How To Make Thanksgiving Dinner

Looking for ideas on what to make for Thanksgiving dinner? Here’s everything you need to create a delicious turkey dinner, whether you’re serving 6 people or 16!

Turkey dinner seems stressful, but with some planning, it’s not difficult. While making turkey dinner, your best friends are planning and timing. We are here to help with the planning, and show you how to time your turkey dinner so it comes out perfectly every time.

Initial Planning for Turkey Dinner

PRINT this Thanksgiving Planner to write it all down if you’d like. This helps make sure that all dishes are accounted for and that none are forgotten to be served (yes, it has happened to me!). I find that writing down the timing helps make the day go smoothly and keeps everything on track (and if anyone is helping you, they’ll know just what needs to be done next).

The first step to planning the turkey dinner is determining how many people you’ll be serving so you can plan the menu and the grocery shopping.

I have included the number of servings with this Thanksgiving dinner menu based on how many guests you’ll be having—you can add more if you’d like extra leftovers. You’ll need extra dinner plates, cutlery, and more ingredients (and a larger turkey) as your guest list grows.

Decor: Next, I like to sit down and brainstorm some decor ideas for the house and the dinner table. If you don’t have enough plates, feel free to mix and match or even buy a Thanksgiving dinner kit like these, which include cutlery, napkins, plates, and sometimes decorations to make this part of the dinner super simple. Plus, easy cleanup! You can also find Thanksgiving table decor on Amazon that you can use year after year.

To create a mood during Thanksgiving dinner, I suggest some soft music, lighting a few candles (unscented is best for meals), and keeping everyone chatting. I like to make a specialty cocktail for my guests – eggnog, mulled wine, or, most often, my husband’s party punch.

Some things to consider if you need or have enough:

Thanksgiving Dinner Grocery List

Next, it’s time to create a grocery list for the ingredients we need to make the perfect turkey dinner. Great news, we have already done that part for you!

I aim to do my Thanksgiving dinner shopping 3 days before the big day, so I can ensure the ingredients are fresh but it also gives me time to brine the turkey (if I am brining it), premake the pumpkin pie, and do any prep work I can to make the big moment a little less stressful. You may need to get the turkey in advance if it needs more time to defrost (check out how long to thaw a turkey here)!

Here is the Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

Choose either turkey or ham along with stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy. For the sides, this menu includes sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, brussels sprouts, dinner rolls, and cranberry sauce. (I often add mac and cheese and/or corn casserole too).

Thanksgiving Turkey

Turkey

Baked Ham with Brown Sugar Glaze

Pork

Easy Stuffing Recipe

Side Dishes

The BEST Mashed Potatoes Recipe

Side Dishes

How to Make Gravy

Kitchen Tips

Sweet Potato Casserole

Side Dishes

Classic Green Bean Casserole

Casseroles

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Bacon

Side Dishes

30 Minute Dinner Rolls

Side Dishes

Cranberry Sauce

Thanksgiving

• Turkey or Ham – depending on which you’d prefer to serve, or both for a bigger  crowd
• Stuffing – my personal favorite Thanksgiving dish
• Homemade Mashed Potatoes (or Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes) – the crock pot can save precious oven space on the big day
• Gravy – prepare this while the turkey rests
• Sweet Potato Casserole – can be prepared ahead of time
• Green Bean Casserole – a classic that is super easy to prepare
• Brussel Sprouts – our favorite, feel free to replace with another veggie of choice
• 30 Minute Dinner Rolls – also make ahead, a day or two before Thanksgiving
• Cranberry Sauce – make months ahead and freeze
• Pumpkin Pie, Apple Pie, or Pecan Pie – depending on which you’d prefer to serve
• Whipped Cream – or buy a can of whipped cream if you’d prefer

How To Make Thanksgiving Dinner

You can print out this Thanksgiving Dinner Menu List to refer to how many of each recipe to make for your dinner. This list shows how many servings one recipe makes, and then the number of recipes to make based on the number of servings that you need. For the turkey and ham, we’ve listed the size of turkey recommended. The grocery lists include groceries for the number of recipes listed in the table. If you’d like to add more servings or an extra pie, remember to update your grocery list!

Printable Grocery Lists

These grocery lists contain everything you need in order to create this menu for 6, 10, or 16 people. If you’re serving 10 or 16, you may want to do both a turkey and a ham, and two or three pies. We love serving both pecan pie and pumpkin pie if there is a large crowd.

• Grocery List for Thanksgiving Dinner for 6 people
• Grocery List for Thanksgiving Dinner for 10 people
• Grocery List for Thanksgiving Dinner for 16 people

Tip: As you go over the grocery list, remember to double check any dietary restrictions from your guests. If someone is vegetarian, it may be a good idea to substitute chicken broth for vegetable broth in some of the sides, or other substitutions you may have to incorporate.

