# What's MANDATORY for you to have on Thanksgiving (foodwise)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 24, 2015, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405 "2015-11-24T04:03:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2015, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405/61 "2015-11-28T03:12:46Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > We don’t prefer it because homemade is a chore. No, it’s becasue we prefer the “cranberry jello.” It’s a jelly mass of consistent flavor and texture, not a sauce with bitter fruits in it, offset by the sweetness of the juice syrup around it. > > They actually do sell that variety in cans, and it doesn’t sell nearly as well. Because, you’re right. If that’s what you want, homemade is easier. > > I’m sure no one would buy crunch peanut butter at all if making it home were as easy. But they’d still buy just as much creamy peanut butter. Or rather, making a smooth cranberry jelly at home would be a huge PITA. And lots of us prefer cranberry jelly to cranberry sauce with bits of skin and seeds. Ocean Spray brand really tastes fresher than store brand. The stuff I made at home tasted remarkably like the “chunky” version sold in cans by Ocean Spray. I thought about this question as I cooked. And I decided that “cranberry in some form” was a must-have food for Thanksgiving. This occurred to me as I added handfuls of fresh cranberries to the butternut squash/apple medly, and put together my traditional apple-cranberry pie. But I do love canned cranberry jelly. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405/62 "2015-11-28T04:12:36Z")
I honestly never heard of green bean casserole and have no idea what it is, let alone that it is such a thing. Gosh, I feel like a fucking 'ferner. Pecan pie. (Besides T., C.S., S. (or D., depending on what part of the country you are), S.P., and M.P. and G. - off to look up G.B.C. \* ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2015, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405/63 "2015-11-28T04:15:59Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > …stuffing omelets … Huh. Gotta think about that one. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2015, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405/64 "2015-11-28T04:34:41Z")
Green bean casserole is nasty. My brother started bringing it to T-day recently, but on one eats much of it. On the other hand, we served green beans this year, which disappeared. That was the only food we didn’t have left over. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2015, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405/65 "2015-11-28T06:29:35Z")
Pumpkin pie. Everything else is optional. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2015, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405/66 "2015-11-28T06:30:51Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > A whole roast turkey. Dude…that is some serious dedication to the whole “eat till you nearly explode on Thanksgiving” thing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-mandatory-for-you-to-have-on-thanksgiving-foodwise/738405.md?page=3)