Thanksgiving is in two days, and it’s likely that most of you have plans of some sort: getting together with family, eating a tremendously large meal, enjoying some football on television, getting caught up on your sleep, and so on. Some of you may have already begun on those plans - I know that for my own family’s Thanksgiving, the turkey is already slowly thawing as you read this.
Of course, with such a big spread (and also with the requisite travel for many), Thanksgiving can often be a very expensive holiday. Here are seven tactics I’ve found over the last year that can help mitigate the expenses of this costly day.
Freeze leftovers in manageable containers. Sure, freezing leftover turkey is a common tactic, but many people make one big mistake when doing it: they jam multiple pounds of turkey into individual bags, then when they go to thaw some out for later use, they either talk themselves out of it (thinking that they don’t need so much food) or they unthaw a multi-pound bag and let much of it go to waste.
Instead of freezing such a tremendous amount of food in a few big containers, pare it down into a lot of smaller containers (Ziploc freezer bags work well). This way, when you do choose to unthaw some over the next several months (frozen turkey is good for six months or so), you can easily unthaw just the amount you need - and no food goes to waste.
Don’t waste the carcass. Many people are happy to toss the leftover bones and small amount of meat left over after carving up the turkey. Don’t. That carcass can be used to create a lot of tremendous broth that can also be frozen and used to make simple, flavorful dishes.
Just take the entire carcass and toss it into the biggest pan you have. You can also toss in the neck of the turkey and the giblets (but not the liver). Add a chopped yellow onion, a cup of dry white wine, a bit of pepper, and a chopped stalk of celery, and let the whole thing simmer for three or four hours until the broth tastes tremendous.
When it’s done, remove all of the large solid pieces (bone, etc.), leaving nothing but broth, and store that broth in Ziploc bags in the freezer, two cups or so to a bag. This stuff is tremendous for any homemade soup or anything you wish to make - just add egg noodles to it for an amazing homemade soup. You can also use it in casseroles to great effect.
Go potluck If you’re hosting a Thanksgiving dinner, go potluck with it. Encourage all guests to bring a side dish, then just focus your efforts (and expenses) on the turkey and other staples. This not only saves money, but greatly reduces stress as well, as you have far fewer dishes to prepare.
For some, this may seem too forward, but remember that quite often people volunteer to bring a side dish - and when they volunteer, you should always accept that dish. It makes the person volunteering happy and takes stress off of your shoulders as well.
Use the environment for decorations. Instead of using tired, store-purchased decorations to make your setting look festive, take a walk outdoors the day before Thanksgiving and look for appropriate natural decorations. Pine cones, acorns, bright red maple leaves, cuttings from a pine tree, and other such decorations, laid carefully at the center of the table, are not only free, but they also look gorgeous and can smell quite nice, too.
Parks and wooded areas are great places to gather this material. Take along a small bag and pick up anything that appears to have potential - you don’t have to use everything that you pick up. Plus, a walk in nature the day before the big meal can help you de-stress if the holiday season is dragging you down.
Encourage guests to bring their own leftover container. This does several things at once. First, it encourages people to take leftover food with them, giving you less to deal with in the cleanup process.
More importantly, it eliminates the risk of (accidentally) losing a leftover container if someone forgets to return it - and it also saves the guests the effort of having to remember to return the container. My parents have lost many nice food storage containers over the years when packing them full of leftovers and sending them with guests. The guests often simply forget to return the containers.
Don’t overspend on the “extra” items - like wine. At many holiday meals, hosts often sweat and worry about making sure that all of the minor details are perfect - and often overspend on those details. One of my relatives, for example, obsesses over wine - often winding up buying several bottles, most of which go untasted or only partially drunk.
Instead of getting caught up in the details, take it easy. The joy of the holiday comes not from the “perfect” bottle of wine, but from enjoying time with family. For the details, just pick something simple and inexpensive - stop by your local wine shop and just get a bottle or two of a very low cost but solid table wine. Virtually everyone at your table will be thrilled with it, it will all get enjoyed, and you won’t have several expensive and only partially empty bottles left at the end of the meal. Best of all, you will have saved yourself quite a bit of money.
