My Zero-Effort Secret for Making a Ridiculously Delicious Thanksgiving Feast (Everyone Raves!)

Not to alarm you, but Thanksgiving is in two weeks. You could start putting together your grocery list and getting yourself mentally prepared for your annual cooking marathon at this point. Or, you could simply just order Thanksgiving dinner — and it might even cost you less than it does when you make it yourself!

Of course, I have an option in mind for you: Harry & David’s Gourmet Turkey Feast, which comes complete with a pre-cooked turkey, a range of sides, gravy, and dessert. And before you start to worry about whether or not it would arrive in time, just know that it comes with express two-day shipping. So if you order it now, you’ll get it with more than enough time left to thaw your pre-cooked turkey for a few days and host an amazing Thanksgiving dinner — no grocery shopping required. Naturally, I was curious how this meal kit would compare to your standard, homecooked Thanksgiving dinner. So I cooked the whole kit in our test kitchen — and I (along with my coworkers!) was impressed by it. 

This meal kit is exactly what it sounds like: A feast! It not only comes with a 10-pound turkey (which has already been cooked, so all you’re really doing is reheating it), but it also features an array of sides, including apple sausage walnut stuffing, brown sugar sweet potatoes, green bean almondine, cranberry chutney, and turkey gravy to round it all out. And in case you thought we were done, the kit also comes with a pumpkin cheesecake for dessert (you have to have dessert!). 

If this sounds like quite a bit of food, that’s because it is. This whole feast can be enjoyed by as many as 10 people (although of course this could vary, depending on the portions your friends or family tend to go for). So given that this whole kit costs $270, you can feed 10 people for $27 a plate. The affordability of this kit is one of the things that really stood out to me about it (apart from the delicious food, of course). 

I’ll be honest: I was not sure what I would think of the turkey here. Because you’re basically reheating an already-cooked turkey, I thought maybe it would become dry. Nope! In fact, my coworkers were quite impressed with the turkey. Our President, Riva Syrop, said “it was fantastic. Moist and delicious-tasting,” while Commerce Coordinator, Mila Hoang, echoed her sentiment, saying it was “incredibly moist.” And you know what? I didn’t even have to baste it!

This actually might be my favorite Thanksgiving turkey I’ve had (sorry to my mom and mother-in-law!). It has a rich, meaty turkey flavor that only gets better when you drizzle (or dump — up to you) the included gravy over it.

When it comes to the sides, I really enjoyed both the sweet potatoes and the stuffing. The stuffing was studded with crunchy walnuts and was perfectly seasoned. There’s no other way to say it: The stuffing tasted like Thanksgiving (I know you know what I mean!). As for the brown sugar sweet potatoes, I appreciated the sweetness level of it. It is sweet, but it’s balanced. There’s a little packet of marshmallows and what I believe are candied pecans that you can sprinkle over the top at the end of cooking. I loved the addition of the crunchy nuts alongside the sticky, smooth marshmallows. We can’t forget about the green beans, though! Shopping Writer Nikol Slatinska was a fan of the classic side: “I liked the green beans’ slightly smoky flavor. They were well-seasoned, if a bit squeaky.” 

Ultimately, do I think this meal kit completely replaces your massive, homecooked Thanksgiving meal? Not exactly. But I do think it’s a pretty solid alternative for folks who want something much easier (and with far less cleanup) this year. It would also be great for a last-minute Friendsgiving. 

Not only does this meal kit mean you don’t have to go grocery shopping ahead of Thanksgiving if you don’t want to, but it also came together in just three hours (including cleanup time). All I had to do was pop a few things in the oven and heat the gravy on the stove. I have never made a full Thanksgiving meal before, but with this kit I was able to do it all myself. As far as simplicity goes, it really can’t be beat. 

Buy: Harry & David Gourmet Turkey Feast, $269.99

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