As far as we’re concerned, Thanksgiving sides are the best part of the menu, but offering a wide array to accommodate everyone’s favorites, not to mention juggling everything on your burners and oven racks, can pose a challenge. This year, go easy on yourself by choosing easy Thanksgiving side dish recipes with minimal fuss.
We compiled a bunch of tried-and-true recipes—from standards like creamy mashed potatoes and sweet-tangy cranberry sauce to a few more out-of-the-box options—and all come together in less than an hour. Many are suitable for making ahead, take minimal (if any) oven or stove time, or promise easy cleanup. Relax, you’ve got this!
Dolly Parton’s Sweet Potato Casserole
This special sweet potato casserole comes from Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George’s cookbook, Good Lookin’ Cookin. The tender interior is a mix of sweet potatoes, butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Then, mini marshmallows and crunchy crushed pecans top it all off.
Squash and Lentil Salad
Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen
This vibrant, seasonal salad with butternut squash, arugula, red onion, and lentils will brighten your holiday table and excite your palate. Start by roasting the squash and red onion, then create the dressing that gets some sweetness from mashed dates. Make the dressing and roast the squash and red onion the day before to cut down on day-of prep.
Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes
Victor Protasio
Bet we had you at “make-ahead”! The beauty of this—besides the fact it’s mashed potatoes—is that you can make and refrigerate it up to 3 days ahead. Another advantage is you don’t have to wait until the last minute to find out if your mashed is too runny or lumpy.
Shaved Apple Fennel Salad
Greg Dupree, Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen, Food Stylist: Emily Hall
Delight your holiday guests with this crunchy shaved apple, fennel, and celery salad. It’s the perfect refreshing companion to all the hearty, cheesy sides on the table. The shaved ingredients are tossed with a vinaigrette made from oil, vinegar, mustard, maple syrup, shallot, salt, and pepper. Then, once combined, it’s all topped with crushed pecans and fennel fronds.
Double Cranberry and Apple Sauce
Greg Dupree
This homemade cranberry sauce is easy to make and can be ready in just half an hour with a few simple ingredients: cranberries, apples, maple syrup, and salt. If you don’t have time on Thanksgiving day, make it up to a week in advance and store it in the fridge. We promise you’ll be happy you skipped the canned stuff!
Everything Dinner Rolls
Christopher Testani
If making homemade dinner rolls for Thanksgiving is a non-starter, this is the perfect stand-in. Starting with your favorite frozen dinner rolls, brush the tops with honey butter, sprinkle with everything seasoning (store-bought or make your own), and then bake to golden brown. The result is a gorgeous sheen, a touch of sweetness, and a fancy finish worthy of a special occasion.
Grilled Honeynut Squash Salad
Christopher Testani
This colorful salad will be the star of your Thanksgiving table. The dressing—which doubles as the marinade for the grilled honeynut squash and napa cabbage—is made from apple cider vinegar, white miso, brown mustard, and maple syrup. There’s plenty of contrast in flavors, ranging from sweet and tangy to smoky, making every bite symphonic. Radicchio and pepitas give the salad a good crunch.
Creamed Spinach Casserole
Christopher Testani
We’re big fans of a supermarket shortcut, and this spinach casserole recipe takes advantage of a store-bought goat cheese like Boursin. Sprinkle crushed Ritz crackers on top for a crunchy, golden topping. We’d be surprised if you had any left after dinner was done.
Wild Rice and Mushroom Pilaf With Cranberries
Gentl + Hyers
Incorporate cranberries into your Thanksgiving menu in a new way with this earthy, satisfying rice pilaf. The side dish features dried cranberries, a variety of mushrooms, parsley, and tarragon. When it isn’t a holiday, this pilaf is also wonderful as a weeknight vegetarian main.
Green Bean and Celery Salad
Greg Dupree
Tangy and fresh, this salad will complement the savory dishes on your Thanksgiving table. The green bean, celery, and apple base is elevated with a light apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, and honey dressing. You might even bookmark this one to serve year-round.
