This year, like every year, there are so many things to be thankful for — family, friends, loaded stomachs, and, of course, painfully funny Thanksgiving fails people have shared online that make you immensely grateful aren’t yours. Because let’s face it, as much as this holiday is supposed to be a time of gratitude and enjoyment, it can swiftly turn into a wild cooking show where at least six things are bound to go terribly wrong.
Whether we like it or not, the pressure to whip up Michelin-worthy meals is high. But there’s no amount of preparation, education, or meditation that can ensure the feast goes off without a hitch. From doomed turkeys to scorched casseroles and completely sabotaged ovens, many households across the country recently found out just how quickly things can go south.
So in honor of Turkey Day, we at Bored Panda have compiled some of the most unfortunate, embarrassing, and downright tragic fails from this Thanksgiving people have shared online to get some sympathy. And let me tell you, after seeing this list, you'll definitely want to say thanks that your own celebration was, in fact, not that bad. So continue scrolling and upvote the most painfully funny mishaps. Then don’t miss the chat we had about planning elaborate dinners with food blogger and journalist Ellen Manning, and let us know how your Thanksgiving went in the comments!
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Y’all Gon Be Battling Food Poisoning Up To New Years
My Lonely Thanksgiving Dinner At Work. At Least I Got Turkey And Potatoes…
Cats Decided My Pumpkin Pies Were Too Blasé
After the cat finished lending a helping paw, it sits back and quietly says to itself "Purrrrfect".
For some, the idea of getting the whole family together during Thanksgiving brings incredible joy. For others, the seemingly bottomless to-do list coupled with coping with relatives carries an onslaught of anxiety. So yeah, Thanksgiving is kind of a weird holiday. With so many responsibilities, tasks, family reunions, elaborate dinners, first-time introductions, and many other tiny little details that demand your attention at once, it’s easy to feel worried. And as we can see from the examples in this list, not everyone can handle the pressure.
Surprisingly, a 2022 TODAY survey found that the most stressful part of the holiday is the mess and all of the cleaning that follows. However, cooking ranked as the number two stress point for poll participants. It’s easy to see why, as stuffing yourself and your loved ones up until the point you cannot move anymore definitely requires a ton of effort.
While 21% of Thanksgiving merrymakers said that nothing about the holiday was stressful, others mentioned that additional anxiety-inducing situations include political conversations, kids' behavior, travel, and the expectations of relatives.
My Oven Decided Thanksgiving Had Gone Too Smoothly. So It Spontaneously Did This While We Ate
Happy Thanksgiving
Friends Ordered A Precooked Turkey From A Local Restaurant
Moreover, the high expectations from friends and family about dinner can make everything even more overwhelming. Interestingly, a survey conducted by OnePoll found that when it comes to cooking, preparing, and serving the Thanksgiving Day meal, the average American says six things don’t go exactly as planned.
The meal that’s most likely to go wrong? You guessed it — turkey, the centerpiece of the celebration. It is the hardest part about hosting the feast for more than half (56%) of the respondents surveyed.
My Wife's Cousin's Thanksgiving Turkey Stuffed With A Loose Handful Of Plain Celery
She has high-functioning autism and is discovering her love of cooking. She has her own unique sense of aesthetics. If you guys like this one I have several more that are great.
Anddd Just Like That Thanksgiving Is Cancelled… Hand Foot Mouth Disease
This Is What I Always Look Forward Too For Thanksgiving
I used to make homemade cranberry sauce and was told by my sister she preferred the can shaped kind. 🤷♀️
I love the jelly much better than the big pieces; it doesn't spread the same way.
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try it instead of mayo, or mixed with mayo on your next turkey sandwich, yum!
It takes a lot of skill to get the sauce out in that classic shape. Presentation counts.
My mom has the perfect recipe: two bags cranberry, rinds of three oranges, on cup of sugar. Pulse in food processor. I will still eat this stuff side by side.
Always make sure to cut off both ends of the can - eliminates the suction!
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When I used to cook for a crowd I'd make a fresh cranberry relish with walnuts and oranges (the Ocean Spray recipe but with chopped walnuts added). it was VERY well received... EXCEPT there were a few (mainly some of the grandkids) who preferred the jelly in a can because that is what they were used to. At least it was easy to serve both. Just open can and 'blop' it out for the canned stuff.
