Here’s What Your Part Of America Eats On Thanksgiving

[Rob L 3,811]

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/heres-what-your-part-of-america-eats-on-thanksgiving/?ex_cid=538fb

Thanksgiving — when we give thanks and celebrate a tale about the welcoming of foreign refugees to American shores — is once again upon us. For some, it’s a day of mass media consumption, with a parade and three NFL games. For others, it’s a day to identify the secret Canadians in our midst by finding out they don’t have plans (Kim!). Sure, we’ve hit the point where the Santa Claus float at the end of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade commemorates the start of the third week of Christmas music on the radio, but at least turkeys are cheap, right?

And that’s what Thanksgiving is really about: food. So, in the spirit of the things that bring us all together, let’s peel apart this holiday and carve this nation up into factions like a bargain-bin bird. Who eats what where? Our SurveyMonday Audience poll about Thanksgiving traditions had 1,058 respondents.

Chicken, pork and roast beef got cursory shout-outs as main Thanksgiving dishes, but turkey rules, with 82 percent of respondents saying the other, other white meat is the centerpiece of their meal. When you get past the poultry and check out the side dishes, though, the regional distinctions really come out.

Here’s the most disproportionately consumed side dish in each region:

Going deeper, the Southeast is the definitive home of canned cranberry sauce; respondents from the region are 50 percent more likely to pick that over the homemade variety. The Middle Atlantic states disproportionately have cauliflower as a side — 17 percent in the region versus 9 percent nationwide — while Texas and central Southern states see cornbread as far more necessary than the rest of the country, with 40 percent of respondents from those regions having it at dinner, compared with only 28 percent of the nation.

The Southeast prefers their carbs in the form of mac and cheese — 35 percent of respondents in that region include the dish on their Thanksgiving menu versus 20 percent of the country overall. Meanwhile, New England is losing its mind over squash, with 56 percent demanding it on their table, compared with only 18 percent of the nation as a whole. This is, by far, the most confusing finding of this whole pursuit. Did Gronkendorse squash or something?

What about dessert? Every region enjoys pumpkin pie. But beyond that, there are three Americas: The America that disproportionately has apple pie (New England and the Middle Atlantic), the America that has pecan pie and sweet potato pie (the assorted South), and the America that consumes cherry pie (the Midwest and West).

Still, after dessert, the nation unites around that most American of traditions: buying . With little variation among regions, a solid 23 percent of respondents said they would shop Black Friday sales on Thanksgiving Day, a great way to leave the family behind a little early.

Another way to ditch the party early: leave after dinner to hang out with high school friends. Thirty-seven percent of respondents said they’ve done that. So it might be worth checking out Facebook ahead of time to see which of your old associates don’t have kids yet. I know I’ll be doing that, and I’ll see you at that bar that didn’t card when we were 19.

You can download the data for yourself here.

[bcking 3,157]

Weird. I always have squash, green beans, salad, rolls/biscuits. Never heard of mac and cheese for thanksgiving though. Cornbread I would totally have but no one in my family makes it

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

Weird. I always have squash, green beans, salad, rolls/biscuits. Never heard of mac and cheese for thanksgiving though. Cornbread I would totally have but no one in my family makes it

Left coast eats salad for Thanksgiving. No wonder they act weird

[yuna628 9,533]

No no. No no no no. We do not eat squash. Never.

Saurkraut with ribs always!

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

No no. No no no no. We do not eat squash. Never.

Saurkraut with ribs always!

My mothers family line was from the Salsburg Region of Germany ( or those damn Nazis as my dad use to say ). We were one of the few families in Hickville GA that ate sauerkraut

One of my favorite things from Thanksgiving

PINK ARCTIC FREEZE

2 (3 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened

2 tbsp. sugar

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

1 c. cranberry sauce, jelled

1 c. drained crushed pineapple

1/2 c. chopped pecans

1/2 c. heavy cream, whipped

Cream together cream cheese, sugar, stir in mayonnaise. Fold in cranberry sauce, nuts and whipped cream and pineapple. Place in loaf pan. Freeze until firm. Cut and serve on a lettuce leaf.

[OriZ 3,157]

Here we just do homemade pizza. No Turkey thanks.

[bcking 3,157]

My best turkey ever was a Rotisserie I did in San Diego over wood chips outside. Only time I've enjoyed a whole turkey.

My wife's family in the UK will typically have turkey for Christmas dinner (go figure) but they just do a turkey crown which honestly ends up a lot more moist at least the few times I've had it. They cover it in bacon so that the fat from the bacon coats the turkey. It's quite good.

[yuna628 9,533]

My mothers family line was from the Salsburg Region of Germany ( or those damn Nazis as my dad use to say ). We were one of the few families in Hickville GA that ate sauerkraut

One of my favorite things from Thanksgiving

PINK ARCTIC FREEZE

2 (3 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened

2 tbsp. sugar

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

1 c. cranberry sauce, jelled

1 c. drained crushed pineapple

1/2 c. chopped pecans

1/2 c. heavy cream, whipped

Cream together cream cheese, sugar, stir in mayonnaise. Fold in cranberry sauce, nuts and whipped cream and pineapple. Place in loaf pan. Freeze until firm. Cut and serve on a lettuce leaf.

That sounds a little like a more savory Watergate Salad. It sounds good but the mayo weirds me out with the rest of the ingredients.

Saurkraut is a Baltimore tradition for us but grandmom always insisted it had to have ribs to make it more hearty. Most of our German roots came from what was called Hesse I think. Did your family also do sour beef and dumplings? It was a big thing to have every holiday season.

My best turkey ever was a Rotisserie I did in San Diego over wood chips outside. Only time I've enjoyed a whole turkey.

My wife's family in the UK will typically have turkey for Christmas dinner (go figure) but they just do a turkey crown which honestly ends up a lot more moist at least the few times I've had it. They cover it in bacon so that the fat from the bacon coats the turkey. It's quite good.

We are going to add in Yorkshire Puddings and roasted parsnips this year. You know the thing about the UK is, at least at his family's house, they literally have a Thanksgiving dinner every Sunday. I don't know how one isn't sick of it eventually, but he's been savoring for Thanksgiving all year long.

[Dakine10 5,452]

My mothers family line was from the Salsburg Region of Germany ( or those damn Nazis as my dad use to say ). We were one of the few families in Hickville GA that ate sauerkraut

One of my favorite things from Thanksgiving

PINK ARCTIC FREEZE

2 (3 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened

2 tbsp. sugar

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

1 c. cranberry sauce, jelled

1 c. drained crushed pineapple

1/2 c. chopped pecans

1/2 c. heavy cream, whipped

Cream together cream cheese, sugar, stir in mayonnaise. Fold in cranberry sauce, nuts and whipped cream and pineapple. Place in loaf pan. Freeze until firm. Cut and serve on a lettuce leaf.

This is not the first time I've heard you talk about Pink Arctic Freeze. Can it just be served on a plate though? Out here in the west, we use our lettuce leaves for salad.

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

Don't get weirded out by mayo. While I am not a fan of it on sandwiches, it has it's place. Try substituting the oil in your cake with mayo, or adding an extra 2 Tbsp in addition to your oil, and see how moist and tasty your (preferably chocolate) cake becomes.

It sounds good but the mayo weirds me out with the rest of the ingredients.

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

This is not the first time I've heard you talk about Pink Arctic Freeze. Can it just be served on a plate though? Out here in the west, we use our lettuce leaves for salad.

Surely you can eat it like finger food, the redneck way

[millefleur 5,038]

Wait, what? Some of those foods are even seasonal. Sweet potatoes anyone? Sweet potatoes with pecans is what I'm all about!