Citrus Spice Cranberry Sauce
Christopher Testani
Homemade cranberry sauce is delicious, but canned cranberry sauce jazzed up with citrus and spices is just as great. This Thanksgiving recipe calls on cloves, star anise, cinnamon, and orange to elevate a humble can of cranberry sauce to a warmly spiced, autumnal condiment. You’ll need just 10 minutes of prep time!
Make-Ahead Holiday Salad
Greg DuPree
With a base of Brussels sprouts and kale, this salad gets better with time as the greens absorb the honey-mustard vinaigrette, so it’s a great side to prepare in advance. Just hold off on adding the toasted hazelnuts and croutons until right before serving so they don’t get soggy. Juicy pomegranate arils make an appearance, too, bringing bursts of fruity flavor throughout.
Creamy One-Pot Mashed Potatoes
Greg DuPree
If you’re in need of a reliable mashed potato recipe, look no further than this creamy number, which calls for the trinity of half-and-half, butter, and sour cream. The best part is it only takes 20 minutes of hands-on time, and cleanup is easy-peasy. Sprinkle on some black pepper before serving.
Brussels Sprouts Salad
Heami Lee
This beautiful autumnal salad is full of color and texture, thanks to radicchio, dried cranberries, and toasted pecans. To make ahead, store the Brussels sprouts mixture and dressing in separate airtight containers and combine 30 minutes before serving. But no worries if you forgot to put it together until the big day; it’ll be done in just 20 minutes!
Roasted Garlic Potatoes
Greg DuPree
This roasted potato recipe is simple yet classic. It’s a one-sheet side that cooks for 45 minutes at 375 degrees F, so it’s likely to get along well with other oven mates. What’s better, there’s no peeling, no mashing, and no mess!
Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Pancetta
Anna Williams
Brussels sprouts and pancetta are a match made in heaven, and this recipe yields extra crispy, caramelized sprouts. Easy to prepare ahead of time and reheat, it’s a great option for the holidays. Before serving, sprinkle with lemon zest to contrast with the dish’s earthy, savory flavors.
Green Beans With Bacon Vinaigrette
Gentl & Hyers
Green beans are a Thanksgiving side go-to, and this rendition with whole-grain mustard, bacon, and shallots is extra punchy and crave-worthy. This low-maintenance recipe can be made at the last minute and doesn’t take up any coveted oven space. What a win!
Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
Christopher Testani
On Thanksgiving, a few shortcuts are needed to keep the day stress-free. For this recipe, buy prepared mashed potatoes and dress them up with the cheese of your choice (we like sharp white cheddar), sour cream, and whole-grain mustard. You’ll be left with a luxurious-tasting, cheesy mash, and your guests will never know you took a shortcut.
Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Casserole
Antonis Achilleos
If you’re the rebellious type or one who shuns tradition in favor of the unexpected, this recipe’s for you! Reminiscent of creamy spinach and artichoke dip, this vegan dish is loaded with hearty quinoa in cashew butter and almond milk base and then finished with a crunchy potato chip topping. It seriously won’t last very long.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Pecans
John Kernick
This Thanksgiving recipe dresses up plain old Brussels sprouts without extra fuss. Simply add pecans to the sprouts as they roast to elevate an everyday dish to special occasion status. Even the pickiest of eaters will like these Brussels sprouts, thanks to the brown sugar which brings sweetness to the vegetable.
Green Bean Salad with Crispy Bread Crumbs
Greg DuPree
If you’re tagged to take a dish to Friendsgiving, this green bean salad would be a good one. To make it a day ahead, cover and chill the dressing and cooked beans separately. Store the breadcrumb mixture in an airtight container at room temperature. To serve, bring the beans and dressing to room temperature, toss, and then top with breadcrumbs.
Swiss Chard Mac and Cheese
Caitlin Bensel
Here’s a way to get your kids to eat their greens at Thanksgiving without the coaxing. Mozzarella, Parmesan, and evaporated milk combine for a rich, creamy base. Even better, everything cooks in one skillet on the stove for less than 30 minutes, saving you cooking and cleanup time—and freeing up the oven.
