First-gen Americans - what was your Thanksgiving meal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Brit here. We did Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, roasted sprouts, cranberry sauce and cauliflower cheese. Apple pie and cream for dessert. We can't get used to some of the typical American sides like the sweet potatoes with marshmallows and green bean casserole either!

FYI- not all American families have sweet potatoes with marshmallows and string bean casserole . We’ve never had that in my family, and I’ve only been to one thanksgiving dinner with those items when I was younger! I think it’s something families used to have, but they’ve gone out of style as Americans have changed their palate from 70s/80s to now. Or maybe it’s popular in certain regions.

The dinner you made sounds typical.

[Anonymous]

Vegetable lo mein. Def beats turkey IMO.

[Anonymous]

I’m an immigrant and the cook in the family, so our sides are Spätzle, red cabbage, dumplings, Brussel sprouts, and lingonberry sauce. I make a duck and a chicken.
I do also make stuffing and my kids make Mac and cheese. We have leftover carbs for a week.

[Anonymous]

I brought home-made sushi to the Thanksgiving meal we were invited to. It was previously agreed upon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's delightful that good ol mac and cheese are making it onto these menus. Do you make m&c on the regular or is this a special dish for the day?

I’m 4th generation American and have never had Mac and cheese at thanksgiving or any holiday/family event.

[Anonymous]

Indian here. We made some of my childhood favorites. .

Coconut mint pulao, Fried okra raita and Murg Irani (a delicately flavored chicken dish)

Dessert was apple pie with vanilla ice cream and Jalebi with rabdi. Jalebi from the Persian bakery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Vegetable lo mein. Def beats turkey IMO.

OP here: we have resisted the Chinese take-out Thanksgiving but may do just that next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's delightful that good ol mac and cheese are making it onto these menus. Do you make m&c on the regular or is this a special dish for the day?

I’m 4th generation American and have never had Mac and cheese at thanksgiving or any holiday/family event.

It seems to be in every potluck event I go to. Is mac & cheese a regional dish for holidays?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Indian here. We made some of my childhood favorites. .

Coconut mint pulao, Fried okra raita and Murg Irani (a delicately flavored chicken dish)

Dessert was apple pie with vanilla ice cream and Jalebi with rabdi. Jalebi from the Persian bakery.

Jalebi from a Persian bakery?! Do tell. Where and how?

[Anonymous]

My parents are Indian immigrants. We’ve always done a traditional meal minus turkey (which none of us ever liked) and roasted potatoes instead of mashed. This year it was a rack of lamb, brussels, stuffing, roasted potatoes, and mac & cheese. We usually have a porchetta instead of lamb but needed something easier this year.

[Anonymous]

These all sounds lovely and hope everyone enjoyed.

FWIW - I am an American with American parents and we never had sweet potatoes with marshmallows, green bean casserole, or mac and cheese for Thanksgiving (or Christmas or Easter). The marshmallow potatoes and the casserole are things we just never had/have. Mac and cheese was just an occasional side but not for holidays. Not sure if we are in the minority, or if it is regional (my family is NE/Mid-Atlantic).

[Anonymous]

We did ham (everyone hates turkey), sweet potato casserole, pecan pie, string beans, corn, mashed potato w/ gravy. Typical Thansgiving dinner I guess

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These all sounds lovely and hope everyone enjoyed.

FWIW - I am an American with American parents and we never had sweet potatoes with marshmallows, green bean casserole, or mac and cheese for Thanksgiving (or Christmas or Easter). The marshmallow potatoes and the casserole are things we just never had/have. Mac and cheese was just an occasional side but not for holidays. Not sure if we are in the minority, or if it is regional (my family is NE/Mid-Atlantic).

We didn’t either - also mid-Atlantic. My mom wasn’t big on cooking though. So she’d make roasted sweet potatoes in their jackets and consider it fancy if she served them with a stick of butter on a plate. And she usually served steamed asparagus even though that’s as out of season as you can get. She made amazing cranberry sauce and stuffing though. Those plus turkey were the meal. No gravy by the way.

My mid-Atlantic in-laws did the sweet potato with marshmallow thing but no mac or green beans. Instead they did chopped liver appetizer and matzoh ball soup.

[Anonymous]

Nice to hear of other non-traditional Thanksgiving meals. Indian vegetarian family - we had cosmopolitans, a cheese board, a chaat board, spinach pakoras, onion sambar, dry potato curry, tamarind rice and fried okra raita. Pecan pie, bourbon whipped cream and a lemon cake for dessert.

[Anonymous]

I love the sweet potatoes with marshmallows. Yummy!