Turkey Biryani to

Pumpkin Kheer

: Indian Twists on Classic Thanksgiving Dishes

Quick Summary

This Thanksgiving, don’t settle for the usual roasted turkey and mashed potatoes. This article has the key to an interesting Thanksgiving spread—a fusion feast where classic dishes meet Indian flavours. Think tangy pickles, familiar spices, and ghee-rich desserts. Each dish retains the familiar structure while giving your taste buds something new.

Deep Dive

The West adopted Indian flavours in cooking and came up with chai-spiced cookies, golden milk, and whatnot. This Thanksgiving is the perfect time to flip the switch and return the favour.  Give your overworked brain cells a rest this and prepare a feast where everything, from the appetisers and entrees to the drinks and desserts, comes with a desi twist. Imagine the familiar flavours you love, elevated with ghee, pickles, and spices. There couldn’t be a better way to celebrate the spirit of this festival. 

Achari Devilled Eggs

This snack begins with hard-boiled eggs whose yolks are removed and mashed. Into that mash goes an ‘achari’ mix of local Indian pickle-style spices and condiments (for example, garlic achaar and mustard oil-rich mango pickle), making it tangier, spicier, and a little sweeter than usual. The filling uses the usual mayonnaise for a familiar profile, and the surface can be dusted with Kashmiri chilli powder and sprinkled with caramelised scallions or coriander.

Indian-style Bruschetta

Grab your usual slices of toast or baguette, lightly buttered or brushed with oil. On top goes a fresh veggie mix (tomato, cucumber, capsicum, sweet corn) tossed with black salt and roasted cumin powder. You spread green chutney instead of olive oil beforehand. To upgrade it, use mustard oil or ghee for the toasted base, sprinkle in chaat masala or dry mango powder (amchur) with the veggies. Finish with fresh chopped coriander or freshly chopped green chilli.

Turkey Biryani

Cook the biryani the usual way, but instead of using chicken or mutton, use marinated turkey (or leftover turkey) layered with basmati rice and whole spices (cardamom, cloves, bay leaf, cinnamon) and cooked in the dum (sealed) style. Where the upgrade comes in is in the marinade, which uses mustard oil or ghee, hung yoghurt (dahi) with ginger-garlic paste, turmeric, garam masala, whole cardamoms, black cardamom, mace, cloves, and black pepper. The rice is layered with saffron milk and finished with fried onions and mint.

Samosa Pot Pie

This version takes the familiar crusted pot pie recipe and turns it into a samosa pot pie by using a spiced potato-pea (or vegetable) filling you’d find in a samosa. The spices used in it are cumin seeds, green chilli, coriander powder, and amchur (dry mango) for the filling inside a pastry. Use ghee in the filling rather than just oil, temper the mixture with mustard seeds and hing (asafoetida) for a subtle Indian base. The crust remains, but you bring in a familiar spice profile without turning it into something wildly different.

Oven Roasted Veggies

Start with seasonal vegetables available in autumn (carrots, cauliflower, zucchini, potatoes), tossed in oil and placed in the oven until caramelised. Use the usual spices of turmeric, cumin, coriander, and garam masala sprinkled or coating the vegetables. But before roasting, you can coat the vegetables in a mix of turmeric, ajwain or cumin seeds, chilli powder (Kashmiri or regular) and salt; you could finish with lemon juice and fresh coriander. The roasting method remains unchanged, so it’s easy.

Cranberry Chutney

Cranberry sauce is an integral part of the Thanksgiving feast, so why not go the desi route and instead make a sweet and sour cranberry chutney? This condiment uses fresh or frozen cranberries cooked until soft, made sweet with jaggery or brown sugar, and spiced. The tempering here is also important with crackling cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, and mustard seeds, then with an addition of garlic-ginger, chilies, jaggery, and cranberries. You can also add cardamom pods or fennel seeds for extra flavour.

Spiced Apple Cider Mocktail

Begin with apple cider (fresh or simmered apple juice), warmed or chilled. To it add what Westerners call ‘chai spice’ – cinnamon, cardamom pods, cloves, maybe ginger. Infuse the cider with crushed green cardamom, a stick of cinnamon, a few cloves, and a slice of fresh ginger. Add jaggery or brown sugar to taste rather than plain sugar. Serve warm in a mug or cold over ice.

Haldi Doodh

A classic healing drink can be a nice finish or side to your rich Thanksgiving feast. This begins with warm milk infused with turmeric (haldi), a pinch of black pepper (to help absorption) and optionally ginger, cardamom or cinnamon. For best results, use whole milk, and add a small amount of ghee to make it richer. Make sure to use freshly ground pepper and finely sliced ginger, and finish with jaggery instead of plain sugar for mellow sweetness.

Pumpkin Kheer

Start with the basic kheer concept – milk reduced with a sweet starchy component, here replaced or complemented by grated or diced pumpkin. Use whole‑fat milk with grated pumpkin, cardamom powder and saffron threads. The pumpkin should be simmered in milk until soft, flavoured with fresh green cardamom and perhaps a pinch of nutmeg, finished with a bit of ghee and ghee-fried nuts.

Sweet Potato Halwa

Think of the classic halwa, which is sweet, richly spiced, ghee-laden, but uses sweet potato in place of carrot or semolina. Along with the sweet potatoes, use cardamom, saffron and ghee. Start by boiling or roasting a bunch of sweet potatoes, mash well, then cook in ghee with condensed milk (or full milk), flavour with cardamom and a pinch of nutmeg. Add chopped nuts for a nice texture variation.

Give Your Thanksgiving a Desi Edge

Why settle for ordinary when you can have a Thanksgiving spread that’s both familiar and exciting? These dishes respect the classics while infusing them with Indian flavours – tangy, spicy, aromatic, and sweet in the right measures. Try one or try them all; your table will look festive, and your taste buds will remain entertained.