From vegan hasselback potatoes and colcannon to kung pao sweet potatoes and sweet potato biscuits, we've got tons of terrific ways to use tubers this Thanksgiving.
You can't go wrong with buttery mashed potatoes. Photo by Megumi Nachev/Unsplash.
POTATOES
Evan Kleiman's Mashed Potatoes
Sometimes you don't want to do anything fancy or newfangled with your potatoes. You want the comfort of warm, fluffy mashed potatoes. We see you, potato people. (Click here for a few minor variations on mashed potato cooking techniques.) Get the recipe
Colcannon
Want a slightly more elaborate mashed potato option? Try colcannon, a traditional Irish dish with four standard ingredients: potatoes, cabbage, butter, and milk. This one comes from Darina Allen of Ballymaloe Cooking School in Ireland who wrote the book, Irish Traditional Cooking. Get the recipe
Scalloped Potatoes with Kimchi
Lauryn Chun, author of The Kimchi Cookbook, shared this recipe with us. It has all the familiar elements of American comfort food — potatoes, cream, cheese — and the added punch of kimchi. Plus, it earned Evan Kleiman's personal stamp of approval. Get the recipe
Cheesy Hasselback Potato Gratin
The recipe was created by J. Kenji López-Alt and adapted by Emily Weinstein. "This golden and glorious mash-up of potato gratin and Hasselback potatoes has been engineered to give you both creamy potato and singed edge in each bite. The principal innovation here is placing the sliced potatoes in the casserole dish vertically, on their edges, rather than laying them flat as in a standard gratin, in order to get those crisp ridges on top," Weinstein explains. Get the recipe
Hazelnut Hasselback Potato Gratin
This rich vegan gratin is perfumed with leeks and rosemary, and smothered in a velvety hazelnut cream, says Hetty Lui McKinnon, who wrote Tenderheart: A Cookbook About Vegetables and Unbreakable Family Bonds. While you can use store-bought hazelnut milk, she makes her own. She likes how homemade hazelnut milk delivers a creamy béchamel-like sauce that is still light. Get the recipe
Spanakopita jacket potatoes give spuds the spinach and cheese treatment and can be prepared a day ahead. Photo by Laura Edwards.
Spanakopita Jacket Potatoes
Georgina Hayden is always trying to get her kids to eat more vegetables, so making dishes ‘spanakopita-ish’ has become a go-to method for her. This isn’t a short recipe, but it is straightforward. The majority of the cooking is baking the spuds, which can be done in advance. You can even make them the day before and leave them stuffed and covered in the fridge until you need them. Get the recipe
Mormon Funeral Potatoes
Don't be deterred by the name. Mormon Funeral Potatoes are basically a potato casserole with plenty of butter, cream and cheese. What's not to love? Get the recipe
Green Bell Peppers Stuffed with Spicy Potatoes, Chili and Dried Mango
When Maunika Gowardhan lived in India, her mother would make this recipe often. The bell peppers are stuffed with spiced, crushed potatoes that are flavored with dried mango powder, which lends a tangy, sour note. Look for the recipe in her book Tandoori Home Cooking: Over 70 Classic Indian Tandoori Recipes to Cook at Home. Get the recipe
Potato Frittata with Avocado and Three-Chile Salsa
A pan of potatoes and eggs spiced with Anaheim and poblano chiles? Yes, please! You can thank Selma Morrow, author of The Williams Sonoma Collection: Potato, for this one. Get the recipe
Aloo Methi: Spinach Cooked with Potatoes and Fenugreek Leaves
This recipe for Aloo Methi comes from Farhana Sahibzada's new cookbook Flavorful Shortcuts to Indian/Pakistani Cooking. She says it works great as both a side dish and a main course. "The secret seasoning is a light sprinkle of dried fenugreek leaves (dried fenugreek leaves labeled as ‘Kasoori Methi' are available at all Indian/Pakistani spice stores) at the end," she writes. Get the recipe
Vegan Red Potato Salad with Pesto
Yes, you can skip the mayo that most potato salads rely on without skipping the flavor. Bryant Terry swears on it. His creation calls for roasted red potatoes and a pesto made of parsley and pine nuts. Get the recipe
Sweet potatoes lend themselves to a variety of preparations, both sweet and savory. Photo by Ella Olsson/Unsplash.
