get thighs and (a couple wings for others) brine the heck out of them and do this. Genius, I tell you! and i promise to at least come back to comment when i cook your posts :-)
I’m glad you finally joined the conversation! :) And I’m with you, I hate cooking a whole bird!
When I made this last month (I’m the last post above), it was a hit with my whole family! We all loved it. When I took the chicken off the pan, I threw the pan of stuffing under the broiler for a few minutes to get the top crusty and crispy, it was SO GOOD.
So good, in fact, that this is now my go-to recipe for stuffing, and I am making this for Thanksgiving tomorrow, baking it on the side instead of stuffing the bird. I have to actually do two pans to feed the large group I have coming for dinner!
I plan on adding some extra broth to compensate for the lost bird juices, and possibly cutting back the baking time, I’ll probably just have to keep an eye on it.
I’ve got this in the oven right now! I made everything according to the recipe, but I’m using chicken leg quarters instead of the turkey pieces. I was able to fit 4 leg quarters in my 9×13 pan.
I tasted the stuffing after it was all combined and I loved the flavors! I’m crossing fingers it will be even better once baked and mixed with the chicken juices.
I did not have bacon so I skipped that. I also just used chicken and that was tasty still. The stuffing was awesome. Would make again!
I would just add a little extra onion.
what would be a good substitute for the celery? i really dislike the taste of it, but this stuffing looks so good that i first wanted to try with a substitute for the celery, tough
I love the stuffing so much that I would definitely eat it with ham. But you’re right, they should be cooked separately. Also, if you don’t have meat on top to add and hold in moisture, you’ll want to use two cups of broth and probably cover the dish with foil for about half of the cooking time. Taking the foil off half way through will allow the top to get a little crispy :) I hope you enjoy it!
Hey Beth, I’m so bummed that my Dad bought gammon instead of turkey ;/ so I was wondering if it still would turn out good if I made the gammon and the stuffing separately? I’m not sure if the flavors would match though… gah, I need your help. thank yooou
I will be making this for my family today!!
I saw a video on PBS last week of Jacque and Julia doing a version of this. He was so sweet and patient with her in those last years they cooked together for us.
I started buying sale turkey so I could cut it up and freeze parts just for this purpose. I will like this recipe even more in March!
Thanks so much for your speedy response, Beth. I think that was enough to guide what I do. (I had sort-of settled on a stuffing that contains za’atar and lemon.)
Anyway, I love your approach to this. All of the birds I have looked at are MUCH too big for two people.
Jean
Jean – Hmm, I didn’t measure my bread cubes but I’m going to guess that it was around 10-12 cups because they filled my stock pot completely. It’s very flexible though, so if you use a little too much it should be okay. You’ll want enough bread cubes to slightly over fill your baking dish (they’ll shrink down a bit when you add the chicken broth and then even more as it bakes). I hope that helps!
Hi! I have really been spinning my wheels about what to cook, and this approach may very well be the answer. I want to use a different approach to the stuffing though. Could you give me a clue about the approximate amount of bread cubes there should be? If so, I can scale the other recipe accordingly. Thanks!
Also – if you bake it alone, you’ll probably want to add a second cup of chicken broth to make up for lost moisture!
Thanks Beth! I’ll play it by ear– if the pan we purchase has enough room, then I’ll surround it with the stuffing, and if not, I’ll do it the normal way, it its own baking pan.
Raquel – I’m really not sure how that would work… I don’t think it would cover the stuffing in the same way. The turkey pieces kind of created a lid over the stuffing. You might try surrounding your bird with the stuffing, that way it will still soak up some of the juices, just from the bottom up.
I have a question. While I love this idea, I already have a whole bird in the freezer. I’m not into stuffing the cavity, but I love the idea of placing the meat over the stuffing so the stuffing gets the yummy flavors. Do you think I could do this with the whole bird over stuffing? Ours isn’t that big, only 8 lbs or so. Thanks so much in advance!
Had just the stuffing part of this last night. It was great, but I think would be better if the turkey was cooked on top. Then the drippings from the turkey would keep the dressing more moist. It was still good though. Live, learn, and eat!
Last time I had a craving for turkey, I wanted thanksgiving sandwiches. So I cooked a turkey breast. Still took all day. MEh.
NMPatricia – Where did you find them? At my store they were in the butcher case with the fresh chicken and other poultry… I guess I spotted it really fast because they were so BIG! :)
What a fabulous idea! This makes me want to cook turkey throughout the year rather than just at Thanksgiving. It looks crispy and the stuffing/dressing looks delish!
Ahh, annoymous beat me to my question. Glad to know about the chicken. I can’t wait to try that.
That said, you would laugh at how hard it was to find the turkey pieces at Whole Foods. I just stood there and insisted they had to have them because I just saw it on your blog. And I finally found them. Weren’t as expensive as I thought they were.
Anon- I’m sure chicken would work great with this too! You won’t need to adjust the temperature but the cooking time will probably be less because the pieces will be much smaller. Just look for nice brown, crispy skin and if you’re still unsure, put a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat (without touching bone) and it should reach 165 degrees.
First things first, I loooove your blog! Dumb question, but do you think I could substitute chicken for the turkey? Would it affect time or temp?
You are amazing! Thank you so much for all the great ideas. I will definitely be doing this for my family this Thanksgiving.
That is such a great idea. I don’t necessarily mind making a whole bird, but I hate carving it and doling it out.
And how amazing is that better than bouillon chicken base?? I’ll never buy the cartons again.
This post has saved my thanksgiving! I hate the idea of cooking a whole bird too, but this looks definitely do-able! I love your blog. Thanks for all the great recipes!
Inspired. I never have wanted to cook a whole bird either, but this doesn’t freak me out the way handling a whole turkey does. Thanks!
Oh wow, another one I’ll have to try, this one may have to wait until next weekend though I’m too lazy to seek out turkey pieces during the week! :) I love your blog!
Does your distaste of cooking whole birds extend to chickens? If it does it shouldn’t; roasting a chicken is one of the easiest things to cook. I have a fantastic Roast Chicken with Fennel and Red Potatoes. If you’re interested check it out: http://greenhorngourmande.blogspot.com/2011/10/weekend-cooking-bonanza.html
Oh my giblets you are fast! I only emailed you 4 or 5 days ago! Your photos and dressing recipe look so yummy, I can’t wait to try you version. It’s only two of us this year, so I’ll try and figure out what I can fit in an 8×8 pan. And you’re right, you’ll never cook a whole bird again ;)
Marianne – You absolutely can! And without the turkey on top, the tops pieces will get all nice and crispy! Also, you can use sausage instead of the bacon for a different twist.. And you’ll probably only need to bake it half as long without the turkey :D
Could you modify this to just make the stuffing? With the bacon and apple and french bread, I just want to try that!
Oh. Dear. Lord.
This looks AMAZING.
Thanks! I’m so excited to make this!
Caitlin – I think they would still work great! In the original article, the woman used all pieces (breast, thighs, wings, and drumsticks) and she said she just takes pieces out early if they look done before the rest.
This looks amazing! I bought some turkey legs recently. Do you think I will be able to use those? I ask because I’m not sure how thick the thighs were and if the drumsticks would cook as evenly.
I make my turkey and dressing in my crock pot but I may have to try this.
I told my mother-in-law that i simply did not want to cook thanksgiving dinner… but after seeing this recipe, I feel extremely inspired and excited to try it. I just emailed her telling her I changed my mind, I will try cook a turkey.