I make my own and open a can as well. People complain when I don't make my recipe. My BIL actually eats it by the spoonful and we have to grab it away so others can have some too lol!
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They used "too" instead of "to" - that's the only problem I see here.
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I just ventured to from scratch cranberry sauce a few years ago but give me the can before ANYTHING else. It's the law. It's also fantastic to add to a Turkey Berry Sandwich. You can't do that with the stuff in a bowl.
They even put the labels upside down this year so people could experience the "serving" of it... ya know, turning it upside down and letting it plop on a plate.
My mom has always insisted on serving it like that but it never seemed right to me. Shouldn't you mash it and serve it in a bowl or something? I asked my grandma about it and she agreed with Mom! Oh well, canned shaped or mashed ...it tastes the same, right?
There was a cartoon where someone carved that jelly like it was the turkey and I can't remember which one. It's was funny. And I love that jelly!
It's all about the slurp sound it makes coming out of the can.
The markings are for perfect slicing measures. That big one at the end that's for ma who loves cranberry sauce.
This was the reason I hated cranberry sauce growing up boy did things change once I realized they could be made from fresh cranberries.
You haven't lived! Tangy, tart, sweet and a whole lot of yummy. ;-)
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*to* and I can eat a whole a*s can of this myself. So. Pretty much did yesterday. Actually
cranberry sauce in the UK always comes in jars with a more jam (or i guess jelly to the americans) like consistency. o.O
Yep it does, i use it all year round, its lovely with beef for sunday lunch.
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Yuck, and the proverbial Green bean casserole in the background. Glad I wasn't there.
Oh hell yeah. My whole family thinks I’m crazy. I won’t show up without it🤪😂
All of my Thanksgivings with my parents, and my own family. I've only recently started to make my own whole-berry cranberry sauce. Making it is easier than removing that stuff from the can.
Canned is comfort food. Always had it when I was a kid in the last century.
I will try almost anything. I wonder how I've gone 38 years without at least trying cranberry sauce. I've never even been in the presence of cranberry sauce being served. I will next year. Lol
One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving is the "thwwwwwp" sound it makes as it finally slides out of the can.
So how can we avoid unfortunate blunders during the holiday? And how can we ensure we have a great, stress-free time while hosting a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner? To gain more insight on the topic from an expert, we reached out to food lover, writer, and journalist Ellen Manning. Being the author of the acclaimed Eat With Ellen blog, she was more than happy to share her thoughts on the matter.
He Had To Prepare A Thanksgiving Gift
Ordered Chinese Food For My Family For Thanksgiving, To Be Untraditional
I showed up when they told me to, and they were closed. I'm sure I'll get the money back... but now I'm driving around town. I've gotta figure out something for thanksgiving dinner... And literally nothing is open.
Fil Thought Temp Gauge Was A Timer
When asked why big feasts are notorious for not going as planned, she told Bored Panda, "If you think about it, it’s very rare that most of us cook for a big group so we basically never practice then try to pull it out of the bag on big occasions."
"Cooking for large numbers takes practice — it’s daunting, timings might be different, and things might need approaching in a different way. If the last time you did it was a year ago, the chances are it’s going to be a challenge, hence it often goes wrong," Ellen added.
I Picked Up Some Last Minute Thanksgiving Items On Lunch Break And Left Them Tied Up In A Bag In The Break Room Fridge. This Is How I Found My Pie
I would go to security and see if there's camera footage. Also make a complaint with HR. Who does this thing!!? Psychos!!!
Happy Thanksgiving Y’all
This Salad A Family Member Brought For Thanksgiving
Some of the most common reasons things go wildly wrong when cooking and preparing food are bad timing and not starting early enough. "Prep is important at the best of times but when it’s large volumes for lots of people, it’s even more so," the food blogger warned.
My Brother Made The Most Upsetting Pie I’ve Ever Had In My Life
Thanksgiving, A Tragic Story
Deliciously S***ty Thanksgiving Cake
So what can you do to ease the stress and avoid screw-ups in the kitchen? Well, according to Ellen, it’s quite simple: "Plan plan plan."
