You will find casseroles that can be assembled early, vegetables with smart prep-ahead steps, breads that can be refrigerated or frozen, and gravy that does not depend on turkey drippings. Even the mashed potatoes earn their spot by cooking and holding in the slow cooker while the stove stays free.
Planning the whole meal? Start with our Thanksgiving recipes for the full menu.
Want the whole meal planned for you? My free Thanksgiving guide has four complete menus with shopping lists and a day-by-day prep timeline. Get the free guide
Casseroles You Bake Tomorrow
Freeze the mash ahead
Brown Butter Bourbon Sweet Potato Casserole
Four pounds of sweet potatoes, brown butter and a splash of bourbon under a pecan, almond and pretzel crunch. The mash can be made ahead and frozen, so Thursday is just topping and baking.
Assemble today, bake tomorrow
Three-Cheese Baked Mac and Cheese
Sharp cheddar, white cheddar and Gruyère in a sauce that stays creamy. Assemble it the day before without the panko, let it sit out twenty minutes, then top and bake.
Assembled ahead, topped later
Cauliflower Gratin with Gruyère
Cauliflower in a three-cheese sauce. Cook the cauliflower, make the sauce and assemble it ahead; add the panko topping on the day and bake.
Assemble the day before
Cheddar Jalapeño Corn Pudding
Nine ingredients, five minutes of prep and frozen corn works. Assemble it the day before; it also keeps three days, which makes it the rare side that improves your Friday.
Freezes in the dish
Sausage and Apple Stuffing
Sweet Italian sausage, apples, sage and rosemary with stale bread cubes. Dry the bread on the counter overnight, and if you want to get further ahead, the baked stuffing freezes in its dish.
Vegetables, Prepped the Day Before
Par-cook the day before
Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Balsamic
Thirty minutes, seven ingredients, finished with balsamic glaze and pistachios. The post is honest that roasted sprouts lose crispness if cooked ahead, so par-cook them the day before and roast just before dinner.
10 minutes on the day
Garlic Green Beans with Lemon and Pistachios
Blanch and refrigerate the beans a day ahead, and the stovetop part takes ten minutes. Lemon zest, garlic, pistachios and Parmesan keep it from tasting like an afterthought.
4 ingredients, prep ahead
Simple Roasted Rainbow Carrots
Two pounds of carrots, four ingredients plus an optional herb, about thirty minutes. The post says you can prepare them a day ahead.
Frees the stove
Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes
Not make-ahead in the usual sense, but they cook in the slow cooker for three to four hours on high and hold there, which frees a burner and the oven when you need both most.
Breads and Gravy, Done Early
Our most-searched roll
Soft Homemade Dinner Rolls
Fourteen rolls from eight ingredients. Shape them, cover and refrigerate, then bake on the day; or bake and freeze them up to three weeks ahead.
Roast the potatoes ahead
Sweet Potato Skillet Cornbread
Cornbread with a cup and a half of mashed sweet potato, baked in a hot cast-iron skillet for crisp edges. Roast the sweet potatoes ahead and the batter is a ten-minute job.
Made ahead, no drippings
Mushroom Gravy (Vegan)
Dried porcini, miso and thyme make a gravy with real depth and no drippings needed. Make it ahead, reheat with a splash of stock, and the vegetarians at the table get their own.
💛 Conscious Bites
Your priorities, your recipe. Learn about Intentional Cooking.
Time: Spreading the cooking over the days before Thanksgiving turns one frantic afternoon into a few calm hours of prep, and it frees up the oven when the turkey needs it most.
Community, Culture and Tradition: When the sides are done early, you get to sit down with your guests instead of watching the meal from the stove.
🤔 Frequently Asked Questions
Which Thanksgiving sides can I make the day before?
The sweet potato mash, the mac and cheese, the cauliflower gratin and the corn pudding can all be assembled a day ahead and refrigerated, then topped and baked on Thanksgiving Day. The dinner rolls can be shaped and refrigerated overnight, but take them out about two and a half hours before baking so they can rise again.
Can I freeze Thanksgiving sides?
Yes, for some of them. The sweet potato mash freezes before it is topped and baked, the baked sausage stuffing freezes in its dish, and baked dinner rolls freeze for two to three weeks.
How do I keep mashed potatoes warm for Thanksgiving dinner?
Make them in the slow cooker. They cook for three to four hours on high or six to seven hours on low, and you can keep them warm in the crock pot until dinner, which frees up both the stove and the oven.
🪑 Pull Up a Chair
A little work ahead of time can change the whole feel of Thanksgiving Day. Choose the sides your table will actually eat, finish as much as you can early, and leave yourself enough room to enjoy the people who came for dinner.
Free 40-page printable
Now Plan the Rest of the Table
Pick a menu for 2, for 10, for a potluck crowd, or no turkey at all. Each one tells you what to buy, what to make ahead and what goes in the oven when.
👀 Take a look at these other Thanksgiving Recipes:
🍴 Essentials You’ll Adore for These Recipes
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Glass Baking Dish Set, 8 piece
Four deep borosilicate glass baking dishes with tight-fitting lids. Assemble a casserole the day before, cover it and refrigerate it, then take off the lid and bake it in the same dish. The lids make storing leftovers just as easy.
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Ceramic Baking Dish, Set of 3
Three nesting Staub ceramic bakers: 13 x 9, 10.5 x 7.5 and 7.5 x 6 inches. The stoneware holds heat well, so a casserole stays warm on the table, and they’re freezer and oven safe, which makes them handy for make-ahead dishes.
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Baking Sheet Pans (Half sheet)
These professional-grade aluminum sheet pans are my favorite and most-used kitchen item, and they’re the pans commercial kitchens use. Washed by hand, they can last forever. I use them for roasting vegetables, baking cookies and sheet pan meals.
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Slow Cooker – Crock Pot
This roomy 8-quart Crock-Pot is ideal for large recipes, meal prep and feeding a crowd. The programmable controls make timing easy, while the automatic warm setting keeps food ready to serve without overcomplicating dinner.
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Cast Iron 10-inch Skillet
This pre-seasoned cast iron skillet is the one I use at home. Lodge offers great quality products at very reasonable prices. They can be used on the stovetop, oven, grill or campfire. It’s not dishwasher safe!
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Potato Masher
Joseph Joseph’s folding potato masher. The nylon head is shaped to reach into the curved edge of a bowl or pot, so no lumps hide along the sides, and it folds flat to fit in a drawer.
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