Non-traditional Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas

Thanksgiving is customarily all about tradition, but what if you want something a little different for your Thanksgiving dinner this year? Not everyone loves turkey or pumpkin pie, so it’s useful to have some go-to non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner ideas. These nontraditional Thanksgiving meal ideas are sure to impress when you have guests over for this year’s festivities.

20 non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner ideas

These 20 non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner Ideas are ideal if you’re ready to try something new this year. Check out our collection of non-traditional thanksgiving dinner ideas and get on with celebrating what we have to be grateful for:

1. Sprouts in blankets

A twist on the traditional pigs in a blanket, these bacon-wrapped Brussels sprouts are great as a Thanksgiving pre-dinner appetizer.

1. Parboil some Brussels sprouts, cut bacon strips in half, and wrap bacon tightly around each sprout, overlapping the ends.
2. Using toothpicks to secure, roast the bacon-covered sprouts for 10 minutes.
3. Brush sprouts with a glaze of Dijon mustard, wholegrain mustard, maple syrup, and salt and pepper, then roast for a further 10 minutes.

2. Roast beef with herb butter glaze

This sirloin beef is a perfect alternative to the traditional Thanksgiving turkey. 

1. Create a herb butter glaze by mixing garlic, butter, rosemary, sage, half a red onion, and salt and pepper.
2. Rub the herb butter mixture onto the outside of the beef and roast for 15 minutes, then roast at a lower temperature for approx 1 hour—depending on the size of your beef.
3. Let the beef rest for 20 minutes before carving.

3. Apple-stuffed acorn squash

Take advantage of autumnal squash and apples with a twist.

1. Halve and bake the acorn squash for 40 minutes.
2. Saute some onion and apple in a little butter until soft, then allow to cool.
3. Combine the cheddar cheese, raisins, brown sugar, and cinnamon with the apple mixture and fill the squash with it.
4. Bake the stuffed squash until the filling is hot and the cheese has melted.

4. Honey-soy glazed roasted carrots

An Asian twist on roasted carrots makes this a perfect non-traditional Thanksgiving side dish.

1. Make the glaze by combining equal parts olive oil, soy sauce, and honey.
2. Wash, peel and halve some carrots, and toss generously in the glaze.
3. Roast for around 30 minutes (foil-covered so the honey doesn’t burn).

5. Pork roast loin with mustard rub

Another non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner idea is this flavourful pork loin roast with a tasty mustard rub.

1. Combine creole seasoning, mustard, thyme, rosemary, garlic, and olive oil, and rub the mustard mixture all over the roast.
2. Place fat side up in a roasting pan and roast for 2 hours.
3. Wrap in foil and rest for 15 minutes before carving.

6. Blue cheese mashed potatoes

The tang of blue cheese combined with the creaminess of the butter make these mashed potatoes a full-flavored non-traditional Thanksgiving side dish.

1. Melt some butter over mashed Yukon gold potatoes.
2. Add some buttermilk and whip potatoes until creamy.
3. Stir in crumbled blue cheese and chives.
4. Add some kosher salt and black pepper to season.

7. Mayo glazed turkey breast

A creamy mayo non-traditional variation on the usual roast turkey.

1. Combine mayonnaise with crushed garlic, juice, and zest of 1 lemon, sage, thyme, rosemary, and salt and pepper.
2. Slather this mayo glaze over the turkey breasts and roast for 1 hour, basting with the glaze every 5 minutes.

8. Brie and brown sugar baked sweet potatoes 

Say goodbye to the traditional sweet potato casserole and get creative with this creamy, Hasselback sweet potato rendition.

1. Slice 4 sweet potatoes ¼in thick down, brush inside and out with butter, bake for 30 minutes, brush with more butter, and bake for another 15.
2. Sprinkle brown sugar inside the potatoes, tuck brie into the slices, cover with more brown sugar, and bake for another 5 minutes until the brie and sugar are gooey and melted.

Grab it now on Instacart:

Brussels Sprouts (lb)

Choice Top Sirloin Roast Beef (lb)

Acorn Squash (1 each)

Kikkoman Soy Sauce (5 fl oz)

Boneless Pork Loin Roast (per lb)

Yukon Gold Potato (1 each)

Signature Farms 8-10 Lb Frozen Turkey (per lb)

Golden Yams Sweet Potatoes (per lb)

Stew Leonard's Fresh Italian Style Chicken Sausage (lb)

Cento Aged Balsamic Vinegar Of Modena (8.45 fl oz)

9. Scallops with brown butter

A flavorsome combination of sweet brown butter with a lemony tang and a briny bite.

1. Brown some butter in a sauté pan, add seasoned scallops, and sear them.
2. Add in tarragon (if not available, use sage), followed by lemon juice and a little more butter.
3. Baste the scallops in the lemon butter and add capers before serving.

