Vegan stuffing with chestnuts for the holidays

It just isn’t the holidays without a heaping helping of vegan stuffing. Loaded with carrots, celery, onions, and chestnuts, this savory dish completes any celebratory fall or winter meal. 

(No chestnuts? No problem! You can use browned seitan sausage or walnuts instead.)

At the holidays, when just one carbohydrate dense dish won’t do, add vegan stuffing to the mix.

It’s great with cashew gravy, mashed potatoes, orange cranberry sauce, and the holiday main dish of your choice.

This stuffing is loaded with celery, onions, and carrots. The vegetables give it variety and a pop of color amongst the beige.

(Feel like something different? With a couple of tweaks, this stuffing also works beautifully as stuffing muffins.)

Along with savory spices and vegetable broth, it has loads of flavor and nary an animal product in the mix.

I also like to add roasted and peeled chestnuts to the stuffing for added bite.

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire

Despite how popular Christmas music makes the pastime seem, many folks have never roasted chestnuts.

It’s a fun holiday tradition at my house. But when you’re using a lot of chestnuts for a recipe, vacuum-packed cooked & peeled chestnuts are easier.

(Want to do it yourself? Check out this post on how to roast chestnuts in the oven.)

At the holidays, Trader Joe’s sells roasted and peeled chestnuts in the refrigerated section in vacuum packaging. (They show up in mid-November usually.) And I’ve seen them elsewhere sold in jars. I’d recommend either of those options for this recipe.

No chestnuts where you live? No problem.

If you can’t find chestnuts or they are out of season at the time you’re making this vegan stuffing, no worries. You can simply omit them or add some chopped walnuts instead.

(You may not want the same amount of walnuts, since walnuts have a stronger flavor than chestnuts and are a bit more dense. I’d recommend starting by doing half and working up from there, depending on your preferences.)

Or you can make vegan sausage stuffing instead by replacing the chestnuts with an equal amount of browned plant-based sausage. Brown 6.5 ounces of bite-sized pieces of seitan sausage in a skillet. Then add it to your sautéed onions, celery, and carrots. 

How to make vegan stuffing

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sauté onions, garlic, celery, and carrots in a skillet until translucent and fragrant. Add chopped chestnuts to the skillet and cook for a couple minutes more.

Turn the heat off and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine a pound of dried bread cubes with mixture from skillet.

Then slowly pour vegetable broth and spices over the bread cubes. Occasionally stir the bread cubes, so that the cubes get evenly coated.

You want the cubes to be moistened, but not wet or mushy. There shouldn’t be any liquid at the bottom of the bowl.

So if it looks like the bread cubes are getting overly wet, stop there. However, if the cubes look too dry after all of the liquid has been poured, add a few more splashes of water or broth.

Pour the bread cubes into an oiled baking dish and spread them evenly across it.

Cover the dish in aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 minutes more uncovered, so that the cubes can get a crispiness to the top.

Can I make stuffing in a Dutch oven?

Yes! This recipe can also be made in a Dutch oven instead of a skillet/casserole dish. That’s even easier, because you can sauté on the stovetop, and then move it to the oven to bake.

Sauté onions, garlic, celery, and carrots in the Dutch oven until translucent and fragrant.

Add chopped chestnuts and cook for a couple minutes more. Turn the heat off and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine a pound of dried bread cubes with mixture from skillet.

(My Dutch oven is 4 quarts. So it’s not large enough to easily combine the bread cubes in the pot itself, until it has shrunk from the broth. If yours is larger, you may be able to skip the mixing bowl.)

Slowly pour vegetable broth and spices over the bread cubes. Occasionally stir the bread cubes, so that the cubes get evenly coated.

Pour the bread cube mixture back into the Dutch oven.

Cover with a lid, and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes. Remove lid and bake for 10 minutes more uncovered.

Can you freeze stuffing?

Absolutely! Even if you’re just cooking for two, I highly recommend making a full batch, because stuffing freezes so well. 

Put leftover stuffing into an airtight, freezer-proof container. Freeze for up to three months. 

