30 Healthy(ish) Thanksgiving Side Dishes With 6 Ingredients or Less
Whether you broil it, roast it, or fry it, a Thanksgiving turkey can take hours to prepare. Add a full array of Thanksgiving side dishes to your to-do list, and you’ll find yourself slaving away in the kitchen all day—or worse, all week. So why not simplify things this year?
Believe it or not, many classic Thanksgiving sides can be created using far fewer ingredients than you’re likely using without sacrificing flavor—and these recipes prove just that. Everything here calls for five ingredients or fewer, which means less stress, less cleanup, and less money spent on groceries. That’s what we like to call a Turkey Day triple win!
Roasted Butternut Squash with Frizzled Sage
Number of ingredients: 4
Crispy herbs is what roasted veggie dreams are made of, and the sage in this dish lends a crunchy herbaceous note to toasty-creamy butternut squash, a winter vegetable that's packed with immune-supporting vitamin A.
Get the recipe for Roasted Butternut Squash with Frizzled Sage »
Mustard-Glazed Brussels Sprouts
Number of ingredients: 6
This cruciferous vegetable is rich in vitamin C and high in a phytochemical called glucosinalate, which studies suggest may help protect against cancer.
Get the recipe for Mustard-Glazed Brussels Sprouts »
Parmesan Kale Salad
Number of ingredients: 6
Superstar kale is packed with the immune-boosting duo vitamins A and C, while almonds add a hit of fiber and healthy fats. And, licorice-y fennel supports good digestion to keep things running smoothly—a welcome bonus after a day of eating!
Get the recipe for Parmesan Kale Salad »
Roasted Pumpkin with Feta and Cilantro
Number of ingredients: 5
Pumpkin is a seasonal superstar, packed with carotenoids, phytonutrients with serious antioxidant properties, as well as vitamins A and C, which a new study in BMJ found may positively impact your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Get the recipe for Roasted Pumpkin with Feta and Cilantro »
Sauteed Spinach with Garlic
Number of ingredients: 4
This leafy green contains important minerals like calcium, magnesium, and potassium, and is also a good source of vitamin C.
Get the recipe for Sauteed Spinach with Garlic »
Roasted Balsamic Artichokes
Number of ingredients: 6
Balsamic vinegar adds a touch of sweet acidity to creamy artichokes, which are a great source of fiber—particularly the prebiotic kind, which feeds the good bacteria in your gut.
Get the recipe for Roasted Balsamic Artichokes »
Braised Red Cabbage and Apples
Number of ingredients: 5
This dish delivers a serious antioxidant boost: Red cabbage is high in a powerful type of antioxidant that gives it its vibrant color. And, apples are high in fiber.
Get the recipe for Braised Red Cabbage and Apples »
Baked Apple and Carrot Casserole
Number of ingredients: 5
Think of this as a better-for-you (but equally delicious!) twist on your favorite sweet potato casserole, except lower in sugar and bubbling with beta carotene to support your immune system.
Get the recipe for Baked Apple and Carrot Casserole »
Mashed Potatoes with Parsnips and Apples
Number of ingredients: 6
Nobody will know that these creamy, savory mashed potatoes hide fiber-filled parsnips and apples to make this classic side a bit more nutritious.
Get the recipe for Mashed Potatoes with Parsnips and Apples »
Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad
Number of ingredients: 6
Even Brussels sprouts non-fans will love this salad—shaving the sprouts mellows out their flavor, and the hazelnuts and Pecorino Romano provide a salty, creamy bite.
Get the recipe for Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad »
Cranberry Apple Compote
Number of ingredients: 5
Give your traditional cranberry sauce a makeover—this compote contains dried apricots, which are a good source of fiber, potassium, and vitamins A and C, and thyme gives it an herb-y kick.
Get the recipe for Cranberry Apple Compote »
Green Beans with Roasted Red Peppers
Number of ingredients: 6
Red peppers give crunchy green beans a hint of sweetness and a serious dose of vitamin C, plus folate, a B-vitamins, which give you energy.
Get the recipe for Green Beans with Roasted Red Peppers »
Garlic Parmesan Oven-Roasted Potatoes
Number of ingredients: 5
You can't go wrong with a batch of savory roasted potatoes—not only are they delicious, but they pair well with practically any entrée. Plus, white potatoes are also a surprisingly health choice for your Thanksgiving table with 4 grams of fiber and only 161 calories per potato.
