Here's How Many Rolls You Should Actually Prepare For Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving has officially crept up on us, with millions of Americans ready to celebrate next Thursday. According to IPSOS, last year's Thanksgiving saw 99% of participating individuals enjoying a holiday meal, and 61% throwing a larger get-together to make up for what was lost during 2020's pandemic. Of the 332 million people living in the United States, nine out of 10 planned to have at least some sort of celebration.
The November holiday's dinner integrates a few returning staples, the most popular being turkey (per The Casa Revista), with 46 million birds are consumed each Thanksgiving. In second place is mashed potatoes, with 250 million pounds of potatoes used yearly, and the third most popular is stuffing, with 77% claiming it as a top choice. Rolls take the fourth spot, as 40.5 million dinner rolls are consumed each year for Thanksgiving. When it comes to turkey day preparations, though, you may be wondering just how many to allot for each guest.
You'll want to make just enough rolls
According to Food Network, the number of rolls you prepare depends on how many guests will be attending Thanksgiving dinner. For four guests, you should bake eight rolls, for eight guests, you should prepare 12. If 12 guests will be in attendance, 18 rolls should suffice, and if there's 16 rolls, 24 will be a good number. It's important not to serve too many rolls, as friends and family may stuff their bellies before the meal is ready.
Per Food52 and an illustration by Brittany Zeller-Holland, the suggested number of rolls is 1.5 per person. This recommendation "aims high" though, as it's better to have too much than too little. Plus, if too much food is prepared, there will be more leftovers to enjoy later. In a survey of 2,000 people by Study Finds, seven out of 10 Americans said they prefer leftovers to the day-of meal. If there isn't anything leftover at the end of dinner, 56% of people said they counted the holiday as a failure — while we won't go that far, we have to say, those respondents aren't far off.