Let’s Get Prepping

Okay, it’s time to begin getting dinner ready, even if Thanksgiving isn’t for a couple of days. The key is in the timing. Anything you can do early, do a day or two before Thanksgiving.

Some of my prep includes:

1 month or more before

• Prepare the cranberry sauce and freeze
• Prepare pies and freeze
• Prepare the dinner rolls and freeze

3-5 days before

• Thaw the turkey if it’s frozen. This usually takes several days.

2 days before:

• Baking the dinner rolls (and freeze them to keep fresh—remove them from the freezer on the morning of serving)
• Prepare the cranberry sauce if you haven’t frozen it previously
• Decorate the table if the space allows
• Lay out the recipes and prepare what can be done ahead of time, such as trimming the brussels sprouts, chopping onions and celery for stuffing, and chopping the sweet potatoes.
• Set out the stuffing bread to dry

1 day before:

• Prepare and bake the dessert or pies or remove them from the freezer if you’ve done this ahead of time
• Remove the cranberry sauce from the freezer
• Brine the turkey if you are using a brine—I don’t usually brine my turkey.
• Plan the serving dishes (a sticky note in each makes it easier for those helping with serving).
• Option: Prepare the stuffing and refrigerate—this can also be done the day of if you’d like.

Things that should be done on the day of serving:

• Remove pies from the fridge – so they can come to room temperature
• Cooking the sides – You can put the sides in the oven while the turkey rests
• The potatoes – don’t cut the potatoes in advance or they can oxidize and turn gray
• The turkey – should be cooked on the day of serving if possible
• Gravy – you will whip this up while the turkey rests, using the drippings from the turkey pan

On Thanksgiving Day

Let’s Talk Thanksgiving Appetizers

Having some appetizers ready for when the guests arrive is a nice way to start your event. You can consider asking a guest to bring an appetizer or even a dessert to help.

Some of our favorite make ahead appetizer recipes include:

• A charcuterie board – simple and fun
• Jalapeno poppers – just put them in the oven when people start arriving
• A cheese ball – creative and easy
• Spinach and artichoke dip – a classic
• Crostini – make ahead, and perfect for dips

Let’s Get Cooking

• The first thing to start cooking is the turkey. A general rule of thumb for an unstuffed turkey is 20 minutes per pound, but you can reference this post about turkey temperatures to ensure you time it correctly, remembering to account for resting time and a little bit of extra time just in case.
• Once the turkey is in the oven, start the Crock Pot mashed potatoes, because those will take the longest.
• Next, it’s time to start working on the side dishes: cooking the stuffing ingredients, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, and brussel sprouts. When all the sides are ready to bake, cover them and refrigerate them until you’re ready to bake them.
• When the turkey is done, tent it with aluminum foil to rest while the sides go in the oven. Use kitchen timers, post it notes, or even phone alarms to ensure everything cooks correctly. The turkey has to rest for at least 20 minutes (or up to 30 minutes) and it will take about 10 to 15 minutes to carve the turkey so you’ll have about 45 minutes to cook the sides.
• While the sides are in, transfer the turkey to a platter and use the drippings to cook the gravy on the stovetop. Set out the other sides like cranberry sauce, and dinner rolls (we have definitely forgotten the cranberry sauce before, so keep it close on the day!)
• Allow the sides to rest for 5-10 minutes while you carve the turkey. Here’s the easiest way to carve a turkey.

Timing Tips For Thanksgiving Dinner

With the right prep, timing will be much easier. Here are some tips for timing your turkey dinner so everything comes out at the same time and to plan out your day on the Thanksgiving Planner:

• The turkey needs to rest for 30 minutes, and that will be your busiest 30 minutes. Keep an eye on the side dishes. If something is done, cover it with aluminum foil to keep it hot.
• If the turkey is ready too soon, cover it with tin foil and splash it with chicken (or turkey) broth to keep it juicy while it sits. Any seasoned cook will tell you that, on occasion, a turkey can take much longer or cook much faster than expected.
• Stuffing the turkey will make it more difficult to time everything correctly. When stuffing is made in the turkey, it must also reach an internal temperature of 165°F. This can cause the breast meat to dry out while the middle comes to temperature. I prefer to make the stuffing on the side or prepare crock pot stuffing instead.
• If someone offers to bring a dish, let them—feel free to let them be creative or be specific (‘Please bring a vegetable’ or ‘If you could bring brussels sprouts that would be great!’). Desserts, mashed potatoes, sides, or dinner rolls are great dishes to have people bring.
• If you’re serving a warm dessert, put it in the oven (which has been turned off) while everyone is eating the turkey dinner. Apple pie is usually served warm, but pumpkin pie or pecan pie can be served at room temperature.