Name: Chestnut and sausagemeat stuffing
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: 15 g butter; 1 tablespoon rapeseed oil; 1 onion (finely chopped); 1 stick celery (finely chopped); 2 cloves garlic (chopped); 250 g vacuum-packed peeled chestnuts (roughly chopped); 250 g pork sausage meat; handful fresh parsley (chopped (about 6 tablepoons))

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Chestnut and sausagemeat stuffing is a traditional stuffing for turkey, making it an ideal accompaniment for your Christmas dinner.

It's easy to make and can be prepared ahead of time.

To me what makes Christmas dinner special is all the trimmings. Now my boys would say the most important extra are the pigs in blankets (sausages wrapped in bacon) but for me, it has to be the stuffing. So much so that I usually make two or even three different types. This one, Sage and onion stuffing and another one to ring the changes each year

Stuffing the turkey

This chestnut and sausagemeat stuffing is my favourite to use to stuff the turkey itself. I love the texture that the chestnuts bring to the sausagemeat ensuring that the stuffing is not too dense.

It is really easy to make and takes just minutes to prepare. The onion, celery and garlic are sautéd until tender, then it is just a case of mixing all the ingredients together and stuffing the turkey (neck end only).

Ingredients

To make the stuffing you will need:

Cooked chestnuts – I use vacuum-packed chestnuts
Sausagemeat – Buy a pack of sausagemeat or remove the skins from your favourite sausages.
Onion
Garlic
Celery
Parsley – flat or curly parsley
Butter
Olive or rapeseed oil – I often use cold pressed rapeseed oil which has similar nutritional benefits to olive oil. But as this is produced in the UK it reduces my food miles.

Serving suggestions

Chestnut and sausagemeat stuffing also goes really well with chicken or pork so there is no need to keep this delicious stuffing just for Christmas.

If you prefer not to stuff the bird you can pack it into a loaf tin instead and bake for 45 minutes.

Cook's tip

The stuffing is quite loose and crumbly if you want to make a firmer stuffing that can be sliced increase the proportion of sausagemeat and chop the chestnuts more finely. You can add up to 400g (14oz) of sausagemeat to this recipe.

How to make chestnut and saugemeat stuffing step by step

1 Saute the onion celery and garlic until softened.

2 Tip into a bowl and allow to cool then add remaining ingredients.

3 Mix well.

4 Stuff turkey or bake in a loaf tin.

Storing / Making ahead of time

The stuffing can be made the day before. Store covered in the refrigerator. The chestnut and sausagemeat stuffing can be frozen for up to 3 months.

The cooked stuffing will keep for up to 3 days if stored in the refrigerator. Cold stuffing is delicious in sandwiches!

Variations

Chopped fresh sage can be used instead of or in addition to the parsley. If using only sage add about 3 tablespoons. I also sometimes like to fry some smoked diced bacon with the onions and celery for a little bit of extra flavour. Or you could ramp up the flavour even more by adding some diced spicy chorizo to the mixture.

Can I make this gluten-free?

Unlike many bread-based stuffings, this stuffing can easily be made gluten-free. Just check that the sausagemeat you use is gluten-free.