How traditional meals have changed over time
Centuries ago, Thanksgiving was created with a giant feast that started a tradition still used to celebrate the holiday to this day. However, with time most of the meals that graced tables have evolved into different dishes.
On the first Thanksgiving, the colonist and the Wampanoag, native Americans, ate venison, fish, eels, shellfish, stews, vegetables, and bears. This feast created a peace treaty between the colonists and the Wampanoag.
As the animals and crops available, produced and hunted changed so did the contents of a Thanksgiving meal. The lack of seafood-based meals is noticeable when the staple dish is now a stuffed turkey. Mashed potatoes, gravy, ham, stuffing, mac & cheese, cranberry sauce, vegetables, bread rolls, and pie are all foods that are normally eaten on Thanksgiving.
Kimaya Barrow, a DBHS freshman, said, “I celebrate with my mother, brother, and grandmother…. we eat chicken, macaroni pie, yams, rice, stuffing, and cranberry sauce.” Barrow then added that their favorite is the macaroni pie.
Though it is common to eat traditional Thanksgiving foods, different people eat different foods.
“My family doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving,” DBHS freshman, Justin Cruz, said. However, when the day comes, he, his family, and family friends eat foods such as “chicken, rice, and carne asada.”
A wide variety of pies as a dessert have become a part of the Thanksgiving tradition. The most common is Pumpkin pie but also included are apple pie, pecan pie, cherry pie, and sweet potato pie.
“On Thanksgiving, my family eats more of a traditional feast…turkey, sweet potato pie, and traditional side dishes,” said Shae Devlin, a DBHS freshman.
Accompanied by the food, many families drink eggnog or apple cider. Spirits and wine are also a part of Thanksgiving drinks.
What is considered to be a traditional meal in the present day consists of foods the original creators of Thanksgiving didn’t eat or simply did not exist. Not only has the message behind Thanksgiving adapted to modern-day society but so has the array of meals people enjoy on the day.
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