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Easy vegetarian stuffing recipe, with vegan and gluten-free options

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This is a delicious vegetarian or vegan stuffing that you can put together up to two months in advance, saving yourself some precious time on Thanksgiving! And if you want to make it gluten-free, you just have to make one easy ingredient swap.

square glass casserole dish of vegetarian stuffing

Vegetarian Stuffing

Last week I published my recipe for easy make-ahead sausage stuffing. And while it’s easy enough to simply leave out the sausage, as a vegetarian I always appreciate being able to follow a recipe as-is. Especially for Thanksgiving, when I’m making both a sausage version and vegetarian version of stuffing! So I wanted to write the recipe out. Plus, I’ve added some easy ingredient substitutions to make it into a vegan and/or gluten-free stuffing.

Any way you make it, this is a delicious veg stuffing, with lots of fresh herbs and rich flavor! It’s always a highlight of my Thanksgiving meal. I mean, I hate to brag, but several of my guests have said it’s the best vegetarian stuffing recipe they’ve ever had! (I did once make this with dried herbs, and it does still turn out tasty. Definitely not as amazing as using fresh, but if you’re in a pinch, you can use dried. See the recipe notes for amounts.)

vegetarian stuffing on a plate with broccoli, mashed potatoes, and mac  cheese

Vegan stuffing

It’s really easy to make this into a vegan recipe, since there are only two ingredients in it that aren’t vegan: the butter and the eggs. (I’m assuming that if you’re vegan, you’re already using vegan bread.)

You can swap out the butter for your favorite vegan butter. I wouldn’t use olive oil or cooking oil, because the flavor is going to be too strong—the butter gives this stuffing fantastic flavor. 

The eggs in this recipe act as a binder, they’re not really there for flavor, so you have some options for substituting the eggs. If you have a favorite egg substitute that you usually use, like flax eggs or aquafaba, those will work just fine! Bob’s Red Mill also makes a really good substitute.

Gluten-free stuffing

The only ingredient in the original recipe that has gluten in it is the bread, but that’s a big one. 

I’m not gluten-free (in fact, I think I’m mostly made up of gluten at this point!), so if you are, then there’s nothing that I will be able to tell you that you don’t already know. Use your favorite gluten-free bread option!

If your gluten-free bread of choice only comes sliced, and you can’t get your bread cubed as big as one inch, adjust the size of the onions and celery so that everything is smaller, and keep in mind that you probably won’t have to dry out the bread in the oven for as long.

Other stuffing tips

I highly recommend that you go take a look at the other post, which has a lot of tips about veggie stock vs. broth, how to chop the vegetables, why you don’t need stale bread, and lots more. Plus the small adjustment you need to make if you’re not making the stuffing ahead of time.

Those tips are all the same whether you’re adding meat or not. There are also some recommendations for great products that will really help you out, like this amazing bag holder for when you’re trying to fill freezer bags and you only have two hands.

If you’re short on oven space leading up to Thanksgiving dinner, you can bake this an hour or two early, keep it covered, and then heat it up in a microwave just before it’s time to eat.

vegetarian stuffing in a bag

Note that I only made a half recipe in these pictures—the full recipe fills a 13x9x2 baking dish.

vegetarian stuffing

What about the turkey?

If you’re making veg stuffing, there’s a good chance you’re feeding vegetarians. So what about a vegetarian turkey? This innovative recipe is modeled after the chickpea turkey my mom used to make us when we were kids.

Enjoy! And don’t forget about the vegan version, right below the vegetarian recipe.

Yield: 12 servings

Vegetarian Stuffing Recipe, with Gluten-Free Option

square glass casserole dish of vegetarian stuffing

This stuffing is so good, even carnivores won't miss the meat. Plus, you can make it up to two months in advance if you want to make things a bit easier on Thanksgiving Day!

Prep Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Passive Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

For prep day:

  • 1 lb loaf of good-quality white or sourdough bread, torn or cut into 1-inch cubes (to make this recipe gluten-free, use gluten-free bread)
  • 16 tbsp salted butter
  • 3 cups yellow onions, roughly chopped, about 1 pound before peeling and chopping
  • 2.5 cups sliced celery, about 4 large stalks, sliced 1/4-inch thick
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves, about 2 ounces before removing stems
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
  • 2-3 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 cup vegetable broth

For baking day:

  • About 1/2 tablespoon butter for the baking dish
  • 1 cup vegetable broth
  • 2 large eggs

Instructions

Do first, before vegetable/herb prep:

  1. Preheat oven to 250°F
  2. Put the bread cubes on a large rimmed baking sheet in a single layer (use 2 baking sheets if necessary)
  3. Bake the bread, stirring occasionally, until completely dried out, about 1 hour
  4. Let the bread cool on the pan until it's needed

While the bread toasts:

  1. Prep the vegetables and herbs
  2. Put a large skillet on medium heat and melt butter until foamy
  3. Add the celery and onions and cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently; a little browning is OK, but really we're just trying to soften them up
  4. Add the chopped garlic and cook an additional 5 minutes, stirring frequently
  5. Put the toasted bread into a very large bowl and add the cooked vegetables (make sure you get all of the butter out of the pan, too!), and toss until it's all mixed together
  6. Add the kosher salt, ground black pepper, herbs, and 1 cup of the broth
  7. Stir it all together to distribute the liquid and the herbs
  8. Put in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to two months (put right into the fridge if using the next day)

