A Gluten-Free Stuffing Your Whole Family Will Love
The midnight-sky color and contrasting textures of this squash and mushroom stuffing are striking against a backdrop of conventional Thanksgiving standbys. Even so, its flavor makes a natural pairing for turkey and all the trimmings. Nutty black rice mingles with roasted delicata squash, golden mushrooms and sausage for a rice dressing that is just as rich and savory as any classic stuffing recipe. Did we mention it’s gluten-free and made on the stovetop? That’s right. You can save precious Thanksgiving oven space for the star of the show: the turkey.
But Wait—is it Rice Stuffing? Or Dressing?
We cook this forbidden rice mushroom on the stovetop and therefore outside the bird, which might have purests arging that this is technically a dressing recipe. While it’s true that *technically* this is a dressing, because it’s not ‘stuffed” inside the bird, to us the word “stuffing is so synonymous with Thanksgiving that it’s the one we like to use. Anyway, whatever you want to call it, all you need to know is that the word ‘gluten-free’ will be forgotten as your guests clamor for the recipe.
What is Forbidden Rice?
Forbidden rice is a non-glutinous heirloom rice grain colored a deep, dark purple with a nutty and slightly sweet flavor. And it’s not just another pretty face—it has more fiber and protein than brown rice, too! We love that it cooks quickly and love how dramatic it looks on the table. Thanksgiving Day is not the day for shrinking violet side dishes.
Let’s Make Thanksgiving Rice Dressing
The beautiful thing about this recipe is that you can roast the squash and brown the mushrooms a day or two ahead so all you have to do is make the rice. When it comes to one of the biggest cooking days of the year, being prepared is the name of the game.
- Start with squash—slice, season & roast!
- And next, the mushrooms. Just a quick sauté mushrooms.
- Brown the sausage. Drain off excess grease.
- Sauté the shallots, celery, and garlic and stir in the sausage, rice and liquid for about 40 minutes—just the right amount of time to take a break and “sample” the pumpkin pie.
- Ring the dinner bell! The rice stuffing recipe is ready. Place in a serving dish and layer with mushrooms and squash on top.
Tools You’ll Need
Other Showstopping Thanksgiving Side Dishes
Rice stuffing for Thanksgiving is only one part of the delicious puzzle. Round out your turkey with side dishes that you would be proud to serve any time of the year.
Sausage-Rice Stuffing: Second Helpings Encouraged
It’s a quite feat to please the gluten-free eaters, the picky eaters and the kiddos at the same time but you’ll find this recipe does just that. Snap a photo of this rice and mushroom stuffing and maybe even a video of the beautiful people you feed it to. Tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper. Happy eating!
