The best Thanksgiving stuffing with chorizo and cornbread

A Thanksgiving stuffing recipe that will blow everyone away! Trust us, you haven’t tried anything like this yet.

Even though a great juicy turkey is without a doubt the star of the Thanksgiving dinner, for many of us, the side dishes are the most awaited treat of the day. When else can you have a succulent sweet potato pie, pumpkin quesillo, cranberry sauce, pumpkin cake or delicious stuffing if not on Thanksgiving?

Forget about the holiday break, the football, the parades, this is a holiday for enjoying food in all its glory! We take the time to prepare our favorite dishes with our family for hours, to then devour them in a couple of minutes. But that’s life, the best things (like great food) are worth the effort.

And even though Thanksgiving is all about traditions, sometimes you need to enrich these rituals with new and exciting twists, to make new traditions with your family. So dare to try new things like this Hispanic-inspired Thanksgiving stuffing made with chorizo, cornbread and full of flavor.

For the cornbread, it’s better if you can take the time (the day before) to make it from scratch. I used a very simple recipe from Paula Deen. You can always use regular bread, but the sweetness of the cornbread balances out the strong flavor from the chorizo, creating a wonderful harmony of flavors.

This year, try something different and serve this Thanksgiving stuffing with your feast!

Ingredients for the Thanksgiving stuffing:

• 1 cornbread, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 or 2 red bell peppers, cut into julienne
• 2 small red onions, cut into julienne
• 3 chorizos
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• Olive oil
• Panko or breadcrumbs
• ½ cup of grated cheese (optional)
• Pinch of salt and pepper
• Freshly chopped cilantro

Preparation of the Thanksgiving stuffing:

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, sautée the onion and the red pepper.
2. Add the chorizo pushing it out of its casing and coarsely shredding it with a wooden spoon.
3. Add a little salt and pepper, the chorizo might be salty enough.
4. Sauté everything until the chorizo is cooked and the onions look caramelized.
5. Set aside in a bowl.
6. Add some of the chicken stock to the pan to release the caramelized bits left on the pan and scrape it with a wooden spoon (this method is called deglaze, or degrasé in French).
7. Mix the chorizo and vegetables with the cornbread and add the chicken stock.
8. Add the fresh cilantro.
9. Place everything in a baking dish (a nice one that goes with your table setting) or a tin mold and sprinkle some breadcrumbs and olive oil on top so they get crispy brown. You could also add some grated cheese on top before baking for a gorgeous golden brown cheesy finish.

Enjoy this Thanksgiving like there’s no tomorrow with this flavorful recipe… Gobble, gobble!