This quick, easy Jiffy cornbread dressing is baked in a casserole dish and flavored with sausage, celery, onions and sage. It’s the BEST Thanksgiving side dish ever!
This dressing tastes just like the old-fashioned kind, there’s just fewer steps! If you’re a fan of using boxed cornbread mix you HAVE to try my recipe for Jiffy-style jalapeño cornbread!
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🌟 Why you’ll love this recipe
- This Jiffy cornbread dressing is delicious because it’s sweet, but balanced with savory flavors. The texture is perfectly moist, not mushy or dry!
- It’s versatile – I love using Jiffy cornbread as the base of my dressing, because I know what to expect in terms of taste. If you have another brand of cornbread that you like or prefer using homemade, you can.
- It can be made ahead of time – assemble the dressing 1-2 days ahead and store it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake it. If you want to bake it the day before Thanksgiving and reheat it the day of, that’s fine too.
📋 Ingredient Notes
- Jiffy corn muffin mix – you’ll need two 8.5 ounce boxes.
- Whole milk yields the best tasting cornbread.
- Eggs – the cornbread itself calls for 2 eggs, but you’ll need an extra one to bind the dressing with.
- To moisten the dressing I prefer using chicken broth over condensed soup which is what other recipes use.
- Sausage – you can use links, patties or ground sausage.
- Herbs and seasonings – poultry seasoning, sage, celery and onions complement the flavors of this dish.
Refer to the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and specific measurements.
Substitutions
- Feel free to use your favorite brand of cornbread in place of Jiffy.
- For vegetarian cornbread, use vegetable broth and pick one of the pork alternatives below.
- Pork Alternatives: feel free to use chicken, soy or any another plant-based sausage, or omit it completely.
- Using buttermilk in place of whole milk adds richness and adds tanginess to the cornbread.
🔪 Step-by-step directions
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 400°F. Whisk together the Jiffy mix, 2 eggs and milk in a mixing bowl to form a wet batter. Divide between two 8-inch baking pans and bake for 15-17 minutes. Let cool.
Step 2: While the cornbread is in the oven, place the sausages in a pan and fill the pan with enough water to cover them. Boil the sausages for 10-15 minutes. Skip this step if you’re using ground sausage or sausage patties.
Step 3: Drain the sausages and chop them into small pieces. In a large skillet, melt the butter and add the onions, celery and sage. Cook until the sausage is browned and the onions become fragrant.
Step 4: Cut the cornbread into cubes and place them in a bowl with the sausage mixture. Then add the remaining egg, chicken broth and seasonings. Bring everything together using a silicone spatula, be careful not to over-mix. The mixture should be moist and lumpy.
Step 5: Transfer the mixture to a 9×13 glass baking dish and gently spread the dressing out in an even layer. Be careful not to pack it down.
Step 6: Adjust the oven temperature to 375°F. Leave the baking dish uncovered and bake the stuffing for 20 minutes. The stuffing will be golden brown and slightly toasted on top, with a creamy but set texture throughout.
💭 Tips & Tricks
- You don’t need to pack the dressing firmly into the baking dish – just spread it gently.
- Pre-boiling larger sausages cuts down on time, but small links or patties can be prepared in the oven or in a skillet and then cut up into pieces.
- If you’re doubling the recipe, you can use the same sized pan (the dressing will be thicker) or divide the dressing between 2 baking dishes.
🥣 Serving suggestions
Cut the cornbread dressing into squares or serve it by the spoonful with:
❓Recipe FAQ’s
Stuffing is placed directly in a bird’s cavity and dressing is baked in a baking dish. Dressing is baked in a pan or dish outside of a bird.
Some people prefer to use stale cornbread for dressing. The reasoning behind this is that dressing using stale bread is less likely to be mushy. If you want to dry out your cornbread just leave it out over night uncovered, but this is totally optional.
You don’t need to add anything besides eggs and whole milk but some people like to add cheese and jalapeños for a more a savory version, while others like to add honey for sweetness.
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Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & consider scrolling down and leaving me a review if you REALLY liked it. Thanks!