10. Sausage stuffed sweet bell peppers

Using ingredients with complex flavors makes this a simple yet tasty dish to add to your Thanksgiving dinner table.

1. Cook some Italian sausage until browned.
2. Add tomato paste, a little water, salt, and cooked couscous to the sausage, and simmer for a few minutes.
3. Remove from the heat, add cheese, and toss.
4. Stuff the mixture into sweet bell peppers, cover with foil and bake until bubbly.

11. Maple roasted parsnips

These roasted parsnips combined with maple and sea salt are deliciously sweet, salty, and sticky. 

1. Create a glaze of olive oil, maple syrup, and sea salt flakes.
2. Wash, peel and halve some parsnips, and cover in the glaze.
3. Roast for around 35 minutes.

12. Balsamic roast chicken with cranberries

Who says turkey has to be the star of the show?

1. Blend together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, soy sauce, and ½c of cranberries to create a marinade.
2. Refrigerate 8 chicken pieces in the marinade for 1 hour.
3. Reserving the marinade, roast the chicken pieces in a dish with the remaining ½c of cranberries for 25 minutes.
4. Flip over, brush with the remaining marinade, and roast until the chicken skin is crispy.

13. Roasted broccolini with cheddar

Skip the green bean casserole—broccoli has entered the chat.

1. Drizzle some olive oil on broccolini florets—slice up and add the stems, too.
2. Toss all well in seasoning and roast until tender, for around 8 minutes.
3. Slice some ¼ inch thick cheddar, crumble into large pieces, and sprinkle on the broccolini and return to roast until the cheddar melts.

14. Honey-orange glazed ham

Try this fool-proof spicy, glazed ham for a non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner option.

1. Whisk together some garlic, honey, brown sugar, mustard, orange zest, red pepper flakes, and black pepper to make a glaze.
2. Pour the glaze over the ham and bake the ham for 1 hour, basting with the glaze every 15 minutes.

15. Chicken with sage butter

Fragrant sage butter gives this traditional roast chicken a flavorful twist.

1. Using bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts, combine butter with 1Tbsp of sage and spread half under the chicken skin and half on the outside.
2. Toss ½Tbsp of sage with oil, sea salt, and some diced potatoes, spread on a sheet pan, and place chicken pieces on top.
3. Bake chicken for 25 minutes, toss potatoes and return to bake until chicken is crispy.

16. Feta and sesame roasted carrots

A nutritious, sweet, and savory vegetable side dish perfect served with chicken or beef.

1. Spray some baby carrots with olive oil and roast for 25 minutes.
2. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, and roast for another 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle with feta cheese, drizzle with honey, and finish with coriander.

17. Bacon wrapped green beans

If still want to include green beans, at least give them a bacon makeover.

1. Roast green beans in the oven with a little Italian vinaigrette for 15 minutes.
2. Boil honey, olive oil, balsamic, and Italian vinaigrette until syrupy.
3. Wrap bacon strips around small bundles of the beans and brush the glaze over each bundle.
4. Roast again until bacon is crispy, basting with glaze halfway through.

18. Brussels sprouts with date and halloumi

A delicious combo of savory, salty, and sweet for this vegetable side dish.

1. Cook some bacon pieces until crispy, remove and cook Brussels sprouts until soft and slightly charred.
2. Stir in the dates, red pepper flakes, red wine vinegar and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Sear slices of halloumi cheese on each side until golden and add to the Brussels sprouts and bacon.

19. Stuffing muffins

Give your stuffing a new form with this recipe.

1. Saute sausage, onion, and celery in little butter until cooked.
2. Stir in garlic, sage, rosemary, and thyme and add seasoning.
3. Combine the sausage mixture with some chicken broth and bread cubes.
4. Divide the stuffing mixture into muffin tins and bake until golden—around 25 minutes.

20. Tuscan-baked chicken

Bursting with flavor, this non-traditional Thanksgiving meal idea is perfect as the main course.

1. Season a chicken with Tuscan seasoning rub, then refrigerate for 1 hour for the seasoning to infuse the chicken.
2. Mix more Tuscan seasoning rub with oil or with ghee to use as a baste.
3. Roast for 1 hour—or longer depending on the size of your chicken—basting every 20 minutes with the seasoning and ghee/oil.

Celebrate tradition with a non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner

Thanksgiving is about celebrating what you’re grateful for, together with your loved ones. Make your holidays easier and get your fresh vegetables and all your favorite Thanksgiving food items delivered to you through Instacart. Get contactless, same-day delivery and take a load off for the holidays. Alternatively, consider getting restaurant delivery for last-minute Thanksgiving meals.

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