The Ultimate spoiltpig stuffing
No Christmas table is complete without a good stuffing to accompany the festive turkey. There are umpteen recipes out there for a ‘traditional’ stuffing, but this is our favourite. Make a day or two in advance and keep in the fridge ready for the big day – this tastes great on 25th and especially good mixed in with all the Christmas leftovers on Boxing Day. So ditch the packets and get the kids involved with this easy stuffing incorporating all the traditional flavours of the festive season.
Makes: 20 large stuffing balls
Prep time: 1hr 45mins
Cook time: 45mins
What you will need
- 120g Dried Cranberries
- 50ml good quality Ruby Port
- 1 large white onion, finely chopped
- 3 rashers spoiltpig smoked back bacon
- 50g slightly salted butter
- 3 large cloves of garlic, crushed
- 450g quality butchers sausagemeat
- 150g fresh breadcrumbs (ideally from farmhouse white bread)
- 2tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley (stalks included)
- 1tsp finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 140g peeled cooked chestnuts, chopped
- 1 large free range egg, beaten
How to prepare
Start by soaking the cranberries. Put into a bowl and pour over the port, leaving to soak for at least an hour.
Cut the spoiltpig bacon rashers into strips. In a large frying pan melt the butter and then add the onion and bacon, over a medium heat, until the onions turn translucent and the bacon is cooked but not crispy. Add the cloves of crushed garlic and fry for a further minute. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool for 10mins.
In a large mixing bowl place all the remaining ingredients, adding the soaked cranberries as well as the cooled bacon and onion mix. Pour in the beaten egg and use your hands to mix all ingredients together well. Add a pinch of seasoning. To ensure these are seasoned well, fry off a touch of butter in the frying pan and make a small ball of stuffing from the mixture and cook in the pan. Taste and add more seasoning if required.
You can either cook the stuffing in one large tray or roll into balls (we prefer the latter to get maximum crispiness on the outside!). If you’ve prepped the mix in advance of Christmas, either roll into balls or place on a greased heavy bottomed tray immediately, cover with cling film and leave in the fridge until ready to cook. Bake in an pre-heated oven (fan 180oC) for 45mins until brown. Enjoy!
