Easy Slow Cooker Stuffing Recipe 🍁🧡 Thanksgiving stuffing just got even EASIER to prepare, thanks to this easy recipe! SIMPLE ingredients, including day-old bread, celery, onion, and fresh herbs, are transformed into MOIST and FLAVORFUL stuffing that’s PERFECT for holiday entertaining, from Thanksgiving to Christmas celebrations! Free up oven space this holiday season by making stuffing in your Crock-Pot!
Easy Traditional Slow Cooker Stuffing Recipe
- My Traditional Thanksgiving Stuffing is one of the most popular recipes on my site. It has more than 1,000 glowing reviews and counting! This Crockpot stuffing recipe is just as flavorful as the classic baked stuffing, but it utilizes a slow cooker to free up precious oven space on the busiest cooking days of the year for Thanksgiving and Christmas meals.
- You can begin slow cooking the stuffing a few hours before guests arrive so that you can enjoy more time with loved ones while this easy Thanksgiving side dish cooks itself in your Crock-Pot!
- And if you’re trying to prepare as much as possible before Thanksgiving dinner, be sure to make a batch of my Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes while you’re at it.
- The base of this Crockpot Thanksgiving stuffing is day old French bread. A simple blend of celery, onion, and fresh herbs infuses the stuffing with layers of flavor that pair perfectly with holiday favorites like roast turkey, citrus turkey, roast turkey breast, apple spiral ham, and honey baked ham.
- If you’re looking for other ways to make stuffing this holiday season, try my easy Stovetop Stuffing or this festive Pull-Apart Stuffing Ring. Both are delicious alternatives to slow cooker stuffing and perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas!
Ingredients in Crock Pot Stuffing
- Unsalted butter: Adds rich, buttery flavor. Plant-based butter can be used to keep the stuffing dairy-free.
- Onion and celery: These classic stuffing vegetables add savory flavor and texture. Yellow or sweet Vidalia onions both work well.
- French bread: Use day-old, slightly dry French bread for the best texture. Sourdough or Italian bread also works, but avoid regular sliced sandwich bread because it will turn mushy.
- Fresh parsley, sage, rosemary, kosher salt, and black pepper: Fresh herbs give this stuffing its wonderful holiday flavor. Dried herbs can be used if needed, but reduce the amount to about one-half to one-third since they’re more concentrated.
- Chicken broth: I recommend reduced sodium chicken broth to better control the salt level. Turkey broth also works well.
- Optional mix-ins: Dried cranberries, chopped walnuts, or pecans add extra flavor and texture. Stir them in with the other ingredients if desired.
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Stuffing in a Crockpot
- Dry out the bread: Bake French bread cubes on baking sheet in a single layer at 250ºF for about 45 minutes to really dry them out. This is a must so your stuffing isn’t soggy! Tip: You can do this night before to save time the next day. Leave the dried bread just sitting, uncovered (exposed to air), on the baking sheet.
- Sauté the vegetables and aromatics: Add the butter, diced onions, and diced celery to a large skillet over medium heat. Saute until the vegetables have softened and are lightly browned. Add the fresh herbs and stir.
- Assemble: Place the dry bread cubes, buttery cooked vegetables and herbs into your Crockpot, pour the broth, and stir to combine.
- Slow Cook: Cover and cook on LOW for a total time of 3 to 4 hours. Tip – Cooking on LOW heat helps prevent the stuffing from drying out and ensures even cooking throughout so this is not the time to try high heat slow cooking.
- Fluff and serve: Transfer to a serving bowl, casserole dish, or baking dish, and use a fork to lightly fluff the stuffing before serving.
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for step-by-step photos and process shots of the cooking process.
What to Serve with Crockpot Thanksgiving Stuffing
Slow Cooker Stuffing
Equipment
- 1 6-quart slow cooker OR
Ingredients
- 1 pound day old white French bread, diced into 1/2-inch cubes and dried* (more info in step 1 below)
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 2 – 2 ½ cups sweet Vivaldi or yellow onion, diced small (about 1 large or extra large onion)
- 1 ½ cups celery, diced small
- ⅔ cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- ¼ cup fresh sage leaves, finely minced (or to taste)
- 3 tablespoons fresh rosemary sprigs, stems removed and finely minced (or to taste)
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely minced (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ – 2 ½ cups reduced sodium chicken broth, divided, add as needed
Instructions
- Bread – Preheat oven to 250F, cube the day old French bread into 1/2-inch cubes, place it on a baking sheet (or two baking sheets) and bake, stirring occasionally, until the bread is dried out, about 45 minutes. *Tips – You must begin with very dry bread or it’ll turn to mush. I use French bread that I purchase from my grocery store bakery. Italian bread or sourdough may be substituted. Do NOT use basic regular bread that you'd use for sandwiches or toast because it will disintegrate. Toast-Ahead – To save time on the day of, you can bake and dry out the bread the night before . Leave it uncovered on the counter until the morning or when you’re ready to make the stuffing.
