You couldn’t imagine your Thanksgiving table without these classics now, but have you ever wondered how these dishes came to signify the tastiest of holidays? Read on to learn how today’s most iconic dishes wound up on your Thanksgiving menu.
Turkey
It’s what most people think about when they prep for a Thanksgiving feast! This classic dish is likely the only one on your holiday table that dates to that famous first meal with the Pilgrims and Native Americans we learned about as kids. In 1621, wild turkeys were plentiful in the Plymouth area, where they all gathered to eat. But unlike today, this staple wasn’t the main star. Venison, seafood and hens were major components of the historic feast.
Cranberry sauce
What’s the perfect pairing to tasty turkey? Cranberry sauce, of course! This condiment first made its appearance on our holiday table in the 19th century. The original version of this dish involved boiling cranberries in sugared water. These days, we often see the jellied version, which first appeared in 1912 but didn’t become a holiday tradition until the 1940s.
Pumpkin pie
A Thanksgiving meal wouldn’t be complete without pumpkin pie, right? While the first Thanksgiving likely featured pumpkin and other winter squashes, today’s incarnation of the pie didn’t appear until the 1800s. The early version featured a hollowed-out gourd filled with spices, honey and thick custard. Today, flaky crusts are readily available.
Sweet potatoes with marshmallows
While this ooey-gooey delightful dish joined the feast in 1917, the main ingredient made its debut in the 1800s. Southerners included sweet potatoes as part of their Thanksgiving meal beginning in about 1810, but it wasn’t until the later part of the century that Northerners followed suit. Around the same time, confectioners began mass-producing marshmallows. When one of those confectioners released a cookbook, the tasty combination was introduced.
Green bean casserole
This Thanksgiving classic arrived in the 1950s courtesy of a staff member at the Campbell Soup Company. The green bean casserole became a popular side dish because of its convenient use of affordable canned goods.
