Sage and onion stuffing

Name: Sage and onion stuffing
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 60 g butter, plus extra for the dish; 2 large onions, finely chopped; 175 g fresh white breadcrumbs, from day-old bread, crusts removed; 2 tsp dried sage, or 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage; 2 tbsp parsley, chopped; 1 egg, beaten; 0.75 tsp salt; 0.5 tsp black pepper

1 h
Prep 15 min
Cook 45 min
Serves 6
easy

Start cooking

Soft onions cooked in butter, mixed with fresh white breadcrumbs, sage and egg, then baked in a dish until crisp and golden on top.

Method

1
Heat the oven to 190°C and butter a shallow baking dish.
2
Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium-low heat and add the onions.
3
Cook gently, stirring now and then, until the onions are very soft and sweet but only lightly coloured.
4
Stir in the sage and cook until it smells fragrant.
5
Tip the onions and all the butter into a large bowl and leave to cool for a few minutes.
6
Add the breadcrumbs, parsley, salt and pepper and mix well.
7
Stir in the beaten egg until the mixture just holds together when squeezed. Add a splash of water if it seems dry.
8
Spread it loosely in the dish without pressing it down, and dot the top with a little extra butter.
9
Bake until crisp and golden brown on top and piping hot in the middle.
10
Serve spooned out of the dish alongside the roast.

Notes

To make stuffing balls, roll the mixture into 12 balls and bake on a lined tray for about 25 minutes, turning once.
Day-old bread makes lighter crumbs than very fresh bread, which turns gummy when blitzed.
The mixture can be made a day ahead and kept covered in the fridge, ready to bake.

Equipment

Frying pan, Large mixing bowl, Shallow baking dish, about 20 cm square

Cook this step by step