An American in Spain: Thanksgiving Edition

Now that you’ve hung up your Halloween costume, the holiday season begins! 

It’s fascinating to move to a country that doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving. The controversy about whether you put up Christmas lights before or after Thanksgiving is no debate here: Halloween is over, which means it’s Christmas time. Starting November 1st, some of the kids at my school were singing Christmas carols! 

But what about this holiday that you’ve celebrated every year of your life? 

This short yet sweet (and savory!) blog will help you find all the fixings you need to cook an amazing Thanksgiving dinner while living in Spain. 

Turkey

Turkey is not a very popular meat in Spain, that said, finding a whole turkey is achievable. I saw kits being sold at El Corte Inglés, Taste of America, and a few fancier mercados. You can also ask your local carnicería if they can order a whole turkey, which is what a friend of mine did for her Friendsgiving. 

However, you need to order in advance and it can be very expensive (the turkey kit was a minimum of 120€). 

There are a few alternatives that I would recommend that could save you both time and money:

• Whole Chicken - These are on sale throughout the year and are impressively cheap for being a whole bird. Most grocery stores have them in the carnicería section.
• Whole Turkey breast - This is another thing that you will have to order in advance
• Sliced Turkey breast - This is the most economical turkey option, and the one that I did. I bought my turkey from my local Día the same day that we were hosting our Friendsgiving. These also take less time to cook, which makes more oven space for all of the accompaniments
• Other: chicken thighs, chicken breast, sliced pork 

Cranberry Sauce

I was warned by many people that fresh cranberries are hard to find. They’re called “arandanos rojos,” which literally translates to “red blueberries,” so there can also be a bit of a miscommunication when searching for them. Fortunately, El Corte Inglés had fresh cranberries in stock—it seems that they know that there’s a shocking amount of Americans working and studying in Madrid. 

If you’re desperate, there are frozen bags of mixed berries in the freezer aisles of most grocery stores and you can pick out all the cranberries (I also had a friend do this). I buy these mixed berries at Día.  

Gravy

If you’re not sure that your turkey will have enough leftover juice to make a gravy, caldo de pollo is Spain’s equivalent of chicken stock. It’s a great way to enhance the flavor of your gravy, and sometimes you need extra if your mixture is too thick. Many stores sell it, but I bought mine at Mercadona. 

Stuffing

I’ll give you three words: Taste of America. Of course, you can make your own by finding all of the ingredients, but this store has a large pre-made bag that can serve a rather large group. 

Green Beans

Like cranberries, I was told that it can be difficult to find whole green beans because the grocery stores tend to just sell peas. Not to fret! We bought our green beans from the frozen aisle at Día. It’s a super easy way to buy a large amount of whole green beans, which is great if you’re cooking for a group of people. 

Pumpkin Pie

Craving the second most iconic part of Thanksgiving after the turkey? Look no further than Taste of America. This is where we found pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, and pie crusts. Don’t forget to get the whipped cream from Mercadona to complete your pie. It will be just like at home! 

If you’re looking for nutmeg to add some extra dimension to your pumpkin pie, I saw it at Taste of America and El Corte Inglés. Note: El Corte was cheaper. 

Other Ingredients

Here are some honorable mentions that you may use and are a bit more store-specific: 

• Cream style sweet corn - Taste of America
• Corn Starch - Taste of America
• Pecans - Mercadona
• Brown sugar - El Corte Inglés
• Thanksgiving/fall decor - Amazon Spain 

You can find your basic spices and cooking staples at most grocery store chains—you just may have to visit a couple to amass them all. Pro tip: write a list for each store so that you don’t forget anything (between my two roommates and I, we easily accumulated over 10 separate store trips).  

¡Buen provecho!

As you can see, you can celebrate Thanksgiving while living abroad and bring a taste of home to your new home. Once you find all the ingredients, the actual cooking of the meal is a breeze. Plan ahead, time your cooking well, and invite plenty of friends to share in the joy and gratitude of this unique holiday. Hopefully, this blog helps you to streamline your shopping process and create a feast that transports you to your fondest Thanksgiving memories. ¡Buen provecho y feliz Día de Accíon de Gracias!