Thanksgiving oven dilemma- how do you fit all the food??

HI awonderrfullife, I've just responded ona nother posting re frual coking. I told the person she could get a butcher at a supermarket to cut the turkey in 2 pieces. Have one half at thnaksgiving andn the other half at Christmas. There would be enoufgh oven space for th side dishes. Question: Are you really going to eat 20lb of meat at one meal? I hope this info helps. Blessings!

I have a huge roaster oven that I cook the turkey in. My mom brings the sweet potatoes and squash already made, so they just have to go into the oven to stay warm. The corn and mashed potatoes and gravy are made on the stove. The desserts are brought by my sister, so I don't have that problem. I don't see why you cant put a side dish in the crock pot. I bet that would turn out good.

I know what you mean, getting it all done is sometimes a real challenge! I used to have a double oven range, but this new one just has one standard oven. What I did last year was to put my 2 crock pots to use with some of the side dishes, and do some things on the range top. Also, when the turkey gets done and you pull it out, you're supposed to let it set a good while before carving. I use that time to pop in the oven shorter timed dishes. While the turkey's resting, I do the gravy on the stove top. Another thing I do is to make up the dish ahead of time, freeze it, and then on Thanksgiving day have it thawed and warm it up some in the microwave, then if it needs some extra oven time it gets it while the turkey 'rests' before carving. I have a lot of dishes that I do ahead of time just to save oven space while the bird's cooking. Geez...I sure do miss that double oven this time of year!!

Juggling all the parts of the dinner tends to be my thing. The turkey always starts cooking first so that it's done first. All desserts are made a day or a few days before. All veggies are cooked on top of the stove, and the dinner rolls are always cooked last. Slaw is made while waiting for dinner to finish cooking. It's all about timing it JUST right. It helps to know how long it takes to cook things. We haven't used the crock pot before, but we just have four veggies to cook this year...and we have four burners on the stove. Slaw doesn't need cooking...so... The real mad rush, for us, is preparing everything and keeping it warm before everyone sits down. The carrots need to get their honey glaze and be set in a bowl, for example. The mashed potatos have to be mashed. The turkey's usually so hot that's not a problem...the desserts need to somehow fit on the dinner table..lol. It's all about timing and using the time you've got. Talk about stressful!

Our problem isn't so much with fitting it all in the oven. I use the microwave for the side veggies to save some of the oven space. The problem for us is finding enough space on the dining room table for all of the food. We usually have to put a couple things behind us on the server.

Using your crockpot to do one of the sides would be a great idea. Also, depending on what you're preparing, you could always make one of the dishes in advance and simply reheat it in the microwave come dinnertime.

I use my crock pot to cook the ham. I put the turkey in the oven. When the oven is being carved, I put the rolls in the oven - or I use my little toaster oven for that. Everything else is either cooked ahead or cooked on the cooktop.