Christmas Side Dishes Make a Festive Feast
May your table be merry and bright — as it will with these luscious and lively Christmas side dish ideas for your holiday spread
Cheddar, Garlic, and Chive Hasselback Potatoes; photograph by Olga Ivanova
(Want more Christmas recipes and tips? Check out our big Yummly Christmas page!)
Christmas is the time to go all out, to bring out the silver and carve the roast beast! And while a beautifully marbled roast beef, or a turkey, holiday ham, or nut loaf at the center of the table can be a showstopper, their simplicity opens the door for side dishes to shine with complex flavors and intriguing textures.
This joyous collection of side dish recipes will guide you in making a merry holiday meal for eaters big and small. The options below span the United States, from New England to the Southern states, from Tex-Mex flair to West Coast pops of pomegranate. But this collection also hops the pond to offer sophisticated Old World holiday cheer.
So join us at the table for this glittering feast: It’s time to embrace our Christmas present, whatever it may be, imperfect though it is. Why do we cook? Because having food on the table and love in our hearts is something to celebrate, and important to share.
Jump ahead to:
Side dish tips and tricks for a merry Christmas dinner >>
Graceful gratins and celebratory casseroles >>
Easy Christmas side dishes from the stovetop >>
Poppin’ in the oven: Savory Christmas breads >>
Roasted vegetable sides: A Christmas fantasia >>
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Side dish tips and tricks for a merry Christmas dinner
Making a holiday meal might seem like a daunting task, but with the guidance below and a little Christmas magic stirred in, you’ll be serving a festive feast in no time.
What are good side dishes for Christmas dinner?
Planning a holiday meal can feel like an algebra equation, except in this challenge all the variables are delicious. Here are several ways to think about it:
Start with your main dish and its focus and flavor, and let that be the sun your side dishes orbit around. If you’re cooking an Italian pot roast studded with garlic and rosemary, choose side dishes from that cuisine, like the Roasted Radicchio. Or, let the spices and herbs guide you, with choices like the Garlic Roasted Broccoli or Three-Cheese Garlic Cauliflower Gratin.
Ascend the food pyramid. Embrace tradition with a protein-packed main course, a starchy, carb-tastic side redolent with cream or cheese, and then brightly colored veggies to fill about one-third to half the plate. Following the food pyramid also ensures a variety of flavors, textures, and nutrients in your meal.
Remember, we eat with our eyes first! A plate of white and beige food is not a thrill; the wider the rainbow of color and more varied the shapes and textures, the more stimulating and enticing the meal becomes. Fresh herbs such as chives add instant appeal to mashed potatoes or rice pilaf.
Finally, don’t forget to consider the timing and temperature of each dish you’ll be serving, as well as your kitchen capacity. Serving four side dishes that all require last-minute stovetop attention makes for a harried cook — you’re best off having a few in the oven, which gives you time to focus on stirring a bubbling pot. Conversely, don’t forget to ponder your oven’s parameters. Three holiday side dishes that must be baked at the same time also need to fit!
How many side dishes for Christmas dinner?
On a normal night, one or two generally suffices, but for a holiday, two or three side dishes (or more!) is the way to go. If you like having leftovers, then an additional easy dinner side can feel like a bonus. You’re already cooking, so why not gild the lily — but only if you’ll still be able to sit down and enjoy yourself when it’s time to eat.
Other factors to consider are how many people you’re dining with. For a smaller crowd there’s no need to overwhelm the table (or the cook). Planning an array of appetizers, too? Then no need to overdo it on sides.
And if you’re newer to cooking, it’s best to keep it simple: Pick two sides that feel manageable, do your best, and don’t be afraid to ask for advice — or an extra hand in the kitchen. We all were beginners once, and it’s healthy to ask for help.
Graceful gratins and celebratory casseroles
These delicious and intriguing sides boast a host of grains and vegetables, bacon and cheese, cream and stock. They're pulled from different regions, cultures and cuisines. Which delicious side will you choose?
Three-Cheese Garlic Cauliflower Gratin
This creamy, garlicky, cozy casserole is decadently cheesy with Parmesan, Gruyere, and sharp cheddar, and will warm both your belly and your heart.
