With so many amazing ingredients to choose from, creating a traditional Thanksgiving feast can be a daunting task. But with the right Thanksgiving recipes, it can be a smooth ride.

Thanksgiving is the perfect day to celebrate with your loved ones. It’s a time when you spend quality time with your friends and relatives. And it’s also a great opportunity to cook up a feast and enjoy every single moment together. Because good food is truly worth sharing together.

If you are looking for ideas on how to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving meal, then you came to the right place. In this article, we will help you find some easy-to-follow recipes that you can try out.

So here goes… find the most mouth-watering recipes for you to enjoy this holiday season.

Turkey: the Ultimate Roasted Bird

First, let’s talk about the main dish. I know that many of you will be making a roast turkey on Thanksgiving Day, but what recipe to follow?

One of the most popular Thanksgiving foods is turkey. It is the centerpiece of the holiday meal. The goal is tender and flavorful meat. Turkey has a reputation for being dry, but that all comes down to overcooking.

If you do want to roast your own turkey, the best advice for making sure you don’t end up with dry meat is to take a bit of time in the kitchen to ensure you get the most out of your bird.

My recipe calls for using a meat thermometer, not stuffing the turkey, and making sure to let it rest to make sure it is cooked perfectly. That and a lot of sage for added flavor.

Mashed Potatoes: the King of Side Dishes

Potatoes are such simple ingredients. But that might be why they are so amazingly versatile. After all, there are a million ways to cook a potato. Mashed just happens to be the method of choice for Thanksgiving.

For Thanksgiving recipes, this one is super easy to prepare. It takes very little effort to cook up a batch of these luxurious potatoes.

Peel the potatoes (or thoroughly scrub them if you want skins in the mashed potatoes), and toss them into a large pot of water to boil. Cook the potatoes until tender.

After boiling the potatoes, drain them and allow them to cool off. Then peel and mash the potatoes with a potato masher, fork, or hand mixer. Add in some butter and cream. Mmmmmm.

Gravy: A Great Sauce for All Food

Gravy is an essential part of my Thanksgiving recipes. Plus you start it off by making a roux, the namesake of my website!

Gravy is a great condiment that adds extra flavor to foods. And, unless you are like my wife who detests even the thought of gravy (idk how…), it can go over almost anything.

Gravy is one of the most versatile sauces out there. It is the most versatile because it is so simple. You only need 3 ingredients to make gravy: fat, flour, and liquid. Then add in a few other things for more flavor – garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper. That’s all you really need.

Use drippings from the turkey if possible, otherwise a solid turkey or chicken stock will work fine.

After making the roux, add in drippings or turkey/chicken stock and salt and pepper it to taste. Then stir until smooth. Now lather it over all those delicious potatoes and turkey slices.

Dinner Rolls: Bread with a Little Twist

Dinner rolls are a staple in American households. And this roll recipe comes from my mom and was one of my favorites from growing up. She would always make huge batches and then we’d have rolls for days. Perfection!

In this case, we’ll be making dinner rolls from scratch. But, the process is very similar to making basic white bread. And that means we’ll be making yeast dough and baking it in the oven.

What makes this particular dinner roll recipe unique is the way that it includes a big twist – literally.

Instead of just making dough balls and packing them together in a pan to cook, this dough is rolled out, cut, and then twisted together like an XL-sized garlic knot. Just without any added garlic butter or parm on top. Trust me, they’re still delicious and pillowy soft inside.

Glazed Carrots: A Sweet Side Dish

Carrots are a great side veggie. They have a naturally sweet flavor and a nice crunch to them.

Start them off by building the glaze in a large frying pan. Honey, brown sugar, spices, and broth. They combine for a spiced sweet glaze that’ll really complement the flavors of the carrots themselves.

Then just add the carrots and let them cook until perfectly tender. It’s as simple as that.

Glazed carrots are one of those side dishes that almost everyone likes. They are simple, sweet, and go well with everything.

You can serve it by itself, or you could add some nuts, raisins, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, etc. to make it more interesting.

Salad: Fall Flavors with Greens

There are many different kinds of salads you can prepare. And on a day when it has to compete with all of the other Thanksgiving recipes, you don’t want a plain, bland salad.

