Thanksgiving is now less than six weeks away, which means many families are making plans for travel and meal prep. But the cost of inflation will also be weighing heavily on their minds, especially for those who have large Turkey Day gatherings to feed.

However, the world of grocery shopping is highly competitive, and one chain, Aldi, is aiming to outdo the competition in enticing cost-conscious consumers to shop at its stores. The national grocery store chain has announced that it will put a full Thanksgiving meal, which feeds 10, on your table for just $40.

Here’s what you need to know as the turkey dinner wars kick off for 2025.

Aldi announces a Thanksgiving meal for 10 for just $40

Every national and regional chain that sells groceries will be vying for Americans’ dollars over the next six weeks as they begin shopping for their Thanksgiving meals.

Today, Aldi has announced that it intends to give cash-conscious consumers the ability to get a full turkey spread for ten people for just $40. As Aldi notes, at an average cost of just $4 per person, the deal, per household guest, costs “less than a pumpkin spice latte.”

The deal also happens to be $7 cheaper than the $47 Thanksgiving dinner for 10 that Aldi offered last year.

It should be noted that the $40 price isn’t for a package of set food items. Instead, Aldi calculated the price by adding up the cost of 21 individual products and ingredients that are needed for making a Thanksgiving meal of nine dishes.

Those dishes include:

• a 14-pound turkey
• rolls
• cranberry sauce
• mac and cheese
• stuffing
• mashed potatoes with gravy
• sweet potato casserole
• green bean casserole
• pumpkin pie

In a potential dig at competitors like Costco, Aldi notes that “no coupons or memberships” are needed to buy the individual items that go into making the $40 meal for ten.

The grocery store chain is also providing a downloadable list of those items here.

The average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner has hovered around $60 for years

The cost of Thanksgiving dinner can vary widely based on numerous factors, including the dishes you plan to prepare, the number of guests you’ll be feeding, and where in the country you are located. However, 2024 data from the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) found that the average cost of a Thanksgiving meal for ten people has hovered around $60 for years.

The AFBF found that the average Thanksgiving meal for ten cost $58.08 in 2024. That was down 5% from the $61.17 average meal cost in 2023. In 2022, the average cost of a Thanksgiving meal for ten hit a record high of $64.05, according to the AFBF.

Of course, Aldi won’t be the only one vying for your Thanksgiving dinner dollars. Last year, the chain was in a heated competition with other major U.S. grocery stores, including Walmart and Target.

As reported by CBS Mornings last November, while Aldi was offering a 2024 Thanksgiving meal for ten for $47, Target was offering a Thanksgiving meal for eight for $40, and Walmart was offering a meal for 8 for $54. You can expect both of those major chains—and many others—to be similarly competitive this year.

This year, Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 27.

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Why? Letting the bird rest gives its juices time to settle and be reabsorbed. Carving it too soon will allow the moisture to escape, leaving you with parched meat and a puddle on the cutting board. The turkey can rest for up to 90 minutes and still be hot when it’s time to carve—which means you’ve got plenty of time to make the gravy.

Note: Don’t cover the turkey with aluminum foil while it rests. Doing so will cause the skin to go limp.

How to Carve a Turkey Without Mangling It

How to cook a heritage turkey:

With longer thighs and drumsticks, a leaner breast, and a more diminutive size compared to a standard supermarket turkey, heritage turkeys look, taste, and cook differently than your average Thanksgiving fowl. Heritage birds typically weigh no more than 16 pounds. If you plan on serving a larger crowd, you might want to roast two birds side by side. The bonus is that smaller birds cook more quickly than their fleshy cousins, so you don’t need to rise at dawn if you like to eat Thanksgiving meal at noon.

Because they tend to have a more active lifestyle, heritage turkeys require a different roasting method to prevent toughness. Roasting the bird slowly, at a lower temperature, is the best way to achieve tender meat.

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.
2. Prep a 12–14-lb. turkey with softened butter, salt, and pepper, as described above (or dry-brine it) and roast for 3½–4 hours.
3. Monitor the internal temperature. Your turkey is done when it hits 165°F.

Note: Due to the nature of some heritage breeds, their flesh and bones may retain a pinkish hue even after being fully cooked. As long as the bird has reached the specified temperature on a reliable meat thermometer, you don’t need to worry.

Absolutely Everything You Need to Know About Thanksgiving Turkey and Gravy

How to cook a frozen turkey:

So it’s noon on Thanksgiving day, and you suddenly realize you’ve forgotten to thaw the turkey. Take a deep, calming breath. Trust that you’ll get it done, but cooking that turkey will likely take longer than originally planned.

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