This easy meat stuffing with ground turkey and bacon is a delicious side dish, perfect for the holiday season. It is full of festive flavours, simple to make and ready in under an hour.
Meat stuffing ingredients
This delicious ground turkey stuffing contains all the classic festive season ingredients including cranberries and chestnuts. There are only a few simple steps involved and you'll have a delicious stuffing casserole ready in about an hour.
I don't use a lot of fat in everyday cooking but I've made an exception with this baked stuffing recipe. The holiday season is not about everyday cooking after all! A certain amount of fat (in this case streaky bacon) is necessary to keep the stuffing moist as well as to add more flavour. Though I do recommend using lean bacon slices.
I used parsley in addition to traditional sage and rosemary, bread to soak up the moisture, a splash of wine, as well as fried onion and celery for more flavour.
Step-by-step recipe instructions
1.Start by frying the onion, celery and cranberries in 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the wine and continue cooking for another minute or so. Add the sage and rosemary and stir to combine.
2. Add the bread pieces, season lightly and stir thoroughly to combine. Set aside. In the meantime preheat the oven to 190 C/ 375 F/ gas mark 5.
3. In a pan heat up 2 tablespoons of oil and fry the bacon until it starts changing colour, stirring often.
4. Combine the bacon with the meat, parsley, chestnuts, spices, seasoning and onion mixture, stir thoroughly and transfer into your casserole dish.
5. Drizzle over a little oil and bake for 35-40 minutes until nicely browned and crispy on top.
6. Remove from the oven and serve!
Serving suggestions
This easy stuffing with meat makes a fantastic Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner dish. It tastes delicious served with cranberry sauce as well as cranberry or beet chutney. Try it also with festive roasted brussels sprouts or sweet and savoury honey glazed carrots. This stuffing casserole can also be enjoyed throughout the festive season as a main dish served with potatoes.
Top tips
- Meat: I recommend using dark turkey meat (thigh meat) rather than turkey breast which is too dry for a stuffing recipe. I chose lean streaky smoked bacon as it adds a bit of nice smoky flavour as well as moisture into the stuffing. You can discard the fat after frying the bacon or add it into the casserole along with the bacon if you prefer. Alternatively use the fat to drizzle over the casserole instead of oil.
- Best served immediately.
- Refrigerate the leftovers, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Freeze the casserole, unbaked, covered, for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen.
Substitutions
- Turkey: Use pork if preferred.
- Bacon: Use either smoked or unsmoked.
- Herbs: You can use your own combination of herbs rather than my recommendations.
More stuffing recipes to try next
- Quick Vegetarian Christmas Stuffing
- Stuffing Meatballs with Cranberries and Chestnuts
- Cauliflower Stuffing
See also these other easy, delicious sides!
Recipe
Ground Meat Stuffing with Turkey and Bacon
Equipment
- Medium sized casserole dish, approx. 6 cm deep
- Large pan
Ingredients
- 1.1 pounds (500 g) ground turkey 7-10% fat
- 7.05 ounces (200 g) smoked bacon chopped, or use pancetta
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- ½ celery stalk finely chopped
- 4 tablespoons white wine
- 3.17 ounces (90 g) chestnuts ready-to-eat, roughly chopped (or use pecans/cashews)
- ¼ cup (40 g) dried sweetened cranberries
- 4 tablespoons parsley finely chopped
- 1½ tablespoons fresh sage leaves finely chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried
- 1½ teaspoons rosemary leaves finely chopped
- ⅓ teaspoon onion granules, nutmeg and pepper each
- ¼ teaspoon allspice powder
- ⅔ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 slices of stale bread broken up into chunks
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F/ 190 C/ gas mark 5.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil, add the onion and celery and fry over a low/medium heat for 3 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the cranberries, wine and continue frying for another minute stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, stir in the sage, rosemary and bread pieces and leave to cool.
- In a frying pan heat 1 tablespoon of oil and fry the bacon pieces until they start changing colour. Combine with the meat, chestnuts, spices and seasoning, parsley and the onion mixture.
- Transfer the mixture to a medium casserole dish, drizzle with a little oil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.
Notes
- Meat: I recommend using dark turkey meat (thigh meat) rather than turkey breast which is too dry for a stuffing recipe. You could also use ground pork instead if you prefer. I chose smoked bacon as it adds a bit of smoky flavour as well as moisture. You can discard the fat after frying the bacon or add it into the casserole along with the bacon if you prefer. Alternatively use the fat to drizzle over the casserole instead of oil.
- Herbs: You can use your own combination of herbs rather than my recommendations.
- Best served immediately.
- Refrigerate the leftovers, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Freeze the casserole, unbaked, covered, for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is automatically generated and should be considered as an estimate.
**A note about baking: If using a fan-assisted oven refer to your appliance's instructions and adjust the temperature accordingly.
Keep in touch!
If you make this turkey Christmas stuffing I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Let me know in the comments below, thanks:)
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Eb Gargano says
What a lovely sounding stuffing recipe. I especially love how you've added spices into the mix - very Christmassy!! Eb x
Monika says
Thank you! Glad you like it ☺️
Rita says
Something new, something to try.
Thanks!
Monika says
Hope you enjoy it:)
Judith A. Graber says
Love your version of stuffing Monika. I have made a sausage/cranberry stuffing but never added chestnuts. Sage is a perfect herb to use. Thanks for sharing!
Monika says
Thank you:) Chestnuts are really nice in a stuffing.
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
I love stuffing and I love the look of this dish. I will be making this for sure.
Monika says
Thank you:)
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
I love the idea of the chestnuts and cranberries in the stuffing,
Angela x
Monika says
Thank you:)