SWEET POTATOES
Tequila Sweet Potatoes
This unusual way to serve sweet potatoes comes from pitmaster Rick Browne, who hosted the public television show Barbecue America. He says the strands of sweet potato soak up the tequila, lime juice, and butter better than slices. Get the recipe
Sweet Potatoes with Orange Bitters
If you're sick of the same old Thanksgiving side dishes, this recipe for sweet potatoes from Yotam Ottolenghi's book Plenty More will be a great addition to your table. Get the recipe
Sweet Potato & Quinoa Salad
Mark Bittman first shared this recipe back in 2009 and it holds up. It's easy to make and you can prepare it well in advance. Get the recipe
Sweet Potato Latkes with Coriander & Lemon topped with Cranberry Orange Relish and Marshmallow Fluff
Who says latkes should only be served at Hanukkah? Not us! White pepper gives these potato pancakes bite. Lemon juice adds a hint of tartness. Coriander imparts flavor. And rice keeps these babies crisp. Get the recipe
Sichuan peppercorns, chilis, peanuts, and scallions give sweet potatoes a kung pao spin. Photo by Mik Sharma.
Kung Pao Sweet Potatoes
Cookbook author Nik Sharma says he was inspired by his husband's love for both kung pao chicken and sweet potatoes to create this dish. Unlike the chicken, which is usually battered and fried, the sweet potatoes are stir-fried to bring out their sweet caramel flavor and then tossed with the sauce. Get the recipe
Sticky Rice with Sweet Potato
You'll find this recipe in Charles Phan's The Slanted Door: Modern Vietnamese Food. If you rarely cook with black sticky rice and usually grab yams instead of sweet potatoes, this will be a fun way to pair these available yet underused ingredients in a rich, irresistible combo. Get the recipe
Dr. Carver's Sweet Potato Biscuits
Ever since Booker T. Washington founded the Tuskegee Institute in 1881, the small Southern town of Tuskegee, Alabama has been a mecca for African Americans. In 1999, Carolyn Quick Tillery wrote The African-American Heritage Cookbook: Traditional Recipes and Fond Remembrances From Alabama's Renowned Tuskegee Institute. There's a 25th anniversary of the book and it features this from peanut and sweet potato expert George Washington Carver. Get the recipe
Sweet Potatoes and Korean Chile Paste Sauce
The sweet, salty, and spicy notes of the chile sauce will perk up grilled meats, fish, tofu, meaty mushrooms or sautéed greens. You can find gochujang for sale at your local Asian grocer or at any good supermarket. If you prefer, kabocha squash and carrots can substitute for sweet potatoes in Susan Volland's recipe. Get the recipe
Sweet Potatoes with Curried Puffed Grains
Popped grains are a fun way to bring crunch to a dish. Grace Parisi pairs them with sweet potatoes, Madras curry powder, maple syrup and cayenne and boom! Get the recipe
Sweet Potato Salad
Scroll down to the bottom of the page for this recipe from Marilynn and Sheila Brass, aka the Brass Sisters. Orange marmalade and apricot jam bring sweetness. Red bell peppers and pecans bring crunch. Orange juice and apple cider vinegar bring tartness. Get the recipe
Roasted Carrot and Sweet Potato Tzimmes
This recipe comes from Amelia Saltsman, author of The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook. Tzimmes is a traditional Ashkenazi root vegetable stew, an easy-to-make vegetarian dish that pairs well with brisket or chicken or turkey. It's sweetened with prunes or dried plums in orange juice, which brightens the tzimmes without adding refined sugar. Get the recipe