Similar logic applies to almost every side dish you can prepare: go simple and don’t prepare tons of options. This reduces your cost greatly without reducing the quality of the meal at all.
Use the opportunity when family is gathered to discuss important matters. For many families, Thanksgiving is the only time when everyone is gathered together in one place. That also means it can be the perfect time to discuss family matters - how to help your parents in their golden years, for example, or other such issues.
Many people opt not to talk about such things at Thanksgiving, not wanting to “ruin” a family moment, but often the reverse is true: if such things are not talked about, they end up painting the holiday with a sense of regret, of an opportunity missed. Take advantage of the holiday - or the day after - to handle such important discussions while everyone is gathered, reasonably rested, and relaxed. Doing so can save you a great deal of peace of mind - and also likely save you all some money as well.
译文:
7条小贴士，让您在省钱之余，也能度过一个愉快的感恩节
再过两天，感恩节就到了，似乎大家都已经早早地制定好了节日计划，比如说，与家人一起度过，吃一顿大餐，看一场球赛，或者好好地补个眠等等。很多人，会在节日到来之前的一段时间就开始实施这些计划，至少我知道我家就是这样的，然后当你在阅读这篇文章的时候，火鸡早早就已经在慢火烹制之中了。
当然，因为制定了如此之多的计划（而且对于很多人来说，出外旅行也是必不可少的一项节目），于是，感恩节的花费一直居高不下。如下是7则我在过去一年中所总结的省钱妙招，希望可以帮助大家减少在这个昂贵节日中的支出。
使用简便容器，冰冻剩菜剩饭。 当然了，大家都会想的到要把剩余的火鸡冰冻起来，但是，很多人在冰冻的过程中会犯下错误。他们大多将所有剩余的火鸡通通塞进一个袋子里，然后，等他们以后想解冻食用的时候，要么说服自己还是放弃不要吃了（因为考虑到根本就不需要那么多的食物），要么就把整个剩余的火鸡都不解冻，然后就这么放着直到变质。
所以，与其把这么大量的食物都塞进一些大的容器中，还不如将他们一小份一小份的装进一些小的容器中（简易包装食品袋也同样可行）。只有这样，你才可以在之后的几个月里挑选这些冰冻食品（一般，冰冻火鸡有效期可达6个月左右），同样，还可以根据自己所需食品的量来控制解冻的量，使得达到浪费度为零的结果。
不要浪费剩余的荤菜。 在尽情享用火鸡之后，很多人喜欢把剩余的骨头和残留的一些肉都拿去扔掉，但是我想提醒大家，千万不要这样做。因为这些剩余的骨头和肉可以拿来用作汤料，烹制成可口美味的肉汤，而这些肉汤也可以冰冻起来，留作以后制成一些简单却可口的小菜。