"Work out what you need, what order you’re doing things in, and do as much ahead of time as you can. Literally working backward from when you plan to serve and writing yourself out a step-by-step timeline, down to the minute maybe, will make you feel in control and ensure things don’t get forgotten or left or cooked for too long," Ellen concluded.
Day Before Thanksgiving And My Oven Element Burned And Snapped In Half. Yay
I had that happen the year I invited my parents and in-laws to our house for Thanksgiving. My mom moved the entire event to her house and my dad installed a new element the day after Thanksgiving. It’s now a favorite memory of “The time I hosted Thanksgiving...in Mom’s kitchen.”
Moms Turkey Exploded, Christmas Vacation Style
My Mom Is Staying With Us This Week For Thanksgiving
She wanted to make tea but instead of asking for help with the electric kettle she microwaved my chargeable self heating mug and caught it on fire.
Someone New Recipe For Thanksgiving?
Someone From My Snapchat At Thanksgiving
Turkey Crafted From Spam, Merry Thanksgiving
A Perfect Addition To Thanksgiving Dinner
I'm Such An Amazing Chef Man
Thanksgiving Turkey Was Rubbed With Brown Sugar And Seasonings Before Being Deep Fried. Got Carmelized
Facebook Found Deviled Eggs. Happy Thanksgiving!
X90j I Orders For Thanksgiving. UPS Was Not Kind
My Mom’s Thanksgiving Turkey
I’m not sure that’s the correct description term anymore
I Guess We Don't Have Thanksgiving Dessert
Just Got Home From Thanksgiving Dinner At Mom’s
I spent my thanksgiving alone so even the mistakes look like a blessing. Be thankful for your friends and family.
Here's mine! Me and both my brothers have been sick so, we didn't go to ours. They sent our cousin over to give us a ton of leftovers since they made so much. Glad we got the food atleast.
Mine that went from bad to awesome discovery: one year the oven died on Thanksgiving morning. I can say with certainty that's exactly when, bc it had been working at 1am when we were doing some early prep and cooking. So we had to run to Walmart and get us ANYTHING to cook the dressing in. We ended up, funny enough, getting a turkey cooker....to cook dressing. I absolutely hate eating it from the oven now. The cooker keeps it SO amazing moist inside. We also discovered a turkey cooker is great for BBQ (just wrap in tinfoil, occasionally opening it to reapply sauce).
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I had to have emergency surgery this week and missed Thanksgiving. I don't really mind as it's also the anniversary of my mom's death.
When I was prepping my turkey this year, I pulled the neck out and THE BEAK was ATTACHED! Like, full on trachea and face parts! I've never seen anything like it before. First time we bought a "big brand" turkey, too.
This post makes me appreciate how damn awesome our family's Thanksgiving food turned out. Good grief.
well I have a good Thanksgiving story- Me and my best friend baked an apple pie for my family, and we put the second star design on the top of the pie (it's from peter pan), so we had a lot of dough left and some extra filling so we made a little mini pie for us to split. My family loved the pie! They all agreed it was the best apple pie lol. I hope this story makes this list sounds worse 😈😂
Here’s mine! We have tradition in my house for when we are done eating our meal/feast, we have apples and caramel. I have chopping up apples and we have the glass jars of caramel. I heated that caramel in the microwave and I think I heated it up to long and when I went to open the caramel, it exploded over my hand and gave me a second degree burn. My mom had to go to the store to go get burn cream and so more caramel. I had no caramel this year. My hands fine, but I do have some small blisters and the hand is aggravated. Fun! (Sarcasm)
Thanksgiving 2022, I spent as a mediator been my son and his new in laws. Let’s just say by 8pm there was 1 arrest, assault of DIL, I resolved kidnapping their 4 month old, a Pastor who is the grandfather to my DIL who showed he doesn’t know how to handle a family issue, so idk how he has his own congregation, several trips to the police and sheriff, and the in laws realizing they were in the wrong decided to “get even” but mounting a false domestic violence issue and abuse and neglect charges toward my grand baby- NONE WAS TRUE. All because my son married his wife. They haven’t even been married 1 month. Now the MIL is refusing to return their property unless they pay her $1K in “damages and back rent”, plus a daily $10 fee for storing their property in their home. Back story after much emotional, mental, and financial abuse my son and his now bride moved out of the home after they were told they needed to leave- so they did and now the MIL is furious & seeking vengeance.
that's... That's a lot. Jeez. This also sounds like something BP would post from a stolen reddit story. Would love more details 10/10
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Due to my mum being ill she couldn't drive us to my dad's work where we were going to celebrate. I spent the day making my brothers food, cleaning, and arguing with my little brother who chose this week to be a bray over video games. I've been hit twice by him so far. Dad's coming home tomorrow at least and mum's feeling somewhat better.
