Thanksgiving Dinner Menu Ideas For Every Kind of Gathering

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu Ideas For Every Kind of Gathering

Roasted poultry next to Thanksgiving side dishes for Thanksgiving Dinner Menu Ideas article.

Thanksgiving dinner isn’t difficult because there’s a shortage of recipes. It’s difficult because the turkey, gravy, potatoes, stuffing, vegetables and appetizers all need to come together at roughly the same time.

This Thanksgiving Dinner Menu ideas guide is where I’ve organized everything I use to plan the meal, from choosing the turkey and sides to figuring out what can be made ahead and what needs the oven on Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu Ideas

Start with the full menu or jump to the section you need, including turkey recipes, appetizers, side dishes, potatoes, vegetables, gravy and desserts.

Check out my Ultimate Thanksgiving Food Guide for more recipe and hosting tips. For just the recipes, check out my Thanksgiving recipes page.

Instant Pot Turkey Recipe cooked on table

How to Plan a Thanksgiving Menu

I recommend starting with selecting the main dish you want to serve and work outward.

After outlining your menu, review the cooking methods, time, and supplies you’ll need for each. This will highlight any issues that may pop up. For example, If everything needs a 9 x 13-inch pan and the middle rack at 4:30 p.m., the menu needs another pass.

How Many Side Dishes Do You Need?

Part of selecting the side dish recipes is to figure out how many side dishes, appetizers, and dessert recipes you may need.

GuestsSide DishesAppetizersDesserts
2 to 43 to 40 to 11
5 to 84 to 51 to 21 to 2
9 to 125 to 722 to 3
More than 126 to 82 to 33

These numbers are just a starting point. If your family considers macaroni and cheese a “must have” or arrives expecting three different pies, plan accordingly.

How Much Turkey Do You Need Per Person?

Plan on approximately 1 to 1½ pounds of whole turkey per person, especially if you want leftovers. Much of that weight is bones and other inedible weight.

For boneless turkey breast, plan on about ½ pound per person. The exact amount depends on the number of side dishes, your budget and whether you like to have leftovers to make turkey sliders.

Whole smoked turkey on a cutting board.

Rounding Out the Plate

Mashed potatoes, sage and onion stuffing, and corn casserole are all delicious, but they’re all soft.

Add something with a little texture, acidity or freshness to break up all those rich, soft sides. Brussels sprouts with balsamic glaze, maple carrots and cranberry sauce are good options.

Classic Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

This is the familiar turkey-and-all-the-fixings menu. This is the exact menu I serve during the years I’m too tired to experiment with something new or low on time to plan.

Easy Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

An easy Thanksgiving menu should still feel like Thanksgiving. The trick is choosing a smaller main dish, dependable sides and recipes that do not all demand attention at the last minute.

The carrots can be made on the stovetop, the gravy does not depend on pan drippings and the turkey breast is far easier to handle than a whole bird.

Sliced Sous Vide Turkey Tenderloin next to mashed potatoes.

Small Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

For two to four people, skip the enormous turkey and choose the recipes you would genuinely miss. A turkey tenderloin or breast gives you the main event without creating a refrigerator full of obligations.

This menu keeps the portions sensible without turning Thanksgiving into an ordinary Thursday dinner. The mini desserts are especially useful when an entire pie for two feels like too much pie for two.

Smoked Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

Smoking the turkey gives the meal a completely different personality and, just as importantly, gets the bird out of the oven. That leaves room for the casseroles, vegetables and the pan of macaroni and cheese everyone keeps checking.

For a spicy version, use the Cajun Turkey Brine or one of the Cajun options in my Turkey Injection Recipe.

Whole turkey breast on a baking sheet.

Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Menu

This menu moves as much work as possible out of Thanksgiving Day. The goal is not to cook the entire meal on Tuesday or Wednesday. It’s to alleviate a ton of prep work and stress come Thursday.

What to Make Ahead

WhenWhat to Do
Three days aheadMake cranberry sauce and turkey gravy.
Two days aheadMake the little smokies and cheesecake bars. Chop vegetables.
One day aheadBrine the turkey, assemble the stuffing and green beans, and prepare the mashed potatoes.
Thanksgiving DayRoast the turkey, bake and reheat the sides, then warm the gravy.
Overheat shot of green bean casserole with bacon.

Elevated Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

This menu keeps the recognizable Thanksgiving structure but gives a few dishes a steakhouse-style upgrade. It is a good fit for a smaller seated dinner when you would rather make six memorable things than twelve perfectly acceptable ones.

If turkey is not sacred at your table, Baked Ham With Pineapple and Pepper Jelly Glaze also works as the centerpiece. It is especially useful when you are serving a crowd or want both ham and turkey.

Thanksgiving Buffet and Potluck Ideas

A buffet works especially well for a larger Thanksgiving dinner. For a Thanksgiving potluck, assign categories instead of telling everyone to “bring a side.”

Have the host handle the turkey, gravy and non-alcoholic drinks, then assign appetizers, potatoes, stuffing, vegetables, bread, and desserts. Otherwise, there is a very real chance you’ll end up with four pans of macaroni and cheese and nothing green.

Pumpkin Pie Bites on parchment paper.

Build Your Own Thanksgiving Menu

You don’t need every Thanksgiving dish on the table. Start with the main, add the sides your family would notice were missing, then fill the gaps with something green, something with a little texture and, obviously, gravy.