Jiffy Cornbread Dressing
Equipment
- 2 8-inch cake pans (round or square)
- 9×13 glass baking dish (3-quart capacity)
Ingredients
Cornbread ingredients
- 17 ounces jiffy corn muffin mix 2 boxes, 8.5 ounces each
- 2 eggs large
- ⅔ cup whole milk
Dressing ingredients
- 6 ounces italian sausage or 2 large links
- 6 tablespoon butter unsalted
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 10 sage leaves chopped, stems removed
- 1 egg large
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 tsp poultry seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F. Whisk together the Jiffy mix, 2 eggs and milk in a mixing bowl to form a wet batter. Divide between two 8-inch baking pans and bake for 15-17 minutes. Let cool.
- While the cornbread is in the oven, place the sausages in a pan and fill the pan with enough water to cover them. Boil the sausages for 10-15 minutes. Skip this step if you're using ground sausage or sausage patties.
- Drain the sausages and chop them into small pieces. In a large skillet, melt the butter and add the onions, celery and sage. Cook until the sausage is browned and the onions become fragrant.
- Cut the cornbread into cubes and place them in a bowl with the sausage mixture. Then add the remaining egg, chicken broth and seasonings. Bring everything together using a silicone spatula, be careful not to over-mix. The mixture should be moist and lumpy.
- Transfer the mixture to a 9×13 glass baking dish and gently spread the dressing out in an even layer. Be careful not to pack it down.
- Adjust the oven temperature to 375°F. Leave the baking dish uncovered and bake the stuffing for 20 minutes. The stuffing will be golden brown and slightly toasted on top, with a creamy but set texture throughout.
- Cut the cornbread dressing into squares or serve it by the spoonful.
Notes
- You don’t need to pack the dressing firmly into the baking dish – just spread it gently.
- Pre-boiling larger sausages cuts down on time, but small links or patties can be prepared in the oven or in a skillet and then cut up into pieces.
- If you’re doubling the recipe, you can use the same sized pan (the dressing will be thicker) or divide the dressing between 2 baking dishes.
Jessica Lawson says
This recipe is easy and SO delicious. I like my stuffing simple and flavorful, no apples or extra ingredients just give me the bread, aromatics and some sausage is great. This is perfect.
Robin says
The addition of the italian sausage made this dish a winner.
Crystal says
That’s exactly what I like to hear! Thank you for letting me know how much you liked it!
Crystal says
Hi Jessica! Yes, I am a bit of a minimalist when it comes to stuffing! Thank you, I’m happy that you enjoyed it!
Samantha says
This dish is flavorful and super easy! I’m sure that it would be a hit at every holiday gathering.
Crystal says
Hi Samantha! So glad you liked it!
Britney says
Sweet and savory recipes are my favorite and this recipe did not disappoint! The butter with the sausage and cornbread blew my mind, it was so so good! Thanks for another delicious recipe!!
Crystal says
Always my pleasure, Britney! Thank you for letting me know how much you enjoyed it!
Chenée says
I LOVE the addition of Italian sausage in this cornbread stuffing. And it was so easy to make with store-bought cornbread!
Crystal says
Told you the store-bought cornbread was a good hack! So glad you liked it!
Jazz says
I made this with the sausage for Friendsgiving and it was a big hit! And we’re dressing people so that’s saying something.
Crystal says
Jazz, I am so glad that your family enjoyed! I’m so flattered!
Lori says
I have made this recipe for the last 2 Thanksgivings and look forward to making/sharing this year too! Question: How far in advance can this stuffing recipe be prepared before serving on Thanksgiving? Thank you!!
Crystal DaCruz says
Hi Lori! I’m so glad you like it! 1-2 days in advance should be fine. You can bake it the day of or bake in advance and reheat in the baking dish. Happy Thanksgiving!
Cindy says
Hello my mother-in-law made this recipe but no sausage. And the sage was just dried. She passed away and never got the receipt. If you used dried sage what would the amount be. And if you don’t use sausage, do you need to add something, so it’s not dry. Thank you ,cindy
Crystal DaCruz says
Hi Cindy! You can definitely make this recipe without sausage, there’s no need to add anything it’s place because the dressing gets plenty of flavor from the chicken broth. As for the sage, 1/2-1 teaspoon dried should suffice. I wouldn’t add more than that because dried herbs can be pretty potent. Happy holidays!
Stacey C. says
I don’t have any sausage on hand, but I do have bacon. Have you ever tried it with bacon? If so, was it good or should I just leave it out?
Crystal DaCruz says
Hi Stacey, I have not but you definitely can add bacon for flavor and texture!
Wilhelmina Brown says
Great and so easy to make. Prep time shortened.alleviate spending a lot of time in the kitchen. On scale of 0_10. I rate this recipe a number 10.