I was super sick but tried to fight through it. Right before we were gonna eat I went to the bathroom and threw up. Right. Before.
For those just now seeing the article, I posted an update that took 3 comments for the second post, which has the caption: Y’all Gon Be Battling Food Poisoning Up To New Years. Someone asked for an update, so I was able to follow the link and find it on Twitter.
I can't even look at these food woes - we manage to do "thanks giving food" most Sundays lol without issue
I feel sorry for all the turkeys who got butchered for this day and then burned or otherwise cooked inedible. What a waste!
At least they are out of the misery of when they were alive. But I fully agree, I wish that at least on Thanksgiving someone would thank the creatures who gave up their lives.
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I watched some turkey deep frying videos. Americans are insane!
And I thought deep fried chocolate bars were weird, until I heard of these turkeys in hot fat.
Load More Replies... My aunts got drunk the night before making the mashed potatoes.. they called at 1am and said they ran out of potatoes.. so one of my aunts said she would just add instant .. we told her don’t do that. I don’t know what happened but they had to go buy mashed potatoes Thanksgiving morning from a local barbecue restaurant before they closed.Then my other aunt said that the top layer of the stuffing was burned but don’t worry she had her ‘special knife’ to cut off the burnt layer.. apparently she cooks everything at 450 because she thinks it cooks faster… when she said that my husband, cousins, and I looked at each other and thought that explains a lot (she’s a notoriously bad cook) Lol!!
My family is sick, his family went out of state. We made bratwurst on the grill.
I didn't eat on thanksgiving because I slept through the whole thing
My kid got strep , my nephew now has a rampant stomach bug and my other nephew has hand foot and mouth I’m just waiting to see what I end up with
I found out that my grandma sometimes washes dishes with bleach, so there's that.
If you don't know how to cook a turkey properly (or ham), just do something else; there's no Thanksgiving police you know. I'm in Canada and our tradition (just us parents and children) is that we all cook something together during the day and then we eat. We do a schedule of who's going to use the oven, fridge, counters, etc. We usually start with some kind of appetizer, then the soup, a salad, root vegetable, veggies, fish, poultry, red meat, 2 different desserts (like a mousse and a pie or cookies and fondue), a special beverage (hot or cold), then regular beverages like wine, coffee, tea. Thanksgiving is the only holiday we celebrate so it's big. Everyone leaves with leftovers if they want.
I spent my thanksgiving alone so even the mistakes look like a blessing. Be thankful for your friends and family.
Here's mine! Me and both my brothers have been sick so, we didn't go to ours. They sent our cousin over to give us a ton of leftovers since they made so much. Glad we got the food atleast.
Mine that went from bad to awesome discovery: one year the oven died on Thanksgiving morning. I can say with certainty that's exactly when, bc it had been working at 1am when we were doing some early prep and cooking. So we had to run to Walmart and get us ANYTHING to cook the dressing in. We ended up, funny enough, getting a turkey cooker....to cook dressing. I absolutely hate eating it from the oven now. The cooker keeps it SO amazing moist inside. We also discovered a turkey cooker is great for BBQ (just wrap in tinfoil, occasionally opening it to reapply sauce).
Load More Replies... I had to have emergency surgery this week and missed Thanksgiving. I don't really mind as it's also the anniversary of my mom's death.
When I was prepping my turkey this year, I pulled the neck out and THE BEAK was ATTACHED! Like, full on trachea and face parts! I've never seen anything like it before. First time we bought a "big brand" turkey, too.
