The next best thing to Thanksgiving dinner is enjoying all the leftovers afterward. This Thanksgiving casserole recipe is a celebration of Turkey Day leftovers, featuring turkey, dressing and mashed potatoes in a deliciously decadent sauce, all served up in casserole form.
Thanksgiving Casserole
The best thing about a Thanksgiving dinner is the leftovers—and coming up with creative new ways to enjoy them. Whether you’re at that post-Thanksgiving phase or simply want the flavors of Thanksgiving another time of the year, this easy Thanksgiving casserole recipe has you covered. It has all the key staples from the meal, including turkey, mashed potatoes and dressing, whipped up with an indulgent sauce that makes everything even more delicious. Get ready to loosen that belt (again) and dig in!
Ingredients for Thanksgiving Casserole 
- Potatoes: Potatoes are the star of the creamy, indulgent mashed potato layer of this dish.
- Celery: Celery adds a little crunch and color to the stuffing or dressing layer.
- Onion: Onion flavors the dressing layer.
- Butter: Butter is used to saute the celery and onions, and it also adds a hint of buttery goodness.
- Unseasoned stuffing cubes: The unseasoned stuffing or dressing cubes allow you to flavor the stuffing layer to suit the recipe, or your own tastes.
- Poultry seasoning: This savory blend seasons the stuffing with flavors including sage, marjoram, thyme and celery seed.
- Rubbed sage: Sage’s earthy, complex flavor makes the stuffing blend even tastier.
- Chicken broth: The broth keeps the dressing moist while bringing loads of flavor.
- Turkey: The turkey provides the protein in this hearty casserole, and it’s also the perfect choice for a dish with mashed potatoes and dressing.
- Condensed cream of chicken soup: Undiluted condensed soup is packed with flavor for an extra tasty, creamy sauce base within the casserole.
- Garlic powder: Garlic just might be the perfect seasoning for any dish. In this casserole, it adds flavor to the rich sauce.
- Sour cream: Sour cream adds tang to the casserole’s sauce and to the mashed potatoes, for double deliciousness.
- Cream cheese: Cream cheese makes the mashed potatoes even more divine (and decadent!).
- Cheddar cheese: Cheddar cheese brings a little cheesy goodness to every bite of this Thanksgiving casserole.
Directions
Step 1: Cook the potatoes
Place the potatoes in a Dutch oven and cover them with water. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat. Cover and cook until the potatoes are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 2: Saute the celery and onions
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute the celery and onion in butter until they’re tender, about five minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat.
Step 3: Prepare the stuffing mixture
Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, combine the stuffing cubes, poultry seasoning and sage. Stir in the broth and the cooked celery and onions. Transfer the mixture to a greased 13×9-inch baking dish.
Step 4: Prepare the turkey and potatoes
In another large bowl, combine the turkey, soup, garlic powder and 1/4 cup of the sour cream, then spoon the mixture over the stuffing (or dressing) in the baking dish. Drain the potatoes and mash them in a large bowl. Beat in the cream cheese, pepper, salt and remaining sour cream, then spread the potatoes over the turkey mixture. Sprinkle with cheese.
Step 5: Bake the casserole
Bake the casserole, uncovered, until it’s heated through, 30 to 35 minutes.
Thanksgiving Casserole Variations
- Start with mashed potatoes: Have loads of leftover mashed potatoes? Use them in this dish instead of cooking more potatoes and mashing them.
- Use cooked chicken instead: Leftover chicken breast is just as delightful in this casserole. It may not be a Thanksgiving chicken, but it still tastes great!
- Use leftover stuffing: Use stuffing or dressing that you’ve already made to save time on this casserole, or follow this Thanksgiving leftovers casserole recipe, which uses leftover stuffing.
- Add vegetables: Feel free to add green beans (even leftover green bean casserole), cauliflower florets, broccoli, peas or even sliced mushrooms near the bottom layer of this dish for added nutrition. (Psst, it’s also another way to use up more leftovers!)
How to Store Thanksgiving Casserole
Store this Thanksgiving casserole tightly covered in the refrigerator, where it will keep for about four days. Package it in small portions for even easier access to a speedy meal! Note: If any of the casserole ingredients are already a couple days old when you make the dish, take that aging time into consideration as well.
Can you make Thanksgiving casserole ahead of time?
This is an excellent dish to assemble ahead of time, such as the night before you plan to serve it, then just let it sit on the counter for 15 minutes or so before popping it into the oven. You may need to cook it 10 minutes or so longer for it to heat through if it starts out chilled.
Thanksgiving Casserole Tips
Could I use sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes?
Yes, if you prefer sweet potatoes on Turkey Day, whip up some sweet potatoes for a casserole layer instead of the mashed potatoes. Here’s an excellent mashed sweet potatoes recipe that’s perfect for Thanksgiving and for this casserole.
What’s the difference between stuffing and dressing?
Stuffing and dressing are essentially the same thing; some people even use the terms interchangeably (as we have a bit in this recipe). Technically, stuffing is the stuff that’s cooked in the turkey (or other bird), absorbing all the juices, while dressing is cooked separately. The ingredients are often identical in stuffing and dressing recipes. (If you’re planning your holiday meal, here’s an excellent dressing recipe to try.)
Could I make this dish without any potato layer?
Sure, keep things supremely simple by layering the dressing and the turkey instead, no mashed potatoes. Here’s a turkey and stuffing casserole recipe that keeps things ultra simple.
Tastes Like Thanksgiving Casserole
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
30 min
Yield
10 servings
Ingredients
- 6 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1-1/4 cups chopped celery
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup butter, cubed
- 6 cups unseasoned stuffing cubes
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon rubbed sage
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 4 cups cubed cooked turkey
- 2 cans (10-3/4 ounces each) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3/4 cup sour cream, divided
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Directions
- Place potatoes in a Dutch oven and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook until tender, 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute celery and onion in butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Preheat oven to 350°.
- In a large bowl, combine the stuffing cubes, poultry seasoning and sage. Stir in broth and celery mixture. Transfer to a greased 13 x 9-in. baking dish.
- In another large bowl, combine the turkey, soup, garlic powder and 1/4 cup sour cream; spoon over stuffing mixture. Drain potatoes; mash in a large bowl. Beat in the cream cheese, pepper, salt and remaining sour cream; spread over turkey mixture. Sprinkle with cheese.
- Bake, uncovered, until heated through, 30-35 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
1-1/4 cups: 572 calories, 30g fat (15g saturated fat), 119mg cholesterol, 1142mg sodium, 49g carbohydrate (5g sugars, 4g fiber), 29g protein.
This hearty, rich-tasting Thanksgiving casserole is sure to be a hit with your family. It's a delicious way to use up Thanksgiving turkey, and you can substitute 5-1/2 cups of leftover mashed potatoes for the six potatoes. —Mary Lou Timpson, Centennial Park, Arizona
Recipe Creator
