If you cook and serve thanksgiving

luvboston · November 2012

at what time do you put the side dishes on so that the turkey goes out with the side dishes? Also do you think it's ok to bake pies Tuesday? This is the first turkey day I have to do everything and not take all our food to someone house and then reheat.

DoublePortion · November 2012

I have no advice other than what I heard on the radio this morning... The number 1 problem people have cooking Thanksgiving dinner is that they forget to take the turkey out to defrost in time. I think they said it needs about 3 days depending on the size. Anyway, I wanted to wish you good luck! We spend Thanksgiving with MH's family every year and thankfully they do it potluck style so I'm not responsible for too much.

BAKERMOMHDS · November 2012

Traditional Thanksgiving pie's : Pecan / Pumpkin you can make months in advance and freeze. I generally make them 2-3 days in advance and wrap tightly with plastic wrap, refrigerate. On the day I serve them, I pull them out of the fridge in the morning and warm in the oven a few minutes before serving.

Turkey : I've never cooked a turkey, but my Dad always gets up super early to cook the bird by noon. He'll pull from the oven, cover tightly in the roaster and then start the sides. Traditional sides, mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing about 1.5 hours before dinner time.

Unless you have double ovens it's almost impossible to make everything including pies on Turkey Day ( in my experience ).

Best of luck!!!!

lsgabriel · November 2012

I had fun cooking for 28 last year luckily a couple of people brought things. 1. Know your oven and how long things take to cook. You can put in the turkey and other things if you can fit in both racks, but you will need to adjust your times up. Turkey should also sit for 30 minutes once it's done (trust, it will stay nice and warm), so use that time for sides and factor it in.

Pies can be baked on Tuesday, or prepared and put in the oven while you eat. Especially pecan, pumpkin or other things eaten room temp.

Aegis2005 · November 2012

This is the first Thanksgiving we're hosting (although I did turkey for Christmas last year). My mom makes the pies, but she usually does them on Tuesday or Wednesday (or sometimes early on Thursday if we're eating at 3pm/4pm).

Like PP said, you need to make sure you leave enough time to defrost. I've read approximately 24 hours of refrigerator time for each 4-5 lbs of turkey. I bought a 18.8 lb turkey last night and stuck it right the fridge as I will be putting it into a brine on Wednesday evening.

I typically prepped my sides while the bird is cooking, and then when I take the bird out to rest (which typically needs 1/2 hour) I throw the prepared sides into the oven and make up a gravy.

Good luck!!

BzeetyD · November 2012

I haven't hosted Thanksgiving but in recent years my mother has begun cooking the turkey totally beforehand (like the day before or early the morning of) so it's done and all that needs to happen is the gravy and to reheat it. It's a great option if you have Wednesday off or can get up early on Thursday.

Like everyone said, pies can be done ahead of time without a problem. Veggies too. The only thing that might not sit well is mashed potatoes, but my family makes them early and has them in a crock pot on low (same for stuffing) so that they stay warm but don't continue to cook.

Best of luck!

liz4paws · November 2012

I've cooked Thanksgiving and Christmas meals for quite a few years now. I always bake pies ahead of time - that is a must. I do them on Wednesday night, but depending on the type of pie, I think you could get away with baking them on Tuesday with no problem.

I have a very methodical way of prepping the sides and actually put together a paper listing how long each side takes to bake. That way I can work backwards once I see how long the turkey is going to take which becomes more apparent the longer it's in the oven.

Anything you can prep ahead and assemble in the morning, do it. That way you're just basting the turkey and popping in sides at their respective times. For example. if you know the turkey should be done in two hours, and the yams take 45 minutes, set a reminder on your phone or a separate timer to put them in the oven in 1:15 minutes for 45 min. Good luck and enjoy your feast!

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