The Thanksgiving Prep Ina Garten Does Days In Advance For An Easier Holiday

Ina Garten is a walking encyclopedia of cooking tips, and never is that vast knowledge more helpful to us than at Thanksgiving. Coordinating all the prep work that goes into plating an abundant, delicious holiday feast can be excruciating (and might even involve a spreadsheet). For Garten, however, the key is to start as early as possible so she can spread out all the tedious chores involved. One of our most useful Thanksgiving tips is to make mashed potatoes and gravy days in advance, eliminating a couple of time-intensive tasks on Turkey Day itself, and the Barefoot Contessa agrees with the sentiment.

On her Substack feed, Garten recently shared her Thanksgiving week breakdown, with a helpful daily division of labor that keeps her on track. The Monday before Thanksgiving, she tackles two major tasks: dry-brining the turkey and preparing the gravy. A common mistake when cooking Thanksgiving turkey is not brining it, though that's an error that you'll never be able to accuse Garten of committing. Rather than a liquid brine, she rubs the flesh of her turkey with salt, thyme, and lemon zest and covers it in a dish in the fridge. 

Two days later, she'll uncover the turkey and let it dry out ahead of cooking it on Thursday. She also whisks up her bespoke gravy with chicken stock (homemade, of course), Cognac, white wine, butter, and sage. As Garten herself puts it, "There are more important things to think about on Thanksgiving than worrying about a lumpy gravy!" Her sauce can sit in the fridge for up to seven days.

For Ina Garten, Thanksgiving (which is her favorite holiday!) should be about the spirit of togetherness and not about stress. To that end, she plans her meal not only with traditions in mind, but also practicality. She picks side dishes that are split between the stovetop and the oven, as well as those that she can cook in advance, so that she isn't stressed about too many items needing the same heating method all at the same time. We think Ina would also approve of getting your air fryer, slow cooker, Instant Pot, and any other time-saving devices you own into the mix. Got a toaster oven that can fit a small casserole pan of sweet potatoes? Put it to work!

Starting your big meal preparations well in advance, like Garten, isn't just about saving time and oven space on Thanksgiving Day. It's also a gift to yourself, the home cook, in the form of allowing precious time for you to be more present with your friends and loved ones who are gathered together ... instead of cooking a multi-course dinner from scratch in one short day. Wouldn't you rather be sipping wine, nipping at charcuterie, and chatting with your family than rushing around the kitchen like your tail end is on fire? With a little forethought — and the right recipes — you can pregame a lot of your major Thanksgiving prep and experience the holiday more mindfully than ever before.