Much better than traditional stuffing, take your family dinners to the next level with this delicious Keto Stuffing recipe! It’s loaded with sausage (homemade or store-bought), fresh herbs, and kale that turns crispy throughout the dish. With only 4g net carbs per serving, this recipe is perfect for the whole family this holiday season!
This post was originally published on November 19th, 2021.
❤️ Why you will love this recipe
- It’s easy! Cook some of the ingredients in a pan, mix it with the rest, and then bake!
- It uses no-nonsense ingredients. All of these ingredients are wholesome and not processed keeping this low carb stuffing recipe as healthy as possible.
- You can have it if you’re on the Whole30, paleo, or gluten-free diet. That’s right! Because we make our own sausage for this recipe, we’ll be skipping breadcrumbs and other filler ingredients, making it suitable for many sensitive digestive systems. Also, if you’re doing whole30 or paleo, substitute the butter for ghee, beef drippings, or olive oil.
- It is quick to make. This keto thanksgiving recipe is ready in less than an hour.
- You can make it ahead of time: Make thanksgiving dinner a breeze by prepping this stuffing early and refrigerating or freezing it for later.
- It’s low carb! Just 4g net carbs per serving – perfect for the keto diet!
- Tastes like the real thing: Perfect for any holiday meal, this keto stuffing tastes just like regular stuffing. It features traditional flavors like sage, parsley, and apple but it is still perfect for a low carb diet.
🗝️ Key Ingredients
- Sausage: One of the main ingredients for this stuffing recipe is sausage. I made my own sausage mixture for this keto thanksgiving stuffing and included it in the recipe below. You can also buy premade sausage, remove the casing and turn that into sausage meatballs if you’d prefer.
- Almond flour: This is used in place of the bread to add a bread-like texture. It’s surprisingly similar to the original. I don’t recommend substituting coconut flour as it will turn out dry.
- Sage and parsley: If you can use fresh herbs here, it’ll taste so much better than using dried ones. This time I ended up using fresh parsley and homemade dried sage from our garden. Using fresh sage a few months ago tasted better to me. Note: I use dried herbs in the sausage mix.
- Kale: Kale adds a little bulk but also the parts that are exposed in the oven turn crispy when it bakes, and who doesn’t love crispy kale? It’s one of my favorite parts of this recipe.
- Green apple: I added 1/2 of a green apple to this dish. Enough to taste the occasional appley kick without going over on carbs.
- Chicken stock: This adds moisture and binds everything together. Bone broth or vegetable broth are great alternatives.
- Butter: I prefer butter for the amazing flavor, however, in a pinch you can use ghee, beef drippings, or even olive oil instead.
- Onion & garlic: Hello flavor! I’d stick to fresh garlic here if possible as garlic powder just doesn’t quite taste the same. I only added 1/2 an onion to keep it low carb (red, white, or yellow are fine) but if you’re not too worried about carbs you can add the whole onion.
- Celery: Celery adds a flavor boost and makes the dish a little heartier without adding many carbs or calories.
- Poultry seasoning: You can use salt instead if needed.
- Eggs: Eggs are a binder for this stuffing recipe. Not one to skip!
🥣 How to make Keto Sausage Stuffing
1. Prep the oven: Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C/350 degrees F.
2. Cook onion and apple: Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and then sauté the onion and apples for 2 minutes.
3. Add more veggies and seasoning: Add the garlic, celery, and 1 tsp of poultry seasoning. Cook for 2 more minutes.
4. Make sausage: If making homemade sausage, mix the ground pork, pepper, salt sage, coriander seeds, thyme, and cayenne well in a medium mixing bowl.
5. Form and cook meatballs: Form the sausage into 1-inch meatballs and add them to the pan. It’s okay if they don’t cook through – just enough to hold their shape before baking.
6. Add greens: Add the sage, kale, and parsley to the pan and continue cooking until they begin to wilt, then turn off the heat.
7. Make keto bread: In a separate large bowl, combine the almond flour, eggs, and 1 tsp of poultry seasoning.
8. Mix: Add the ingredients from the pan to the egg mixture in the large mixing bowl and combine them.
9. Spread and pour: Spread the stuffing mixture into a 9″x13″ baking dish and spread it evenly. Pour the chicken stock over the stuffing.
