Thanksgiving dinner meal. (Creative Commons Flickr/ Arvind Grover).

In November of 1621, the Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag Indians shared a feast known as Thanksgiving. The traditional meal for this infamous day typically consists of turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, cranberry sauce, and delicious stuffing. Surprisingly, the first Thanksgiving feast’s menu is somewhat of a mystery. 

It is believed that during the first Thanksgiving dinner some type of bird was apart of the meal. However, the likelihood of it being turkey is unknown. It is possible though, because they existed in America before the colonists came. Turkey was extremely popular in both Europe and the Mediterranean. So popular that when the first English settlers came to America, they brought domesticated turkeys. 

Stuffing’s presence at the first Thanksgiving dinner is unknown. According to history.com, the likelihood of stuffing is possible, “given the abundance of both wild game and rice, it’s likely that the first Thanksgiving dinner featured some kind of bird with a wild rice dish alongside it.” The Wampanoag and the Pilgrims did stuff birds, fish and other small animals. The first indication of a stuffing-like food being consumed was during the Roman Empire. 

Cranberry sauce’s popularity increased significantly because of General Ulysses S. Grant. He ordered it during the Civil War to give to his troops in Petersburg, Va. The Native Americans were already aware of its health benefits and mixed it with pemmican, dried meat mix or preserved it for the winter. 

Mashed potatoes were introduced to the Europeans around 1570. Potatoes did not board the ships to North America with the pilgrims. However, it is believed that they ate other tubers and plant roots during the feast. 

When the Pilgrims and Native Americans ate dinner together in 1621, it became known as Thanksgiving. We may not know the exact items they ate, but regardless, it has transformed into the delicious foods we eat every year. 

Reach Staff Reporter Kelly Masuda here