We decided to flip the script and give the iconic Thanksgiving side with an All-American classic – we make this Cheeseburger Stuffing all the time now!

There is nothing we love more than a good cheeseburger – and one year when making stuffing we got a crazy idea to take the cheesy, meaty flavor in stuffing – and we were shocked how well it turned out. We've been making this Cheeseburger Stuffing stuffing for years – it is SO good alongside all of your Thanksgiving favorites.

The recipe might sound funny, but stuffing is a combination of bread, butter, stock, eggs, and vegetables, baked to golden brown perfection. We're taking hamburger buns, ground beef, tons of good seasoning, cheddar cheese, and fresh vegetables to make this a stuffing side your family will want every holiday dinner – it's packed with flavor, inexpensive, and so easy to make!

At Avdaye, we add lots of tips in all of our recipes – because we are a home cook without any formal training, and we find we are more confident making dishes when we understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe. Our goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.

How To Make Cheeseburger Stuffing

To make this recipe, we will use the following ingredients:

Hamburger Buns: These act as the base for the stuffing, absorbing flavors and giving the dish a hearty, bread-like texture with hints of classic cheeseburger taste.
Ground Beef: This provides the meaty, savory component essential to any cheeseburger flavor. It adds richness, heartiness, and a satisfying chew.
Pub Cheese: Creamy and tangy, pub cheese melts into the stuffing, creating a gooey texture and cheesy flavor that mimics the cheeseburger experience.
Beef Stock: Adding moisture and depth, beef stock ties together the flavors with a rich, umami taste that enhances the beef and other ingredients.
Carrots: These bring a subtle sweetness and a slight crunch, balancing the heavier flavors and adding some color.
Celery: Like carrots, celery adds crunch and freshness, helping to lighten the dish with its mild, grassy flavor.
Butter: Used for sautéing, butter adds a layer of richness and enhances the flavor of the vegetables.
Onions: Essential in any burger mix, onions add sweetness and depth when cooked down, giving the stuffing a robust, savory base.
Chives: Fresh chives add a mild onion-like flavor and a pop of color, brightening the dish and balancing the richness.
Garlic: Garlic adds a punch of flavor and aromatic depth, complementing the beef and cheese.
Montreal Steak Seasoning: This spice blend brings a touch of boldness with hints of pepper, garlic, and herbs, enhancing the burger-like flavor profile and adding a bit of spice.

Once you've gathered your ingredients, we will use this method:

Prep and Brown Meat

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a large 9×13 casserole dish. In a large pan, brown ground beef and crumble. Cook to lightly browned while crumbling, do not burn. Do not drain fat. Remove ground beef from pan and set aside.

Cook Veg

Add onions, celery, and carrots, to pan and saute until lightly browned, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic, Montreal steak seasoning, browned ground beef, and pub cheese. Stir in butter and stock. Cook, stirring often, until pub cheese and butter are melted and well incorporated.

Add Bread

Spread out stale cubed hamburger buns in casserole pan. Pour hamburger, stock, and vegetable mixture over buns, stir to mix.

Bake

Bake 45-60 minutes until bubbly and golden brown – there should be a little liquid left in the pan but not much – do not cook all the liquid off, as it will re-absorb into the stuffing as it cools (think a tiny amount on the bottom of the pan.)

Kitchen notes

Toast buns. Using stale or toasted buns helps your dressing keep a nice texture without it turning mushy.

Swap cheeses. If you'd like to try a different cheese, you can swap the pub cheese for sharp cheddar, jack, or even velveeta.

Add more vegetables. Try tossing in jalapenos, bell peppers, crunchy onions, or any other traditional vegetables or burger toppings you like!

Make it spicy. Try using spicy Montreal steak seasoning, a spicy hamburger rub, or adding cayenne pepper – or add in diced poblano peppers, green chiles, or jalapenos into the stuffing for a bit more kick.

Make it vegetarian. You can swap the ground beef for a meat-free crumble.

Swap meats. You can use chicken, buffalo, pork, or turkey in place of ground beef.

A few answers

When is stuffing done?

Stuffing is fully cooked when it has reached 165 degrees and bread has soaked up most of the liquid in dish. There will be a bit of liquid left in pan – do not cook to dry – it will soak up as it cools.

Our stuffing is dry – how can we keep it from drying out?

Stuffing should be removed from oven when there is a little bit of liquid left in the baking dish – it will absorb as the stuffing cools. Don't cook to fully dry or your stuffing will dry out completely after cooling.

Can we skip the cheese?

If you're not sure about adding cheese to this stuffing, you can skip it.

Can we use vegan cheese?

If you use vegan cheese for this recipe, you need to use one that works more like queso than shredded cheese – so it will mix more like a batter than into shreds.

Can we use this to stuff a turkey?

This is technically a dressing – NOT a stuffing. Don't use dairy to stuff a bird, for best results. We are calling this a stuffing since more people call this dish stuffing.

Serve it with

Cheeseburger stuffing is the solid easy side for Thanksgiving recipes – easy, simple classics like solid Spatchcocked Turkey Brown Bag Herb Roasted Turkey Slow Cooker Turkey in Gravyand The Best Easy Prime Rib!

You can also check out some of our twists on classic recipes, like Grilled Carrots Turkey Butternut Squash Chili Roasted Parmesan Green Beans and Pumpkin Hand Pies!

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Ingredients

8 Hamburger Buns, stale or toasted, torn into 1″ squares
1 pound Ground Beef
8 oz Pub Cheese
14 oz Beef Stock
4 carrots, peeled and cut into thin circles
4 stalks celery, diced
8 oz butter
1 large onion, diced
½ cup chopped chives
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a large 9×13 casserole dish.
In a large pan, brown ground beef and crumble. Cook to lightly browned while crumbling, do not burn. Do not drain fat.
Remove ground beef from pan and set aside. Add onions, celery, and carrots, to pan and saute until lightly browned, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in garlic, Montreal steak seasoning, browned ground beef, and pub cheese. Stir in butter and stock.
Cook, stirring often, until pub cheese and butter are melted and well incorporated.
Spread out stale cubed hamburger buns in casserole pan.
Pour hamburger, stock, and vegetable mixture over buns, stir to mix.
Bake 45-60 minutes until bubbly and golden brown – there should be a little liquid left in the pan but not much – do not cook all the liquid off, as it will re-absorb into the stuffing as it cools (think a tiny amount on the bottom of the pan.)