Get the recipe from The Busy Baker »
Superfood Salad
Number of ingredients: 5
This blogger was inspired by the side salad at Chick-fil-A and decided to whip up her own homemade version. Since this dish incorporates classic winter greens like kale and broccolini, it's an excellent choice for adding more veggies to your holiday menu. With dried cherries giving a bit of sweetness and roasted nuts adding extra crunch, your family is bound to love its unique taste.
Get the recipe from Mommy's Home Cooking »
Skinny Deviled Eggs
Number of ingredients: 5
Deviled eggs are a sneaky culprit for putting on pounds during the holidays. First, you just want to try one...then another...and then suddenly you've had five without realizing. Luckily, there's a way to slim this holiday favorite down: replace some of the egg yolks with plain, fat-free Greek yogurt. You'd be surprised how similar they taste to the real thing; plus, they're only costing you 37 calories each!
Get the recipe from The Wholesome Dish »
Bacon and Green Bean Bundles
Number of ingredients: 5
Here's a classic way to dress up your green beans for Thanksgiving dinner: wrap them with bacon and drizzle with a brown sugar glaze. While this side dish may be a bit more decadent than regular old green beans, it's a great way to get picky eaters to put a veggie on their plate. You can also limit the amount of glaze you put on each bundle, if you'd like. Note: this dish also works extremely well with asparagus, if you prefer that over green beans.
Get the recipe from Five Heart Home »
Balsamic-Glazed Red Onions
Number of ingredients: 6
Onions are often a key ingredient to a dish's flavor—so why not turn them into their own dish? This blogger took a creative approach with this vegetarian dish, roasting the onions with a balsamic vinegar glaze. Plus, the prep time here is only 15 minutes!
Get the recipe from Simply Recipes »
Creamy Garlic Mushrooms
Number of ingredients: 6
Anyone else drooling yet? There's nothing better than mushrooms soaked in garlic, cream cheese, and Parmesan—and even better yet, this dish can be on the table in just 20 minutes from start to finish. As this recipe is made for just 2 or 3 servings, you may want to double or triple the ingredients to serve a bigger crowd, especially since they're bound to disappear quickly!
Get the recipe from Cakescottage »
Turmeric and Black Pepper Roasted Cauliflower
Number of ingredients: 3
Oft-overlooked when it comes to Thanksgiving sides, cauliflower is the perfect fall vegetable to treat like a blank canvas: its mild flavor means you can easily spice it up any way you like. This recipe calls for black pepper and turmeric, the yellow anti-inflammatory spice used in Indian curry. Whipping up this dish is as easy as covering a baking sheet with cauliflower and tossing it with mustard oil and dried spices before popping it in the oven.
Get the recipe from Pure Ella »
Caramelized Browned Butter Butternut Squash
Number of ingredients: 3
Before you turn that butternut squash into soup, consider making this super easy Thanksgiving side—it only requires three ingredients and a pan. This blogger uses butter and brown sugar for an easy sauté-and-caramelize one-two punch. Small cubes of butternut squash are sautéed in butter for 15 minutes, and then water and brown sugar are added and brought to a boil, soaking the squash in caramelly goodness. The final product is decadent enough to stand up to even your best sweet potato casserole.
Get the recipe from One Lovely Life »
Roasted Carrots
Number of ingredients: 3
Carrots are often dropped from Thanksgiving spreads in favor of their starchier orange counterpart (Hint: They’re often served up casserole-style with marshmallows). But this roasted carrots recipe is here to shake things up. This blogger uses rainbow carrots to create a dish with the perfect mix of fall colors and skips peeling them to make this recipe even easier than it already is. Simply scrub the carrots with a vegetable brush, pat dry, and roughly chop before tossing with olive oil, salt, pepper, and paprika, and roasting in the oven.
Get the recipe from Kristine’s Kitchen »
Slow-Cooker Creamed Corn
Number of ingredients: 5
What’s Thanksgiving if there’s not at least one totally indulgent, butter-packed side dish on the table? This blogger hits the spot with her slow-cooker creamed corn, which is all kinds of warm and gooey goodness. Just purée corn with cream and let that mixture sizzle in a slow cooker with cream cheese, butter, and sugar while you handle the rest of your Turkey Day prep. Once it’s done cooking, you’ll have a decadent Thanksgiving side dish that even the pickiest eaters are sure to enjoy.