Now, let’s mix it up with this fall-flavored salad.

First, we’ll be starting with an interesting dressing. This salad has a mustard-maple dressing that gives hints of fall flavor in a warm almost honey-mustard flavor.

Next, we’ll be adding in some greens. Whatever mix of greens you have available will work. I tend to use a spring mix, even though it isn’t springtime…

Add in some pomegranate seeds, pecans, cheese, apples, and pears.

This salad is very simple. It doesn’t really need much else. But you can always play around with the ingredients to see what you think. You can use any combination of lettuce you like.

Punch: Mixed Drink for All Ages

This recipe comes courtesy of my wife’s family. It was one of their Thanksgiving recipes that became a tradition. And so now we continue that tradition.

Why? Because punch is awesome and it is great to just have out for everyone to serve themselves.

Bubbly, fruity flavors make this a drink that the whole family can enjoy. Just make sure that you have a huge punch bowl ready to go.

This is a super easy recipe, just get the ingredients and pour it all together and then add a few scoops of sherbet to float on top.

Pumpkin Pie: A Classic Dessert

Now we’re ready to finish off our meal with some pie! Or maybe wait for a few hours after the meal so there is room to eat some dessert.

Pumpkin pie is one of the most popular desserts at Thanksgiving. There are so many different varieties that you can make, but here’s a recipe for pumpkin pie that everyone loves!

It is one of the most common desserts you will find in the grocery store. But I frequently find those store-bought pumpkin pies bland and lacking in complexity.

So trust me, it is definitely worth making from scratch. And, one of the best parts, you can make it the day before and then just keep it in the fridge until it’s time to serve.

Make sure to have some whipped cream on hand for topping your pie slices.

The post 8 Heavenly Recipes for a Traditional Thanksgiving appeared first on Do You Roux?.

For some reason unknown to humanity, my wife does not like gravy. And no, I’m not going to say that she magically loves this gravy because it is perfect. She still hates this. But I don’t get it because it is just a super flavorful sauce that distills all the deliciousness of the roasted turkey into a simple turkey gravy.

I mean, it starts out with a stick of butter so how can it be bad?

Sometimes I can get away with just calling a gravy a sauce and she won’t really notice. But with turkey, potatoes, and gravy that trick doesn’t really work. Too iconic. Either way, maybe you can enjoy this thyme and turkey-infused reduction at your next family feast.

This was actually a recipe of opportunity. I was already making my sage roasted turkey, and so decided to kill two posts with one turkey. Since turkey and gravy go hand-in-hand and you can use drippings from the turkey to help make gravy, it just made sense.

So, let’s all upset my wife by making a delicious and velvety sauce to perfectly pair with our turkey and potatoes.

Start it with a Roux

I get a little bit happy inside whenever there is a chance to have a recipe that features a roux. It is the namesake of the site and the very first post I published was on how to make a roux. Look there for much more in-depth info on how a roux actually works in a recipe.

This simple turkey gravy recipe starts off with a roux, to which we then add the drippings from the pan or turkey stock to get to just the right consistency.

Add butter to the pan and melt it. Then, for added flavor, add in some garlic and thyme and let it simmer for a minute or two. When that has cooked, whisk in the flour. Continue to whisk it as it cooks and bubbles for a few minutes. This will help cook out a little bit of that straight flour flavor.

Next, pour in a mixture of turkey drippings and stock. Whisk it together and bring it to a boil so that it starts to thicken. Thin it with more drippings/stock if needed.

In my sage roasted turkey recipe, I call for cooking the turkey in a roasting pan. I also note to add some sage, thyme, and turkey or chicken stock to the bottom of the roasting pan. While the turkey cooks, the butter slathered over it will drip down along with juices from the turkey itself.

These drippings are the delicious lifeblood of a good gravy. Using this in the gravy will help to impart a whole lot more flavor than using stock or broth alone. Though I don’t turn my nose up at stock, in fact, I did have to supplement a little with some chicken stock to thin things out because there weren’t quite enough drippings in the pan.

Hint – use a fat separator to help separate the fat from the rest of the drippings. Since we already use butter as the main fat for the roux, we don’t need any extra in this sauce.

