One dish that is always on our table is stuffing. But not just any stuffing – this salty and savory Portuguese Corn Bread stuffing (RecheIO). It has a good kick with the Chourico and hot red pepper sauce which you can adjust it to your taste. If you don’t have access to Portuguese chourico or red pepper sauce, both can be substituted to another sausage or hot sauce of your choice.
Make sure that you’re using bread that is at least 1 to 2 days old. Truly, the older the bread the better. This is my family recipe for Portuguese Corn Bread Stuffing (Recheio). This recipe came from my aunt Ines which is the same recipe my mom would make to go with stuffed mackerel or to accompany a roasted chicken or turkey dinner. The only difference when making the poultry recipe was the addition of chicken or turkey liver and giblets to the ingredients.
What is Portuguese Corn Bread Stuffing?
Portuguese Corn Bread Stuffing — or Recheio — is a traditional savory stuffing made from day-old Portuguese corn bread and white bread, bound together with eggs, milk or broth, and packed with bold flavor from chouriço sausage, hot red pepper sauce, onion, garlic, and parsley. It is a staple in Azorean and Portuguese households, served alongside roasted chicken, turkey, or as a classic accompaniment to stuffed mackerel. Unlike American-style stuffing, this version has a rustic, hearty texture and a distinctly Portuguese character — smoky, savory, and just spicy enough to keep things interesting.
How to Make This Recipe
Start by cutting both loaves of bread into pieces, removing any very hard crust, and letting them soak in heated milk or broth until fully absorbed. Cook the chouriço in water for about 10 minutes, then shred or chop it — keep the cooking water, because you’ll add some of it to the bread for extra flavor. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, shredded chouriço, red pepper sauce, paprika, parsley, salt, and pepper, then combine everything with the soaked bread and mix thoroughly with your hands. The more you work it, the more the bread breaks down into a cohesive stuffing. Sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil until caramelized, add to the mixture, and bake at 350°F until set and golden on top.
Tips for the Best Portuguese Corn Bread Stuffing
- Use day-old bread — the older the better. Fresh bread turns to mush. Stale bread absorbs the liquid properly and holds its texture through baking.
- Don’t throw out the chouriço water. That cooking liquid is packed with flavor. Adding it to the bread soak takes the whole dish up a notch.
- Mix with your hands. This is not a stir-with-a-spoon situation. You want the bread to fully break down and integrate with everything else.
- Caramelize the onions properly. Don’t rush this step. Translucent is not caramelized — give them time to develop color and sweetness.
- Adjust the heat to your table. The red pepper sauce quantity is flexible. Start with one tablespoon and taste before adding more.
- For a poultry version, add cooked chicken or turkey liver and giblets to the mixture — this is how the traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas version is made.
I always use my favorite skillet by Lodge, I just love it!
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Serving and Storing
Serve this stuffing hot alongside roasted chicken, turkey, or stuffed mackerel. It also works as a side dish on its own — substantial enough to hold its own on any holiday table. Leftovers keep covered in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat in the oven at 325°F covered with foil to keep it from drying out, or microwave with a splash of broth to revive the moisture.
PrintPortuguese Corn Bread Stuffing – Recheio
- Category: Baked Goods
Ingredients
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1 Portuguese Corn Bread
1 loaf of White Bread
3 eggs
2 cups of Milk or Chicken Broth
1 pound of Chourico cooked and shredded
1-2 tablespoons of Hot Red Pepper Sauce* more or less to your taste
1/2 teaspoon of Paprika
1 Bunch of Parsley finely chopped
1 medium onion finely chopped
2 garlic cloves chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste
Olive Oil
Instructions
1. Cut both loaves of bread into pieces. Remove the crust if it’s too hard. Place the pieces of bread in a large bowl and leave aside.
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. In a small saucepan, place the chourico and enough water to cover, bring to a boil and lower to a simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the chourico and remove from casings and shred or chop into small to medium pieces and leave aside. *note: Do not get rid of the water used to boil the chourico, please leave aside.
3. Heat milk or broth until almost at a boil and pour over the bread. Using your hands or a fork mix together and leave aside, letting the bread completely absorb the liquid. Once that’s absorbed, add about half of the liquid of the water used to boil the chourico and let the bread absorb that completely.
4. In a separate bowl mix and beat together the eggs, shredded chourico, red pepper sauce, paprika, chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste and pour over the bread. Using your hands, mix everything together and leave aside. The more you mix the more the bread will breakdown into smaller pieces.
5. In a large frying pan, sauté the chopped onion,garlic in olive oil. season with a little salt and cook until onion is translucent and almost caramelized.
6. Add the bread mixture into the pan and stir together. You want to make sure the egg is well incorporated. At this point you can place the mixture into a buttered baking dish and bake in preheated oven, uncovered for 30 minutes. If you like your stuffing a little drier you can bake for another 10 min.
Enjoy!!
Love this!! Thanks for sharing.
My mother was very good at her stuffing and the entire family and friends always enjoyed her stuffing. She didn’t include milk and/or broth. She also included the turkey and/or chicken giblets to the stuffing with the chourico. She would chop up everything.