If you walked through any supermarket in America right now, you’d see warm fall colors, pictures of families, and advertisements for turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce everywhere you looked. That’s because Thanksgiving is just around the corner! This popular American holiday is celebrated on the last Thursday of November each year. It’s a chance for families to gather from far and wide and celebrate all the things they’re thankful for with a huge feast of traditional holiday dishes.
Thanksgiving food is some of the most delicious American food out there! Here are some of our favorite traditional dishes, and recipes so you can make them yourself.
Turkey: This is the main course at every Thanksgiving dinner! People cook their turkeys using many different recipes. Every turkey is unique!
Try it yourself: Black Pepper & Pomegranate Molasses Glazed Turkey
Stuffing: Before cooking the turkey, Americans fill it with a stuffing mixture made with bread, spices, and sometimes even sausage. When the turkey is done, we take the stuffing back out of the bird and serve it as a side dish.
Try it yourself: Southern Style Cornbread & Sausage Stuffing
Cranberry Sauce: Despite the name, cranberry sauce is actually a kind of jelly, not a sauce. Many people prefer to buy cans of it instead of making it themselves! This sweet side dish made with cranberries and sugar is a festive addition to any Thanksgiving table.
Try it yourself: Jellied Cranberry Sauce
Mashed Potatoes: No Thanksgiving would be complete without this simple classic!
Try it yourself: Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Sweet Potato Casserole: This might be the most uniquely American dish around! To make it, we usually cut up sweet potatoes, cover them with marshmallows, and bake them in the oven.
Try it yourself: Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows
Pumpkin Pie: This iconic fall dessert is essential to every Thanksgiving table.
Try it yourself: Pumpkin Pie
Experiencing American culture is an important part of learning English at ICLS. This year, students in our Intensive English Program will get to experience these Thanksgiving foods and traditions for themselves in the heart of Washington, DC. Stay tuned for more updates on their adventures!
Excited to continue learning English in the United States? For over fifty years, ICLS has offered English classes for learners across the globe, including a number of English classes in washington dc, as well as business english and english pronunciation classes both in-person and online. Our extensive array of carefully tailored English language courses offers study options to meet the needs of English language students of all ages and abilities, in goal oriented, individually focused classes. All of the teachers at ICLS are highly qualified and experienced instructors in the field of teaching ESL. Our teachers encourage constant oral practice and continuous exchange within the classroom, as speaking English is the best way of learning English and becoming fluent. Quality is a byword for everything ICLS stands for in the field of language learning.
