These easy thanksgiving side dishes make ahead are the calmest way to host Thanksgiving. Instead of cooking ten dishes on Thursday morning, you spread the work across the week, chill most of it, and spend the big day reheating while the turkey rests. This list gives you 20 dishes, each with how far ahead to make it and what to do on the day, so nothing is left to guesswork.
Pick six or seven dishes, not all 20. A good Thanksgiving plate needs one potato dish, one green vegetable, one cranberry dish, one bread, and one casserole. The rest is choice, not obligation. If you are new to planning a big meal, our meal prep tips for beginners use the same logic on a smaller scale: plan first, chop once, and label everything.
Easy Thanksgiving Side Dishes Make Ahead: The 20 Dishes
1. Creamy mashed potatoes. Make up to 2 days ahead with plenty of butter and a spoonful of cream cheese, which keeps them soft after chilling. Reheat covered at 175C for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring once and adding a splash of warm milk.
2. Sweet potato casserole with pecan crumble. Make the mash up to 2 days ahead and keep the pecan topping in a separate bag. Scatter the topping on just before baking at 175C for 35 to 40 minutes, so it stays crisp.
3. Sage and onion stuffing. Assemble the day before in a buttered dish, cover, and chill. Bake covered at 190C for 30 minutes, then uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes until golden and 74C in the centre.
4. Cornbread dressing. Dry the cornbread a day or two ahead, then assemble with onion, celery, herbs, and stock the day before. Splash in a little extra stock on the day if it looks dry, then bake until the top is crisp and the centre is hot.
5. Make ahead turkey gravy. Make up to 3 days ahead from roasted turkey wings simmered in stock, then thickened. It will set firm in the fridge, which is normal. Warm it gently, whisking, and thin it with a little stock. Stir in the roasting pan drippings on the day if you have them.
6. Green bean casserole. Assemble up to 1 day ahead, but keep the crispy onion topping in its bag. Bake at 190C for 25 minutes, add the onions, then bake 5 to 10 minutes more until golden.
7. Baked mac and cheese. Assemble up to 2 days ahead, undercooking the pasta by about 2 minutes so it does not go soft overnight. Add a splash of milk before baking at 175C for about 35 minutes until bubbling.
8. Creamed corn casserole. Mix up to 1 day ahead and chill in its baking dish. Bake at 175C until set and lightly golden, then rest for 10 minutes so it slices cleanly.
9. Cheesy broccoli casserole. Assemble up to 2 days ahead with cream cheese, sour cream, and cheese. Bake from cold with foil on, allowing extra time, then finish uncovered until the cheese browns.
10. Potato gratin. Bake fully a day ahead, cool, and chill covered. Reheat at 175C under foil until the centre is hot, then uncover for the last 10 minutes to crisp the top again. It often slices better the second day.
11. Cranberry orange sauce. Make up to a week ahead. Simmer cranberries, sugar, and orange juice for 10 to 12 minutes until most berries burst, then cool. It thickens as it cools, so pull it off the heat while it still looks a little loose, and serve cold or at room temperature.
12. No cook cranberry apple relish. Make 3 to 5 days ahead in a food processor with cranberries, orange, apple, and a little sugar. Chill at least 4 hours, and ideally overnight, so the flavours mellow.
13. Honey glazed carrots. Roast a day ahead with butter, honey, and thyme, then cool and chill. Reheat in a hot oven for about 10 minutes until the glaze loosens and the carrots are hot through.
14. Roasted Brussels sprouts with balsamic. This is a prep ahead dish, not a cook ahead dish. Trim and halve the sprouts the day before and store them in a bag. On the day, toss with oil and salt and roast at 220C for 20 to 25 minutes, finishing with balsamic glaze. Roasting them fresh is what keeps them crisp.
15. Roasted root vegetables. Roast a day ahead until just short of done, then cool and chill. On the day, finish them with a short blast of high heat. For the crispest tray, follow the rules in our crispy roasted vegetables guide: dry vegetables, a hot tray, and space between pieces.
16. Cabbage and apple slaw. Shred the cabbage and carrots the day before and keep the dressing in a separate jar. Toss about an hour before serving, so the flavours settle while the crunch survives.
17. Apple, cranberry, and walnut salad. Wash and dry the greens, toast the nuts, and slice the apples the day before, tossing the apple slices in lemon juice so they do not brown. Store each part separately and toss with dressing just before serving.
18. Wild rice salad. Make up to 2 days ahead with cooked wild rice, apples, celery, peas, and pecans. It is served at room temperature, which frees oven space entirely, and it travels well if you are taking a dish to someone else.
19. Overnight dinner rolls. Shape the rolls the day before, cover, and chill overnight so the fridge does the second rise. Rest them on the counter while the oven preheats, then bake at 190C for 25 to 30 minutes until deep gold. Baked rolls also freeze well: warm them wrapped in foil for about 10 minutes.
20. Deviled eggs. Boil and peel the eggs up to 2 days ahead. Mix the filling a day ahead and keep it in a sealed bag in the fridge, with the whites in a covered container. Fill and dust with paprika just before guests arrive, and make more than seems reasonable.
