Thanksgiving: A History of Delicious Dining

It is the time of year when we eat delicious comfort foods that have been in our families for generations. Each holiday season is a time for tradition and family. Most of us eat turkey for Thanksgiving, with side dishes ranging from sweet potatoes to stuffing, cranberry sauce to pumpkin pie. It is amazing that on one day each year in the United States, approximately 46 million turkeys are eaten.

In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians had an autumn harvest feast. Although this feast is presumed to be the first Thanksgiving celebration, there had been a tradition for many years to celebrate the harvest of good crops.

They may have had turkey at this feast, but there were many other meats on the menu. According to the website, http://www.history.com; wild fowl, including goose, duck, crane, and swan were a part of the feast. Venison and seal were eaten as well. Seafood such as cod, eel, clams, and lobster were staples of the pilgrims diets. These seafood items were probably present at the first Thanksgiving.

Vegetables, which are a key component in our feasts, did not play an important role for the pilgrims on Thanksgiving. Many vegetables were unavailable to the pilgrims. Potatoes, sweet potatoes, and yams were not common to pilgrims, and corn was used primarily for making cornmeal. Potatoes were thought of as barely appropriate for animals. Potatoes were not consumed by humans until the famines of the 18th century.

Pies and other sweets were probably not included in the first Thanksgiving feast, because their supply of sugar was diminished. Since sugar was not available, the season favorite; cranberry sauce, was not on the menu. Pilgrims most likely did not have butter and flour to make a pie crust, so they did not have pumpkin pie; although, they probably served stewed pumpkins. Pumpkin pie became popular in America during the 17th century.

Nuts play an important role in holiday foods because since ancient times, they have been associated with living a long life and having prosperity. The pilgrims also used many spices in their cooking, including nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger. Perhaps this is why these spices are associated with Thanksgiving.

William Bradford, a leader of the pilgrim community, wrote journals about the first 30 years of the Plymouth colony. When these journals were found in 1856, Thanksgiving was made into a national holiday.

Bradford wrote in his journals about the colonists hunting wild turkey during the autumn of 1621. Since turkey is a unique American bird, it became the number one choice of meat to eat on Thanksgiving. Turkey is a better choice than chicken for a feast for obvious reasons. Turkey is larger and feeds more people. Unlike other meats, turkey is less likely to be eaten on a regular basis, making it special.

According to the website, http://www.foodtimeline.org, by the 19th century, the Thanksgiving dinner menu had changed drastically. Turkey, stuffing, white bread, apple pie, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and various fruit pies were served. Ham, cole slaw, peach pickles, oysters, chicken pie, tomato ketchup, and stewed prunes were commonly served on Thanksgiving as well.

In the 20th century, scalloped potatoes replaced mashed potatoes, and butternut squash became a delicious gourmet alternative to the average potato.

Many things have changed over the years. Now there are countless ways to cook a Thanksgiving turkey. Fried turkey, beer-brined turkey, tofu-turkey, and “turducken” (turkey stuffed with duck, stuffed with chicken) are all contemporary recipes.

There has been a rise in recent years to buy wild turkeys, also known as “Heritage Turkeys.” These breeds are being raised sustainably around the country and are more moist and rich tasting than turkeys sold in most supermarkets. These birds eat fresh grass and insects. They have a longer lifespan and are able to reproduce without being artificially inseminated. Today’s commercial turkey is selected to produce meat at the lowest possible cost.

According to the website, http://www.localharvest.org, while supermarket turkeys grow to an average of 32 pounds over 18 weeks, Heritage breeds take anywhere from 24 to 30 weeks to reach their ideal weight. Raising these birds is more time consuming and costs more than other breeds. Breeds including the Standard Bronze, Bourbon Red, Jersey Buff, Slate, Black Spanish, Narragansett, and White Holland were around when the colonists had their Thanksgiving feast in 1621.

The foods served at Thanksgiving dinner have evolved over the years and vary from family to family. Any dish that is served is sure to be filled with love and comfort for all enjoying it. It is interesting, however, to sit back and think about how people ate hundreds of years ago, and how they have effected the way we eat today. While many side dishes have come and gone over the years, one thing is for certain, turkey is not leaving the Thanksgiving table anytime soon