Thanksgiving Dinner for Ten [Classic Slow Cooker Stuffing]

Cooking for a Crowd, Food, Holiday Recipes, Menus, Recipes

slow cooker stuffing

Last week we talked abut how to cook Thanksgiving dinner for two people, and soon we’ll cover how to cook Thanksgiving dinner for six people. As the years go on and your family and friend circle grows, your Thanksgiving dinner table probably will too. Some experts say that once you’ve cooked for 10 or 12 people, you can cook for pretty much any size group of people by doubling recipes or asking people to bring a dish.

By some experts, I mean my mom.

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THE MENU

Taking into consideration that Thanksgiving side dishes are arguably the best part of the meal (no offense to the 12-pound fresh turkey I just ordered online for my own 4-6 person Thanksgiving dinner), cooking for a big group is worth the stress — it allows you to have more side dishes for everyone to sample, mix and match.

For a few years, my family Thanksgiving was three or four people, which always brought a little bit of contention: we don’t really need apple and pecan pie because only one person likes them (the solution? we’d have both) and we don’t really need to have a green been casserole and corn pudding (the solution? we’d have both). As a result, there would be an excess of leftovers. Although not necessarily a bad thing, you generally have to make some tough decisions if you’re not cooking for a crowd.

The good news about cooking Thanksgiving for ten people or more? You can make many, many side dishes — everyone has a different favorite and your crazy aunt can pile her plate high with mashed potatoes while your sister’s boyfriend hoards the cornbread. Something for everybody. Do a turkey or two, and make what you make best — then delegate the rest.

thanksgiving-menu-crowd

Chipotle Maple Butternut Squash Soup from Always Order Dessert

Roasted Turkey with Herb Butter and Roasted Shallots from Cookin’ Canuck

Perfect Turkey Gravy from Life Love Liz

Irresistibly Creamy Mashed Potatoes from Andrew Zimmerman

Ginger Butternut Squash Mashed Potatoes from Katie’s Cucina

Cornbread Sausage Stuffing with Cranberries and Pecans from Carlsbad Cravings

Classic Slow Cooker Stuffing (recipe below)

Homemade Cranberry Sauce from the Prairie Homestead

Warm Roasted Sweet Potato Salad from A Cozy Apron

The Best Sweet Potato Casserole from Baker By Nature

Corn Casserole from Add a Pinch

Green Bean Casserole from Scratch from Sally’s Baking Addiction

Maple Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts from Kristine’s Kitchen

Suzanne Goin’s Slow Cooked Kale from Alexandra Cooks

Broccoli Gratin with Swiss and Parmesan from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Turkey Crust Pumpkin Pie from Kudos Kitchen

Pecan Streusel Pumpkin Pie from Chelsea’s Messy Apron

Traditional Apple Pie from The Gracious Wife

Sour Cream Apple Pie from Taste and Tell

Table set for rustic thanksgiving dinner. Could also be used for Christmas dinner.

Table set for rustic thanksgiving dinner. Could also be used for Christmas dinner.

The Experts Weigh In

Planning ahead is your best friend. Start today, if you can. Once you have your menu set, assign everyone at least one thing to bring or one task to help you with. Kids are great for this — they can set tables, wash and prep vegetables, make place cards, and even pour you wine. Yes, this is why I don’t have children. But really, plan ahead.
Set the table a day or two ahead of time.

Make yourself a “count down” guide, with the cooking times and temperatures of everything that needs to go into the oven. That way you’ll know what has to go in and when. Make as many side dishes ahead of time as you can, so you’ll just be reheating on Thursday. If it’s cool where you live, a garage is a perfect “staging area” and set the table up to two days in advance.” -Becca Heflin-Donovan

Know your audience: if you’re cooking for 10 people, think about what the most popular dish will be. If stuffing is a universal favorite in your circle, whip up a big batch and then serve more modest amounts of other side dishes. That is to say, don’t feel the need to scour the Internet for 9 recipes that serve 12 people: you’ll end up with enough food to feed 36. Instead, focus on serving a nice variety so that people can load up their plates with a little bit of everything, and then double down on what they like best. If there are dietary restrictions, do your best, but don’t drive yourself crazy.

