Party checklist
Thanksgiving dinner hosting timeline
Enter the date of Thanksgiving this year and how many will sit at your table. The plan runs from three weeks out to the washing-up, shows the calendar day for every job and counts place settings, chairs, rolls and pies.
Three weeks before
Two weeks to one week before
The table
Food counts
Tuesday and Wednesday
Thanksgiving Day
Tips for the Thanksgiving host
- The dates count back from the Thanksgiving Day you enter, so the same plan works every year. Two days before and the day before always land on the Tuesday and the Wednesday.
- The cooking schedule is the piece that saves the day. Write it from your own recipes a week ahead; this list reminds you when, but the times must come from the recipes and labels you are using.
- Say yes when guests offer to bring something. Switch the sides option and the list swaps your baking and make-ahead tasks for checking who brings what.
- Counts for rolls, pies, containers and settings are planning estimates from the number at your table. The list does not work out the size of the turkey: ask the butcher or read the label.
Questions
When should I start preparing for Thanksgiving dinner?
This timeline begins three weeks before with the guest list, the menu and the turkey order. Enter the date of Thanksgiving to see each step as a calendar day.
When do I take the turkey out of the freezer?
It depends on the weight, so the list does not give a day. It has a task nine days before to read the thawing time on your turkey's label and mark the day yourself.
How many pies and sides do I need?
The list counts one pie for every six people plus one, and a number of different sides that grows with the table, up to eight. Both are guides, not rules.
What can I do the day before?
The section for the Tuesday and the Wednesday has it: bake pies, chop vegetables, assemble casseroles, set the table and chill drinks, leaving the main, the gravy and reheating for the day.
Related lists
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