Sausage, Sage and Onion Quinoa Stuffing is a delicious twist on a classic favourite, making it the perfect addition to roast dinners, Sunday lunches or holiday feasts. Made with lean sausage, caramelised onions, fresh sage and fluffy quinoa, it's naturally gluten free and full of comforting flavour.
Quinoa makes a great alternative to traditional breadcrumbs, creating a stuffing that's moist in the middle with a beautifully golden top. It's simple to prepare, can be made ahead of time and pairs perfectly with chicken, turkey, pork and plenty of rich gravy.
Calories in Sausage Sage Onion Quinoa Stuffing
This recipe serves 6 and is 204 calories per serving.
If you're looking for more recipes by calories, you'll find plenty of options grouped by calorie range here: Slimming Eats Low Calorie Recipes
If you're following a calorie-controlled diet or a healthy eating plan, it's important to calculate your daily calorie needs using a reliable calorie calculator. The calorie counts provided are estimates and can vary depending on the exact ingredients and portion sizes you use. Using your own calculations helps ensure you're meeting your individual needs. A calorie calculator can help you make informed choices and stay on track with your goals.
See the recipe card for full nutritional estimation.
Ingredients Notes
To make this recipe you will need the following ingredients:
- Low Calorie Sausages: Use your favourite low-fat pork sausages and remove the meat from the casings before cooking.
- Quinoa: I like to use tricolour quinoa for the added texture and colour, but white, red or black quinoa will all work. Rinse the quinoa before cooking unless the packaging states it has already been rinsed.
- Chicken Stock: Cooking the quinoa in stock instead of water adds plenty of flavour. Use vegetable stock if preferred.
- Onion: Adds a delicious savoury sweetness and is an essential ingredient in any good stuffing.
- Balsamic Vinegar: A small splash adds depth of flavour and enhances the natural sweetness of the onion.
- Apple: A sweet eating apple such as Gala, Honeycrisp or Fuji works best, adding little bursts of sweetness that pair perfectly with the sausage and sage.
- Fresh Sage: Fresh sage gives the best flavour and is a classic herb for stuffing, especially when served with chicken or turkey.
- Salt and Black Pepper: Season to taste, keeping in mind the stock and sausages may already contain some salt.
- Olive Oil Spray: Just a light spray is all that's needed for cooking.
Once you've gathered all the ingredients and prepared them accordingly, you're all set to create this easy and delightful recipe.
See the recipe card for specific quantities and instructions.
Variations and Substitutes
This quinoa stuffing is easy to adapt to suit your tastes or what you have available.
- Keep it gluten free: Quinoa is naturally gluten free, so just make sure you use gluten-free sausages and gluten-free stock if needed.
- Swap the quinoa: Cooked brown rice, wild rice or a blend of the two make great alternatives. If you don't need the recipe to be gluten free, coarse bulgur wheat is another delicious option with a similar hearty texture.
- Swap the sausage: Extra lean pork mince (you will need to add some seasonings and a bit of honey or maple syrup for caramelization), turkey sausage or chicken sausage.
- Change the fruit: Replace the apple with dried cranberries, chopped dried apricots or raisins for a sweeter, festive twist.
- Add nuts: Chopped pecans, walnuts or toasted hazelnuts add delicious crunch and extra flavour.
- Try different herbs: Fresh thyme, rosemary or parsley can be used instead of, or alongside, the sage.
- Boost the vegetables: Finely diced celery, mushrooms or carrots can be sautéed with the onion for extra flavour and texture.
- Add extra seasoning: A pinch of poultry seasoning, garlic powder or onion powder works beautifully with the sausage and herbs.
Serving Suggestions
This Sausage, Sage and Onion Quinoa Stuffing is the perfect accompaniment to all kinds of roast dinners and holiday feasts.
Serve it as part of a Canadian or American Thanksgiving dinner alongside roast turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, green beans and roasted vegetables. It's equally delicious as part of a Christmas dinner, paired with turkey, ham or roast chicken, pigs in blankets, roasted potatoes, Brussels sprouts and all your favourite festive sides.
It also makes a wonderful addition to a traditional Sunday roast, served with chicken, turkey or pork, plenty of seasonal vegetables, crispy potatoes and a generous helping of rich homemade gravy. Leftovers are delicious served with cold meats, or reheated as part of another roast dinner later in the week.
Storing, Freezing and Reheating
To Store: Allow the stuffing to cool completely, then transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
To Freeze: Portion the cooled stuffing into freezer-safe containers or bags and freeze for up to 3 months.
To Reheat: Reheat from the refrigerator in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for 20-25 minutes, or until piping hot throughout. From frozen, cover with foil and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 40-50 minutes, removing the foil for the last 5-10 minutes so the top can crisp up again. Individual portions can also be reheated in the microwave until heated through.
More Side Dish Recipes
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Recipe Card
Sausage Sage Onion Quinoa Stuffing
This Sausage, Sage and Onion Quinoa Stuffing is a delicious twist on a classic, perfect for roast dinners, Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts and can be made gluten free.
Ingredients
- 300g of low calorie Pork Sausage, remove casing
- 105g (3.7oz) of uncooked quinoa
- 1.5 cups (360ml) of chicken stock.
- 1 onion, quartered and sliced
- ½ tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
- 1 apple, peeled and chopped
- 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped sage
- salt and black pepper to season
- olive oil spray
Instructions
- Rinse the quinoa under cold water, then add it to a saucepan with the stock. Bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 10–15 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
- Remove from the heat, cover with a lid and leave to stand for 10 minutes, then fluff the quinoa with a fork.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan), 400°F or gas mark 6.
- Lightly spray a frying pan with olive oil spray and place over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until softened. Stir in the apple and balsamic vinegar and continue to cook for a couple of minutes, until the vinegar has reduced.
- Transfer the onion mixture to the cooked quinoa, then add the sausage meat, chopped sage and a little salt and black pepper. Mix well until everything is evenly combined.
- Lightly grease an ovenproof dish with olive oil spray, then spoon in the stuffing mixture and press it down into an even layer. Lightly spray the top with more olive oil spray.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until the top is golden and the sausage is cooked through.
- Serve alongside your favourite roast dinner and enjoy.
Notes
Please see below for full nutritional info and additional details about recipe:
- Calories - scroll down to nutritional info box
- WW Points and other Slimming or Weight Loss programs - due to plans regularly changing and updating, we recommend calculating with the official tools you get as a member to those plans to ensure accuracy of values.
- Gluten Free Friendly - use gluten free sausages and stock
- Dairy Free Friendly
- ❄️ Freezer Friendly - see storing, freezing and reheating section
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Nutrition Information
Yield
6Serving Size
1 servingAmount Per Serving Calories 204Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 3gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 44mgSodium 517mgCarbohydrates 19gFiber 2gSugar 4gProtein 11g
Nutritional information and values etc are an estimate and is to be used for informational purposes only. Ingredients can vary greatly from brand to brand and therefore it would be impossible to give accurate information. It is always advised that you calculate by the ingredients you use.
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