On the day before you want to eat the stuffing:

Put the frozen stuffing into the refrigerator so that it can thaw overnight

The day you want to eat the stuffing:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F
  2. Butter a 13x9x2-inch baking dish (or large casserole dish) and set aside
  3. Remove the stuffing from the refrigerator
  4. In a large bowl whisk together the 2 eggs and the cup of stock
  5. Add the stuffing mixture to the bowl of eggs and broth, gently folding it in until the liquid is distributed
  6. Transfer to the prepared dish, cover tightly with aluminum foil, and bake for 1 hour (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the stuffing should read at least 160°F)
  7. Remove the foil and bake an additional 10 minutes
  8. Serve hot
  9. Leftover stuffing will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for four or five days

Notes

If you want to make the stuffing right before baking it, without resting in the fridge or freezer first, please see this advice about tempering the eggs, so that you don't scramble them!!

You can use fresh bread or stale; since we're drying it out so much in the oven anyway, it doesn't matter.

If you want to save time with dried herbs, use 1/3 the amount (2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons dried parsley, 2 teaspoons dried sage, 2 teaspoons dried rosemary, and 1 teaspoon dried thyme). The finished dish won't taste quite as amazing, but it will still be really good.

Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

12 servings

Amount Per Serving Calories 289Total Fat 18gSaturated Fat 11gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 73mgSodium 602mgCarbohydrates 27gFiber 2gSugar 5gProtein 7g

Nutritional information is an estimate only.

Did you make this recipe? I'd love to see it!

Please leave a comment, a great star rating, or share what you made on Instagram, tagging @amyoztan. It really helps me out!


Yield: 12 servings

Vegan Stuffing Recipe

This is a vegan version of my popular vegetarian stuffing recipe. It's rich, delicious, and can be made up to two months ahead!

Prep Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Additional Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 lb loaf of good-quality bread , torn or cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 3 cups yellow onions, roughly chopped, about 1 pound before peeling and chopping
  • 2.5 cups sliced celery, about 4 large stalks, sliced 1/4 inch
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves , about 2 ounces before removing stems
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
  • 16 tbsp vegan butter, plus more for the baking dish
  • 2-3 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 2 cups vegetable broth, divided
  • 6 tbsp aquafaba, flax egg, or other vegan egg substitute

Instructions

Do first, before vegetable/herb prep

  1. Preheat oven to 250°F
  2. Put the bread cubes on a large baking sheet (use 2 if necessary)
  3. Bake the bread, stirring occasionally, until completely dried out, about 1 hour
  4. Let the bread cool on the pan until it's needed, then put it into a large bowl
  5. While the bread bakes, prep the vegetables and herbs

Cook the vegetables

  1. Put a large pan on medium heat and melt the vegan butter until foamy
  2. Add the celery and onions and cook ten minutes, stirring frequently; a little browning is OK, but really we're just trying to soften them up
  3. Add the chopped garlic and cook an addition 5 minutes, stirring frequently
  4. Add the cooked vegetables to the bowl of bread and toss until its all mixed together
  5. Add the kosher salt, pepper, herbs, and 1 cup of the broth
  6. Stir it all together to distribute the liquid and the herbs
  7. Put in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to two months (put right into the fridge if using the next day)


On the day before you want to eat the stuffing

  1. Put the frozen stuffing into the refrigerator so that it can thaw overnight

Bake the stuffing

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F
  2. Butter a 13x9x2-inch baking dish (or a similar-sized casserole dish) and set aside
  3. Remove the stuffing from the refrigerator
  4. In a large bowl whisk together the egg substitute and the remaining cup of broth
  5. Add the stuffing to the bowl of egg substitute and broth, gently folding it in until the liquid is distributed
  6. Transfer to the prepared dish, cover tightly with foil, and bake for 1 hour
  7. Remove the foil and bake an additional 10 minutes
  8. Serve hot
  9. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the stuffing should read at least 160°F

Notes

To also make this recipe gluten-free, just make sure you're using gluten-free bread.

If you want to save time with dried herbs, use 1/3 the amount (2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons dried parsley, 2 teaspoons dried sage, 2 teaspoons dried rosemary, and 1 teaspoon dried thyme). The finished dish won't taste quite as amazing, but it will still be really good.

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Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

1

Amount Per Serving Calories 304Total Fat 19gSaturated Fat 10gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 56mgSodium 571mgCarbohydrates 28gFiber 4gSugar 6gProtein 7g

Nutritional information is an estimate only.

Did you make this recipe? I'd love to see it!

Please leave a comment, a great star rating, or share what you made on Instagram, tagging @amyoztan. It really helps me out!

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Melinda

Thursday 22nd of December 2022

Can this stuffing be kept in large crock pot after baking to keep warm

Amy Oztan

Thursday 22nd of December 2022

As long as it's kept at a food-safe temp (over 140°F) I don't see why not. I'd keep some extra stock on hand in case it gets dry.

Fahim

Wednesday 14th of November 2018

i love your blog cz you have lots of yummy recipe !

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