Jiffy Cornbread Dressing with Sausage

Make this easy homemade Jiffy Cornbread Dressing recipe for your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner! Made with sausage, celery, and onions for a rich, savory side dish.

Why You'll Love Jiffy Cornbread Dressing

leslie lambert, author of lamberts lately.

This just might be one of my favorite recipes ever! If we're talking about recipes that I'm "known" for in the family, it comes down to my Rotel Dip, these Gooey Cinnamon Rolls, and this tried-and-true Jiffy Cornbread Dressing recipe.

It's a classic Southern side dish made with vegetables, a blend of breads, and a creamy base. The Jiffy cornbread adds just enough sweetness to balance out the savory sausage, sage, and onions.

Bake Time: 45-50 minutes

Serves: 16 (great for big crowds!)

Freezer-Friendly: Up to 3 months

Moist without being mushy: The combination of cornbread, dried white bread, and Saltines absorbs the broth while still giving the dressing structure.

Easy to prep ahead: Bake the cornbread and dry the white bread one or two days before assembling.

Full of savory flavor: Sausage, sage, vegetables, and creamy soups balance out the sweetness of the Jiffy mix.

I can't wait to see what you think of this holiday favorite!

Ingredient Notes

ingredients for Jiffy Cornbread Dressing, including white bread, saltines, cream of chicken soup, and hot breakfast sausage.

(See recipe card at the bottom of this post for exact ingredient measurements.)

Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix, plus ingredients to prepare it: Prepare the cornbread according to the package directions, cool completely, and crumble. Baking it a day ahead of time makes it easier to crumble so it's better at absorbing broth.
White bread: Use basic white sandwich bread and dry it completely. Bake at 250°F for 20 to 30 minutes, flipping halfway through, then cool and tear into pieces.
Saltine crackers: Crushed Saltines absorb broth and help keep the dressing from getting too soft. Tip: Crush them inside their sleeve for less mess.
Breakfast sausage: I like to use hot sausage - it balances the sweetness of the Jiffy mix. You can use mild sausage for less heat.
Butter: Adds a lot of richness and helps cook the sausage and vegetables.
Celery and onion: Dice them small so they soften fully. Yellow, white, or sweet onions work.
Chicken broth: You'll want to add this slowly. The amount you need totally depends on how dry the breads are. Homemade or store-bought broth works.
Cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup: These add moisture, seasoning, and creaminess. Cream of celery can replace the mushroom soup.
Sage, black pepper, and eggs: Sage adds great holiday flavor, pepper adds warmth, and the eggs are going to help the dressing set.

Additions & Variations

Chicken and dressing: Replace the sausage with an equal amount of cooked, shredded chicken (rotisserie chicken is perfect for this). Cook the celery and onion in butter, then taste the mixture before adding the eggs and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Dressing without sausage: Leave out the sausage and sauté the celery and onion in just the butter. Add extra sage, pepper, or salt to taste.
Different condensed soups: Replace the cream of mushroom soup with cream of celery if needed, or use two cans of cream of chicken soup.
Homemade cornbread: Use about the same amount of fully baked and cooled homemade cornbread (about 8 cups worth of crumbled cornbread). The flavor will be more savory and less sweet than Jiffy.

How to Make Jiffy Cornbread Dressing

Cooking ground sausage with chopped celery and onions in a skillet for cornbread dressing.

Crumbled cornbread, white bread, and saltines in a metal bowl for dressing.

Prepare the cornbread. Bake the Jiffy cornbread according to the package directions. Cool completely, then crumble it into a very large mixing bowl. This can be done one or two days ahead.
Dry the white bread. Bake the white bread at 250°F until dry and crisp. Let it cool, then tear or crumble it into the bowl with the cornbread. Add the crushed Saltines and toss to combine.
Cook the sausage and vegetables. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook until browned, breaking it into small crumbles. Add the celery and onion when the sausage is almost done, then cook until the vegetables are soft and the onion is translucent.
Mix the dressing. Add the sausage and vegetable mixture to the bowl with the breads. Stir in the cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, sage, black pepper, and beaten eggs until evenly combined.

Close-up of a bowl of savory cornbread dressing with sausage and herbs being stirred together before baking.

Unbaked Jiffy cornbread dressing with sausage in a glass dish, being spread for baking.

Add the broth gradually. Pour in the chicken broth about one cup at a time, stirring after each addition. Stop when the mixture is very moist and easy to stir but not watery. You may not need all of the broth.
Transfer to the baking dish. Spoon the mixture into a greased deep 9x13" baking dish, or divide it between two smaller dishes. Spread it evenly and leave a little room at the top since the dressing will puff up a little bit.
Bake until set. Bake at 350°F for 45 to 50 minutes. The dressing is done when the top is golden, the edges are set, and the center no longer looks wet or jiggles. The middle should reach 165°F. Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Step-by-Step Recipe Video

How Wet Should Cornbread Dressing Be Before Baking?

