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Thanksgiving is a time loved ones get together to enjoy a meal and celebrate all the things they’re thankful for, but putting together a classic Turkey Day feast can be challenging to say the least. This holiday meal involves a lot of preparing, planning, and of course, cooking, and even if you’ve hosted it many times, there’s still a lot of room for error.
Whether this is the first Thanksgiving you’re hosting or your 25th, these are some of the common mistakes you’ll want to avoid to make the experience as low-stress as possible.
- Not making a guest list - You can’t plan properly if you don’t know how many people are coming to dinner. Having a head count will help you know the right size turkey and the number of sides you’ll need. Plus, you’ll need to know of any dietary restrictions and food allergies your guests have so everyone has something they can eat.
- Waiting too long to shop - This is not the time to procrastinate, as stores get more crowded with stressed shoppers the closer you get to the holiday. And since many people are making the same dishes, you don’t want to run the risk of markets running out of ingredients you need.
- Misunderstanding turkey math - Roasting a whole bird takes some math, starting with how many pounds of turkey you need. The general rule is one pound for each adult and a half a pound per child, but if you want leftovers, you may want to opt for more. Then you’ll need to do math for the cooking time so the turkey is ready when you are.
- Over-mashing the potatoes - This side is a favorite, but no one likes gummy potatoes.
- Using fresh bread in stuffing - Dried bread chunks are the way to go, since they’ll be soaking up the broth, butter and seasonings.
- Timing dishes poorly - Since everything needs to be served hot, you’ll want to figure out how to use the crock pot, stove top, air fryer or toaster oven if the turkey is in the oven.
- Trying out new recipes - Thanksgiving isn’t the day to test a recipe for the first time, unless you want to risk having a holiday dinner disaster on your hands. So do a test run first, just to be safe.
- Making everything from scratch - Don’t be afraid to use premade rolls or store-bought pies if it makes things easier for you. There’s no prize for making everything from scratch on Thanksgiving.
Source: The Daily Meal