(I like to freeze it in several smaller portions, so that I can just reheat what I need at any one time.)

When you’re ready to enjoy it, thaw it in the refrigerator. Then reheat in the microwave until warm. Or reheat in a 325 degree oven for about 15 minutes. (Times will vary a little, depending on how much you’re reheating.)

If it seems too dry, add a splash of broth or gravy to rehydrate it.

Vegan stuffing with chestnuts

This savory dish will have you wondering why stuffing is only served at the holidays. It's filled with carrots, celery, onions, and chestnuts.

If you don't have chestnuts, make vegan sausage stuffing instead by replacing the chestnuts with an equal amount of browned plant-based sausage.

5 from 4 votes

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Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: christmas recipe, holiday food, thanksgiving recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Servings: 10 people

Calories: 175kcal

Author: Cadry Nelson

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 teaspoon canola oil + more for oiling baking dish
• ▢ 1/2 cup sliced celery
• ▢ 1/2 cup sliced carrots
• ▢ 1 cup chopped yellow onions
• ▢ 1 clove garlic minced
• ▢ 6.5 ounces cooked and peeled chestnuts chopped
• ▢ 1 pound dried bread cubes
• ▢ 2 1/2 to 3 cups vegetable broth
• ▢ 2 teaspoons dried rosemary
• ▢ 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried sage
• ▢ 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ Few grinds black pepper

Instructions

• ▢
  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 9 x 13 glass baking dish and set aside.
• ▢
  Bring a non-stick skillet to a medium heat with a teaspoon of oil. Saute celery, carrots, onions, and garlic for a few minutes, until translucent and fragrant.
• ▢
  Add chopped chestnuts to the skillet and cook for a couple minutes more.
• ▢
  In a large mixing bowl combine dried bread cubes with mixture from skillet.
• ▢
  In a large measuring cup, combine vegetable broth with dried rosemary, thyme, sage, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Use a fork or whisk to blend the spices with the broth.
• ▢
  Slowly pour the broth into the mixing bowl with bread cubes and vegetables. Occasionally stir the bread cubes, so that the cubes get evenly coated. You want the cubes to be moistened, but not wet or mushy. There shouldn't be any liquid at the bottom of the bowl. So if it looks like the bread cubes are getting overly wet, stop there. However, if the cubes look too dry after all of the liquid has been poured, add a few more splashes of water or broth. Taste for salt, and add up to 1/2 teaspoon more if necessary.
• ▢
  Pour the bread cubes into the oiled baking dish and spread them evenly across it. Cover the dish in aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 minutes more uncovered, so that the cubes can get a crispiness to the top.

Notes

My Co-op has a bakery, and they sell their own bagged dried bread cubes. If your natural grocery store has a bakery, that's a good place to look for vegan dried bread cubes. You can also find them on shelves in boxes.

Or make your own by baking bread cubes in a single layer on a baking pan for 10 to 15 minutes at 300 degrees, stopping once or twice to stir. Let them cool before using.

To make this stuffing in a Dutch oven instead of a skillet & casserole dish:

Sauté onions, garlic, celery, and carrots in the Dutch oven until translucent and fragrant.

Add chopped chestnuts and cook for a couple minutes more. Turn the heat off and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine a pound of dried bread cubes with mixture from skillet.

(My Dutch oven is 4 quarts. So it's not large enough to easily combine the bread cubes in the pot itself, until it has shrunk from the broth. If yours is larger, you may be able to skip the mixing bowl.)

Slowly pour vegetable broth and spices over the bread cubes. Occasionally stir the bread cubes, so that the cubes get evenly coated.

Pour the bread cube mixture back into the Dutch oven. Cover with a lid, and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes. Remove lid and bake for 10 minutes more uncovered.

Nutrition

Calories: 175kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 480mg | Potassium: 228mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1225IU | Vitamin C: 9.4mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 2.1mg

Tried this recipe?Tag @cadryskitchen on Instagram and hashtag it #cadryskitchen!

Content and photos updated December 21, 2020. Originally posted December 4, 2017.