Get the recipe from FoodieCrush »
Pomegranate Glazed Brussels Sprouts
Number of ingredients: 5
Roasted Brussels sprouts are having a moment, finding their way onto restaurant menus of all kinds. That said, there’s no reason they shouldn’t find their way onto your Thanksgiving table this year, too. This recipe perfectly blends sweet and savory: garlicky Brussels browned in the oven are tossed with a two-ingredient glaze made with pomegranate juice and soy sauce. Yum!
Get the recipe from Primavera Kitchen »
Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes
Number of ingredients: 3
A few years back, when someone discovered that mashing up cauliflower and blending it with butter and salt could make a (way) healthier version of mashed potatoes, the trend practically broke the Internet. This blogger's rendition is an easy, low-carb way to lighten up your dinner spread—without raising suspicion from picky eaters. After softening cauliflower in boiling water hit it with an immersion blender for a silky-smooth mash or take a potato masher to the softened veggies for a thicker end result.
Get the recipe from Pure Ella »
Green Beans with Cranberries, Bacon, and Goat Cheese
Number of ingredients: 4
A stovetop dish that’ll save you precious oven space on Thanksgiving, these green beans are easier to make (and far healthier) than your traditional calorie-packed green bean casserole. Their flavor, which comes from a bacon-grease sauté, is amped up with bacon bits, fresh cranberries, and a crumbling of goat cheese. The best part: You can whip these up in just twenty minutes flat.
Get the recipe from Running to the Kitchen »
Roasted Root Vegetables
Number of ingredients: 5
Why make several vegetable-based Thanksgiving side dishes when you can make one that includes all the season’s best? This roasted root veggie recipe covers all your bases: It features sweet potatoes, carrots, and parsnips—but if you’re feeling creative, toss in a few other root vegetables, too, like beets, turnips, radishes, or yucca. This blogger coats her cut veggies in avocado oil (you can use whatever vegetable oil you have on hand) along with a couple of tablespoons of fresh oregano before roasting them in the oven.
Get the recipe from Eating Bird Food »
Cinnamon Rosemary Sweet Potatoes
Number of ingredients: 4
A satisfying alternative to the usual marshmallow or sugary glaze treatment, these sweet potatoes are flavored with fresh rosemary and cinnamon (Could you get more holiday than that?) before roasting to crispy perfection in the oven. They’re the sweet Thanksgiving side dish you’ve been craving—and lucky for you, they won’t throw your diet down the drain.
Get the recipe from One Lovely Life »
Cranberry Sauce
Number of ingredients: 3
The rivalry between homemade cranberry sauce and the gelatinous kind from a can is still going strong. We aren’t taking sides, but if you decide to go the homemade route, this quick recipe has you covered. Simply add cranberries, water, and maple syrup (or your sweetener of choice) to a pan, and bring the mixture to a boil before reducing to a simmer. When you hear the cranberries start to pop open, you’ll know the dish is nearly done cooking. Finish it off with a splash of vanilla extract to cut the cranberries’ strong tart flavor.
Get the recipe from Jessica Gavin »
Vegan Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Number of ingredients: 4
Satisfying family members with dietary restrictions can be a challenge—particularly if it tasks you with making several versions of each dish (i.e., one traditional, one vegan, one gluten-free, etc.). Thankfully, these vegan garlic mashed potatoes are safe for practically any diet (they don’t contain any meat, dairy, or gluten), and it’s hard to go wrong in terms of flavor when there are potatoes and garlic involved. A mixture of full-fat coconut milk and soy milk gives the final product a creamy texture to make you forget it’s vegan.
Get the recipe from It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken »
Roasted Beet and Squash Goat Cheese Barley
Number of ingredients: 5
Grains like barley may not often find their way into Thanksgiving dinner, but we love this simple and fun preparation starring two of autumn’s best veggies. This blogger combines the nutty flavored whole grain with roasted acorn squash and beets, and then folds in creamy goat cheese to hold it all together. It’s nutritious, vegetarian-friendly, and essentially foolproof—making it an easy addition to any Thanksgiving spread.
Get the recipe from Running to the Kitchen »
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