19 Thanksgiving Main Dishes That Aren't Turkey

Tucking fresh herbs and garlic between the skin and the breast infuses the meat with flavor. We use thyme here, but you can also use fresh rosemary or parsley. If you have a rack, place the chicken on it to allow the hot air to circulate. You can also improvise a rack (as we do here) by setting the chicken on the neck and giblets.

Need some new meatless dinner ideas? This vegan recipe for grilled cauliflower steaks with buttery (but butter-free!) butter beans and almond pesto comes together in just 25 minutes but is impressive enough to serve to guests. We're sorry to ask you to buy 2 heads of cauliflower to make this recipe when you only cut a couple of "steaks" from each, but it guarantees the best results. Just think of it this way: having leftovers gives you an excuse to try one of our many other healthy cauliflower recipes!

This braised brisket gets a decidedly wintery feel from the earthy-sweet flavors of carrots, parsnips and rutabaga.

For this simple baked salmon recipe, just order the right size whole salmon from your grocery store or fish market and have them clean and scale it. You can also use two smaller fish (1 to 2 pounds each) and reduce the roasting time by about 10 minutes. If you like, you can opt for other species, such as striped bass, snapper or tilapia.

Classic and delicious, this roast chicken recipe will shine on the table fresh from the oven, served with any side. And this oven-roasted chicken is basic enough to play well in any recipe that calls for cooked chicken.

To round out this healthy chicken dinner recipe, put some farro on to cook before you start cooking the chicken. Add some steamed broccoli and serve with a glass of pinot noir.

Think of this healthy vegetarian side dish recipe as a meatless tagine served in a squash bowl. Kabocha, sweet dumpling or carnival squash make good alternatives to acorn squash. To make this side a hearty vegetarian meal, serve 2 halves each.

In this easy one-pan dinner, boneless pork loin roast is cooked over a bed of carrots and parsnips for an all-in-one dish that makes an impressive centerpiece for a holiday meal or Sunday dinner. Choose free-range heritage pork if you can--its flavor really shines with no more seasoning than a bit of thyme and a little sea salt. If you'd like, dress up the meal with a traditional Irish apple condiment--Ploughmans chutney or Bramley applesauce, which you can find in specialty stores and online.

The flavors in this spice rub are reminiscent of Italian gremolata. Turn any leftover meat into a fantastic chicken salad.

It's remarkable that a pork roast can be so good so quickly! The gravy is rich and flavorful and the meat is moist and perfectly cooked—using an Instant Pot is a real game changer for pork loin roast.

Replicate the flavor, lovely burnished skin and moist texture of a classic rotisserie chicken with this easy recipe for cooking a whole chicken in your air fryer. With just a handful of ingredients and 10 minutes of active time, you get a roast chicken with lemon and herbs that's a remarkable doppelganger for a deli chicken right after it comes out of the rotisserie. Serve this air-fryer rotisserie chicken with your favorite veggie sides for a healthy weeknight dinner or weekend supper. And if you're hosting a dinner party, cooking your main course in the air fryer is also a great way free up oven space for casseroles, rolls and other dishes.

With its pretty striped skin and uniform shape, delicata squash is a beautiful vessel for serving up this healthy quinoa stuffing. Serve this recipe as a stunning side dish or a vegetarian main with a big leafy green salad alongside.

The eye of round is a lean, boneless cut of beef that's less expensive than a tenderloin or rib roast but just as delicious. It's best served medium-rare--when cooked to higher temperatures it can become tough. Topping it with a finger-licking-good horseradish sauce makes this roast beef holiday-worthy.

This roasted chicken recipe may be the most useful recipe you'll ever find. It's a meal on its own or the start of any recipe that calls for cooked chicken--perfect for meal-prepping lunches or dinners to have throughout the week.

Diced sweet potato, bell peppers and apples make a vegan stuffing inspired by the flavors of sausage. To add that savory flavor, we use poultry seasoning (don't worry, there's no actual poultry in it!). Piled into portobello mushroom caps, it creates a beautiful and filling plant-based main dish--perfect for the holidays.

Serve this spice-roasted chicken with buttered egg noodles and steamed green beans.

Pork tenderloin just got even better with the addition of a crispy layer of bacon.

The highlight of this gorgeous vegan holiday main dish recipe is the surprisingly rich dairy-free mushroom gravy. The roasted cauliflower is also pleasantly delicious thanks to a little caramelization while roasting. Smother a side of vegan mashed potatoes with any extra gravy.

Chef Frank Brigtsen, of Brigtsen's restaurant in New Orleans, makes homemade pepper jelly to glaze thick pork chops for Réveillon. He recommends two ways to simplify for the home cook: go for store-bought jelly and, instead of chops, a pork loin roast.