Every November, an American tradition filled with food, family and football commences to celebrate all the things we are thankful for. Whether you are thankful for any of the three things mentioned before, your friends, your health, job, Instagram reels, whatever it may be, we can all agree that the crown jewel of the holiday itself is the meal devoured and the stomachache that comes after. The question remains though—what Thanksgiving dish is the most vital to have a “complete” and “authentic” Thanksgiving experience?
My ranking system is purely subjective. I will be going in order of least vital to the meal, as in it can be burnt to a crisp or simply left out and no one would notice, to the most vital, as in if it is not done well or is missing, the dinner is ruined.
10. Green Bean Casserole
I am not a fan of green bean casserole. Green beans themselves aren’t super appealing to me as a vegetable, so the combination of green beans and cream of mushroom soup isn’t exactly my favorite mixture. However, the crunchy onions on top do make up for some of the shortcomings. My night goes off without a hitch if this meal gets ruined or messed up. It usually doesn’t find its way onto my plate.
9. Cranberry Sauce
A great, homemade cranberry sauce made with fresh cranberries is always appreciated, but you can never go wrong with a canned cranberry sauce either. While a good cranberry sauce is delightful, its absence isn’t ruining my life. It isn’t super hard to create and doesn’t have a whole lot of substance to it.
8. Dinner Rolls
This may be a controversial take, but my reasoning behind this is that most people simply buy dinner rolls instead of making them. So, there is definitely no bad blood amongst family members if these are left out/bad, since there is a high likelihood that they didn’t make it from scratch. Mild disappointment, but no lifelong relationships are ruined.
7. Cornbread
This is where things start to heat up. A lot of people are ride-or-die about their cornbread while a lot of people really couldn’t care less about it. However, in my opinion, a sweet, moist, fluffy cornbread is delectable, and I am disappointed if it comes out crumbly and dry. In that case, I will hold a neutral stance and rank this one towards the bottom because of the culturally mixed opinions on cornbread.
6. Sweet Potato Casserole
A precursor to the real dessert after the meal, sweet potato casserole is a must-have in many households for Thanksgiving. Compared to some of the other dishes, sweet potato casserole is a quick and easy dish that is relatively hard to ruin. Burnt marshmallows and too much sweetness can make it a little hard to digest with all the other savory dishes, so I would say a bad case of sweet potato casserole has the potential to make some in-laws displeased.
5. Pumpkin Pie
One undeniable fact about Thanksgiving is that you need one undeniably good dessert. Pumpkin pie is an absolute staple for a dessert option, and the dinner feels incomplete without it. However, pumpkin pie isn’t always the easiest to make, and there are hundreds of different recipes out there, where everybody has a different opinion on what makes a “perfect” pumpkin pie. If the pie is watery, bland or burnt, I might not talk to you for the rest of the night. Amends can be made at Christmas.
4. Stuffing
Stuffing is one of my personal favorites. Even a boxed Stovetop stuffing is absolutely fantastic every time. The savory composition and mixture of several different food components (carbs, protein, and vegetables) make it an extremely well-rounded option. That being said, soggy, or even worse, burnt stuffing is just about enough to start a fight at Thanksgiving if tensions among family members are already high.
3. Mashed Potatoes
Every year my mom and I are tasked with cooking mashed potatoes (and for good reason, my mother is an amazing cook). The keys to creating a mashed potato dish are fully cooked potatoes, a cream component and a LOT of butter. Not exactly the healthiest side dish, but if you’re counting calories on Thanksgiving, you’re doing it wrong. Absolutely vital to the meal; someone is getting yelled at if it is missing.
2. Turkey
This may come as a hot take not having turkey at #1, but in my opinion, turkey takes so long to cook that you MUST be unprepared to not do it well. That being said, I have had a subpar turkey before, and it is upsetting. A juicy, savory turkey cooked with rosemary, garlic, thyme and a little bit of lemon is delightful; there are tons of online recipes out there to help out, and most families have a foolproof turkey recipe that has been passed down for generations. However, it is true that you simply cannot have an authentic Thanksgiving without a turkey. Don’t even think about deep-frying it.
1. Macaroni and Cheese
Alas, my personal favorite dish: macaroni and cheese. Mac and cheese has always been a favorite of mine and my family’s, and millions of Americans share that opinion. A true staple on the fourth Thursday of November, though it is true that you can go wrong with mac and cheese. In fact, you can go very wrong. If you try to wing it or just think that a Kraft box is sufficient for everyone at the table, there is a good chance you won’t be invited to Thanksgiving in the future. My favorite recipe for mac and cheese right now is the one that chef influencer Tini made last year that went viral, and for good reason. If the mac and cheese comes out like a block, everybody look out.