Make Ahead Timeline: From One Week Out to Thanksgiving Day
| When | Do this | Dishes |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1 week ahead | Cook and chill, or freeze breads | Cranberry sauce, dinner rolls for the freezer |
| 3 days ahead | Cook the longest keeping dishes | Gravy, cranberry relish, wild rice salad base |
| 2 days ahead | Cook or assemble the potato and casserole dishes | Mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, mac and cheese, broccoli casserole, potato gratin |
| 1 day ahead | Assemble, chop, and label everything else | Stuffing, cornbread dressing, green bean casserole, salads in parts, sprouts trimmed, eggs peeled |
| Thanksgiving Day | Reheat, roast the fresh items, and toss the salads | Casseroles while the turkey rests, sprouts last, salads just before serving |
Label every dish with its bake temperature and time on masking tape. On the day you will not remember which dish needs 175C and which needs 190C, and the label removes that guesswork. Clear fridge space early in the week, and store toppings separately: fried onions, breadcrumbs, nuts, and marshmallows all go soft if they spend the night on top of a damp casserole.
Reheating Without Drying Dishes Out
Most reheating happens at 175C to 190C, which is why dishes can share the oven while the turkey rests for at least 30 minutes. Put the slowest dishes in first, cover casseroles with foil so they heat through without drying, and uncover them only for the last 10 minutes to crisp the top. Stir mashed potatoes once halfway through, and add a splash of milk or cream if they look stiff.
Use the slow cooker for mashed potatoes if the oven is full, and the hob for gravy, creamed corn, and greens. Reheat until the centre is steaming hot, and use a food thermometer if you want certainty: 74C in the centre is the safe target for reheated leftovers. Do not reheat in a slow cooker from cold, because it warms food too slowly. Keep crisp dishes out of the microwave, which steams them soft, and reheat only the portion you need so the rest stays chilled.
Make Ahead Storage and Food Safety
Cool cooked food quickly and refrigerate within 2 hours, using shallow containers so the centre cools fast. Keep the fridge at 4C or below. As a general rule, cooked leftovers keep for 3 to 4 days in the fridge, which is the window given in the FoodSafety.gov cold food storage chart for cooked meat, poultry, and casseroles with eggs. That 3 to 4 day rule is why a week long plan only works if the earliest dishes are cranberry sauce, relishes, and frozen breads, not cooked casseroles.
After Thanksgiving, eat fridge leftovers within 3 to 4 days and freeze anything you will not finish in that window. The same habit helps all year: if you are unsure about a leftover, our guide to how long food lasts in the fridge explains the 3 to 4 day rule, the 2 hour cooling rule, and why rice gets its own shorter limit. When in doubt, throw it out. No leftover is worth a ruined weekend.
Beyond Thanksgiving, most of these sides work again as weeknight dishes next to a different main, for example our authentic chicken karahi recipe, where a simple roasted vegetable tray or a cabbage slaw cuts through a rich curry. That is the real payoff of a make ahead list: the same dishes, with no extra cooking on the night.
Conclusion
These easy thanksgiving side dishes make ahead work because they respect one simple order: cook the dishes that improve with rest first, assemble the casseroles the day before, and leave only reheating and one fresh roast for Thanksgiving Day. Start with the cranberry sauce, get the potatoes and casseroles into the fridge by Wednesday, and keep every topping separate until baking. Do that, and Thursday becomes a meal you actually get to sit down for.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best easy thanksgiving side dishes make ahead for a first time host?
Start with cranberry sauce, creamy mashed potatoes, green bean casserole assembled the day before, sage stuffing, and dinner rolls. Those five cover the classic flavours, they all reheat well, and none of them needs the oven at the same time as the turkey for long. Add a salad or slaw for freshness, and stop there.
How far ahead can I make Thanksgiving side dishes?
Most cooked casseroles and mashed potatoes keep 2 days in the fridge, and assembled casseroles are best made 1 day ahead. Cranberry sauce keeps about a week, gravy keeps 3 days, and breads freeze for weeks. Cooked leftovers in general should be eaten within 3 to 4 days, so do not cook everything a week early.
Which Thanksgiving sides should NOT be made ahead?
Do not fully cook Brussels sprouts, roasted vegetables meant to be crisp, or dressed salads ahead of time. Prep them instead: trim sprouts, chop vegetables, wash greens, and keep dressings and toppings separate. Roast or toss them on the day, and they will taste freshly made.
How do I reheat several sides with only one oven?
Reheat at a shared temperature of 175C to 190C while the turkey rests, putting the slowest dishes in first and keeping casseroles covered with foil. Use the slow cooker for mashed potatoes and the hob for gravy and greens. Stagger the dishes by 10 to 15 minutes so nothing sits out cooling while another dish finishes.
Can I freeze Thanksgiving side dishes?
Yes, for the right dishes. Dinner rolls, cornbread, mashed potatoes, and unbaked stuffing freeze well for up to a month in airtight containers. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then bake or reheat as usual. Creamy salads, dressed slaws, and dishes topped with fried onions do not freeze well, so make those fresh or keep them in the fridge only.
