10 Thanksgiving Side Dishes Everyone Wants

Pull up a chair at any Thanksgiving table across the country, and you’ll notice something interesting: the turkey almost always plays second fiddle. Sure, it commands the center of the table and takes three hours to cook, but it’s the sides that people fight over, the dishes that get whispered about before the meal, and the recipes passed down through families like heirlooms. The stuffing, the sweet potatoes, the rolls that disappear before you can even sit down — that’s what Thanksgiving is really about.

The hard part isn’t finding side dish recipes. The hard part is knowing which ones are worth the oven space, worth the prep time, and worth the inevitable kitchen chaos of cooking ten things simultaneously. There’s a reason certain dishes appear on virtually every Thanksgiving table year after year. They hit something deep — comfort, nostalgia, pure unapologetic flavor.

What follows is a collection of the ten side dishes that earn their spot every single time. Not trendy, not obscure, not experimental. These are the plates that go empty first, the recipes people request by name, and the dishes that would cause an actual family dispute if they didn’t show up. Each one comes with real technique guidance, honest tips, and enough depth to make sure yours turns out better than anyone else’s.

1. Sweet Potato Casserole

There’s a reason sweet potato casserole consistently tops “most requested Thanksgiving side” lists. It occupies this rare space between side dish and dessert, and it does so unapologetically. Whipped sweet potatoes with a crunchy pecan-brown sugar crumble on top is one of the most satisfying textures in all of holiday cooking.

What Makes It Work

The magic isn’t just sweetness — it’s the contrast. Silky, slightly savory mashed sweet potato beneath a caramelized, crunchy topping that shatters with every bite. The best versions add a pinch of cinnamon, a splash of vanilla, and a good amount of butter to the potato base, which deepens the flavor without turning the dish into dessert territory.

Don’t skip the roasting step. Instead of boiling your sweet potatoes, roast them whole at 400°F until completely tender and slightly caramelized at the skin. Roasting drives off excess moisture and concentrates the natural sugars — the difference in flavor compared to boiled potatoes is striking.

Topping Options and the Great Marshmallow Debate

Marshmallows vs. pecan crumble is essentially Thanksgiving’s most contentious debate. The pecan-brown sugar crumble wins on texture and complexity — it offers crunch, nuttiness, and a butterscotch-like depth that marshmallows simply can’t match. That said, plenty of families swear by the marshmallow version, and there’s no rule against doing both (marshmallows on one half, pecan crumble on the other is a genuinely diplomatic solution).

Make-Ahead Notes

• Roast and mash the sweet potatoes up to 2 days ahead; store covered in the fridge
• Mix the pecan crumble and refrigerate separately in a zip-lock bag
• Assemble the full dish the morning of Thanksgiving and refrigerate unbaked
• Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes straight from the fridge, adding 5 minutes to account for the cold start

Pro tip: A tablespoon of bourbon stirred into the sweet potato base adds a warm, smoky note that complements the pecans without overpowering the dish.

2. Classic Stuffing with Sausage and Herbs

Ask ten people what their favorite Thanksgiving dish is, and stuffing lands in the top three for a solid majority of them. It’s a dish that somehow manages to be humble and deeply satisfying at the same time — bread, fat, aromatics, and herbs combining into something that tastes like the holidays themselves.

The Bread Makes or Breaks It

Stuffing lives and dies by the bread. A sturdy sourdough, a country white, or even a French baguette — cut into 1-inch cubes and dried out in the oven at 300°F for 30 minutes — creates the structural integrity the dish needs. Fresh bread turns to mush. Day-old or oven-dried bread is non-negotiable.

Italian sausage (removed from casings and browned until crispy at the edges) adds fat, protein, and a savory richness that elevates plain bread stuffing into something genuinely special. Add diced yellow onion, celery, and garlic cooked in butter until soft, then fold in fresh thyme, sage, and a generous amount of flat-leaf parsley.

The Stock-to-Bread Ratio

Pour chicken or turkey stock over the bread mixture gradually — you want the bread cubes to absorb the liquid but not become saturated. The right texture before baking should be moist but still hold its shape when you squeeze a handful. Cover with foil for the first 30 minutes of baking, then remove to let the top crisp up to a deep golden brown.