10. Cook: Bake for 30 minutes, until the keto stuffing turns golden on top.
11. Cool and serve: Allow to cool for 5 minutes and then serve with a sprinkle of parsley on top.
🫙 Storage Instructions
Make ahead:
You can make this easy keto stuffing recipe ahead of time and freeze it. Make it as per the instructions, but bake it for only 15 minutes. Allow it to cool completely to room temperature and store it in the freezer, closed with an airtight lid. When you’re ready to eat it, thaw it overnight and bake it for a further 20-25 minutes until it is piping hot and golden on top. If it seems dry after thawing, add 1/4 cup (60ml) of chicken broth or vegetable stock before popping it in the oven.
Leftovers:
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Cover with aluminum foil and reheat in the oven until hot.
❓ Can I use store-bought sausage?
Yes! Just check the ingredients and carb count on the packet (there can be hidden sugar and bread in sausage), and remove the casing to make it into meatballs.
🥚 Do you put egg in stuffing?
Yes! Eggs are the binder for this stuffing recipe. I initially mix it with just the almond flour to create the “bread” and then loosely mix that with the other ingredients as well.
🦃 How many carbs are in Thanksgiving stuffing?
In this Keto Stuffing recipe, there are just 4.2 g net carbs per serving. Perfect for your keto Thanksgiving meal!
🤷♀️ Is there a difference between dressing and stuffing?
Although the ingredients tend to be similar, “stuffing” is technically used for, well, stuffing inside another food, usually turkey, chicken, or duck, whereas dressing is cooked in a separate dish, like what we have here.
🍽️ What can I serve with this low-carb stuffing?
I have so many keto thanksgiving recipes to make holiday meals easy on a low-carb diet. Here are a few to try:
Looking for more keto recipes? Check out my Low Carb Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes round-up!
- Keto Cranberry Sauce
- Whole30 Chili Parsnip Puree
- Citrus Roasted Turkey
- Gluten-Free Turkey Gravy
- Sugar-Free Apple Crisp
- Slow Cooker Mulled Wine
Have you made this recipe? I’d love to know <3 Tag me (@makehealthyrecipes) on Facebook and Instagram, Pin it on Pinterest, and please give it 5 stars with a review below! Don’t forget to subscribe to the email list (top right of this page) for sparkly new recipes in your inbox.
📖 Recipe
Keto Stuffing with Sausage
Ingredients
Homemade Sausage (optional)
- 1 pound ground pork fatty and not lean if possible
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons dried sage
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- ½ teaspoon thyme dried
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne powder
Stuffing
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter or ghee/beef drippings
- ½ onion diced
- ½ apple diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 4 stalks celery diced
- 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning divided
- 1 pound sausage entire homemade recipe above or store-bought
- 1 tablespoon sage fresh or dried
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
- 2 cups kale packed, stems removed and shredded
- 2 cups almond flour
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup chicken stock
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F.
- Melt the butter over medium-low heat and then sauté the onion and apples for 2 minutes.⅓ cup unsalted butter, ½ onion, ½ apple
- Add the garlic, celery, and 1 tsp of poultry seasoning. Cook for 2 more minutes.2 cloves garlic, 4 stalks celery, 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
- If making homemade sausage, mix the ground pork, pepper, salt, sage, coriander seeds, thyme, and cayenne well in a medium mixing bowl.1 pound ground pork, 2 teaspoons ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons dried sage, 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, ½ teaspoon thyme, ¼ teaspoon cayenne powder
- Form the sausage into 1-inch meatballs and add them to the pan. It's okay if they don't cook through – just enough to hold their shape before baking.
- Add the sage, kale, and parsley to the pan and continue cooking until they begin to wilt, then turn off the heat.1 tablespoon sage, 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, 2 cups kale
- In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, eggs, and 1 teaspoon of poultry seasoning.2 cups almond flour, 3 eggs
- Add the ingredients from the pan to the almond flour mixture and combine it just a little until the almond mixture begins to break up.
- Pour everything into a 9"x13" baking dish and spread it evenly. Pour the chicken stock over the stuffing.½ cup chicken stock
- Bake for 30 minutes, until the keto stuffing turns golden on top.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes and then serve.
Notes
Storage Instructions
- Make ahead: You can make this easy keto stuffing recipe ahead of time and freeze it. Make it as per the instructions, but bake it for only 15 minutes. Allow it to cool completely to room temperature and store it in the freezer, closed with an airtight lid. When you're ready to eat it, thaw it overnight and bake it for a further 20-25 minutes until it is piping hot and golden on top. If it seems dry after thawing, add 1/4 cup (60ml) of chicken broth or vegetable stock before popping it in the oven.
- Leftovers: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Cover with aluminum foil and reheat in the oven until hot.