A true layer cake, the turducken is a three-in-one showstopper main course. It consists of a deboned chicken stuffed into a deboned duck, stuffed (again) into a deboned turkey. Not forgetting the stuffing used within each of the layers. While turducken is the name it’s most often saddled with, outside of America and Canada it can also be known as a three-bird roast. Why one bird isn’t enough, we’re not quite so sure.

Served alongside savoury mains but certainly a super sweet dish is this much-loved American addition to the Thanksgiving table. Essentially the dish is a sweet potato mash of sorts topped with a thick, gooey layer of toasted marshmallows. Most recipes also weave in the likes of cinnamon and butter within the sweet potato mash. Sometimes a squeeze of citrus also makes an appearance. Sickly sweet is an understatement.

This is a Southern treasure that will undoubtedly upset those who are not particularly sweet of tooth. Like its name suggests it’s a fruit salad (kinda) that uses a base of sour cream, sometimes yoghurt, or even whipped cream. And then it’s twirled through some tinned fruit (most commonly pineapple and mandarin) tossed together with mini marshmallows, and shredded coconut. Despite sounding like a dessert it’s served as a side on the Thanksgiving table.

Again, not quite a salad. The Jello salad is more of a retro favourite that surged in popularity in the 1960s that still makes its mark on many a Thanksgiving table today – why or how we’re not so sure. Essentially it’s a gathering of fruit and vegetables set within jelly – exactly what produce you serve depends on personal preference but carrots, oranges, and strawberries are common. Some even throw in cottage cheese or cream cheese for extra oomph.

Sometimes also referred to as the Tipsy Turkey, this recipe is essentially a bird stuffed with vodka. It’s not quite as crazy as some of the other typical additions to the Thanksgiving table, but it’s still a perplexing one. Instead of the vodka being used as a brine, it’s injected into the bird’s breast and body in what some call ‘imparting flavour’. Confusing.

Think pasta salad, but less savoury and more sweet. The frog eye salad always includes round acini di pepe pasta, which is then tossed with an egg yolk custard, mandarin, pineapple juice, and sometimes even marshmallows. Oh, and then it’s topped with whipped cream.

An extremely loose interpretation of the word “salad.” This pastel-green fever dream was first unleashed by Kraft in 1975 and combines pistachio pudding, crushed pineapple, mini marshmallows, chopped nuts and Cool Whip (a substance that defies classification). Some people say it’s a dessert, others call it a side dish, we call it very strange.