How much food to serve at Thanksgiving shouldn’t require a math equation.
The estimates in this post are from real-life experiences and assume you love leftovers.
How Much Food To Serve At Thanksgiving?
This is one of the most common questions relating to hosting Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving dinner.
When you Google it, you’ll typically find guidance like “1.25 pounds of a whole turkey per person” or “2 cups of salad per person” and so on.
This guidance isn’t really helpful when most guests primarily love white meat, and casserole recipes aren’t measured in cups.
Most Thanksgiving serving charts also generally don’t account for second servings (I eat sweet potato casserole once per year, how could I actually only eat a ½ cup!?).
The guidelines in this post are based on my last 6 years hosting Friendsgiving (and countless years Thanksgiving).
This post provides serving guidelines for:
How Much Food To Serve At Thanksgiving For
4-6 Guests
- 1-2 Appetizers
- 1 Meat
- Ham (5 lb)
- Turkey (12-14 lb)
- 2-3 Sides
- 1-2 Desserts
- 2-3 Bottles of Wine
How Much Food To Serve At Thanksgiving For
6-8 Guests
- 1-2 Appetizers
- 1-2 Meats:
- Ham (7 lb) or Turkey (16-18 lb)
- Ham (4 lb) and Turkey (10 lb)
- 3-4 Sides
- 2-3 Desserts
- 2-4 Bottles of Wine
How Much Food To Serve At Thanksgiving For
8-10 Guests
- 2 Appetizers
- 1-2 Meats:
- Ham (8-9 lb) or Turkey (18-20 lb)
- Ham (4 lb) and Turkey (12 lb)
- 3-5 Sides
- 2-3 Desserts
- 4-6 Bottles of Wine
How Much Food To Serve At Thanksgiving For
10-12 Guests
- 2-3 Appetizers
- 1-2 Meats:
- Ham (9-10 lb) or Turkey (20-22 lb)
- Ham (6 lb) and Turkey (16 lb)
- 4-5 Sides
- 3-4 Desserts
- 5-8 Bottles of Wine
How Much Food To Serve At Thanksgiving For
12-14 Guests
- 2-4 Appetizers
- 1-2 Meats:
- Ham (10-12 lb) or Turkey (22-24 lb)
- Ham (6 lb) and Turkey (18 lb)
- 4-5 Sides
- 3-5 Desserts
- 6-10 Bottles of Wine
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