- Sauteeing – To a large skillet, add the butter, onions, celery, and saute over medium to medium-high heat for about 8-10 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft and just beginning to brown. In the final minute or two, add all the fresh herbs, salt, pepper, stir to combine, and saute to allow the flavors to bloom.
- Slow Cooker – To the insert of your slow cooker, add the dried bread, the buttery vegetables and herbs mixture; stir to combine.
- Add 1 1/2 cups broth, stir to combine and coat everything evenly, place the lid on your slow cooker and cook on LOW for about 3-4 hours. Tip – I do not recommend using the high heat setting; low is better to cook the stuffing evenly and without drying it out. Stuffing is done when it's cooked through, lightly moist throughout – not still soggy but not overly dried out either. Slow cookers vary a lot, as does personal preference for stuffing. Keep an eye on yours and cook as needed, however long that takes.Additional Broth – During the slow cooking process, check on the stuffing, and use your judgment if you want to add additional broth or not, up to about 1 cup. If you like drier stuffing, you may not need to add any. If your bread was very dry or you like more moist stuffing, add some broth. It's really going to depend on your preferences as well as your ingredients as well as the heat output of your slow cooker.
- Serving – Transfer stuffing to a serving bowl (or serve it straight from the slow cooker). Fluff it with a fork first before serving. You can garnish it with additional fresh herbs, if desired. You can make it about 3 hours ahead of time and use the keep warm feature to hold it. Any longer than that, it will start becoming dried out.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Recipe FAQs
Yes and no. Toasting the bread in advance (see above) is fine.
And you can cook the stuffing up to about 3-4 hours before serving. Slow cook the required 3 to 4 hours on LOW, then turn the Crockpot to “warm” to keep warm until ready to serve. As with most things though, the less it just sits and lingers before you serve it, the better. It will continue to dry out as it is being kept warm, nature of the beast, so keep that in mind.
I do not recommend cooking the stuffing, refrigerating it, and then reheating it the next day to serve to guests. The texture won’t be as good if you do that. Plus, this is a special day (I am guessing) when you’re making this – so plan ahead.
You’ll yield about 9 to 10 cups of bread cubes from 1 pound of French bread.
That’s correct, no eggs. During recipe testing, I used my Classic Traditional Stuffing recipe as my jumping off place. However, my first batch in the slow cooker came out way too soggy because I added two eggs and the same amount of broth as that baked stuffing recipe has. After making some adjustments (no eggs, less broth) this slow cooker stuffing came out perfectly.
I made this recipe in my 6-quart Crockpot. You can make it in 7-quart Crockpot, but do not use a smaller one because the ingredients will be squished and the stuffing won’t cook properly.
More Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes:
Easy Chicken Broth Gravy — 🧡🙌🎉 If you don’t have pan drippings to make gravy, try this QUICK and EASY gravy recipe instead! It uses store bought chicken broth (or turkey broth) and turns out wonderfully smooth, rich, buttery, and FLAVORFUL every time! Perfect for holiday meals like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter or make it for family dinners throughout the year to serve over chicken, turkey, and of course mashed potatoes!
Stovetop Stuffing — With this easy homemade stuffing recipe, you’ll never need a box of the store-bought stuff again! Onions, carrots, and celery are sautéed in butter, seasoned with an aromatic bouquet of herbs, and cubed bread is stirred in to create the most perfect stuffing that’s moist and tender!
Cornbread Stuffing — Fast and easy homemade cornbread is transformed into a family favorite cornbread stuffing side dish with the addition of celery, onions, garlic, broth, and a bouquet of fresh herbs!
Sweet Potato Casserole with Butter Pecan Crumble Topping — The holiday classic just got even better because of the amazing topping! A buttery, brown sugary, crunch that’s irresistible! Easy and you can pre-assemble to save time!
Cheesy Funeral Potatoes — This casserole is creamy, CHEESY, and topped with crunchy Corn Flakes! It’s an easy side dish that feeds a crowd, so it’s perfect for holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Cheesy Cauliflower Gratin — Cauliflower florets are coated in a creamy cheese sauce and sprinkled with a crispy panko breadcrumb topping before being baked to golden, bubbly perfection!
Easy Homemade Candied Yams — Learn how to make the BEST candied yams which are baked in the most wonderful buttery cinnamon-and-sugar sauce! If you’re looking for an EASY Thanksgiving or Christmas side dish recipe, look no further than this EASY holiday recipe with almost no active prep time.
Stuffed Acorn Squash with Sausage — Stuffed with a mixture of Italian sausage, celery, apple, kale, and seasoned with sage, rosemary, and thyme. This is the perfect fall dinner or hearty side dish recipe that’s ready in under an hour!
