This dish is a great way to serve the stuffing that doesn’t fit in the bird. Make the stuffing the star of the show with this Bacon Wrapped Sage & Sausage Stuffing recipe.
My mom makes the best stuffing in the world. Although, I’m sure I’m not the only one who thinks that. So let me start by saying, you can use any stuffing you want for this recipe (as long as it goes well with bacon – but then again – what wouldn’t taste good wrapped in bacon?).
When I think of turkey, I think of sausage stuffing. I wouldn’t dare stuff a bird with anything else! Anyone who’s had it, has asked for the recipe and added it to their holiday spread. So without further adieu, feast your eyes on an amazing way to serve stuffing.
To get the look, start by lining a good quality, non stick loaf pan with strips of bacon. If you’re in the US, you can one like mine from my Amazon Shop here on Erren’s Kitchen. You’ll find it under baking pans. If you’re in the UK, click here).
If you use a pan that might not be as non stick as it used to be or you’re not sure of the quality, spray it with some cooking spray to be extra careful If it sticks, it could be hard to get out of the pan. My pan is super non stick and it came right out. I used 12 strips of bacon, but you may need more or less depending on the brand. Also, if you have very thin bacon, you might want to double it. My bacon wasn’t paper thin (see the photo below) so I didn’t need to add another layer.
For the stuffing, start by fully cooking the sausage meat.
remove from the pan and set aside. Cook the butter, onions and celery in butter until soft.
Add chopped, sage, pepper, thyme, bay seasoning (if you have it) and the large breadcrumbs (they don’t sell stuffing cubes here so I couldn’t say for sure the amount of stuffing cubes you would use. Although, I’d suspect it wouldn’t be much different). I don’t add salt because the sausage can be salty as well as the bacon.
Add chicken stock & the cooked sausage meat. Mix well until absorbed. Add the stuffing mixture to the bacon lined pan and bake for 40 -45 minutes.
Turn it onto a serving dish and try not to pick on it before serving! Good luck with that!
Update: There has been some question on the amount of stuffing cubes the recipe called for. As they don’t sell stuffing cubes here and I used large, stale bread crumbs (as pictured). I have changed the recipe to reflect only the ingredients that have been tested.
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- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 celery stalks diced
- 1 large onion chopped
- 1 lb sausage meat of your choice I use a plain sausage opposed to Italian
- a small handful of fresh sage finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon bells seasoning optional
- 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- pepper
- 1 cup large stale bread crumbs
- 1 1/2 - 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 large egg
- 12-24 strips of bacon
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preheat the oven to 400/200c
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line a nonstick loaf pan with the about 12 strips of bacon until it is fully covered with no gaps (if the bacon is very thing you may need to do two layers). Set aside.
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If your sausage is in casings, start by removing it. Cook the sausage in the olive oil on medium high heat in a large frying pan until brown and completely cooked.
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remove from the pan and set aside.
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Drain the grease from the pan, add the butter and cook the onion & celery until soft (being careful not to let it get too brown). If it starts getting too dry, you can add additional butter (one tablespoon at a time).
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Add the sage, bells seasoning, thyme & pepper. Followed by the chicken stock starting with 1 1/3 and if it looks too dry, add a but more.
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Set aside for 10 minutes and allow to cool.
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Add the egg. Mix well until combined (you may have to knead it).
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Add the mixture to the prepared pan.
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Bake for 40-45 minutes. Turn onto a serving pan and serve (if the bacon did not crisp enough you can put it back into the pan and bake it a little longer).
Wow, that looks amazing!! For the love of bacon!!
Thanks so much, Tara! 🙂
Oh my goodness, all that bacon! My family would love this! Pinning!
Thanks so much! 🙂
Is it really only 3/4 cups of stuffing cubes? That does not seem like much considering the amounts of the other ingredients. Wanted to make sure before I made it! Thanks!
Hi Lana, They don’t sell stuffing cubes here (I’m an American living in England). As I haven’t tested the recipe measurements with stuffing cubes, I have removed them from the instructions. I would assume the amount wouldn’t be drastically different, but I don’t know for sure). I have also changed the amount of the large breadcrumbs to 1 cup just to be safe. I wouldn’t want to be the cause of Thanksgiving stress!
Tried it for Christmas…unfortunately it didn’t work…bacon got stuck to the pan and couldn’t flip it out. The stuffing was amazing thought so I Peeled the bacon off of the pan and just arranged it on top. So people took bacon and some didn’t… but I will try it again sometime 🙂
Hi Patti, So sorry for the late reply. I haven’t been well for some time and the app on my phone doesn’t allow me to reply to comments. I don’t like posts to go unanswered though. I’ll tell you I almost didn’t post this recipe because the last thing I want to do is ruin someone’s holiday! I have a fabulous non stick pan and never has trouble with it sticking. I’m so sorry you did, but am happy to hear you liked it anyway!
I’ve made this twice now. It’s a staple of the family get-togethers.
I bake it longer to really crisp the bacon, I find it helps with removing it whole from the dish.
Also, I use a 12″ x 9″ Pyrex baking dish rather than a loaf pan. The bacon fits nicely across the dish.
Extremely tasy, and very moist.
Highly recommended.
Hi Ian, that’s wonderful to hear! Thanks so much for letting me know! 🙂
I prepared it yesterday and will put in oven today. I like to leave the ingredients sit overnight. I typically make the French Canadian pork stuffing, which is pretty much the same. I had never used the egg or chicken stock before, which seems to be a great idea. Rather than put the bacon on the outside, I broke up and mixed into the stuffing itself. I’m making Easter dinner my firefighter husband and his buddies who are working today, and thought it would be easier for them. I will let you know how the guys like it that way. Though I will be trying it sometime with it wrapped in bacon. EVERYTHING tastes better with bacon!!!
Well just when I thought that stuffing couldn’t get any better you had to go and wrap it in bacon. Holy yum!
This is such a smart recipe. My boys will be over the moon when I make this on Christmas.
This whole thing blows my mind. I have GOT to try this!
I thought maybe it was impossible to love stuffing any more than I do … but now I officially do! Holy bacon, batman!
Bacon is my haven with anything!
Me too! 🙂
This is such a good idea! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
OMG – this is amazing… wow – great recipe and so different from the usual stuffing!
I’m assuming between 5 and 6 is when you add the bread crumbs???
Yes, so sorry!