Ask your guests if they have dietary restrictions well ahead of time. Accommodate them if you feel you can, but if there’s a litany of restrictions, it’s totally appropriate to ask your guest to bring a dish they love. -Chris Poeschl

Blend the old with the new: Some people are very, very particular about how they Thanksgiving. Others like to try fresh recipes every year and introduce new traditions. One of the best things I ever introduced to my family’s Thanksgiving was a butternut squash gratin, and at a family friend’s dinner a few years ago I thought cornbread was a great touch for the table. Some families do macaroni and cheese on Thanksgiving, where I typically prefer to reserve macaroni and cheese for nights dedicated solely to what I like to call ‘cheese to the face.’ You get my drift. Mix it up.

Go ahead and branch out from turkey. If you have a seriously big group — like you’re hosting more people than I even know — you might want to make a turkey and then a ham, a filet, or something else that people can pick from if they don’t want the tryptophan coma to kick in before it’s time for pie.

Mmm, pie.

My family in NJ gets together with 30 or so extended family and friends. The host family rotates each year. The host family is in charge of the turkey, drinks, plates, etc. The full meal is then decided upon the host family and they parcel out dishes to the rest of the group, depending on their family size. So all the sides, appetizers, and desserts are given to others to bring as potluck. If it’s a bigger family, they may be in charge of more dishes. If it’s a couple, they may be in charge of bringing a pie or two. Something like that. We usually do a ham as well since it’s so many people and not everyone loves turkey. Everyone knows to make enough for at least 15 people. My friends think we are crazy when they hear about it but it’s actually a ton of fun. -Shereen Langrana

Delegate. Or go to Costco. If you have a big crowd coming, you need to let people help you. I’d be willing to stake my $73 worth of pre-ordered pies and biscuits that Martha Stewart doesn’t even go at Thanksgiving alone. I’d even go double or nothing.

Make the main dishes, like the turkey and your favorite side dishes. When guests ask what they can bring, let them bring appetizers and dessert. If you don’t want to ask people to bring anything, Costco has a great selection around the holidays. -Rubina Hafeez

Or, if you’re not one for mashing potatoes, ask your guests to take care of the side dishes while you focus on the more important things: the things that start with ‘p’ and end with ‘umpkin pie.’

Potluck, everyone brings their favorite dish and hostess just makes the turkey and maybe an appetizer and dessert.  I’ve found everyone loves having their favorite to share and there are always stories. You will thankful, promise! -Barb Kiebel

If all else fails, show up somewhere invited.

Find somebody hosting a big crowd for Thanksgiving. Go to their house. They’ll probably give you leftovers and you don’t even have to hire a maid. -Marshall Gatten

If you’re lucky, they might not even notice you and you won’t have to talk to anyone.

The Stuffing

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If you decide not to delegate, it’s all about slow cooking the side dishes. If you’re cooking dinner for a big crowd, you’ll want to put as little in the oven as you possibly can. You’re going to have a turkey to cook, and possibly a ham or two (no, why would you have two hams?). Luckily, there are a lot of Thanksgiving dishes that you can do on the stovetop — mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, most vegetables. However, Thanksgiving is also known in some circles as “Casserole Day” so it’s also possible you’ll have a lot to bake.

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I did a trial run of stuffing last weekend in my KitchenAid 4-Quart Multi-Cooker. Let me tell you, if you’ve ever had a slow cooker and think it improved your life even one iota, then you need to experience the wonder that is a multi-cooker.  There is basically nothing this appliance won’t do for you — it has over 10 settings for risotto, rice, sear, sauté, simmer, soup, yogurt, boil/steam, slow cook high, slow cook low, and keep warm.(for up to 24 hours — and it doesn’t dry out your food either). There is nothing you can’t make in this Multi-Cooker.