Variations Worth Knowing

• Cornbread stuffing: Substitute half the bread with crumbled day-old cornbread for a slightly sweeter, denser texture that pairs well with a drizzle of hot honey
• Apple and walnut version: Add diced tart apple and toasted walnuts with the aromatics for a sweet-savory crunch
• Mushroom and leek: Swap the sausage for a pound of mixed mushrooms sautéed until deeply caramelized

Pro tip: Baking stuffing in a buttered dish outside the turkey — technically called “dressing” — gives you better texture control and a perfectly crispy top every time.

3. Creamy Mashed Potatoes

If there’s a single dish that cannot be absent from the Thanksgiving table without causing genuine disappointment, it’s mashed potatoes. But there’s a significant difference between good mashed potatoes and transcendent ones, and that gap almost always comes down to fat, technique, and not skimping on either.

Choosing the Right Potato

Yukon Gold potatoes are the gold standard for mashed potatoes that are simultaneously creamy and full of flavor. Their naturally buttery flesh and medium starch content means they break down smoothly without turning gluey. Russets work if that’s what you have — they’re starchier and produce a fluffier texture — but Yukons deliver a richer final product.

Peel and cut them into uniform 2-inch chunks, then start them in cold salted water. Bringing them up to temperature gradually ensures even cooking all the way through. Boil until completely tender — a fork should slide in and out with zero resistance.

The Fat Question

Drain your potatoes thoroughly, then let them steam dry in the pot for 2 minutes before mashing. This eliminates excess water that would dilute the flavor. Warm your butter and cream before adding them — cold dairy tightens the starches and produces gummy potatoes.

A standard ratio: 3 pounds Yukon Golds, 6 tablespoons butter, ¾ cup warm heavy cream, salt to taste. For extra depth, substitute ½ cup of the cream with crème fraîche or a few spoonfuls of room-temperature cream cheese.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Over-mashing: Work the potatoes only until smooth — excessive mixing activates gluten and turns them elastic and gluey
• Cold dairy: Always warm your butter and cream before adding them
• Under-salting: Potatoes need more salt than you think; taste and season aggressively

The smooth, buttery result should be spreadable but not soupy — thick enough to hold a gravy pool without draining away immediately.

4. Green Bean Casserole Made From Scratch

The green bean casserole born from a can of cream of mushroom soup has fed generations of Thanksgiving tables, and honestly, there’s no shame in that. But the from-scratch version made with real mushroom sauce, blanched fresh green beans, and homemade crispy onions occupies a completely different tier of deliciousness.

The Mushroom Sauce That Changes Everything

Start with a pound of cremini mushrooms, sliced and cooked in butter over medium-high heat until they’ve released all their liquid and turned golden brown — this takes about 12 minutes and requires patience. Season with garlic, fresh thyme, salt, and black pepper. Whisk in flour to create a roux, then add warm chicken stock and heavy cream, cooking until the sauce thickens enough to coat a spoon.

This sauce can be made 3 days ahead and refrigerated. The flavors actually deepen overnight.

Blanching the Green Beans

Fresh green beans blanched in heavily salted boiling water for 4 minutes, then shocked in an ice bath, hold their bright color and a satisfying snap. Frozen green beans work as a backup but produce a softer final texture. Fold the blanched beans into the mushroom sauce and transfer to a buttered baking dish.

The Crispy Onion Topping

Thinly sliced shallots dredged in seasoned flour and fried in a thin layer of neutral oil until golden and crispy are a revelation. They take 15 minutes and make the store-bought fried onions taste like cardboard by comparison. Pile them high right before baking so they stay crispy rather than steaming under foil.

Bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes until the sauce is bubbling around the edges and the onion topping is deeply golden.

5. Homemade Cranberry Sauce

The cranberry sauce that comes out of a can — sliding out in its cylindrical, ribbed glory — is a beloved Thanksgiving artifact. Nobody is here to judge. But once you make cranberry sauce from scratch, a task that takes literally 15 minutes and five ingredients, it’s genuinely hard to go back.