For most dinners, I build the menu around one main dish, one potato, stuffing, two or three other sides or vegetables, gravy and dessert. Add an appetizer if people will be hanging around before dinner, but don’t put out so much food that nobody wants the turkey.

1. Pick the Main Dish

A whole turkey is the traditional choice, but it isn’t the only one. For a smaller group, Roasted Boneless Turkey Breast or Turkey Tenderloin is considerably easier to manage. If oven space is already looking questionable, move the bird outside with my Smoked Turkey.

Turkey isn’t mandatory either. Prime Rib or Baked Ham with Pineapple and Pepper Jelly Glaze both work with most of the same Thanksgiving sides.

2. Add a Potato

I’m firmly in the camp that Thanksgiving needs mashed potatoes. Classic Mashed Potatoes are the obvious gravy vehicle, while Boursin Mashed Potatoes, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes and Truffle Mashed Potatoes give you progressively richer options.

If you’re already serving several creamy casseroles, stick with the simpler potatoes rather than making every side compete for the richest thing on the plate.

Here are all the Thanksgiving Potato Recipes to consider serving.

White bowl full of Boursin Cheese mashed potatoes.

3. Pick the Stuffing and One Comfort Side

Onion and Sage Stuffing gives you the classic stuffing slot. From there, pick one additional rich side such as Jiffy Corn Casserole, macaroni and cheese or green bean casserole.

Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes tend to be where menus can get repetitive. Mashed potatoes, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, corn casserole and three creamy vegetable casseroles may all be good individually, but together they’re a lot of soft food in various shades of beige.

4. Add One or Two Vegetables

Use the Thanksgiving Vegetable Recipes to balance everything else. If the menu is already rich, I’d go with something roasted, sautéed or a little acidic rather than another casserole.

Balsamic Glazed Brussels Sprouts add some acidity, while Maple Glazed Carrots can be cooked on the stovetop when the oven is full. Sautéed Asparagus and Sautéed Mushrooms are two more options that don’t need oven space.

If you do want the creamy vegetable casserole, make Asparagus Casserole or Green Bean Casserole and pair it with one of the simpler vegetables above.

White pan full of cheesy asparagus casserole.

5. Don’t Forget the Gravy

Turkey Gravy is the default for a traditional dinner and can be made with or without drippings. If the turkey has been heavily brined, injected or seasoned, taste the drippings before adding more salt to the gravy.

I also like making the gravy ahead when possible. It’s one less saucepan demanding attention while the turkey is resting and everything else is trying to get onto the table hot.

Here are 15 other Thanksgiving Gravy Recipes to consider making in addition to turkey gravy.

6. Decide If You Really Need an Appetizer

If dinner is coming out within an hour of everyone arriving, one appetizer is plenty. Cranberry Jalapeño Dip, Hot Crab Dip or a small tray of deviled eggs gives everyone something to pick at without ruining dinner.

If people are arriving several hours early, add one more finger food rather than putting out four heavy dips. Browse my Thanksgiving Appetizers for more options.

White baking pan with a hot dip inside next to ritz.

7. Finish With Dessert

One dessert is enough for a small dinner. For a crowd, I like offering two different directions rather than three versions of the same thing. Something pumpkin plus something apple is an easy combination.

Pumpkin Dump Cake is the low-effort option, while Pumpkin Pie Bites and Mini Apple Pies are useful when you want individual desserts instead of another full pie on the table.

Here are more Thanksgiving Dessert Recipes to consider serving.

Check the Cooking Methods Before You Commit

Once you’ve picked the menu, do one final pass and look at where everything cooks. If the turkey, stuffing, potatoes, casserole and vegetables all need the oven at the same temperature at the same time, swap something out.

A stovetop vegetable, slow cooker potatoes, make-ahead gravy or smoked turkey can solve a lot of Thanksgiving problems before they become Thanksgiving problems.

Wine With Thanksgiving Dinner

Thanksgiving is not the day to choose a wine that only gets along with one item on the plate. Pinot Noir, Gamay, Riesling, Chardonnay and sparkling wine can all handle turkey plus a table full of sweet, savory and herby side dishes.

My Best Wine With Turkey guide breaks down the red, white and sparkling options.

6 bottles wine lined up next to a wine opener for Budget Friendly Wines article.

Thanksgiving Menu Planning Tips

  • Keep the family favorite. If everyone expects one specific casserole, make room for it before adding anything new.
  • Limit last-minute recipes. Choose no more than one or two dishes that need your full attention right before dinner.
  • Write down every oven temperature. This exposes scheduling problems before Thanksgiving Day.
  • Use more than one cooking method. The stovetop, slow cooker, sous vide bath and smoker can all take pressure off the oven.
  • Assign the serving dishes early. Put a note inside each platter or casserole dish so you know what goes where.
  • Decide whether you want leftovers. Increase turkey, stuffing, potatoes and rolls if leftovers are part of the plan. You do not need three days of leftover salad.

What to Make With Leftover Turkey

If leftovers are one of your favorite parts of Thanksgiving, cook enough turkey and stuffing to make Turkey Sliders With Stuffing and Gravy the next day. Save the turkey carcass for Turkey Broth, which can be made on the stovetop, in a slow cooker or in the Instant Pot.

Turkey sliders on a plate.