Top 7 Thanksgiving Dishes

Happy Thanksgiving! It’s a time of joy, laughter, and food. The traditional Thanksgiving dinner preferences never alter gravy, pie, potatoes, veggies, and turkey. The process of making these dishes changes, however, changes with the people, trends, and dietary requirements. Here is a list of delicious dishes that is sure to make your Thanksgiving different than any other year!

Roast Turkey

No Thanksgiving dinner is complete without a roast turkey. Regardless of how you make your turkey, make sure it’s big enough to feed everyone and have leftovers for yourself for the next day. Here are a few recommendations on how to cook your turkey:

• The classic roast turkey: Defrost, Stuff, Truss, Season, and Roast. You can also stuff it if you choose to.
• A roast turkey with bacon: The bacon helps keep the turkey moist and gives it a smoky and juicy finish.
• If you like your turkey sweet, you can make a balsamic and honey roast turkey with thyme and oranges. It is a simple yet flavorful recipe.

Dressings and Stuffings

While dressings and stuffings are similar, they are not the same. The primary difference is that the filling is inside the turkey, and the dressing is made and served differently. However, this preference is changing as people prefer to cook turkeys with no stuffing amidst the growing concerns of how the filling can soak in raw poultry juices contaminated with salmonella.

Here’s how you can cook beautiful sides:

• Make a moist bread dressing with chopped nuts, diced apples, dried cranberries, or raisins.
• Cook the old-fashioned Southern-style cornbread dressing.
• Another easy and quick dish to make is a chicken and dressing casserole.

Turkey Gravy

Gravy is just as important as the turkey in many households. Our recipes are simple and time-saving, letting the flavors shine. Ensure that your sauce is just as thick and tasty as your roast with these simple recipes:

• A rich and delicious chicken or turkey gravy that takes 15 minutes to cook. The drippings of the sauce have the most flavor.
• Make a gravy without drippings if you don’t cook a turkey. You can cook this sauce with a lard, oil, or bacon grease and flour base to make it rich and silky.
• The most challenging recipe is the 24hour gravy. This is for those chasing authentic flavor and for the cook who is not satisfied with pan dripped sauce.

Cranberry Sauce

You can make cranberry sauce in different ways. The best part of the cranberry sauce is that it absorbs citrus flavoring, liqueur, or spices without losing its flavor. Here are a few cranberry sauce recipes that are quick and flavorful with a meat of your choosing.

• Make cranberry sauce in 15 minutes using the Instant Pots. Add cinnamon, maple syrup, orange, and vanilla for an extra kick.
• Make a quick cranberry sauce using four ingredients in 15 minutes. It’s perfect if you’re in a rush to make a dressing, like jam, cake, or cupcake fillings.
• You can quickly transform a mixture of cranberries, sugar, and water into a delicious jellied cranberry sauce. Serve it cold!

Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are a crowd favorite – you can make it in different ways to complement your Thanksgiving palette. Our recipes have various cooking methods, and flavors so pick the one that suits you best.

• Make garlic mashed potatoes to have an exciting mix of flavor and elegance. Adding butter and milk helps make it creamy. However, you can easily switch these with dairy-free options and margarine to suit your dietary requirements.
• If your stovetop is full, you can make an instant pot version in a fraction of time. This is also great because you can forget about it and focus on cooking other dishes.

Sweet Potato And Yam Slides

People confuse sweet potatoes and yams as the same thing. While they’re both root veggies, they have different flavor profiles and textures. When they’re combined, they add the much-needed touch to your dinner table. While they’re both a must, you can pick your favorite. Here are a few recipes for you:

• Make a sweet potato casserole along with a sweet potato soufflé
• Try the less sweet version of sweet potatoes with more crunch and less sugar.
• If you love yam, you can make candied yams with marshmallows. Another option is to make a sweet potato casserole with marshmallows.

Cooked Vegetable Sides

You can make as many vegetable sides as there are vegetables. There’s no fixed menu for vegetable sides, so our recommendations vary according to flavors and textures:

• Turn your Brussel sprouts into a dill slaw topped with diced roasted almonds to add a crunch.
• If you have green beans in your pantry, you can make green beans supreme with sour cream, cheese, and various herbs.
• Another simple dish you can make is glazed carrots – simply add water, butter, and sugar to have a dish ready in 30 minutes.
• Try the mustard greens with bacon recipe if you wish to add a southern twist to your dinner table. The simple addition of bacons, onions, and pepper can make the dish comforting.

Bottom Line

Happy Thanksgiving! Regardless of what you make, don’t forget the secret ingredient: love and gratitude. On this beautiful day, make sure you acknowledge everything that’s gotten you this far. Be grateful for the opportunities and people you’ve gained, along with all the hardships that only make you stronger.