Hosting Thanksgiving dinner can be a lot of fun. You’re the one that gets to have your house smelling like turkey (and all the fixins) from morning till night; and you’re also the one that gets to benefit from all the leftover turkey for the rest of the week. But if you’re not careful, you’re also the one that could end up having to take out a second mortgage just to feed your family. Well, hopefully that isn’t actually true for anybody, but turkey dinner can be really expensive – especially if you have every member of your extended family coming to enjoy it. Here are a few ways you can save money, and enjoy your dinner.
Buying your turkey
If you’ve ever hosted any turkey dinner before, you know how expensive the actual bird can be to buy. $30, $40, $80 – you can find turkeys in all of these price ranges. The one you buy will depend on how many people are coming; and how savvy of a shopper you are.
The general rule of thumb is to buy one pound of meat for every person at the table (and extra for leftovers.) So if you were having 7 people over for dinner, a 10 pound turkey would be more than enough. If you’re having 15 people over, a 20 pound turkey will be plenty. You get idea.
Secondly, never buy fresh. Trust us, the cashiers and butchers at the grocery stores will try to sell you on the benefits of a fresh bird. You don’t have to defrost it in your sink for the whole day, it will cook evenly, etc. etc. The only benefit a fresh turkey brings is to the store because they cost about twice as much as a frozen turkey. Take the time of defrosting it and your frozen turkey will cook just as evenly and taste just as wonderful as a fresh one would have. And even better, since you’ll have saved a bomb.
Other turkeys that will cost you more? Ones that are already stuffed!
Take a look at Thanksgivings past
Do you always make a sweet potato casserole? And does most of it always end up hitting the garbage can after everyone’s gone? Tradition has its place, but it should never force you to spend money you don’t have to. There’s no sense in always making a dish if people don’t eat it so save yourself the time, the hassle, and the dough by nixing it this year.
Plan a BYOD – Bring Your Own Dish
But hands off the turkey! Yes, you will most likely still get the joy (and smells) of cooking the turkey. But there’s no reason you have to make every single side dish to go with it – or remember to pick up the wine. Ask people to bring one thing each and everyone can be thankful that they’re saving some cash!
Keep it simple
You may be dying to try out that cranberry risotto you saw on TV, or the green beans with truffle shavings, but gourmet dishes such as these don’t only take an enormous amount of time – they’re also enormously expensive. Thanksgiving means good, wholesome food enjoyed with family and friends. And ya know what? We’re betting your guests would much rather have a traditional Thanksgiving meal than something that looks like it belongs in a magazine, anyway.
Are you hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year? What are some tips and tricks you know of to help you save money?