This post makes me appreciate how damn awesome our family's Thanksgiving food turned out. Good grief.
well I have a good Thanksgiving story- Me and my best friend baked an apple pie for my family, and we put the second star design on the top of the pie (it's from peter pan), so we had a lot of dough left and some extra filling so we made a little mini pie for us to split. My family loved the pie! They all agreed it was the best apple pie lol. I hope this story makes this list sounds worse 😈😂
Here’s mine! We have tradition in my house for when we are done eating our meal/feast, we have apples and caramel. I have chopping up apples and we have the glass jars of caramel. I heated that caramel in the microwave and I think I heated it up to long and when I went to open the caramel, it exploded over my hand and gave me a second degree burn. My mom had to go to the store to go get burn cream and so more caramel. I had no caramel this year. My hands fine, but I do have some small blisters and the hand is aggravated. Fun! (Sarcasm)
Thanksgiving 2022, I spent as a mediator been my son and his new in laws. Let’s just say by 8pm there was 1 arrest, assault of DIL, I resolved kidnapping their 4 month old, a Pastor who is the grandfather to my DIL who showed he doesn’t know how to handle a family issue, so idk how he has his own congregation, several trips to the police and sheriff, and the in laws realizing they were in the wrong decided to “get even” but mounting a false domestic violence issue and abuse and neglect charges toward my grand baby- NONE WAS TRUE. All because my son married his wife. They haven’t even been married 1 month. Now the MIL is refusing to return their property unless they pay her $1K in “damages and back rent”, plus a daily $10 fee for storing their property in their home. Back story after much emotional, mental, and financial abuse my son and his now bride moved out of the home after they were told they needed to leave- so they did and now the MIL is furious & seeking vengeance.
that's... That's a lot. Jeez. This also sounds like something BP would post from a stolen reddit story. Would love more details 10/10
Load More Replies... Due to my mum being ill she couldn't drive us to my dad's work where we were going to celebrate. I spent the day making my brothers food, cleaning, and arguing with my little brother who chose this week to be a bray over video games. I've been hit twice by him so far. Dad's coming home tomorrow at least and mum's feeling somewhat better.
I was super sick but tried to fight through it. Right before we were gonna eat I went to the bathroom and threw up. Right. Before.
For those just now seeing the article, I posted an update that took 3 comments for the second post, which has the caption: Y’all Gon Be Battling Food Poisoning Up To New Years. Someone asked for an update, so I was able to follow the link and find it on Twitter.
I can't even look at these food woes - we manage to do "thanks giving food" most Sundays lol without issue
I feel sorry for all the turkeys who got butchered for this day and then burned or otherwise cooked inedible. What a waste!
At least they are out of the misery of when they were alive. But I fully agree, I wish that at least on Thanksgiving someone would thank the creatures who gave up their lives.
Load More Replies... I watched some turkey deep frying videos. Americans are insane!
And I thought deep fried chocolate bars were weird, until I heard of these turkeys in hot fat.
Load More Replies... My aunts got drunk the night before making the mashed potatoes.. they called at 1am and said they ran out of potatoes.. so one of my aunts said she would just add instant .. we told her don’t do that. I don’t know what happened but they had to go buy mashed potatoes Thanksgiving morning from a local barbecue restaurant before they closed.Then my other aunt said that the top layer of the stuffing was burned but don’t worry she had her ‘special knife’ to cut off the burnt layer.. apparently she cooks everything at 450 because she thinks it cooks faster… when she said that my husband, cousins, and I looked at each other and thought that explains a lot (she’s a notoriously bad cook) Lol!!
My family is sick, his family went out of state. We made bratwurst on the grill.
I didn't eat on thanksgiving because I slept through the whole thing
My kid got strep , my nephew now has a rampant stomach bug and my other nephew has hand foot and mouth I’m just waiting to see what I end up with
I found out that my grandma sometimes washes dishes with bleach, so there's that.
If you don't know how to cook a turkey properly (or ham), just do something else; there's no Thanksgiving police you know. I'm in Canada and our tradition (just us parents and children) is that we all cook something together during the day and then we eat. We do a schedule of who's going to use the oven, fridge, counters, etc. We usually start with some kind of appetizer, then the soup, a salad, root vegetable, veggies, fish, poultry, red meat, 2 different desserts (like a mousse and a pie or cookies and fondue), a special beverage (hot or cold), then regular beverages like wine, coffee, tea. Thanksgiving is the only holiday we celebrate so it's big. Everyone leaves with leftovers if they want.