The Basic Ratio That Works Every Time

One 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries, ¾ cup granulated sugar, and ½ cup of water or orange juice in a medium saucepan over medium heat. The cranberries will pop and break down in about 10 minutes, releasing natural pectin that thickens the sauce as it cools. It’s genuinely one of the most hands-off recipes on the entire Thanksgiving menu.

Flavor Variations That Elevate It

The basic version is excellent. These additions make it memorable:

• Orange zest: A tablespoon of freshly grated zest stirred in at the end adds a bright, aromatic citrus note that makes the tartness pop
• Cinnamon and vanilla: Half a cinnamon stick simmered with the cranberries, removed before serving, adds warmth without weight
• Maple syrup instead of sugar: Swap the granulated sugar for an equal amount of pure maple syrup for a deeper, more complex sweetness
• Pinot noir version: Replace the water with ½ cup of red wine for an elegant, jammy depth

Make-Ahead Advantage

Cranberry sauce is arguably the easiest make-ahead dish on the entire Thanksgiving menu. It keeps in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks and actually tastes better after resting overnight as the flavors meld. Make it the weekend before Thanksgiving and cross it off your list entirely.

It thickens considerably as it chills — if it’s too firm when you pull it out, stir in a tablespoon of warm water or orange juice to loosen it.

6. Soft, Buttery Dinner Rolls

There’s a hierarchy of excitement when Thanksgiving dishes come out of the kitchen. Dinner rolls land near the top of that hierarchy, not because they’re the most complex dish on the table, but because warm, fresh-baked rolls straight from the oven trigger a specific kind of joy that no one can explain but everyone understands.

What Separates a Good Roll from a Great One

The texture is everything: pillow-soft inside, slightly golden outside, and with enough structure to hold up to being torn in half and loaded with butter. That texture comes from an enriched dough — milk, eggs, butter, and a bit of sugar added alongside the flour and yeast create the tender crumb that distinguishes a dinner roll from plain bread.

The milk should be warmed to between 100-110°F before adding the yeast. Too cold and the yeast won’t activate; too hot and you’ll kill it entirely. A properly proofed yeast mixture will foam visibly within 10 minutes.

The Two-Rise Method

After the initial mix and knead, let the dough rise covered in a warm spot until doubled — roughly 1 hour. Punch it down, divide into equal portions (about 2.5 ounces each for standard rolls), shape into tight balls by cupping your hand over each piece and rolling with circular pressure, then arrange in a buttered baking dish. A second rise of 45 minutes to 1 hour produces the lift and softness that makes these rolls irresistible.

Brush with melted butter right before baking and again the moment they come out of the oven.

Make-Ahead Strategy

• The night before: Complete the first rise, shape the rolls, arrange in the baking dish, and refrigerate overnight (covered tightly with plastic wrap)
• Day of: Pull them from the fridge 1.5 hours before baking to let them complete their second rise at room temperature
• Bake at 375°F for 18-22 minutes until deeply golden on top

Pro tip: A sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top right before baking adds a stunning contrast to the buttery sweetness.

7. Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

Brussels sprouts spent decades as the most dreaded vegetable on the holiday table. Their comeback is entirely deserved, and it happened for one simple reason: people started roasting them instead of boiling them. High-heat roasting transforms Brussels sprouts from bitter and sulfurous into caramelized, nutty, and genuinely crave-worthy.

The Key to Maximum Crispiness

Dry your Brussels sprouts thoroughly before roasting. Any surface moisture will steam them instead of crisping them, and the difference is stark. Halve each sprout through the stem, toss cut-side down on a sheet pan with enough room between them that they’re not touching, and roast at 425°F.

Crowding is the enemy. If the sprouts are packed together, they trap steam and turn soggy. Use two sheet pans if needed — this is non-negotiable for getting those deeply caramelized, almost-crispy cut faces that make roasted Brussels sprouts so compelling.

Adding Bacon the Right Way

Dice thick-cut bacon into ½-inch pieces and render it partially in a skillet before adding to the sheet pan. This pre-cooking step ensures the bacon will be fully crisp by the time the sprouts are done — raw bacon tossed directly onto the pan often ends up chewy rather than crispy.

The rendered bacon fat that coats the sprouts during roasting adds a smoky, savory richness that makes this dish almost impossible to stop eating.

