Seafood Dressing

Loaded with tender shrimp, tasty veg, lots of color, and a buttery flavor that can’t be beaten, this Seafood Dressing is so good you’ll forget about whatever else you’re having for dinner! It’s a delish and easy side dish, but it also doubles as a seafood stuffing. Craving buttery-seafood deliciousness? Let’s get cooking!

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I was inspired by Costco’s stuffed salmon when I set out to make this recipe. I love the stuffing they use in their salmon – it’s rich, buttery, and is loaded with flavor. But, their stuffed salmon is a rare and special treat because of the price! It is crazy expensive here, so I set out to make it myself. And, I must say, this is way better, and I think it’s the best darn seafood dressing out there.

What You’ll Need To Make The Best Seafood Dressing Recipe on the Planet!

Go big or go home, right? That this is the best on the planet might seem like a bold assertion, but I challenge you to try it and tell me it’s not! Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy seafood stuffing or dressing:

• Rice – White or brown rice works well. Use leftover rice if you have it.
• Stuffing mix – I used pre-seasoned chicken stuffing mix. Dried cornbread dressing would also work.
• Shrimp – You need small shrimp for this recipe. See my notes below.
• Crab – Imitation or real crab meat.
• Seafood broth – Or chicken broth (vegetable broth also works.)
• Cream cheese – Just a little bit helps bind it all together and adds a delish richness.
• Butter – Salted or unsalted.
• Celery – Finely diced.
• Onion – Finely diced.
• Red or Green bell pepper – Finely diced.
• Dill – Use fresh dill. Hate dill? Just use parsely.
• Parsley – Finely chopped.
• Garlic – Finely minced.
• Old Bay seasoning

For the topping:

• Panko bread crumbs
• Butter
• Parmesan – I like grated Parmesan for this recipe but shredded will also work.

What Kind of Shrimp Do You Use in Seafood Dressing?

I use salad shrimp (baby shrimp) in this shrimp stuffing recipe. You want tiny shrimp so that if you do use it as a stuffing, you don’t have bits of shrimp sticking out. If you don’t have salad shrimp or can’t find it, use the smallest shrimp you can get and chop them up a bit.

Use pre-cooked shelled and deveined shrimp.

Imitation Crab vs Real Crab

Imitation crab is widely available and works perfectly fine in this seafood stuffing for fish or veggies. Just chop it up finely. If you have access to fresh crab and it’s not outrageously expensive, use fresh.

How To Make This Easy Seafood Dressing Recipe

For a complete list of ingredients and instructions, please scroll down to the recipe at the bottom of this page.

1. Prep your veggies. Finely dice the onions, celery, and red (or green) bell pepper.
2. Sautee the veggies in the butter until just tender. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute or until the garlic is aromatic.
3. Add the cream cheese to the hot veggies and mix until the cream cheese has melted into them.
4. Mix the cooked rice, stuffing mix, shrimp, crab (or imitation crab), herbs, and Old Bay in a bowl with the vegetable mixture. Stir well to combine.
5. Add the chicken or seafood broth. The mixture should be damp and will form a clump if you press it together, but not wet. It’ll moisten up more as it cooks.

To make the buttery, crunchy topping for your crab stuffing:

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan or in the microwave.
2. Add the Panko bread crumbs and Parmesan. Mix well.

To assemble:

1. Put the seafood dressing mixture into a casserole dish and sprinkle the buttery Panko topping over the top.
2. Bake at 350-F covered, for about 15-20 minutes (depending on the depth of your casserole dish) and then take the cover off for the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Chef Jenn’s Tips

• If you’re using this as shrimp stuffing, make sure you finely dice all your vegetables. You don’t want big chunks sticking out of whatever you’re stuffing it into.
• If your dressing is too wet (if it squishes when you squeeze a ball together) add a bit more of the dried stuffing mix to absorb the liquid.
• Old Bay already has salt in it – cook a bit of the seafood dressing in the microwave to test it for salt and pepper, adding as necessary.

What To Do With Seafood Dressing

Seafood dressing is perfect on its own as a side dish. Serve ith with all your favorite dishes, or try one of the following:

• Seafood stuffed salmon
• Seafood stuffed peppers
• Seafood stuffed mushroom
• Seafood stuffed lobster, shrim, crab
• Surf & Turf – serve this seafood stuffing recipe with a steak. Yum!

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Step By Step Process

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