The mixture should be really moist, loose, and stirrable, but it should not be watery. Think of a thicker stew - that consistency.

Scoop up a spoonful and let it fall back into the bowl. It should spread slowly instead of holding a shape, but there should not be broth pooling around it.

It is better for the mixture to look a little more wet than you want the finished dressing. The breads will absorb more liquid as it bakes, and the eggs will help it firm up a lot.

Make-Ahead Instructions

You can bake the cornbread and dry the white bread one or two days ahead of time. You can also cook the sausage, celery, and onion in advance. Refrigerate that mixture in a covered container until you are ready to assemble the dressing.

I like to prepare the full casserole the night before; mix all of the ingredients, add them to the baking dish, cover tightly, and refrigerate. This is a great time-saving trick for Thanksgiving!

When you're ready to bake it, let the dish sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. A cold casserole may need a few extra minutes in the oven.

Close-up of homemade Jiffy cornbread dressing with sausage in a glass baking dish.

Storage, Reheating, and Freezing

Storage: Store leftover dressing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for three to four days.

Reheating: Reheat individual portions in the microwave. Add a small splash of broth first if the dressing looks dry. To reheat a larger amount, place it in an oven-safe dish, add a little broth around the edges, and cover with foil. Bake at 350°F until heated through.

Freezing: Baked cornbread dressing can also be frozen. Let it cool completely, wrap it tightly, and freeze it for up to three months. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

You can also freeze before baking - mix completely, wrap tightly, and freeze. When you're ready to bake it, thaw overnight in the fridge.

What to Serve with Jiffy Cornbread Dressing

This is an absolute holiday staple around here - it goes with so much! Serve this dressing with turkey, chicken, ham, or pork. It also goes great with...

Gravy
Bacon ranch green beans
Sweet potato casserole
Cranberry sauce
Mashed potatoes
Slow Cooker Corn Casserole
No-Peek French Onion Rice

And for dessert, try my Pumpkin Cool Whip Dip or Pumpkin Cake Pops!

Leslie's Testing Notes

Prepare the bread ahead of time: Cooled, slightly dry cornbread absorbs the broth better than warm, freshly baked cornbread.
Use a really big bowl: This recipe makes a ton of dressing - you need enough room to mix it without crushing the bread too much. Get the biggest bowl you have - you'll need it!
Add the broth slowly: You can always add more, but you can't take it out once the mixture becomes soupy.
Taste before adding the eggs: The sausage, soups, crackers, and broth all contain salt. Taste test the mixture first, then add the raw eggs.
Cook the vegetables until soft: Celery and onion will not soften much more once mixed into the dressing.
Do not overbake: Remove the dressing once the center is set and reaches 165°F. Overbaking will dry it out.
Broil for a crispier top: Broil for two to four minutes at the end, watching closely so it does not burn.

FAQs & Troubleshooting

Yes. Halve every ingredient, including both condensed soups, and bake the dressing in an 8x8" or 9x9" dish. Begin checking it earlier since a smaller batch may bake faster. It is done when the center is set and reaches 165°F.

Sure - that sounds yummy! Turkey broth can replace the chicken broth in the same amount. If using pan drippings, combine them with low-sodium broth and add the mixture a little at a time, since drippings can be salty and fatty. This will give it a deeper flavor.

Eggs bind the breads together and help the dressing set as it bakes. Without them, the dressing may be loose and fall apart when served. I do not recommend leaving them out of this recipe without adjusting and retesting the other ingredients.

Bake this dressing uncovered so the top can turn golden and a little crisp. If the top starts getting too dark before the center is set, loosely cover the dish with foil for the remaining baking time. The center should reach 165°F before serving.

I wouldn't - they add moisture and flavor, so removing them would require changing the broth and even the eggs. I recommend just using a tested broth-only dressing instead of trying to turn this one into a different recipe.

Let the mixture sit for a few minutes so the breads have time to soak up the broth. If liquid still pools in the bowl, mix in a little bit of dried cornbread, white bread, or crushed Saltines. Add just a little bit at a time so the dressing does not become dry.

You can use unsalted butter and low-sodium chicken broth, and do not automatically add extra salt. Sausage, Saltines, condensed soup, and broth already contain a lot of salt. Taste the mixture before adding the raw eggs, then adjust the seasoning only if needed.

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