Finishing Touches That Matter

Remove from the oven and immediately toss with one of these finishes:

• A drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of Parmesan for a sweet-tangy-salty finish
• Salted honey drizzled over the top for a contrasting sweetness that plays off the savory bacon
• Lemon zest and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to cut through the richness and brighten everything up

8. Cornbread (Cast-Iron Skillet Style)

Cornbread is the side dish that pulls double duty at Thanksgiving — it earns a place on the table on its own, and then goes into the stuffing the next day. A cast-iron skillet version with crispy, caramelized edges and a moist, slightly sweet crumb is one of those things that sounds simple and turns out to be genuinely difficult to improve upon.

The Case for Cast Iron

The cast-iron skillet is what takes cornbread from good to extraordinary. Preheat the skillet in the oven before adding the batter — a hot, well-seasoned cast iron creates an immediate sear on the bottom and sides of the cornbread, producing a crust that’s golden and slightly crunchy in a way a cold baking dish never achieves.

Use a 10-inch skillet, add a tablespoon of butter or bacon fat to it while it preheats, and when the fat is smoking and sizzling, pour your batter in quickly and get it back in the oven.

The Classic Batter

A great Thanksgiving cornbread uses a blend of medium-grind cornmeal and all-purpose flour — roughly a 2:1 ratio favoring cornmeal — with buttermilk for tang and moisture, a couple of eggs for structure, melted butter for richness, and a tablespoon or two of sugar for a barely-there sweetness that balances the corn’s natural savory depth.

Fold the wet and dry ingredients together only until just combined. A lumpy batter makes tender cornbread; an over-mixed batter makes a tough one.

Variations Worth Exploring

• Jalapeño cornbread: Fold 2 diced jalapeños (seeds removed for medium heat, kept in for serious kick) into the batter
• Cheddar and scallion: ¾ cup of sharp cheddar and 3 sliced scallions folded in right before baking
• Honey skillet version: Drizzle 2 tablespoons of honey directly into the hot buttered skillet before adding the batter — it caramelizes into the bottom crust beautifully

9. Candied Sweet Potatoes

Where sweet potato casserole is the whipped, structured, baked version, candied sweet potatoes are the saucier, chunkier, stove-top or slow-baked cousin. Thick rounds of sweet potato bathed in a buttery, spiced brown sugar syrup until they’re tender and glossy — it’s one of those dishes that tastes like someone bottled autumn and cooked it down into something you can eat with a fork.

Cutting and Prep

Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into rounds about ¾-inch thick. Thinner than that and they’ll fall apart during cooking; thicker and they won’t absorb the syrup as readily. The goal is for each piece to be tender all the way through while still holding its shape — somewhere between firm and yielding when you press gently with a spoon.

Building the Glaze

The syrup is what makes this dish: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, ½ cup packed brown sugar, ¼ cup maple syrup, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, and ½ teaspoon fine salt melted together in a large skillet or baking dish. The salt is critical — without it, the dish tips into cloying sweetness and loses its complexity.

For the baked version, arrange the sweet potato rounds in a single layer in a large baking dish, pour the syrup over them, cover tightly with foil, and bake at 375°F for 30 minutes. Uncover, baste with the syrup, and bake for another 20-25 minutes until the sauce thickens and the edges of the potato rounds start to caramelize.

Stovetop vs. Oven

The stovetop version produces a darker, more intensely caramelized result — the direct heat allows the sugars to reduce quickly and coat the potatoes in a thick, almost jammy glaze. The oven version is gentler and more hands-off. Both are delicious; choose based on oven availability on the day.

Pro tip: A splash of bourbon or dark rum added to the glaze before baking adds a warm, complex depth that most guests can’t identify by name but will absolutely notice.

10. Creamy Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Mac and cheese has no business being on a Thanksgiving table, and yet here it is — consistently one of the most popular, most scraped-clean dishes at any holiday meal where it appears. The butternut squash version is a particular standout because the pureed squash blends seamlessly into the cheese sauce, adding a subtle sweetness, a gorgeous golden color, and a velvety body that straight béchamel can’t match.

