Googling how to cook for Thanksgiving? Minnesotans down with mashed potatoes

Minnesotans know how to cook, North Dakotans don't, and other observations from the video platform's Thanksgiving data.

November 21, 2018 at 9:42PM
A 15-pound turkey should be enough for 10 people. If your guests prefer more breast meat, buy a larger turkey. They generally have more breast meat. (Dreamstime/TNS) ORG XMIT: 1214949
Thanksgiving cooking tutorials on YouTube are at an all-time high. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

YouTube is a treasure trove of cooking how-tos for the holiday season for every possible taste and interest. You can learn how to make a pie with zero waste, a yummy-looking Rumchata pumpkin pie martini, and the can't-look-away nightmare of a Hot Cheetos turkey.

According to YouTube and Google, searches for Thanksgiving cooking tutorials are at an all-time high this year, with the search term "how to carve a turkey" up 60 percent over the previous year. So, Google Trends compiled all that data and broke it down by state to see just what's cooking around the country.

A deep-dive into the Google Trends interactive popularity map reveals something you probably already knew: Minnesotans don't need a ton of help in the kitchen. We fall right in the middle of the pack on most search terms like stuffing, pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce. Minnesota ranks 18th in the country for turkey and apple pie searches. Apparently, we are more proficient at mashed potatoes than any other holiday food — we rank 33rd for searches on how to make the side dish.

We learned some interesting things about our neighbors, too.

Wisconsinites, for one, are clearly masters of mashed potatoes, ranking 40th for video searches.

And can we talk about what's going on in the Dakotas? North Dakota needs some serious hand-holding in the kitchen, ranking fourth in turkey, second in pie and second in cranberry sauce calls for help.

Meanwhile, their southerly neighbor is winning at apple pie, coming in 49th in the nation. Only Alaskans had fewer searches for videos about the dessert — and apples don't really grow in Alaska, so you do the math.

And yet South Dakotans rank third in mashed potato searches. They literally need a video to explain how to make mash potatoes even though all of the instructions are in the name of the dish. Go figure.

Here are Minnesota's rankings:

Turkey: 18

Stuffing: 20

Mashed Potatoes: 33

Cranberry Sauce: 28

Pie: 30

Apple Pie: 18

Pumpkin Pie: 29

Pecan Pie: 29

about the writer

about the writer

Sharyn Jackson

Reporter

Sharyn Jackson is a features reporter covering the Twin Cities' vibrant food and drink scene.

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