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Readers pick their favorite side for the Thanksgiving feast

The correct way to make a traditional cornbread dressing is highly contested — with each region, class and custom claiming to reign over the rest. / Photo by Melina Hammer/The New York Times
The correct way to make a traditional cornbread dressing is highly contested — with each region, class and custom claiming to reign over the rest. / Photo by Melina Hammer/The New York Times The correct way to make a traditional cornbread dressing is highly contested — with each region, class and custom claiming to reign over the rest. / Photo by Melina Hammer/The New York Times

By Lisa Denton 5 min read

Readers have spoken and their go-to side dish for Thanksgiving is…drumroll please… dressing! (In a landslide.)

OK, probably not a big surprise there.

The bigger surprise would have been if salad had bested mac and cheese in the initial round of voting.

Our online survey started with a Sweet 16 of possible accompaniments for the Thanksgiving turkey. The brackets show how it played out.

In last year’s Food section, we talked to three area restaurant owners whose menus often include dressing as a sidekick to roast chicken. They advised using homemade broth for added flavor, using cornbread as a base (though some cooks supplement with biscuits or bread) and starting with a very moist – even sloshy – consistency before it goes into the oven.