Cheesy Leek Gratin
With only seven ingredients (not including salt and pepper), this gratin is somehow more delicious than the sum of its parts: leeks, cheddar cheese, and fresh thyme, topped with a quick and crunchy fried leek blanket. Don’t count on leftovers.
Scalloped Oysters
Simplicity often leads to elegance. This Southern specialty would be equally at home on a Yankee Christmas table or in a West Coast spread. Use small oysters if you can.
Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash
A wild rice stuffing full of pecans, dried cherries, and squash baked inside nutty acorn squashes makes an elegant side dish from ingredients native to North America — and can be a festive entree for any vegetarians.
Celery Root Gratin
Celery root (aka celeriac) is so misunderstood. But beneath the bumpy, lumpy root of the celery plant is a snowy white vegetable that cooks up like a potato but is more complex — and downright delicious when it’s mixed with cream, cheese, butter, and bread crumbs.
Pimento Cheese Creamed Spinach
This delightful Southern twist on traditional creamed spinach has merry red flecks of pimento pepper, topped with crisp buttery breadcrumbs. It's indulgent, too, with cream cheese, sour cream, mayo, and cheddar cheese. Be sure to squeeze the water out of the spinach before you begin.
Potato Gratin
The potato recipe known as gratin dauphinoise is amazing comfort food that also feels like a celebration. This is a simple classic au gratin dish that makes an excellent Christmas side dish for prime rib, or any other large roast.
Bacon Green Bean Casserole
Mushrooms, green beans, and bacon? Merry Christmas to you, indeed.
Marshmallow Sweet Potato Casserole
In some families, no holiday season meal is complete without a mashed sweet potato casserole with a crown of golden marshmallows. Brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice guarantee this version will be a hit!
Baked Grits and Collards Casserole
This Southern side combines two great dishes: collard greens and cheese grits. The ricotta keeps this hearty casserole light and fluffy.
Keto Zucchini Noodle Gratin
This cheerful zucchini gratin gets a decadent lusciousness from Gruyere cheese and heavy cream, and is an easy Christmas side dish recipe if you buy your squash pre-zoodled.
Easy Christmas side dishes from the stovetop
These Christmas side dishes make it easier to win at oven Tetris on the big day. They're all a snap to prepare, and bring merry shades of red, gold, and green to the table.
Garlic and Thyme Pan Seared Mushrooms [Vegan, Gluten-Free]
These mushrooms are everything you hope they’ll be: crisp at the edges, fragrant with thyme and garlic, and doused in olive oil and white wine. This recipe is easily doubled — but don’t plan on leftovers.
Sweet & Simple Braised Red Cabbage
This sweet and sour German-inspired, healthy Christmas side dish cooks first on the stovetop, then continues in the oven. It boasts apple two ways: quartered tart apple and cider vinegar. And the bright red tangle of cinnamon and clove-spiced cabbage on the plate only adds to the holiday cheer.
Swiss Chard with Cannellini
Swiss chard, the more delicate, not-so-bitter sister of kale, has been known to grow through winter snow. It shines in this easy Italian-style Christmas contorni (side dish) recipe that naturally boasts shades of red and green, and has a light kick of heat from red pepper flakes.
Poppin’ in the oven: Savory Christmas breads
So often, savory baked goods are treated as an afterthought, but sometimes they’re the star that tops a festive meal. These six recipes will bring tidings of comfort and joy to any Christmas plate.
Buttermilk and Fresh Herb Drop Biscuits
Looking for an easy bread for the holiday table? These fluffy, herb-flecked biscuits come together in a snap in the food processor, and there's no rolling required.
Shortcut Honey-Wheat Dinner Rolls
With their tender texture and buttery, lightly sweet flavor, these yeast rolls are bound to disappear quickly! Follow the easy tips, and they'll be ready in a hurry.
White Cheddar Popovers
Popovers (also called Yorkshire Pudding) are a traditional side dish for prime rib, but they’re a delicious addition to any festive meal. And while they look impressive, if you can stir pancake batter then you already have the skills to succeed. Two tips: First, having a popover pan is great, but these also work in a muffin tin or small ramekins. Secondly, these are best eaten right after they’ve popped out of the oven, so time them accordingly.
Sweet Potato Biscuits
Everyone loves biscuits, but add some sweet potato mash to the dough and you’ve got a hint of sweetness, a gentle orange hue, and a tender, moist crumb.
