This vegan cornbread dressing with chunks of cornbread soaks up the flavors of onions, celery, and spices and bakes moist and fluffy. It’s the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving or holiday menu!
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When it was my turn to start preparing our Thanksgiving meal, stuffing left me scratching my head! I didn’t want to buy packaged stuffing because it’s not vegan and usually used processed ingredients.
How would I make a stuffing that everyone at the table could enjoy? That’s when I started researching and came up with this recipe for vegan cornbread dressing!
I found a way to create a moist, fluffy, and traditionally flavored stuffing without using any animal-derived ingredients.
💗 Why You’ll Love Vegan Cornbread Dressing
- It has all of the savory flavors and textures of traditional Thanksgiving stuffing.
- Very easy and simple to make!
- Light and fluffy texture
- Simple ingredients
- Perfect for your Thanksgiving or Holiday meal!
- Nobody will know it’s vegan!
🥣 Ingredients and Notes
Vegan Cornbread (cubed): I prepared this vegan cornbread recipe in advance and allowed it to dry a bit before using it in my stuffing.
Chopped Onion: You can use both red or white onion. I used white onion since that is what I had on hand. I would say that white onions are more traditional in a stuffing recipe.
Celery: Use about four celery stalks and finely chop.
Vegetable Stock: You can use your own homemade or store-bought. If using store-bought, look for one that is low in sodium.
Dried Basil: I recommend using dried herbs for this recipe. The flavor is more concentrated, but if you choose to use fresh, double the amount.
Dried Thyme: Add ½ a teaspoon.
Dried Rosemary: Add ½ a teaspoon.
Fresh Parsley: Reserve a portion of the finely chopped parsley as a garnish to sprinkle on top before serving.
Salt and Pepper: If using store-bought vegetable stock, you will not need to add much additional salt. Add pepper to taste.
📖 Variations and Substitutions
Vary the Textures: Use a combination of stale whole wheat bread and cornbread for a different texture.
More Herbs and Spices: Add your favorite spices to the broth, such as sage! Top with some chopped walnuts or pecans to give the stuffing an extra crunch.
📋 How to Make Vegan Cornbread Dressing
- Dry out your cornbread. You can do this by allowing it to sit out and become stale for 1-2 days. If you don’t have that time, chop the cornbread into cubes, place it in the oven to 250 degrees F, and bake for 30-40 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Add ¼ cup of vegetable broth to your large skillet set to medium heat. Add the yellow onion and celery. Sauté until soft, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add basil, thyme, rosemary, and parsley. Stir to coat the onions and celery. Cook the mixture for an additional minute.
- Add the rest of the vegetable stock and fresh parsley. Bring to a boil.
- Add the dried and cubed cornbread to a large mixing bowl. Slowly ladle broth over the breadcrumbs. Gradually stir to combine. Note: You don’t want to add too much broth, but you don’t want to add too little. Too much broth will make your cornbread break apart and become mushy. Too little broth will make your stuffing turn out dry. Ladle enough broth that the breadcrumbs are coated but still retain their shape. You may not use all of the broth.
- Transfer the cornbread mixture to an 8×8 inch baking dish or a similar size. Bake for 25-30 minutes uncovered at 350 degrees F or until top browns.
❓ FAQS
Stuffing is traditionally made by placing it in the turkey, while dressing is made by baking it in a casserole dish. With this definition, this recipe is a vegan cornbread dressing! However, so many of us call it stuffing because that’s what we know it as, and dressing can get confused with salad dressing! So, if you were confused by the word dressing, don’t fret. This recipe is the same as a vegan cornbread stuffing recipe!
No, many stuffing mixes are not vegan. This is because they contain ingredients such as meat broth, chicken fat, or dairy products like butter or milk. If a stuffing is labeled vegan, then it is safe to use.
The most important aspect of making this stuffing is allowing the cornbread to dry out, and bake it on low heat until it resembles croutons. The crunchier and firmer the cornbread is before adding the other moist ingredients, the less likely it will become mushy and too wet.
📝 Expert Tips
- Use dried cornbread. The dryer, the better! Cornbread has a tendency to crumble more than traditional bread, so you want it to be as dry as possible so that it soaks up the broth without becoming a mushy mess.
- Make the vegan cornbread two days in advance, and cut it into cubes. Then, allow it to sit out at room temperature to dry out.
- If you don’t have time to make your own vegan cornbread, you can use an easy vegan-friendly boxed mix.
- Slowly add the broth to the cubed cornbread. Don’t dump it all on top at the same time.
🍽 How to Serve
Serve this recipe at your Thanksgiving meal with friends and family. While stuffing is traditionally served with Turkey, I recommend my vegan stuffed acorn squash as a main dish and a side of vegan cranberry sauce.
🫙 How to Store and Keep
Refrigerate: Transfer leftovers to an airtight container once cooled to room temperature. Store in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Reheat: When ready to reheat, transfer to a microwave-safe dish and warm in the microwave until heated to your desired temperature.
⚖️ Serving Size
This recipe makes ten servings. It’s the perfect size for a moderate Thanksgiving gathering.
😋 More Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes!
🎥 Video
Recipe
Vegan Cornbread Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 8×8 pan vegan cornbread dried and cut into cubes (about 8 cups)
- 1 medium onion diced
- 4 ribs celery finely chopped
- 2 ¼ cups vegetable stock divided
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ cup fresh parsley chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Dry out your cornbread. You can do this by allowing it to sit out and become stale for 1-2 days. If you don't have that time, chop the cornbread into cubes, and place in the oven set to 250 degrees F, and bake for 30-40 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Add ¼ cup of vegetable stock to your large sauté pan at medium-high heat. Add onions and celery. Sauté until soft, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add basil, thyme, and rosemary. Stir to coat the onions and celery. Cook for an additional minute. Add the rest of the vegetable stock and fresh parsley. Bring to a boil.
- Add dried and cubed cornbread to a large bowl. Slowly ladle broth over the breadcrumbs. Gradually stirring to combine. You don't want to add too much broth, but you also don't want to add too little. Too much broth will make your cornbread break apart and become mushy. Too little broth will make your stuffing turn out dry. Ladle enough broth that the breadcrumbs are coated but still retain their shape. You may not use all of the broth.
- Transfer cornbread to an 8×8 inch baking dish or similar. Bake for 25-30 minutes uncovered at 350 F until top browns.
Notes
- Use dried cornbread. The dryer, the better! Cornbread has a tendency to crumble more than traditional bread, so you want it to be as dry as possible so that it soaks up the broth without becoming a mushy mess.
- Make your vegan cornbread two days in advance and cut it into cubes. Then, allow it to sit out at room temperature.
- Slowly add the broth to the cubed cornbread. Don’t dump it all on top at the same time.
- Transfer leftovers to an airtight container once cooled to room temperature. Store in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Beth
Yum! Thsi looks so delicious and tasty! I can’t wait to give this a try!
Dannii
Now this is my kind of comfort food. It looks delicious.
Sue
It never occurred to me that a vegan dressing was possible – this looks delish! Oh and by the way, my family has always interchanged stuffing and dressing and I never really knew why. Maybe because my mom never put it inside the bird – so thank you for that explanation!
Nart at Cooking with Nart
I love stuffing and this vegan version looks so delicious!!
Gina
I love cornbread stuffing, it’s the best kind! love that you made this one vegan and yet it still looks just as delicious as all those butter laden ones from childhood!