Slather it in Turkey Gravy

Not that I would ever accuse you of ever making any kind of cooking mistake, but sometimes a turkey can overcook a little and turn slightly dry. Gravy to the rescue!

A slathering of simple turkey gravy can help bring some much-needed moisture to pair with your protein. And it will also pack in the flavor. A properly made gravy will be salty, savory, and lusciously creamy.

Gravy and potatoes are a classic combo for a reason. Fluffy and buttery homemade potatoes are a perfect backdrop for the rich flavor of gravy. Make sure to have some bread or dinner rolls to soak up any gravy left on the plate after devouring the turkey and potatoes.

So hop on this gravy train and whisk together a batch for Thanksgiving or any other time you are serving mashed potatoes.

How did yours turn out?

I’d love to hear when you try out this turkey gravy! Take a pic of your food and share your success with me by adding it to your Instagram stories or feed, and tagging me @doyouroux, or by using #doyouroux.

Plus, leave a rating to let me know how you liked the recipe. It helps me out a lot to know how things worked out… or didn’t.

Simple Turkey Gravy

Recipe by Marc PetersonCourse: SauceDifficulty: Easy

Servings

10

servings

Prep time

5

minutes

Cooking time

15

minutes

Total time

20

minutes

Start with a simple roux to make this salty, savory, and lusciously creamy but simple turkey gravy for Thanksgiving potatoes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)

• 1 teaspoon minced thyme

• 1 large clove garlic, minced

• 1/2 cup flour

• 3 to 4 cups total turkey drippings and/or turkey/chicken stock

• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat
• Add the thyme and garlic to the pan and simmer them while stirring for 2 to 3 minutes
• Whisk the flour into the butter, bring it to a simmer while whisking, and let it cook for 3 minutes
• Pour the drippings and/or stock into the pan, whisk it to combine, and bring it to a boil until it begins to thicken, and then turn the heat to low
• Taste the gravy and add salt and pepper as needed in 1/4 teaspoon increments – note that there are times where no salt is needed, it depends on the drippings
• If the gravy thickens too much, then whisk more stock into the sauce to thin it out 1/2 cup at a time

Notes

Get recipes like this straight to your inbox:

The post The Best Simple Turkey Gravy Recipe appeared first on Do You Roux?.

Thanksgiving is a time for f-words: family, friends, and food. And nothing is more synonymous with Thanksgiving than turkey. So cook a flavorful bird with this sage roasted turkey recipe.

Turkey can be a pretty divisive meat. Maybe it’s just me, but it doesn’t seem like turkey is a common meal. Except maybe as deli meat for sandwiches. Because turkeys are so much larger, chicken tends to rule the roost if poultry is on the menu.

So sometimes it can seem a little intimidating to tackle turkey. Especially on the big day. Both because of lack of experience and the big expectations that can accompany it.

Relax.

As long as you have a plan (such as this recipe here), you will be able to take on turkey with confidence. It takes a few simple steps and a basic food thermometer to make sure you get things right. You’ve got this.

All About the Temperature

It begins with prepping the turkey. You can brine the turkey if you’d like but it is not necessary. It can add extra flavor and fill the turkey with moisture. You can also try dry-brining (maybe with a mixture of salt, pepper, dried sage, and citrus zest). But the turkey can be cooked perfectly without brining. And a brine sometimes takes too much forethought…

The biggest complaint about turkey is that it can be dry. So while a brine may help, it really all comes down to cooking it to the right temperature.

You need an instant-read thermometer. This holds true for cooking almost any meat really. This inexpensive food thermometer is the one I use and I love it. You can even buy leave-in thermometers with either long cords or high-tech that will let you see the temperature while it is still in the oven. These are most commonly used when smoking meats outdoors. But a regular instant-read thermometer works perfectly.

Use this guide from Serious Eats on how to check your turkey temp.

Do not rely on the little pop-up ‘done indicators’ that come set inside the turkey sometimes. They typically let the turkey come to way too high a temperature and will lead to a bad, dry experience. Don’t do it. Promise me.

To cook the turkey you can use a roasting pan designed for the purpose. But if you aren’t roasting things much, then it may be overkill to have a pan just for the purpose. In my case, I just decided to put a cooling rack inside a baking sheet and rest the turkey on that.

