This classic Vegetarian Stuffing Recipe is brimming with herbs and buttery bread cubes – the classic stuffing flavors you know and love. But it also just so happens to be a vegetarian, dairy-free, and vegan stuffing recipe!

If you have vegetarians and vegans coming to the table this holiday season, this vegetarian stuffing recipe should have a place on your meatless Thanksgiving menu. Trust me!

A top view of a baking dish with buttery herb stuffing and a sage and rosemary garnish.

Eating meatless for the holidays (or hosting someone who is?) Be sure and check out my Vegetarian Thanksgiving Ideas page with dozens of highly rated recipes, ideas for hosting vegetarians and vegans, menu suggestions and more.

Creating This Vegetarian Stuffing Recipe

This vegetarian stuffing recipe was originally inspired by How Sweet Eats who adapted from Bon Appetit. That one’s a simple stuffing recipe with bread (of course!), onion, celery, loads of butter and herbs, and a couple of eggs.

While a vegetarian stuffing can have eggs, a vegan stuffing can’t – and I wanted this one to be both vegetarian AND vegan. There are also some incredible vegan butters out there, and while eggs do add richness and make the stuffing hold together more, I find they’re really not necessary.

So for this buttery herb vegan stuffing, I sub in vegan butter, leave out the eggs, and use vegetable broth (I love this homemade recipe using veggie scraps and the Crock Pot). And then we use lots of butter and LOTS of herbs. This is seriously the best stuffing!

The result is golden, buttery, full of flavor, crisp around the edges and soft in the middle vegetarian stuffing. Everything a stuffing should be, vegan or not!

a close-up of vegan buttery herb stuffing in a white baking dish with a silver spoon.

Vegetarian Stuffing Recipe Ingredients

  • Bread – I like Italian bread or sourdough. You’ll want about a pound of bread, the better part of a medium-size loaf, cut into cubes and either toasted in the oven or left out for a day or two until nice and stale.
  • Vegan butter – I really like Miyokos butter in this dairy-free stuffing recipe.
  • Onion & celery – Classic stuffing veggies.
  • Garlic – I like a lot of garlic in this stuffing so I call for four cloves. You can reduce that if you like – or increase it!
  • Salt & pepper
  • Fresh sage, rosemary, and parsley – Fresh herbs make all the difference! But if you can’t get your hands on some of these fresh, just use 1/2 the amount of dried.
  • Vegetable broth – Grab your favorite low-sodium brand at the store, or make your own vegetable broth (I have both a veggie broth from scraps recipe and a Crock Pot vegetable broth recipe!)

Adaptations/Variations

  • Vegan Sausage & Apple – Add small chunks of tart apple and some pre-cooked vegan sausage.
  • Vegan Mushroom Stuffing – Sauté button, cremini, chanterelle, or another favorite mushroom with the veggies.

How to Make It

  1. First, you’ll want to grease an 8″x8″ pan with some of your butter.
  2. Next, prep the bread cubes. Either make sure you’ve cut it into cubes and it sat out overnight, or toast them in a 350-degree oven for a few minutes until stale and golden around the edges. Place the bread cubes in a large bowl and get to sauteeing your veggies.
  3. Melt some of the butter in the skillet and add the onion, celery, and a pinch of salt. Saute until softened, then add the garlic and herbs.
  4. Pour a cup of the broth into the veggie herb mix and stir to loosen up any flavorful bits. And then pour it all into the bowl over the bread cubes.
  5. Sprinkle the rest of the salt and the pepper over the top, and add the remaining broth a little at the time just until the bread is moist.
  6. Spread the vegan stuffing into your pan and bake until golden!
  7. Melt the rest of the butter and brush it over the top of the stuffing, and sprinkle the top with parsley for a buttery, herby, delicious-y presentation.
A side view of vegan stuffing on a Thanksgiving table.

Tips for Stuffing Success

  • Use day-old or otherwise stale bread! Don’t even attempt stuffing with fresh bread. It’ll disintegrate into a pool of sogginess. Super sad!
  • Don’t add too much broth. Just add a little more at a time until a little pool starts to form at the bottom of the bowl. That’s when you know the bread can’t soak up any more.
A silver spoon full of buttery vegan stuffing.

Make-Ahead Instructions

This vegetarian stuffing can be made ahead of time! You have a few options:

Prep ahead and refrigerate: Prepare the stuffing according to the recipe instructions, stopping just before baking. Transfer to a greased baking dish and cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 2 days. When you’re ready to bake, remove it from the refrigerator while the oven preheats to help bring it up to room temp. Uncover and bake as directed. You may need to add 10–15 minutes to the baking time.

