Show-Stopping Potato Side Dishes for Thanksgiving

No matter what dishes you have at your Thanksgiving dinner, there’s a good chance that at least one will be some form of potatoes. We’ve already covered how to make a tasty turkey, and now, we’ve got two recipes that can make it a safe bet that your Thanksgiving potatoes be delicious.

Mashed potatoes are the second most popular Thanksgiving dish, and sweet potatoes, or yams, are another favorite. Here are two show-stealing potato recipes that your friends and family will talk about for years!

Heavenly Mashed Potatoes

When made right, mashed potatoes are the right mixture of creamy and savory with a fluffy, cloud-like texture that improves any dinner plate. Even bad mashed potatoes are pretty good. But we’re not here for mediocrity, we want a transcendent dish.

This recipe is certainly not the lower calorie version we’ve shared before, utilizing all the butter and cream to balance the flavor we’re infusing. For extra fluffiness, we tend to use a potato ricer, running the potatoes through twice to ensure a consistent texture throughout. You can use a masher or fork if you don’t have one available. Be careful if you use electric beaters, as they can overwork the potatoes and make them gluey. Besides that, just follow this recipe for our favorite mashed potatoes!

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Medicareful Mash Recipe

Ingredients

  • 8 large russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
  • 1 cup of heavy cream
  • 3 tbsp of butter
  • 2 tbsp and 1 tsp of salt
  • 2 cloves of garlic, lightly crushed
  • ½ of a sweet onion roughly chopped
  • Salt and pepper to taste

    Directions

    1. Fill a stock pot with 1 to 2 inches of water and bring it to a boil.
    2. Season the water with about 2 tablespoons of salt.
    3. Peel, wash, and cut the potatoes into roughly uniform cubes.
    4. Place a steaming insert or basket over the boiling water, add the potatoes, and cover.
    5. Allow the potatoes to steam for 25 to 30 minutes, until they are soft and easily pierced.
    6. At the same time, melt a tablespoon of butter in a saucepan and add a teaspoon of salt and the onion.
    7. Sauté the onion until soft, about 12 minutes.
    8. Stir in the heavy cream, the remaining butter, and garlic to the saucepan.
    9. Heat over low while stirring regularly to prevent scorching.
    10. Once the potatoes are steamed, mash them into a large bowl with your preferred method.
    11. Slow pour the cream/butter mixture through a fine mesh strainer into the potatoes a little bit at a time.
    12. Stir in the cream and slowly strain in more cream until the potatoes have reached your desired consistency.
    13. Cover the bowl with tin foil to keep the potatoes warm until serving, but try to serve them within 30 minutes.

Harvest Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are an interesting alternative to your “standard” potato since the flavor is a bit more pronounced. The inherent sweetness of the potato lends itself well to dessert dishes, like sweet potato pies. It’s almost guaranteed somebody will bring one of those to your Thanksgiving dinners, though. Instead, we’re going to use every flavor of the sweet potato to its maximum potential.

What sets this recipe apart from the others is we’ll be leaning into the starchy, earthy tones of sweet potatoes, while still utilizing the sweetness. Rather than adding to the natural sweetness, we can create a complex element that’s different than the rest of your plate.

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Roasted Sweet Potato Recipe

Ingredients

  • 6 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 3 tsp of salt
  • 1 ½ tbsp of cinnamon
  • 1 ½ tbsp of cumin
  • 1 tbsp of onion powder
  • 1 tbsp of garlic powder
  • ½ tbsp of paprika
  • ½ tbsp of brown sugar
  • 1 tsp of pepper

    Directions

    1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
    2. Peel, wash, and cut the sweet potatoes into even, bite-sized cubes.
    3. Mix the salt, cinnamon, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, brown sugar, and pepper.
    4. Add the sweet potatoes to a large bowl and drizzle olive oil on top of them, mixing to thoroughly coat the potatoes.
    5. Sprinkle the spice mix over the potatoes and mix to make sure everything is evenly seasoned.
    6. Spread the potatoes on a foil-lined cookie sheet and place it in the oven.
    7. Roast the potatoes in the oven for 40 minutes, stirring and flipping them and rotating the sheet around halfway.
    8. Remove from the oven and spoon them into a serving dish until dinnertime.
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