How To Make A Thanksgiving Menu!

Thanksgiving is the holiday most associated with food. While big meals are standard on many holidays, they are the main attraction at Thanksgiving. As such, planning a Thanksgiving dinner can be daunting. Today, I will show you how to make a Thanksgiving menu!

Entrees

Let’s start with the main course. For most, this will be the turkey. There are a few factors you need to consider when picking your turkey. Firstly, you need to pick the right size bird for your guest list. We usually have between 8 to 10 people to feed on Thanksgiving, and I like to have leftovers, so I typically go with a 20lb turkey. If you are feeding five or fewer people and don’t care about leftovers, a 12lb turkey will do.

Turkey is the star of the Thanksgiving menu.

The next thing to consider is how you will cook your turkey. The traditional method is to roast it in the oven. Popular alternatives are deep frying or smoking your turkey. This will require special equipment if you plan to cook it yourself, so take that into consideration when making your decision. All you need to roast your turkey is a good-sized roasting pan and an oven.

If turkey is not your preference, ham is a common alternative. Many families, mine included, cook both a turkey and a ham. Most hams you buy at the supermarket are already cooked, you just have to heat them up.

For a beef alternative, you could try a prime rib roast or brisket. A great budget friendly alternative would be my Mississippi Pot Roast recipe. If you want to go way outside the box, you could always try a seafood dinner.

Thanksgiving Sides

Thanksgiving is one meal where the sides often outshine the entree. Sides will vary by region, but there are delicious options all around.

My favorite side has become the stuffing/dressing. Growing up, I never cared for dressing, but now I can’t get enough of it. I make a cornbread-style dressing and put some in the turkey as stuffing and the rest in a casserole dish. The key to good dressing, in my opinion, is good chicken broth to soak the breading in.

Growing up, my favorite side was mashed potatoes. Whether covered in turkey gravy or drenched in juice straight off the bird, mashed potatoes are a Thanksgiving staple.

Another must-have at our Thanksgiving dinners is turnip greens. Collards are a good alternative. The greens bring a nice balance to what is inevitably going to be a carb-heavy day. Check out my Southern Turnip Greens recipe if you are looking to try greens for the first time!

Leafy greens aren’t the only option to bring some fiber to the table. Green beans are a Thanksgiving classic. Green bean casserole is an occasional alternative we have used.

And who can forget the cranberry sauce? Last year, I experimented with a homemade cranberry sauce for the first time. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but my wife and kids actually preferred the canned variety! Go with your preference here, you can’t go wrong with either.

These are the core sides for a great Thanksgiving, in my opinion, but we always have more options. Mac and cheese is almost always on the table for this event. My dad almost always brings lima beans and fried potatoes. Other options include corn on the cob, sweet potato casserole, black-eyed peas, and squash casserole.

The great thing about having a ton of sides is that you can mix and match with leftovers for days after Thanksgiving. You can have turkey, dressing, and mashed potatoes for one meal and then ham, turnip greens, and mac and cheese for the next. It really helps stretch this big meal and fully utilize the money you put into it.

Thanksgiving Appetizers

We don’t usually have an appetizer course on our Thanksgiving menu, but we do serve some dishes that are considered appetizers. If you want to serve multiple courses for a fancier dinner, these options will help fill that role.

Deviled eggs are the obvious first choice. Traditional deviled eggs with mayo and relish will more than do the trick, but if you want to get extravagant, you can throw some cajun crab dip into the filling. Chicken or tuna salad-filled deviled eggs are also good options.

Dinner rolls are always on the table for the big meal, but you could also serve them ahead of time like most restaurants do. This works especially well with homemade bread.

Another idea is to convert a traditional Thanksgiving side into a bite-sized appetizer. This can be anything from fried mashed potato bites to roasted sweet potatoes.

Aside from food, Thanksgiving is also known for football. If watching some pigskin is a big deal in your home, consider some gameday snacks for a good Thanksgiving appetizer.

Thanksgiving Desserts

Last but not least, we have dessert. Thanksgiving wouldn’t be complete without a sweet cap to the meal. I prefer pies to cakes for my finale, but there are plenty of good options for both.

Pecan pie is the pie I remember most from my childhood. The sweet filling with pecans on top can’t be beaten, especially when the pie is nice and warm.

Apple pie became a favorite of mine as an adult. I’m generally not a big fan of apples, but in pie form, they are like mana from heaven.

Another staple of Thanksgiving in the South is sweet potato pie. I prefer sweet potato casserole myself, but the pie is pretty good too! It’s also very easy to make. Pumpkin pie is a good substitute that is also seasonally appropriate.

As a chocoholic, I can’t go without mentioning chocolate pie. My mother’s chocolate pie is a family favorite, and she often has to make whole pies for others to take home!

Speaking of chocolate, if you prefer cakes, you can’t go wrong with a perfect chocolate cake. However, when I do go for cake at Thanksgiving, it’s often the Hummingbird cake.

Making A Thanksgiving Menu

With so many wonderful options, the key to a good Thanksgiving menu is knowing your audience. You could make the best turnip greens in the world, but if none of your guests like greens, it will be for naught.

If you have a big enough budget, a broad menu can help alleviate this problem. But if your budget is tight, don’t hesitate to ask your guests what they would like to have. Find dishes with the broadest appeal, and make the best version of it you can!

Another factor to consider is how easy your menu will be to cook. You only have so much oven space. Having guests or family members bring a dish can help with this issue. But if you have no help, make sure your kitchen can handle the menu you make.