To freeze: Prepare the stuffing according to the recipe instructions, stopping just before baking. Transfer to a freezer-safe baking dish and cover tightly with plastic wrap followed by a layer of foil. Freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to serve, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Uncover and bake as directed, adding extra time as needed to heat it through.

I hope this buttery herb vegetarian stuffing is a home run for you and your holiday table! We love the classic stuffing taste and how it brings stuffing to the table for multiple diets.

I hope you love this vegan stuffing recipe as much as I do, and don’t forget the mashed potatoes and vegan gravy! Happy holidays!

5 from 1 vote

Buttery Herb Vegetarian Stuffing

Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 50 minutes
Author: Karen
Yield: 8 people
Everything you love about stuffing. The satisfying golden buttery crunch gives way to a perfectly soft interior – and best of all, it's 100% vegetarian and vegan (and 100% delicious!)
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Ingredients

  • 9-10 cups stale or toasted bread cubes (About 1 pound of bread; cut or torn into 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch cubes; I like Italian bread and/or sourdough in this stuffing* )
  • 4 ounces + 2 tablespoons vegan butter (divided; I like Miyokos unsalted cultured vegan butter for this recipe; 4 ounces is half the block; if making a vegetarian but not vegan recipe, regular butter is okay)
  • 1 medium yellow onion (diced; about 2 cups)
  • 2 large celery stalks (diced, about 1 cup)
  • 1/8 + 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (divided)
  • 4 cloves garlic (peeled and minced)
  • 2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves (chopped fine)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary (minced)
  • 2 + 1 tablespoons fresh parsley (minced; reserve 1 tablespoon for garnish)
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

Equipment

  • 1 8-inch by 8-inch baking pan

Instructions

Prepare the pan and preheat the oven

  • Grease an 8-inch by 8-inch baking pan with one of the tablespoons of vegan butter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Prepare the bread cubes

  • I like to cut the bread into cubes the day before and let it sit out over night until stale. Another option is to toast the bread in a 350 degree oven for a few minutes until lightly golden.
  • Place bread cubes into a large bowl and set aside.

Saute the veggies

  • Place a large skillet over medium-low heat. Melt 4 ounces of the butter in the skillet and add the onion and celery along with 1/8 teaspoon salt (a generous pinch). Gently saute until softened but not golden, about 8 minutes.
  • Add the garlic, sage, rosemary, 2 tablespoons parsley, and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic is soft and fragrant, 1-2 minutes.
  • Pour one cup of the broth into the veggies and stir. Remove from heat

Assemble the stuffing

  • Pour the sautéed veggies and broth over bread cubes and sprinkle remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and the pepper over the top. Stir until evenly moist. Add remaining broth a couple tablespoons at a time just until the bread is moist but there is no broth pooling at the bottom of the bowl.
  • Taste stuffing and add more salt and pepper if desired.
  • Pour stuffing into the baking pan and spread evenly.

Bake the stuffing

  • Bake until golden, 20-25 minutes.

Garnish

  • Melt remaining 1 tablespoon vegan butter and brush it over the top of the stuffing with a pastry brush. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of parsley to garnish. And serve!

Notes

Make-Ahead Instructions

Make-Ahead Instructions

Prep ahead and refrigerate: Prepare the stuffing according to the recipe instructions, stopping just before baking. Transfer to a greased baking dish and cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 2 days. When you’re ready to bake, remove it from the refrigerator while the oven preheats to help bring it up to room temp. Uncover and bake as directed. You may need to add 10–15 minutes to the baking time.
To freeze: Prepare the stuffing according to the recipe instructions, stopping just before baking. Transfer to a freezer-safe baking dish and cover tightly with plastic wrap followed by a layer of foil. Freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to serve, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Uncover and bake as directed, adding extra time as needed to heat it through.
* More about bread varieties: This stuffing recipe is very forgiving and is delicious with all kinds of breads! I love a mix of Italian and sourdough but I’ll often throw in a few crusts I’ve saved in the freezer from my daughter’s sandwiches which are just straight-up white bread. Stale French bread is also delicious!
Adapted from bon appetit 

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 1cup, Calories: 288kcal, Carbohydrates: 33g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 2g, Sodium: 575mg, Potassium: 136mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 140IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 98mg, Iron: 3mg

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