These stuffing patties are a fun and interesting way to repurpose your Thanksgiving leftovers. They have a nice and crispy exterior and a soft, moist interior. Top them with some leftover gravy or ketchup and you’ve got yourself an amazing hearty side that everyone will love!
I love cooking up a storm on holidays, especially Thanksgiving. But that also means leftovers, and lots of experimenting to put them to use.
A while back, I tried making stuffing muffins with some leftover stuffing I had, and they turned out insanely delicious, but this time, I really wanted to try something more hearty and filling, and that’s when I tried these patties.
In all honesty, these are so good, you can actually go ahead and make these from scratch too, not just when you want to use up your Thanksgiving leftovers.
Why You’ll Love This Stuffing Patties Recipe
- Customizable: You can tweak and play around with the mix-ins and whip up your own version of the patties too! .
- Hearty and delicious: These patties are hearty and delicious! Serve them up with buns for lunch, or as a nice potato side dish.
- Easy to make: They come together super quick, making them a great choice for those days when you don’t want to put a lot of effort and brainwork into cooking.
- Family-friendly: With simple, savory flavors, everyone in the family is sure to love them!
Ingredients
- Mashed potatoes: Use freshly made or leftover mashed potatoes.
- Leftover turkey: Shredded turkey leftover from your Thanksgiving feast is perfect. You could use either white or dark meat, whatever you prefer. You can even use leftover slow cooker turkey wings or air fryer turkey legs.
- Leftover stuffing: For that crumbly and hearty deliciousness. I love using my cornbread sausage stuffing!
- Egg: To bind all the ingredients together.
- Cheese: For that salty, cheesy deliciousness. You could use almost any kind of shredded cheese.
- Butter: To fry the patties in. Use salted or unsalted butter.
- Leftover gravy: To top the patties. This one’s optional, but it adds a nice bit of flavor and deliciousness to the patties. We love this turkey gravy without drippings!
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Topping swap: While these stuffing patties taste amazing with the leftover gravy, you could also enjoy a different flavor by topping them with some homemade ham sauce instead.
- Herb wonder: Throw some chopped fresh herbs into the patty mixture to make the best herby leftover stuffing patties.
- Spice it up: Add a dash of cayenne into the patty mixture to lend the savory cakes a nice kick of heat. Or serve them up with our hot pepper sauce on the table.
- Extra crunchy: Coat the patties in some breadcrumbs before frying them to get that extra crunchy exterior.
How to Make Stuffing Patties
The best part about this Thanksgiving leftovers recipe is that you don’t need to turn on the oven or prep anything in advance. It’s just a few minutes of hands-on kitchen time!
Step 1: Prepare the patty mixture. In a large bowl, combine the mashed potatoes, stuffing, cheese, turkey and egg until you get a uniform mixture.
Step 2: Shape the patties. Portion out the mixture and flatten the balls into patties about 1 inch thick.
Step 3: Fry patties until crisp. Fry the patties over medium heat in a non-stick frying pan with a bit of oil or butter.
Step 4: Top and serve. Remove the patties, top them with some ketchup or gravy and serve them hot.
⭐ Hint: Add some chopped green onions to the patty mixture to add a nice bit of flavor to the stuffing patties.
If you love leftover Thanksgiving recipes like this one you may also enjoy these Leftover Turkey Carcass Soup, Leftover Turkey and Stuffing Muffins, Turkey and Stuffing Casserole (Crock Pot) or our hearty Turkey Pot Pie with Stuffing Crust recipe. For another Holiday recipe, make sure you take a look at our The Best Oven Roasted Turkey or our Dr. Pepper Glazed Ham (Crock Pot and Oven) recipe! it is delicious and will make your holiday dinner one to remember.
Storage
- Storing: If you have any leftover patties, allow them to cool down and then refrigerate them in an airtight container or a Ziploc bag. They should stay fresh for up to 3 days. Be sure to account for time your leftovers were stored. I wouldn’t recommend freezing these fried patties, as it can ruin their texture.
- Reheating: To reheat the patties, pop them in the microwave for a few minutes, or pan fry them over medium-low heat, making sure they don’t end up burning.
Serving Suggestions
These stuffing patties can be enjoyed with some of that delicious, savory gravy topped over them, as is. If you don’t have gravy, some spicy cranberry jam works wonderfully too!
I love serving them with a healthy salad, particularly my favorite cranberry apple coleslaw.
These patties can also be teamed up with a veggie side dish like balsamic roasted carrots or some butter and garlic carrots. I just feel like carrots work so wonderfully with the patties.
If you’re making these for a little get-together you’re hosting, finish them up with some no-bake pumpkin cheesecake for dessert!
Recipe Tips
- Make stuffing burgers: Use the stuffing patties for your homemade burgers. Place them between buns, top them with some ketchup, lettuce, cheese and enjoy!
- Perfect the texture: If the patty mixture seems too soft to handle and shape, add some flour into it and give it a mix. If it's too dry, add an egg. You might also need to season the mixture a little bit.
- Cook them right: Remember to cook the patties on medium heat. Cooking them on high heat will cause them to brown up on the outside, but stay undercooked in the middle.
- Work in batches: If you’ve made lots of patties, cook them in batches. Avoid overcrowding the pan with too many patties, as it can cause them to cook unevenly.
Recipe FAQs
You can! Rotisserie chicken is a great alternative to turkey. You can chop it up into small chunks or shred it- whatever you prefer.
You can! Once you’ve shaped the patties, arrange them on a baking tray, freeze them for a few hours until they’re solid, and then pop them into a freezer-safe bag or container before freezing them again.
More Delicious Turkey Recipes
Do you like turkey? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.
Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.
Turkey, Mashed Potato, and Stuffing Patties
Ingredients
- 5 cups leftover mashed potatoes
- ½ - 1 cup cheese, shredded
- 1 egg
- 2 cups leftover stuffing
- 2 cups leftover turkey, chopped
- vegetable oil or butter - for pan-frying
- leftover gravy, ketchup or sour cream as desired for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the mashed potatoes, cheese, stuffing, chopped turkey, egg. Using your hands, divide the mixture and then flatten into burgers about a 1 inch thick.
- Heat 3 to 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil or butter in a large fry pan over medium heat. Make sure the bottom of the pan is thoroughly coated.
- Fry the patties, in batches, until they're golden brown and crispy on both sides, around 4 or 5 minutes. Add more oil or butter to the pan as needed between batches. Do not overcrowd the pan and do not flip the burgers too soon or they won't develop a crisp crust and may fall apart. Transfer the burgers to a paper towel-lined plate and immediately sprinkle them with a dash of salt.
- Serve the potato burgers topped with leftover gravy, ketchup or sour cream
- NOTE: Leftover mashed potatoes vary in consistency depending on how much cream, milk or melted butter were added to the original batch. If the mashed potato burger mixture looks too dry and isn't holding together, add one more egg. If it looks too wet, add some flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is cohesive.
Notes
- Make stuffing burgers : Use the stuffing patties for your homemade burgers. Place them between buns, top them with some ketchup, lettuce, cheese and enjoy!
- Perfect the texture: If the patty mixture seems too soft to handle and shape, add some flour into it and give it a mix. If it's too dry, add an egg. You might also need to season the mixture a little bit
- Cook them right: Remember to cook the patties on medium heat. Cooking them on high heat will cause them to brown up on the outside, but stay undercooked in the middle.
- Work in batches: If you’ve made lots of patties, cook them in batches. Avoid overcrowding the pan with too many patties, as it can cause them to cook unevenly.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in January 2016. It has been updated with new images and content.
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