When Thanksgiving gets mentioned, people automatically think of the delicious dishes that families share on the dinner table. It is the time of the year when everyone gathers around and tell what they are thankful for.
In the good old days, Native Americans and Pilgrims feasted on vegetables, seafood, cornbread, nuts, venison, and wildfowl. Today, Thanksgiving dinner is different.
People no longer associate seafood with Thanksgiving and eating swan, and other wild animals are now unheard of. With that being said, here are the most popular Thanksgiving dishes that are served every year.
Turkey
No traditional Thanksgiving dinner would be complete without turkey. In an informal conversation, some people refer to Thanksgiving as Turkey Day, according to History.
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Around 46 million turkeys are eaten every year on Thanksgiving. But there is always one lucky turkey that escapes because it is pardoned by the U.S. President at an annual ceremony at the White House, according to Constitution Center.
Stuffing
Another one of the most popular Thanksgiving dishes is stuffing. There are a lot of ways to make it, but it usually consists of finely chopped breadcrumbs, herbs, and onions that are stuffed inside the turkey and are cooked with the turkey inside of the oven.
Stuffing has a mushy texture, and it also takes a lot of flavor from the turkey.
Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are also another staple of any traditional Thanksgiving dinner. They are also very easy to make.
White potatoes originally came from South America and made their way to North America in 1621, according to Medium.com.
So even though mashed potatoes are now very popular at Thanksgiving dinner, they would not have been present at the original one. Mash potatoes are paired with the turkey and are eaten on the side.
Gravy
Gravy is a brown sauce that is made by adding flour to the juices that come out of the turkey while it is cooking.
On Thanksgiving, it is traditional to eat gravy with stuffing, turkey, and mashed potatoes. Almost every Thanksgiving dinner plate consists of these dishes.
Cornbread
One of the most popular and most favorite Thanksgiving side dishes is cornbread. It is a type of bread that is made from cornflour, and it has a cake-like consistency. It can be made sweet or savory, depending on how you want it. It is usually eaten with a bit of butter on top.
Rolls
Rolls are very common on Thanksgiving. Almost every household serves both rolls and cornbread. At the first recorded Thanksgiving meal, the Pilgrims did not have butter or wheat flour, so whatever bread they had would have been made out of corn.
Sweet Potato Casserole
Another common food during Thanksgiving is the sweet potato casserole. It is served as a side dish, not a dessert, even though it is very sweet.
Sweet potato casseroles are made of sweet potatoes, cinnamon, brown sugar, nutmeg, and other spices. Usually, sweet potato casseroles are topped with marshmallows.
Apple Pie
A meal will not be complete without desserts. One of the most popular Thanksgiving desserts is apple pie. Pies are essential on any traditional Thanksgiving food list, and most households bake their apple pie.
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