How to Plan an Asian-American Thanksgiving

This is meant to get your imagination working and to get you thinking about planning your own Thanksgiving that reflects your unique upbringing. General planning tips are included too. Have fun and be imaginative!

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Asian Cookbooks
• Chinese Cookbooks
• Japanese Cookbooks
• Thai Cookbooks
• Vietnamese Cookbooks

1. Figure out how many guests to invite. Consider the size of your home; the number of chairs, tables and dishes you'll need; and your ability to cook for many people.
2. Think about decorations that reflect your unique upbringing. Consider place settings that include chopsticks, either decorative or for actual use, along with the usual utensils. Think about music to play softly in the background that reflects Asian-American culture.
3. Decide whether you want to ask people to help you, either by bringing parts of the meal (wine, dessert, appetizers, side dishes), bringing entertainment (decorations or music), or coming early to help out.
4. Determine the food preferences and restrictions of your guests. Are there any vegetarians or people with food allergies?
5. Consider the sequence of the meal and its balance. Try to balance heavy, starchy dishes with lighter vegetable dishes. Also, consider how many courses you want to serve and how many appetizers you want to have available for pre-meal noshing.
6. Accent old standards with an Asian-American flair. Consider putting chopped bok choy in the mashed potatoes or roasting a turkey with a rice stuffing. Think about alternative dishes, such as turkey with hoisin sauce or even Peking duck, since duck is a traditional autumnal poultry.
7. Combine the traditional American food with your own traditional dishes. Have pot stickers for appetizers, and fried rice or pad thai along with the stuffing.
8. Once you've planned the menu, consider the timing and preparation of each dish. Is it physically possible for you to make all the dishes you've planned? Think about your kitchen and its limitations as well. If you have only one oven, for example, it may be difficult to juggle many dishes that require cooking in it.

Tips & Warnings

• People generally expect turkey, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. But don't let that stifle your creativity.
• Leftovers are expected at Thanksgiving, so take that into account.