In partnership withCorelle, Instant Pot, and Pyrex

How to Make Thanksgiving Dinner in Two Hours

published Nov 10, 2020
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It’s a Thanksgiving miracle! With the help of an Instant Pot Duo Crisp + Air Fryer, some Pyrex Deep baking dishes, and a few pretty Corelle platters to serve it all in, here’s a full Thanksgiving dinner for four people that you can make in just two hours. Pulling off this delicious dinner, complete with juicy herbed turkey breast, all the sides, and even a pumpkin pie, takes about the same amount of time it takes to watch a movie. Here’s the play-by-play to pull it all together on turkey day.

2 Hours Before Feast Time

1. Dessert first. Start by getting a super-easy pumpkin pie into the oven. Line a deep-dish Pyrex pie plate, which holds plenty of sweet pumpkin filling, with store-bought pie crust. Whisk the four filling ingredients together and put the pie in the oven on a lower rack.

Get the recipe: Easy Pumpkin Pie

2. Prep the turkey breast. Stuff some herb butter under the skin of a 3-pound boneless turkey breast and prep some carrot, celery, and onion for the gravy. We used this recipe for inspiration, using only half the amount of herb butter and seasoning for this smaller cut of turkey. Stick to the amounts of veggies and broth listed, but don’t cook the turkey yet!

3. Bake the potatoes. Skip boiling and mashing potatoes on the stovetop and go with an easier method: Chop up 2 1/2 pounds red potatoes, and toss them with 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt and 1/2 stick of cold cubed butter in a Pyrex 7×11-inch Deep baking dish. Pour in 1/2 cup milk or cream, cover with foil, and put it in the oven right next to the pie to bake for 1 hour.

3. Toss the slaw. Slaw is the easiest way to sneak in some vegetables at Thanksgiving. It’s fresh, vibrant, and can be tossed together when you have a spare moment before dinner without getting soggy and wilted. A half serving of this colorful slaw loaded with cranberries and almonds is perfect. Stick it in the fridge until you’re ready to eat.

Get the recipe: Thanksgiving Slaw

1 Hour Before Dinner (You’re Halfway There!)

1. Pressure cook the turkey. Load everything into the Instant Pot Duo Crisp + Air Fryer, using the included rack to prop the turkey up, and turn the pressure cooker on high for 18 minutes. Pressure cooking speeds things up and also frees the oven up for baking all the side dishes.

2. Prep the sweet potato casserole. Using the canned sweet potato version of this recipe means that you can microwave the sweet potato directly in a Pyrex 7×11-inch Deep baking dish. Add the seasonings and mash easily right in the baking dish — which is easy, since it has deep sides. Sprinkle on the mini marshmallows (don’t be shy, because the deep sides can handle extra marshmallows — or even giant ones!) and bake on the upper rack of the oven 30 minutes before dinnertime.

3. Prep the stuffing. Upgrade a box of turkey stuffing with some sautéed wild mushrooms and Parmesan cheese, and it suddenly turns into an elegant Thanksgiving side. Transfer the stuffing into a Pyrex 8×8-inch Deep baking dish and bake in the oven right next to the sweet potato casserole 15 minutes before dinner to warm up and brown a little on top.

Get the recipe: Cheesy Mushroom Stuffing

4. Air fry the turkey and make the gravy. When the turkey’s done pressure cooking, swap out the Instant Pot pressure cooker lid for the air fryer lid. Air fry at 400ºF until the skin on the turkey breast is beautifully golden brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer the turkey breast to a cutting board to rest. Strain out the drippings, and use them to make the gravy directly in the Instant Pot on the Sauté function with 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour for thickening. Skip skimming any fat off the drippings and use all of it in the gravy.

5. Mash the potatoes. When the red potatoes are tender, it’s time to mash them. Pyrex is stronger than regular glass, so you can mash them right in the dish.

6. Carve, plate, and serve! Can you believe it’s dinnertime? Slice the turkey breast, pile the slaw on a Corelle platter, and serve this tasty dinner that came together in a record-setting two hours. Don’t forget to set out some cranberry sauce and to serve the pumpkin pie with whipped cream when you’re ready for dessert.