Dollie’s Homemade Cornbread Dressing

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Dressing is a staple in my family’s Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner menus. This mouth-watering cornbread dressing is full of flavor and never dry.

This cornbread dressing recipe comes from my great grandmother and has a traditional cornbread base. It also has a balance of white bread, the right amount of pepper and sage, and chopped onion and celery. You may have had something similar. What you may not have in your dressing recipe is shredded chicken, and that makes this dressing over the top. 

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I have some very specific expectations of holiday meals. My top three are:

1. The side dishes make the meal. Yes, the protein is important, but let’s be real about what actually crowds the plates. It’s the sides!
2. There’s a strong correlation of deliciousness to prep time. The more delicious the meal, the longer the cook worked in the kitchen. It’s a fair trade so I’m good with it.
3. There should always be at least one family-tradition side dish that is shared from generation to generation. In the case of Thanksgiving and Christmas, one of those staple recipes for my family is dressing. (Another is Granny Carolyn’s Refrigerator Rolls. I’ll share that later.)

Is it a lot of work? A little bit. 

Is it messy to make? I manage to make a mess every time I’m in the kitchen so I may not be the best to ask. 

Does it take a while to prepare and bake? Yes. 

Is it worth it? Absolutely. Without a doubt. 100%.

Bear with me. There are a few steps involved, and you will need to plan ahead, but trust me on this one. Let’s get started!

I have broken this into three phases. You can do this all at once, or you can break it into a few days if you need to. I have done it both ways. I have seen absolutely no difference in the final result so this really can work with your schedule. 

Phase 1

A quick thing – Have you ever cooked a whole chicken? Be sure to check the cavity for extras – those would be the neck or the giblets (yuck). You probably don’t want these in your dressing. I know I don’t want it in mine!

I boil the chicken with bay leaves, salt, and pepper until the meat falls off the bone. Now, this makes it a little more difficult to get it out of the pot, but oh boy, the chicken is yummy! 

Save the shredded chicken in one bowl and the chicken broth in another. You’ll need them both for phase 2.

Make some cornbread. Big hint: use a cast iron skillet. Cast iron makes the best cornbread – and biscuits, but I’ll get to those later. 

If you’re planning to do make your dressing over a few days, stop here. Cover the cornbread well and store in a cool, dry location. Refrigerate the shredded chicken and chicken broth.

Phase 2

When the cornbread is cool, crumble it up into a large bowl. Also crumble some hamburger buns. Yes, I know that sounds weird. Just trust me on this.

Grab that chicken broth. Pour it into the bowl with the bread crumbs, and mix it using a potato masher. Mash it until it’s as thin as cornbread mix. (It will be kind of soupy if you’re unsure.) If you need more chicken broth to get to this consistency, add some store bought. No judgment! 

Time to chop. Once the veggies are diced, stir them into your soupy cornbread mixture. Add eggs and spices. Pour this magical concoction into a large baking dish. 

Top the casserole with the shredded chicken. You’ll slowly incorporate the chicken into the dressing while it bakes because you’ll have to turn it over in spoonfuls periodically. Pay attention to what I just said; you won’t be stirring. That would be a terrible mistake. It’s all about the final consistency. Again, trust me on this!

Phase 3

Bake. Cool just enough so you don’t burn your tongue. Enjoy! (Try to wait until the rest of the dinner is ready so you’re not that host who eats all the food before your family and friends get there! Just a suggestion.)