Except maybe a salad.

Actually, you probably could use it for a salad although that might not be the best bang for your buck. I’m not here to tell you how to live your life though.

The best part about this multi-cooker is that if you’re cooking Thanksgiving, you have the ultimate appliance for make-ahead dishes right here. You can make your stuffing the night before and keep it warm on Thanksgiving day and as an added bonus, your house is going to smell great when your guests show up.

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5.0 from 1 reviews
Classic Slow Cooker Stuffing
Author: 
Recipe type: Holiday Recipes, Weekend Cooking, Cooking for a Crowd
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 12 cups
 
Ingredients
  • 16- to 18-ounce loaf rustic white or sourdough bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 10 cups)
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 medium onions, diced
  • 4 large stalks celery, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • ¼ cup finely chopped fresh sage leaves
  • Leaves from 4 stalks thyme
  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 3 cups turkey, chicken, or vegetable stock
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup diced apple, dried fruit, nuts (optional)
Instructions
  1. If your bread is not already completely stale (tip: ask the bakery department at your grocery store if they have day old bread for stuffing), dry out the bread by baking for 60-90 minutes, stirring every half hour, in a 225 degree F oven. Bake until bread is crisp.
  2. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, melt butter and add garlic, onions and celery. Stir frequently until vegetables are soft and onions look opaque. Add sage and thyme, and cook for two more minutes or until herbs become fragrant.
  3. Beat the eggs in a small bowl and add the broth. Season with salt and pepper. In a large bowl, fold the bread cubes in with the cooked vegetables, egg mixture and apples. Mix until all ingredients are combined.
  4. Transfer to the bowl of a 7-quart slow cooker that has been prepared according to appliance directions.
  5. Cover the slow cooker with its lid and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours, until crisp around the edges.
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6 Comments

  • Reply
    Lea Meadows
    September 26, 2020 at 12:11 pm

    Found this when I was looking last year for how to have Thanksgiving for 3 people and so wouldn’t be cooking a full bird and so no bird to stuff. (I know, some people say don’t ever stuff the bird; yet, my family have been stuffing birds for over a century and nobody’s got sick yet. :)) But…this time no full bird. So I searched and found this recipe and it is fabulous. Even If I do cook a bird again — the stuffing will be in the slow cooker. I added 1/2 tsp each of savory and marjoram to the sauté stage and 1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley to the fresh herb stage. Didn’t add fruit as our family never did and I needed to stay with some tradition, eh? And the left overs were awesome — made a frittata with stuffing in it. Delicious! Thank you so much

  • Reply
    Sandra
    November 5, 2017 at 9:24 pm

    12 cups of bread? I don’t see the amount of bread needed for this recipe. Thanks.

    • Reply
      Maris Callahan
      November 24, 2017 at 4:56 pm

      12 cups of stuffing is the yield. Thank you for pointing this out – I’ve updated the post!

  • Reply
    Shells and Cheese with Browned Butter and Swiss Chard
    February 4, 2017 at 8:59 pm

    […] should be saved for other days, like non-holidays.  Another part of me realizes that we can have stuffing, mashed potatoes and homemade cranberry sauce on any day of the year, so why bother saving it for […]

  • Reply
    Thanksgiving Dinner for Six [Roasted Turkey Breast] - In Good Taste
    November 18, 2016 at 1:27 pm

    […] talked about how to cook Thanksgiving dinner for two people. We’ve talked about how to cook Thanksgiving dinner for a crowd of ten people or more. Not to sound like Goldilocks or anything, but how do you cook for a group of people that’s […]

  • Reply
    Robyn Stone | Add a Pinch
    November 16, 2016 at 11:31 am

    Thanks so much for including my Corn Casserole Recipe, Maris! I hope you enjoy it and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
    Robyn xo

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