This bountiful collection of 35 Thanksgiving side dish recipes brings together timeless classics and inventive flavor pairings to complete your Thanksgiving feast. From vibrant seasonal vegetables to starchy sides like potatoes, stuffing, or mac and cheese, this list has your Thanksgiving side needs covered.
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Hosting Thanksgiving is one of my favorite activities. While my family isn't local and I don't usually travel for Thanksgiving, I almost always host a Friendsgiving or find my way to someone's house. When you're good at cooking, there usually isn't any shortage of Thanksgiving opportunities!
Usually when I go to someone's house, I'll bring both a side and a dessert (like my Apple Pie Cupcakes). A lot of these recipes are portable if you need to make them ahead and bring them with you. There are also a lot of simple recipes in this list, which are perfect for bringing limited ingredients to someone's house to make there. There are a few more complex show-stopper types, too. The heartiest recipe is probably the roasted vegetable pot pie. I make this as a side, but this is also substantive enough as a main dish for vegetarians.
My typical Thanksgiving menu includes turkey, mashed potatoes, roasted veg pot pie, a couple of veggies, stuffing, and rolls. Sometimes I include mac and cheese, too.
Thanksgiving Survival Tips
Planning ahead is key, especially if you're responsible for the whole dinner. Read all of your recipes in advance. Take note of what needs to be chilled or rested. Look for any special equipment or ingredients you might not have.
Make sure you have a good grasp of what will need to be in the oven and at what times. Also remember that, for the most part, temperatures do not need to be exact. If you have one recipe that bakes at 350 and the other 375, meet in the middle or just choose one. This will cause cooking times to vary a bit, but it can alleviate some stress of "the oven will be at 350 for 45 minutes but I have this thing that also needs to be in there at 375."
Plan your servings in advance. If you make a ton of different dishes, a recipe that says "6 servings" might actually make 8 or 10 since people will be sampling a little bit of everything. The Internet has some great guides for planning servings, like this visual guide to green bean casserole servings from Ask The Food Geek.
Don't be afraid to pull out the KitchenAid stand mixer you rarely use, and think outside the box from just baking. I use mine to make mashed potatoes!
Rolls and breads can usually be made the day before and reheated, so take advantage of that! Stuffing is also something I make ahead, though this can be controversial to folks who like their stuffing on the wetter side.
While many people find this annoying, I really recommend reading all of the War and Peace text before the actual recipe card. This is where you will often find tips for making the recipe ahead of time or at least making portions of it ahead of time.
Vegetables & Casseroles
Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes
Rice
Mac & Cheese
Stuffing
Rolls & Cornbread
