Thanksgiving Main Dishes That Are Better Than Turkey (2024)

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Thanksgiving Main Dishes That Are Better Than Turkey? ›

Cornish game hen, goose, duck, ham, beef, salmon, and mushroom recipes make worthy centerpieces for holiday meals.

So go ahead and shake things up this Thanksgiving with one of these flavorful alternatives to cooking up a whole bird this year, like mushroom, Gruyère, & spinach-stuffed pork tenderloin, vegan mushroom pot pie, or a juicy prime rib.

It's Smaller

Chickens are much smaller than turkeys, which make them a great alternative for smaller families or gatherings. Unless, of course, you want to eat leftover turkey for weeks. Because chickens are smaller, cooking them is also so much easier to manage.

If you're hosting a crowd this year, you'll most certainly want another Thanksgiving main dish, like ham or beef, to serve alongside your favorite turkey recipe.

Mashed potatoes are a traditional Thanksgiving side dish for a reason, and we definitely look forward to serving up this delicious dish every November.

Unsurprisingly, chicken works out as the far cheaper alternative to turkey. With the prices below, we have picked the cheapest whole chickens - if you want something free range, organic, or generally just better farmed, you'll be looking at adding a bit more onto the cost.

Birds like chicken, duck, quail, and Cornish hens are smaller, worthy alternatives to the traditional Thanksgiving turkey.

1. Nearly All U.S. Turkeys Are Raised on Factory Farms. Each year, more than 200 million turkeys are slaughtered for food in the U.S. — and over 99 percent of U.S. turkeys are raised on industrial farms and kept in severely crowded and unsanitary conditions.

What is the chicken that looks like a turkey? ›

The Turkens are not half chicken and half turkey, they are a unique chicken with a bare neck like the turkey and with very little feathering around the breast and wing areas. Despite their lack of feathers, they are very cold weather tolerant.

Because chicken tastes better.

Since a chicken is smaller, there's going to be more crispy, brown, beautiful skin for every bite of meat. Part of the reason turkey breast can be so bad is that there's never enough skin to go around. Less meat, in this case, is more. A roast chicken can look nice too!

As for cooking methods, duck, pheasant and goose can roast in the oven just like you would a turkey. The fattier duck and geese should be slow-roasted so the fat renders and you get a crispy skin. A quick reminder: Just like all poultry, make sure your bird reaches an internal temperature of at least 165°F.

Ham Is Easier and Quicker To Cook

As we mentioned, fresh ham has a higher fat content than turkey, so it won't dry out nearly as easily; this means you don't have to watch it as intensely. However, that only applies to fresh ham.

Duck is healthy.

Duck has the same amount of calories as turkey, but contains more essential nutrients like iron and vitamin E. It also contains no tryptophan, so you can avoid the traditional post-turkey food coma!