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Sourdough stuffing balls

By: Ben Tish

Published: 9 Nov 22
Updated: 17 Oct 24

This stuffing recipe by Ben Tish makes a vibrant, zingy alternative to the heavy, traditional versions. Great with turkey, chicken or goose or even as a standalone dish accompanied by a salad of winter leaves.

Plan your festive meals with our complete collection of Christmas trimmings, sides and sauces.

After working under Jason Atherton, Ben made his name as a chef and partner in the Salt Yard Group of London restaurants. Ben joined Cubitt House in 2021 to help revitalise their pub menus. He’s written five cookbooks – most recently Sicilia, a recipe travelogue (Bloomsbury Absolute £26).

Easy
November 2022

Test kitchen approved

Serves 8-10
Hands-on time 20 min, plus chilling. Oven time 25-27 min

Plan your festive meals with our complete collection of Christmas trimmings, sides and sauces.

Vegetarian recipes

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 228kcals
Fat: 17.4g (2.2g saturated)
Protein: 5g
Carbohydrates: 11.9g (5.8g sugars)
Fibre: 1.7g
Salt: 0.1g

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Ingredients

100ml whole milk
1 slice sourdough bread, ideally stale, crusts removed
100ml extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra to fry and grease
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp coriander seeds, crushed
100g cooked wild rice
100g ground almonds
Finely grated zest 1 orange
Finely grated zest 1 lemon
30g chopped almonds, plus extra to decorate (optional)
70g medjool dates, stoned and chopped, plus extra to decorate (optional)
Handful flatleaf parsley, chopped
Handful oregano, chopped
1 tbsp sherry vinegar

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Method

Pour the milk into a shallow dish. Roughly tear the slice of bread into small chunks and mix them with the milk so they soak it up. Set aside.
Heat a deep medium frying pan over a low heat and add a generous glug of oil. Once hot, add the onion and cook for 6-8 minutes until almost softened but not coloured. Add the coriander seeds, cook for a further minute, then tip in the rice. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper, stirring to coat the rice with the oil, then cook for an extra minute or so to lightly toast the rice. Transfer to a mixing bowl.
Squeeze the soaked bread to drain, then add it to the mixture along with the ground almonds. Mix well, adding just a splash of the leftover milk if the mixture appears too dry. Add the orange and lemon zest, chopped almonds, dates, herbs, 100ml oil and vinegar. Season.

Roll the stuffing into plum-size balls, then decorate each one with extra dates and/or almonds, if you like. Put the balls in a container, cover and chill for at least 2 hours (see Make Ahead).
Heat the oven to 160°C fan/ gas 4. Drizzle a baking tray with olive oil and put the stuffing balls onto it, drizzling the tops with a little extra oil and
sprinkling with salt. Bake for 20 minutes, then turn up the oven to 180°C fan/gas 6 and cook for another 5-7 minutes until golden brown on top.