What Meats Were Served at the First Thanksgiving Celebration?

First Thanksgiving Food at a Glance

What Do We Know About the First Thanksgiving Menu?

How do we know what was on the menu? Only two people who were there wrote about the 1621 harvest. Edward Winslow wrote a letter in December 1621. Governor William Bradford wrote a history years later. Winslow names fowl and five deer. He does not list every dish. Food historians fill in the rest with local foods and Pilgrim records.

So some items in this guide are confirmed and others are likely. We label each one.

What Meats Were Served at the First Thanksgiving?

Which meats did the Pilgrims and Wampanoag eat? Three kinds of meat stand out: deer, wild birds, and seafood. The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag relied on hunting and fishing, and they ate what the land and coast gave them. Here is each one.

Venison: The Most Prominent Protein

What was the most prominent protein? Venison. It was the biggest meat on the table. Winslow wrote that the Wampanoag guests went out and killed five deer. They brought the deer to the settlement and gave them to the governor, the captain, and others. That was a lot of meat for a three-day feast with about 140 people.

The Pilgrims had no ovens. So the venison was likely cooked over open fire or boiled in pots. If you are asking what the most prominent protein was, the answer is venison.

Wild Fowl: More Than Just Turkey

Which wild birds were served? Ducks and geese were the most likely. Before the feast, the governor sent four men out to hunt birds. In one day they killed enough fowl to feed the group for almost a week. Winslow does not name the birds. Museum experts say ducks and geese were the most likely. Swans and passenger pigeons are possible. Most birds were probably roasted over open fire.

Was Turkey Served at the First Thanksgiving?

Did the Pilgrims eat turkey at all? Probably yes, but it was not the centerpiece. Governor Bradford wrote that turkeys were plentiful that season. A settler named William Hilton also mentioned turkeys in a letter in November 1621. Still, Winslow never calls turkey the main dish. Experts at Plimoth Patuxet Museums say goose or duck was more likely. So turkey may have been there. It just was not the star.

Seafood: A Coastal Bounty

Did they eat seafood? Probably. Winslow does not list seafood. Still, museum experts say eels and shellfish were probably on the table. That means clams, mussels, and lobster. They were easy to find near Plymouth. The colonists also dried shellfish and smoked fish to keep them longer. Bass and cod may have been served too, but records do not confirm it.

What Was the Main Course at the First Thanksgiving?

Was there a main course? No. There was no single main course. The 1621 celebration lasted three days and had many meals. The Pilgrims also did not eat in courses. All the food was placed on the table at once, and people ate in any order. Venison and wild fowl were the biggest dishes, so they came closest to a main dish.

Which Meats Were Not Served at the First Thanksgiving?

Which meats were not served? Beef and lamb were not served. The colony had no cattle or sheep yet. The first cows arrived in 1623. The Mayflower did bring goats, pigs, and chickens. No record shows that pork or chicken was eaten at the feast. The settlers needed those animals for milk, eggs, and breeding. So pork, ham, and chicken were most likely not on the menu.

If you are answering a quiz about which food was most likely not served at the first Thanksgiving feast, the safe picks are below.

What Else Was on the First Thanksgiving Table?

What else did they eat besides meat? Meat was only part of the meal. The Pilgrims grew flint corn. It was likely served as porridge or cornbread. Stewed pumpkin, squash, onions, herbs, and nuts were common too. The Wampanoag had taught the settlers how to grow native crops like corn and pumpkins.

The menu looks very different from a modern table.

Did the Pilgrims Use Forks at the First Thanksgiving?

Did the Pilgrims use forks? No. Forks were the utensil missing from the first Thanksgiving. Colonial records list no eating forks. Eating forks were not common in England until the middle of the 1600s. The Pilgrims ate with spoons, knives, and their fingers. Spoons were for soft foods and liquids. Knives cut food and carried it to the mouth.

So the original feast was eaten with spoons and knives, and with fingers too. Large linen napkins did the rest. People wiped their hands on them. They also used them to pick up hot pieces of food. In a way, the napkin was the most useful tool at the table.

Cloth napkins still earn their place at a Thanksgiving table today. You can browse our linen napkins to see the options.

How Was the Food Cooked at the First Thanksgiving?

How did they cook without ovens? Cooking in the 1600s was done over open fire. Here are the main methods.

• Roasting: Venison and birds were roasted on spits. Someone sat for hours turning the spit so the meat cooked evenly.

• Boiling: Seafood, meat, and vegetables were boiled in pots. Some foods were roasted first and then boiled.

• Drying and smoking: There was no refrigeration. People dried shellfish and smoked fish to keep them.

Why the First Thanksgiving Menu Still Matters

Why does the first Thanksgiving menu still matter? The 1621 meal was a shared harvest celebration. The Pilgrims had survived a very hard first year. The Wampanoag joined them, and they brought food to share. Learning about this menu is a way to honor the Indigenous people who helped the settlers get through that year. One more fact may surprise you. Winslow never called the event a thanksgiving. Museums like Plimoth Patuxet call it the harvest celebration of 1621. The name “first Thanksgiving” came in the 1800s. Corn and pumpkin were on the 1621 table. Pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce came much later.

Bring a Little of the 1621 Feast to Your Table

Can you serve a piece of the 1621 feast today? Yes. You do not need to cook like the Pilgrims. A few small touches can make your own meal more fun and more meaningful.

• Serve clams or mussels as an appetizer.

• Add roast duck or goose next to the turkey.

• Try stewed pumpkin as a simple side.

• Make corn porridge or cornbread.

• Set the table with big cloth napkins, just like 1621.

Ready to set the table? Explore our Thanksgiving table linens, cloth napkins, and tablecloths for a warm, welcoming Thanksgiving.

Key Takeaways

• Venison and wild fowl are the only meats confirmed at the first Thanksgiving.

• Venison was the most prominent protein. The Wampanoag brought five deer.

• Ducks and geese were the most likely birds.

• Turkey was likely there, but it was not the main dish.

• Seafood was probably served, including eels, clams, mussels, and lobster.

• Beef and lamb were not served. Pork and chicken were most likely not served either.

• The Pilgrims ate with spoons, knives, and fingers. They had no forks.

• Pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce came much later.

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