Homemade Herb Bread Dressing (Stuffing)
Is it stuffing? Or is it dressing? Does it really matter? Course not!
It's really the same to me - just depends on the presentation, as far as I'm concerned. I say if it's cooked in the bird, it's "stuffing;" if it's cooked in a separate dish, its "dressing." Whatever you call, we sure love it!
I don't generally stuff the bird these days since all those warnings about it - they say because the stuffing supposedly doesn't reach a high enough temperature for long enough, which after sitting inside of a raw turkey ... is a breeding ground for bacteria. Still, my Mama always stuffed the bird, and to me that was the BEST stuffing ever, so I ate it growing up all my life and well, I never got sick and I'm still here walkin' and breathin' to talk about it! Still, I guess just to err on the side of caution, we all seem to just stuff the bird with herbs and aromatics these days and keep the dressing/stuffing as a separate side casserole.
Now. Let me clarify something here first. This is basically the way my Mama always made her bread stuffing, using the Pepperidge Farm seasoned stuffing package and some freshly sauteed veggies. Yes. I said bread stuffing. Stuffing because she stuffed her bird and put the rest in a side dish. Bread, not cornbread. She just did not make cornbread dressing, and yes, she was a born and bred true southerner, so before y'all start throwing down that Southern Shame Card that "no real southerner would make a bread dressing,", I invite you to go read this. Go ahead. I'll wait.
Now that we've cleared that up, let's carry on shall we? Mama didn't have the Bell's seasoning of course, and until recently (Walmart carries it during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday season) I have been making a homemade copycat version, or ordering mine online at Amazon, but she did use some of the same basic seasonings that Bell's contains, so while it may not be a perfect match to Mama's it's pretty close.
If you're one who does not care for cornbread dressing, and even if you're a southerner, understand that's okay! I hope that you'll enjoy this version instead. Of course dressing usually graces most tables during the holidays, but you don't have to wait until then to serve it because it goes just as well along side a beef roast or a roasted chicken or hen, so go ahead and enjoy it anytime! Just halve this recipe for a regular meal sized side dish.
Be sure to check out my 7 Top Tips to Perfect Your Holiday Stuffing and the rest of my Thanksgiving recipes and Christmas recipes. Just click on any of those links.
For more of my favorite dressing and stuffing recipes, pop over to my Pinterest page!
If you make this or any of my recipes, I'd love to see your results! Just snap a photo and hashtag it #DeepSouthDish on social media or tag me @deepsouthdish on Instagram!
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