Thanksgiving brings family, friends, and delicious food together. But if you’re hosting, the holiday can also bring a long list of preparations, from shopping to cooking and cleaning. For many, the decision of whether to cook the Thanksgiving meal or order it ready-made is a tough one. To help you decide, here’s a look at the pros and cons of each approach, followed by a list of the best places to order a Thanksgiving meal if you decide to take the convenient route.
Cooking the Thanksgiving Meal
Pros:
- Customization: When you’re the chef, you control everything from ingredients to flavors, making it easy to cater to your family’s preferences or dietary restrictions.
- Tradition and Bonding: Cooking at home allows you to include family members in the process, creating memories, upholding family traditions, and passing down recipes.
- Affordability: Preparing a meal from scratch can often save money, especially for large groups, as ingredients bought in bulk are usually cheaper than pre-prepared options.
- Creative Expression: For those who love to cook, Thanksgiving is a perfect time to experiment and get creative with unique recipes and seasonal flavors.
Cons:
- Time-Consuming: Preparing an entire Thanksgiving feast takes hours of cooking and, often, days of preparation, leaving little time to relax or enjoy the day.
- Stress and Pressure: With multiple dishes to prepare and limited time, cooking the meal can be stressful, especially for new cooks or those preparing a large feast solo.
- Cleanup: Cooking at home means facing a mountain of dishes and kitchen cleanup, which can be exhausting after a day of hosting.
- Potential for Mistakes: Homemade meals come with the risk of overcooked or undercooked dishes, which can be particularly stressful with the main course, like turkey.
Ordering the Thanksgiving Meal
Pros:
- Time-Saving: Ordering a meal lets you skip grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning, saving hours of work and stress.
- Convenience: Pre-made meals can be easily ordered and picked up (or even delivered), giving you more time to enjoy the day with loved ones.
- Consistent Quality: Ordering from a restaurant or grocery store ensures that you’re getting high-quality, tried-and-true recipes that reduce the risk of mistakes.
- Diverse Options: Many caterers and stores offer various dishes, including vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options, making it easy to accommodate dietary needs.
Cons:
- Higher Cost: Ordering a meal can be pricier, especially for large groups, as you’re paying for convenience and labor.
- Less Personalization: While convenient, ordered meals lack the ability to adjust seasonings or flavors to suit family traditions or specific tastes.
- Reduced Freshness: Some dishes may lose freshness or texture in reheating, and pre-prepared meals may not taste as good as freshly cooked ones.
- Lack of Tradition: For some families, cooking together is a cherished tradition, and ordering can feel less personal or festive.
Top 10 Places to Order Thanksgiving Meals
If convenience sounds appealing, here are ten excellent places to order your Thanksgiving feast, each offering various meal packages that include traditional dishes, sides, and desserts.
- Target – Thanksgiving Meal for Four for $20
- Details: Target offers an affordable Thanksgiving bundle with turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, and cranberry sauce. Perfect for a small family or those on a budget.
- Visit Target’s website
- Walmart – Thanksgiving for Eight, $52
- Details: Walmart’s Thanksgiving package serves eight and includes turkey, green beans, stuffing, sweet potatoes, dinner rolls, pies, and more for less than $7 per person.
- Visit Walmart’s website
- Aldi – Feast for Ten for Under $47
- Details: Aldi’s package includes a Butterball turkey, sides, and pumpkin pie, all at an unbeatable price per person. This is a top choice for feeding a large group on a budget.
- Visit Aldi’s website
- Lidl – Thanksgiving Bundle for Ten for $45
- Details: Lidl’s bundle includes all the essentials, including turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and dessert, at just $4.50 per person.
- Visit Lidl’s website
- Sam’s Club – Pre-Cooked Meal for $100
- Details: For $100, Sam’s Club offers a premium pre-cooked meal with smoked turkey, sides like mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, cranberry salad, and pumpkin pie. Ideal for a low-stress, quality meal.
- Visit Sam’s Club website
- Sprouts Farmers Market – Natural Thanksgiving Meal for $69.99
- Details: Sprouts’ offering includes a natural turkey with homestyle sides and serves six to eight people, focusing on quality ingredients and classic flavors.
- Visit Sprouts Farmers Market
- Whole Foods Market – Classic Dinner for Four at $99.99
- Details: Whole Foods offers a high-quality Thanksgiving package with an organic turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce, focusing on fresh, seasonal ingredients.
- Visit Whole Foods Market
- Costco – Thanksgiving Dinner for Eight
- Details: Costco’s dinner includes a fully cooked turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce, providing quality at scale for families with eight or more.
- Visit Costco
- Cracker Barrel – Heat N’ Serve Feast for Ten, $184.99
- Details: This Southern-style feast includes turkey, cornbread dressing, sweet potato casserole, and pumpkin pie, offering a rich, traditional meal with minimal effort.
- Visit Cracker Barrel
- Honey Baked Ham Co. – Thanksgiving for Up to 18 for $164.99
- Details: This large package includes ham, turkey, green bean casserole, and cornbread stuffing. Perfect for big family gatherings, it delivers both ham and turkey options.
- Visit Honey Baked Ham Co.
Conclusion
Both cooking and ordering a Thanksgiving meal come with their unique advantages and disadvantages. Cooking allows for customization, tradition, and creativity, but requires time, effort, and patience. Ordering offers convenience, consistency, and more time to relax, though it can be costly and less personal.
Ultimately, the best choice depends on your priorities. If you’re pressed for time, have a large gathering, or prefer to enjoy the day without the stress of cooking, one of these top ten options could be ideal. On the other hand, if you love the process of cooking and want to create a memorable, hands-on experience, cooking the meal may be the perfect way to celebrate.
Whichever path you choose, here’s to a joyful, delicious, and gratitude-filled Thanksgiving!