Roasted Eggplant With Miso and Sesame Seeds
Antonis Achilleos
Eggplant for Thanksgiving: Why isn’t this already a thing? This recipe tops roasted eggplant rounds with an Asian-inspired sweet-spicy miso sauce. After a quick broil and sprinkle of sesame seeds and scallions, each bite delivers a deliciously melted center with a slight nutty crunch.
Roasted Butternut Squash With Tahini Sauce
Caitlin Bensel
This recipe takes a traditional Thanksgiving staple and gives it a Middle Eastern spin. It treats roasted butternut squash to a thin, pourable, tahini-based sauce laced with honey, garlic, and soy sauce. A topping of pepitas, sesame seeds, and cilantro brings a tasty crunch and lovely color to this company-worthy dish.
Every-Citrus Salad With Almonds and Manchego
Caitlin Bensel
Looking for something bright and fresh for your Thanksgiving table? This salad, packed with in-season citrus, certainly fits the bill. Far from your everyday fruit salad, this one adds punchy radicchio and is dressed with an orange juice-based concoction made with shallots, maple syrup, and Dijon mustard.
Maple Roasted Vegetables
Grace Elkus
Easy prep and cleanup? Check. Fall flavors? Check. Uses ingredients on hand? Check. This Thanksgiving-worthy recipe dresses up carrots and Brussels sprouts with a maple syrup and olive oil coating, resulting in beautifully caramelized vegetables that everyone will love.
Cheesy Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Marcus Nilsson
If you need a last-minute side and have a couple of extra sweet potatoes on hand (who doesn’t on Thanksgiving?), look no further than this idea. Fontina and Parmesan cheese balance the potatoes’ sweetness in this quick sheet pan recipe. Roasted in a hot oven, these sweet potato wedges are ready in about 30 minutes.
Bourbon-Cranberry Compote
Greg Dupree, Prop Stylist: Audrey Davis, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer
This cranberry compote couldn’t be simpler to make but tastes elegant and adult, thanks to a hearty splash of bourbon. Don’t toss the leftovers, which we recommend spreading on turkey sandwiches or serving alongside vanilla ice cream. There are endless ways to use this compote. (Pancakes, anyone?)
Herb-Roasted Fingerling Potatoes
Marcus Nilsson
If you’re not wed to mashed potatoes, may we suggest roasted potatoes? With no mixing or mashing, these herby, garlicky fingerlings roast in about 30 minutes and taste amazing with everything. Plus, it’s roasted on a sheet pan lined with foil, which means cleanup is a breeze.
Garlicky Green Beans With Pine Nuts
Mikkel Vang
This recipe upgrades green beans from plain to polished with the addition of sautéed garlic and toasted pine nuts. This simple staple takes just 15 minutes, start to finish, and is a welcome addition to a traditional Thanksgiving menu. You’ll love the nutty flavor and crunch the pine nuts bring to the green beans.
Loaded Sweet Potatoes With Coconut and Kale
Victor Protasio
Surprise your guests with this sweet potato treatment they never saw coming! A citrusy twist of lime and grapefruit juice, along with coconut milk, will take their taste buds to a tropical island. The best part is that these potatoes cook in the microwave, freeing up valuable oven real estate.
Baked Sweet Potatoes
Joy Skipper/Getty Images
If your guests are expecting that sweet potato casserole topped with marshmallows, we doubt they’ll be disappointed to see this dish instead. Prep is so easy: just one baking sheet, four ingredients, five minutes to prep, and 45 minutes to cook. Make the toppings your own: Try maple syrup or brown sugar, cinnamon, and freshly grated orange zest.
Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes
Chris Court
Just when you think we’ve listed every possible twist for mashed potatoes, here’s one that goes back to basics. It adds just butter, sour cream, and whole milk (and salt and pepper, of course) to boiled potatoes to create this staple. The only thing that could possibly make it better is if it was drizzled with some gravy.
Crispy Roasted Sliced Mushrooms
Danny Kim
“Nutritious” isn’t something you look for in a Thanksgiving side, but this recipe delivers nonetheless. Any combo of seasonal mushrooms works well for this super-simple, one-sheet, two-step recipe: 1. Toss, and 2. Roast. Sprigs of thyme roast with the mushrooms to lend a deep, herby flavor, but don’t forget to save a few fresh ones for a garnish.