找来家里最大的平底锅，然后把整只火鸡的残留物都放上去，或者你也可以只选择把火鸡的脖子以及除肝脏以外的其他部位放上去，然后，加一点作料，比如剁碎的洋葱、一杯干红、一比特胡椒、一些剁碎的芹菜杆，最后用文火将所有东西煮上3到4个小时，直到肉汤味美为止。
肉汤煮好之后，将汤中残留的一些大的颗粒（比如骨头之类）过滤祛除，只留下汤汁部分，并用大的食品袋或容器中进行储藏冷冻。我想，对于一碗家庭制作的汤而言，肉汤无疑是美味的，而且，你可以根据自己的意愿把它再加工制成其他食品，只要放进一些鸡蛋宽面，就成了另外一样非常美味的食品了。您也可以选择用沙锅来制备这一种肉汤。
只吃家常便饭即可。如果您是感恩节晚餐的掌厨人，那么你也只要把它当作家常便饭处理即可。您可以邀请所有的客人都准备一份配菜，然后您就可以将一切精力（和花费）都用在烹饪火鸡和其他主食上了。这样做，不仅可以省下一笔钱，同样，因为您可以少准备几个菜而省下不少精力。
对于一些人来说，这种做法可能不太容易接受，但是，请记住，通常人们都是非常愿意与大家一起分享他们所带来的配菜，并且，如果他们愿意，那么请您也欣然接受。因为这样，不仅带给客人一种分享的快乐，也给您省去了不少麻烦。
运用自然之物来做装饰。与其去商店购买那些眼花缭乱的饰品来装饰屋子、装点节日气氛，还不如在感恩节的前几天出去逛逛，找点可以装饰屋子的自然饰品，比如说松果、橡树果、鲜红色的红槭树树叶、松树的分支或者是其他的装饰物。您完全可以自己得搜寻这些东西，这样做并不只是因为他们是免费的，还因为他们的确看上去非常漂亮、而且气味也非常清香。
其实公园和树林是寻得这些装饰品的上上之选，您可以背上一个小包，然后一边散步，一边把这些可供装饰的东西都放进包里，当然了，你也不必非要把所有寻得的东西都拿来装饰。另外，大餐前在自然中漫步一下，会消除一切节日紧张令你产生的疲惫和压力。
邀请客人也准备用于存放剩菜剩饭的容器。这种做法的益处真是不少。首先，这样做就可以让客人打包走一些剩菜剩饭，让你在清理时省去了不少麻烦。
更重要的是，这样做就可以减少有人忘记把容器还回来而造成容器遗失的几率（虽然是偶然的），而且也为客人要记得把容器还回来省下了不少心力。在过去的几年里，我的父母因为打包了一些食品便于客人带走而损失了不少精致美观的食品存储盒，而那些客人通常很轻易就会忘记要把他们还回来。
不要把钱超支在一些完全没有必要的东西上，比如说酒。在假日聚会的时候，主人们总是不遗余力，力求把所有小细节都做到完美，但是，往往就是在这些小细节上，会消耗过多的支出。以我的一位亲戚为例好了，他对酒的需要就常常感到拿捏不准，于是常常为了准备几种酒而将商店席卷一空，但是，事实上，大部分这些酒都是用不到的，或者只尝上一小口就浪费了。
所以与其困扰于要把一切都做到最好，倒不如放轻松些，好好享受假日的乐趣，要知道，这种乐趣并不是来源于准备周到的红酒，而是来源于与家人一起的陪伴和欢笑。至于那些细节，只要准备的简单些、价格也适中些即可，我想，完全可以就在当地的商店里拿上一两瓶便宜但是好喝的酒就可以了。事实上，每一位来参加宴会的人都会尽情享乐，而这些酒不过是个点缀而已，所以完全没有必要准备几种昂贵的酒，因为你会发现在聚餐之后人们只是喝掉了一点点而已。无论如何，少关注一些细节问题会给你省下为数不少的一笔钱。
同样，这个道理也适用于您所需准备的配菜问题，事实上，做的简单一些，也不需要准备很多很多，这样在菜肴不减质的同时真的会给您省下很大一笔钱的。
在家庭会议上讨论重要事宜时要把握机会。对于很多家庭而言，感恩节似乎是唯一一次全家可以聚集的机会。这就意味着感恩节是全家讨论家庭事宜的最佳时机，比如说讨论父母如果安度晚年，诸如此类的问题。
很多人为了不破坏家人团聚的时候，会选择在感恩节的时候避开这些话题，但是这种做法完全是错误的，因为如果不把这些事情说清楚，那么一旦假日结束，他们就会感到无限的后悔和惋惜，觉得是错过了机会。所以，请好好把握这个节日，或者是这个节日之后的几天，在家人聚集、休息和放松的时候，把所有重要的问题都解决掉。这样做会让你觉得精神上轻松不少，而且，似乎也会帮你省下不少钱。