Pretzel Rolls
Add some surprise and delight to your holiday table with this casual Christmas side dish that celebrates a Philly favorite. Best of all, these chewy-outside-yet-soft-inside rolls make great mini sandwiches with leftovers the next day.
Parmesan, Garlic, and Herb Pull-Apart Bread
If you're expecting a big gathering, consider creating this impressive crispy Parmesan cheese pull-apart bread. It serves a dozen, and is fun to make as well as eat.
Roasted vegetable sides: A Christmas fantasia
Root vegetables are winter staples, and their flavors become concentrated and more satisfying when they bask in a blast of heat from the oven.
Cheddar, Garlic, and Chive Hasselback Potatoes
The crispiness (and cuteness) of these Hasselback potatoes cannot be denied! Setting the potatoes in the bowl of a wooden spoon makes it easy to safely cut the signature slices partway through the potatoes to ensure the bottom remains intact. Add garlic, butter, fresh thyme, and cheddar cheese, and prepare for holiday cheers.
Roasted Root Vegetable Medley
Your guests will be delighted when you present this gorgeous mélange of roasted carrot, fingerling potato, parsnip, turnip, rutabaga, beet, and more, ornamented with mushrooms and pearl onions, and sweetened with maple syrup and balsamic vinegar.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Apples
This earthy combination of roasted Brussels sprouts and apple, cranberry, walnuts, and a splash of maple syrup sparkles with winter ingredients, and adds a lovely vegan Christmas side dish to your table. Even kids can be convinced to try a bite once you point out the toasty apples.
Roasted Radicchio
Radicchio, a slightly bitter, jewel-toned Italian chicory, becomes crispy and mellow when it’s roasted on a sheet pan. This Italian Christmas side dish cooks quickly but is delicious at any temperature. A final drizzle of balsamic vinegar gives a sweet kiss to the crisp-edged leaves that even keto and paleo diets can enjoy. Any variety of radicchio — the round head di Castelfranco or di Chiogga, or flatter di Treviso — will be delicious.
Smoky Roasted Fall Vegetables
This intriguingly spiced side takes advantage of the coziest cold weather produce — butternut squash, sweet potatoes, parsnips — and elevates them by adding shallots, then an intriguing blend of smoky and sweet spices. It's an easy Christmas side dish that truly shines.
Garlic Roasted Broccoli
This simple, five-ingredient side is flavorful, healthful, and brings out the best broccoli has to offer with its crispy edges and toasty garlic.
Loaded Bourbon Maple Bacon Sweet Potatoes
‘Tis the season for luscious flourishes to each dish, and the butter, bourbon, maple syrup, and bacon mixture that is mashed into each potato tastes like a celebration.
Easy Balsamic Roasted Vegetables
This colorful mélange offers holiday colors with the red and green bell peppers. It balances savory rosemary and garlic with a sweet touch from the balsamic vinegar, and can be vegan if you skip the feta cheese.
Winter salads
Winter citrus, pops of pomegranate and toasted nuts — do you need more convincing to add a refreshing winter salad to the meal?
Tahini-Maple Kale Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash
Spiced butternut squash, crunchy pomegranate seeds, rosemary pecans, and a luscious tahini-maple vinaigrette add up to a memorable kale salad you'll want to make again and again.
Spinach Salad with Toasted Pecans and Cranberries
Everybody needs a simple spinach salad in their repertoire. Dried cranberries and toasted pecans make this one special, but feel free to dress it up even more with crumbled cheese, or sliced apple or pear.
Orange Chestnut Salad
For a more unusual take on spinach salad, check out Ali Rosen's combination with roasted chestnuts, fresh oranges, and a miso dressing.
Shredded Collard Green Salad with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Cashews
This modern, healthful take on a traditional collard greens side includes the briny tang of goat cheese, the richness of roasted sweet potatoes, and the crunch of cashews.
Winter Citrus Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette
This gorgeous holiday salad, while not the most traditional Christmas side dish, bejewels the table with the bright citrus pop of juicy pink grapefruit, sweet tangelos, and berry-flavored blood oranges. Feel free to sub in other favorite seasonal citrus fruits such as tangerines.
More holiday ideas
Check out these related Yummly stories for Christmas desserts, cookies, and vegetarian dinner recipes.