Worked like a charm.

Making Sure the Turkey Isn’t Dry

1. Use a food thermometer to cook to the proper temperature
2. Have a roasting pan type setup where the turkey can cook on a rack while the juices drip to a pan below
3. Don’t stuff the turkey, it’ll just slow down cooking and make it more prone to an uneven cook
4. Baste the turkey every 30 minutes with the juices from the pan while cooking
5. Let the turkey rest at least 30 minutes before cutting into it

Serving Sage Roasted Turkey

For this recipe, I call for using some brown butter sage sauce to baste the turkey at one point. I think it just adds to the sage flavor of the turkey, plus it gave me another excuse to make my brown butter sage sauce recipe that is the most popular on the site.

For some traditional Thanksgiving sides, pair your sage roasted turkey with any of the following:

• Homestyle Mashed Potatoes
• Simple Turkey Gravy
• Mom’s Dinner Rolls
• Honey and Ginger Glazed Carrots
• Family Thanksgiving Punch

One of the greatest parts of Thanksgiving is all of the leftovers. From turkey noodle soup to turkey sandwiches to turkey pot pie, there are tons of ways to use leftover turkey.

You can also make turkey stock from the bones after removing all the roasted meat. I typically loosely follow my chicken stock recipe while accounting for the fact that a turkey is much larger than the chicken bones I normally use.

Whatever you decide to do with your turkey, rest assured that this sage roasted turkey recipe will make sure it is delicious.

How did yours turn out?

I’d love to hear when you try out this sage roasted turkey! Take a pic of your food and share your success with me by adding it to your Instagram stories or feed, and tagging me @doyouroux, or by using #doyouroux.

Plus, leave a rating to let me know how you liked the recipe. It helps me out a lot to know how things worked out… or didn’t.

Thanksgiving Sage Roasted Turkey

Recipe by Marc PetersonCourse: DinnerDifficulty: Intermediate

Servings

10-12

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

2

hours 

30

minutes

Resting Time

30

minutes

Total time

3

hours 

30

minutes

Juicy turkey, sage and thyme, golden-brown skin. Everything about this sage roasted turkey makes it a perfect recipe for Thanksgiving.

Ingredients

• 15 to 18-pound turkey, defrosted

• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 and 1/2 tablespoons minced sage, about 20 leaves

• 2 teaspoons minced thyme

• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon black pepper

• 8 to 10 sage leaves

• 2 to 3 small sprigs thyme

• 4 cups turkey or chicken stock, divided

• 1/3 cup prepared brown butter sage sauce, or melted butter

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 400°F (205°C)
• Combine the butter, garlic, minced sage, minced thyme, salt, and pepper in a small bowl and mix it together until thoroughly combined
• Place the turkey on the rack over the roasting pan and pat the turkey dry with paper towels – this will help keep the butter from just sliding around in the next step
• Gently pull the skin away from the turkey breast and slather about 1/3 of the mixed butter under the skin and on top of the breast
• Use the remaining butter to cover the skin of the turkey, including the drumsticks, wings, and breasts
• Add the sage leaves, thyme sprigs, and turkey or chicken stock to the bottom of the roasting pan
• Place the turkey on the center rack in the oven and cook for 1 hour, basting every 30 minutes with the juices from the roasting pan
• After the second baste an hour into the cook, turn the oven heat down to 350°F (175°C) and rotate the turkey 180° so the other side of the turkey faces the back of the oven
• Continue cooking, basting every 30 mins and cook to an internal temperature of 160°F (71°C) in the breast and 170°F (77°C) in the thigh, about 2 and 1/2 to 3 hours of total cooking time
• On the third baste, 1 and 1/2 hours into the cook, pour the brown butter sage sauce over the turkey instead of basting with juices from the pan
• While the turkey cooks, add more turkey or chicken stock into the bottom of the roasting pan if too much has evaporated while cooking
• When the turkey reaches the right temperature, remove it from the oven and let it rest about 30 minutes before slicing

Notes

• Loosely tent foil over parts of the turkey if the skin is browning too much

Get recipes like this straight to your inbox:

The post Thanksgiving Sage Roasted Turkey Recipe appeared first on Do You Roux?.