Proof That Sweet Potato Recipes Are A Thanksgiving Necessity (2024)

FAQs

Why do we eat sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving? ›

The exact origin of the tradition of including sweet potatoes on the Thanksgiving dinner menu remains uncertain. However, much credit is given to writer, activist, and an influential editor Sarah Josepha Hale who was a staunch advocate for the creation of Thanksgiving as a national holiday.

From Europe, the potatoes were brought over to America where they found a happy home in the humid South. Southerners adopted the flourishing sweet potato as a replacement for pumpkin in pies and seasonal side dishes.

The Andean white potato (Solanum tuberosum) didn't become widespread in North America until well into the 1700s. And the sweet potato (Ipomea batatas), had not yet made its trek from the tropical Americas, through the Caribbean and eventually to New England.

Sir Walter Raleigh introduced potatoes to Ireland in 1589 & the potato has been linked to Irish history ever since. Mashed potatoes, the most common way to enjoy potatoes at Thanksgiving, became an American staple in the 1700s. As far back as 1747, Americans were mashing up potatoes with butter, milk, salt, & cream.

America's different regions can favor different local cuisines, and Thanksgiving dinner provides no exception. While turkey is the top selection in every region, side-dish challenger mashed potatoes are tied for first place in the Midwest (both winning 85% of matchups) and West (both winning 79%).

They're high in fiber and antioxidants, which protect your body from free radical damage and promote a healthy gut and brain. They're also incredibly rich in beta carotene, which is converted to vitamin A to support good vision and your immune system.

So, to the question “What did the Pilgrims eat for Thanksgiving,” the answer is both surprising and expected. Turkey (probably), venison, seafood, and all of the vegetables that they had planted and harvested that year—onions, carrots, beans, spinach, lettuce, and other greens.

But according to the two only remaining historical records of the first Thanksgiving menu, that meal consisted of freshly killed deer, assorted wildfowl, cod, bass, and flint, and a native variety of corn harvested by the Native Americans, which was eaten as corn bread and porridge.

So while our Thanksgiving dinner table has a big ol' turkey plated in the center, the first Thanksgiving table was likely filled with ducks, geese, eels, lobster, and venison. Maybe there was a turkey, but it was either missing or too dry for anyone to literally write home about it.

Well certainly not what we eat at Thanksgiving. They ate fish, corn, venison, and no pumpkin pie. Pumpkin pie would have required sugar, that was in a very limited amount. There would have been bread, but not the way we see it today.

Which president refused to celebrate Thanksgiving? ›

Which president refused to recognize Thanksgiving? Thomas Jefferson was famously the only Founding Father and early president who refused to declare days of thanksgiving and fasting in the United States.

White potatoes, originating in South America, and sweet potatoes, from the Caribbean, had yet to infiltrate North America. Also, there would have been no cranberry sauce. It would be another 50 years before an Englishman wrote about boiling cranberries and sugar into a “Sauce to eat with. . . .

Potatoes—white or sweet—would not have been featured on the 1621 table, and neither would sweet corn.

Updated on 03/15/24. LauriPatterson/Getty Images. The classic Thanksgiving dinner includes old-time favorites that never change: turkey, gravy, stuffing, potatoes, veggies, and pie.

Sweet potato casserole was first promoted by a marshmallow company. Although it might seem strange to eat a dessert-like side dish alongside savory food, such sweet dishes have been common in American cooking since way back, according to Kitchn.

After emancipation, when African American cooks gained more access to their own equipment and refined ingredients, they continued the tradition of baking with yams and sweet potatoes — especially the pie. These deep roots became the foundation of a strong tradition in African American food culture.

Most people point to a 1917 pamphlet by the Angelus Marshmallow Company as the first time sweet potatoes and marshmallows came together. This company is believed to be the first to commercially-produce and sell the squishy white marshmallows we know, roast, and snack on today.

Potato and sweet potato are examples of analogous organs. Both sweet potato and potato have a common function i.e., storage of food in the form of starch. Hence, they show convergent evolution. But they both differ in structural origin as the sweet potato is a root modification while the potato is a stem modification.