Overnight Sausage Strata

Name: Overnight Sausage Strata
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 10 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 lb day-old bread; 2 lb breakfast sausage; 3 cups shredded sharp cheddar; 12 large eggs; 3 cups whole milk; 1 tsp dry mustard; 1 cup sautéed onion; 1/2 cup sliced green onions

Make-ahead bread, sausage, and egg bake rested overnight and baked hot.

Prep: 25 min
Cook: 50 min
Serves 10
Difficulty: easy

Sausage, bread, and cheese layered overnight with egg custard, baked until puffed and golden. Make-ahead hall breakfast for early shift change.

691Cal

39gProtein

30gCarbs

46gFat

Ingredients

1 lb day-old bread
2 lb breakfast sausage
3 cups shredded sharp cheddar
12 large eggs
3 cups whole milk
1 tsp dry mustard
1 cup sautéed onion
1/2 cup sliced green onions

Instructions

Brown sausage and build layers: Cook sausage until no pink remains and internal temperature reaches 160°F; drain. Grease a deep 9x13 pan. Layer half the bread cubes, sausage, optional onion, and half the cheddar. Repeat layers.
Mix and pour custard: Whisk eggs, milk, mustard, salt, pepper, and nutmeg until smooth. Pour evenly over the bread layers, pressing gently so all cubes contact liquid.
Refrigerate overnight: Cover tightly and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight so bread fully absorbs custard. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before baking to take the chill off the pan.
Bake until puffed: Heat oven to 375°F. Top with remaining cheddar. Bake uncovered 45–50 minutes until center reaches 165°F, top is golden, and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Rest and portion: Rest 10 minutes before cutting into squares so custard sets for clean portions. Garnish with green onions and serve with hot sauce at the line.

Station workflow

Assemble the night before so morning service is mostly oven time.
Use stale bread—fresh bread turns to mush after an overnight soak.
Check center temp with a probe; golden top can hide under-set custard in the middle.

Cleanup

Wash the assembly pan the morning of service while the strata bakes in the oven.
Discard any custard that spilled and baked onto the oven floor once cooled.

Leftovers

Reheat portions covered at 325°F for 12 minutes until steaming in the center.
Cube leftovers and pan-fry in butter for crispy strata hash with a fried egg on top.