The Thanksgiving Day Foods That People Hate Cooking More Than Turkey

Stuffing, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, oh my! The list of delicious Thanksgiving foods goes on and on (and don't even get us started on dessert). But for as many dishes as your Turkey Day feast includes, it takes that many hours — and more — of hard work for the host to prepare them all. And some of the sides and sweets are more difficult or more time-consuming than others to prepare. Would you rather mash the potatoes or whisk the gravy? We asked, and you answered.

Mashed polled over 500 people across the US on which Thanksgiving food they hate cooking the most. While it's no surprise that turkey was the clear winner, with over 35 percent of respondents dubbing it the worst food to prepare, you might be surprised at the dishes that many apparently think are even worse. These are the foods that people hate making so much, they'd rather tackle the turkey (and that's saying a lot).

Over 60 percent of Americans will enjoy cranberry sauce as part of their Thanksgiving feast, a YouGov survey reported. However, for about 15 percent of the people in Mashed's poll, they'd apparently rather buy the canned cranberry sauce from the store than make it themselves. That makes sense, given that the same YouGov survey found that cranberry sauce was the second most likely item to be store-bought (coming in just behind dinner rolls).

However, you might think twice before serving the tart side dish at your own feast. A 2019 survey by grocery delivery service Instacart revealed that 29 percent of Americans polled say that cranberry sauce is their absolute least favorite Thanksgiving food. Over the years, it's garnered the reputation of being one of those dishes that people either love or hate and is easily one of the most controversial Turkey Day foods.

According to the YouGov survey, stuffing is the favorite Thanksgiving side dish of over half (53 percent) of America. However, for as delicious as it may be, no one really wants to make it. Mashed's poll revealed that 11.5 percent of people would rather roast the turkey than make the stuffing that goes inside of it. That makes sense when you consider how much work goes into it if you aren't using the boxed stuff. (You have to cube the bread, toast the bread, chop all the vegetables, etc.)

Psst: Not everyone calls it stuffing. A survey by General Electric found that while 74 percent of the country calls the popular side dish "stuffing," 26 percent call it "dressing." Technically, stuffing is what gets stuffed into the turkey (hence the name), while dressing is prepared in a separate baking dish. GE noted that it's likely a regional difference, with "dressing" being a more popular name in the South.

If your family enjoys cornbread on Turkey Day, be grateful for whoever baked it. According to the Mashed poll, over 10 percent of respondents think cornbread is the worst dish to have to prepare for the big feast. On top of that, the 2019 YouGov survey found that only 7 percent of Americans named cornbread as their favorite Thanksgiving side dish. (Regular bread and dinner rolls tend to be much more popular in most of the US.)

As for the other foods that some people hate cooking more than turkey, gravy and pie followed cornbread, with a little over 8 percent of people choosing both the mashed potato topper and the popular dessert. Many of those who chose "other" in the survey picked less common sides like green bean casserole and mac and cheese or admitted that they either don't host or don't cook on Thanksgiving.