Why Butternut Squash Works

Roasted butternut squash pureed until completely smooth adds natural sweetness and a creamy body to the cheese sauce without making the flavor obviously “vegetable.” It cuts the richness of the cheese slightly, making the final dish feel less heavy than a traditional all-cream mac and cheese — which means people eat more of it, which is exactly the point.

Roast a medium butternut squash (halved, cut-side down, at 400°F for 45 minutes) until completely soft, then scrape the flesh and blend with ½ cup of vegetable stock until perfectly smooth. This puree is the base of your sauce.

The Cheese Combination

Sharp cheddar and Gruyère in equal parts is the pairing that works best with the squash’s sweetness. The sharp cheddar brings the familiar, tangy flavor people expect from mac and cheese; the Gruyère adds a nutty, slightly funky depth that elevates the whole dish.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan, whisk in 2 tablespoons of flour, then add 1 cup of warm whole milk and your squash puree. Once the sauce is smooth and thickened, remove from heat before stirring in the cheese — high heat after adding the cheese will cause it to break and turn grainy.

Breadcrumb Topping

Pour the sauced pasta into a buttered baking dish and top with a mixture of panko breadcrumbs, melted butter, and a handful of Parmesan. Bake at 375°F uncovered for 25 minutes until the top is golden and the sauce is visibly bubbling at the edges.

For an even crunchier topping, run it under the broiler for the final 2-3 minutes — watch it constantly, as the difference between perfectly toasted and burnt is about 60 seconds.

Dietary Notes

This recipe is naturally vegetarian, which makes it a welcomed addition for any table with non-meat eaters. To make it gluten-free, swap the all-purpose flour for a gluten-free blend and use a GF pasta; the sauce comes together the same way.

How to Plan Your Thanksgiving Side Dish Lineup

Ten side dishes sounds like a lot. For a table of 8 or more, it’s actually the right number. The key is thinking about the mix strategically rather than just cooking everything at maximum capacity and hoping the oven cooperates.

Balancing Textures and Flavors

A great Thanksgiving spread has contrast built into it. Rich and creamy dishes (mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, sweet potato casserole) need to be balanced by something bright and textural — roasted Brussels sprouts, cranberry sauce, a simple green bean dish. Without that contrast, the meal becomes one unbroken wall of richness that exhausts your palate by the third bite.

Think about the flavor spectrum: sweet (sweet potato casserole, candied yams), savory-umami (stuffing, green bean casserole), acidic and bright (cranberry sauce), starchy and neutral (mashed potatoes, rolls), and roasted-caramelized (Brussels sprouts, cornbread). A table that hits all five registers keeps people coming back for more.

Managing the Oven

The biggest challenge at Thanksgiving isn’t cooking any individual dish — it’s fitting everything into one oven at the same time. A few practical strategies that actually work:

• Dishes that bake at 350-375°F can usually coexist — offset your timing so the casseroles go in 20 minutes before the rolls
• Cranberry sauce and stovetop green beans free up oven space entirely
• Mashed potatoes can be held in a slow cooker on the warm setting for up to 2 hours without degrading
• Stuffing can rest covered with foil for 30 minutes after baking without losing quality

The real secret to a stress-free Thanksgiving is treating the Wednesday before as a serious prep day. Cranberry sauce, pecan crumble, mushroom sauce for the green bean casserole, bread cubes for stuffing, the sweet potato base — all of it can be done the day before, leaving Thanksgiving Day for assembly and final baking.

Final Thoughts

Thanksgiving side dishes succeed when they’re made with care and clarity — not when they’re rushed, overthought, or crowded out of the oven by poor planning. The ten dishes covered here are the ones that earn their place at the table year after year because they’re genuinely good, not just traditionally expected.

Start with three or four that appeal most to your crowd, nail the technique on each one, and build your menu from there. A smaller number of well-executed dishes is infinitely better than a table full of mediocre ones. The sweet potato casserole with a shattering pecan crust, the stuffing with crispy golden edges, the rolls that disappear before anyone’s even seated — those are the moments that Thanksgiving is actually made of.

Whatever combination you end up with, the two non-negotiables are real cranberry sauce (15 minutes, no excuses) and something warm and bread-like (rolls, cornbread, or stuffing) that gives people something to hold onto while they wait for the rest. Everything else is a beautiful, delicious bonus.