Joanne Chang's Asian-American Thanksgiving Dinner

“We never had turkey on Thanksgiving,” says Joanne Chang, “only duck. I love turkey with sage and butter, but I crave the flavors I grew up with.” Here, she marinates and bastes the bird with soy, sesame, honey and ginger, giving it superb flavor and a beautiful mahogany color.

Chang’s mother used to make hard-boiled eggs for dinner: She would add them to the beef or chicken she was braising in soy. This is her riff on those eggs, made spicy with hot sauce and wasabi.

This quick pickle was inspired by Japanese cucumbers dressed in sesame oil, salt and sesame seeds. Chang and her mother created the recipe together, and it’s now a customer favorite at Myers + Chang.

A gentle heat makes these seasoned walnuts ideal with cocktails.

Chang switches up the flavors of Thanksgiving’s classic squash soup with a host of Asian ingredients, including curry paste, ginger and coconut milk.

The crunchy mix of ingredients in this salad is unexpected and fun. And the dressing is equally unusual: It’s made with chopped candied lemon as well as soy sauce, toasted-sesame oil and Sriracha, so it’s both sweet and spicy.

This chunky cranberry chutney is super-fresh-tasting because the cranberries are simmered briefly and the orange sections are added near the end of cooking.

Red miso is made from soybeans fermented with barley or other grains. It adds a deep, savory flavor to these buttery carrots.

Chang says, “A Chinese meal isn’t complete without rice; Thanksgiving isn’t complete without stuffing. This sticky-rice dressing combines the best of both worlds.” Chinese sausage makes the rice deliciously sweet and savory. Chang likes using the Kam Yen Jan brand, which has no MSG; look for it at Asian markets.

Chang likes having fun with the fortunes she puts inside these large green-tea cookies, like “Give the chef a big kiss.” Shaping the tuiles while they’re hot can be tricky, so consider using cotton gloves. This mousse is a terrific way to end Thanksgiving dinner because it’s appropriately indulgent, but also light and tangy. It uses ginger in three forms—fresh, ground and candied—for layers of heat and flavor.

This is one of the best upside-down cakes ever—the maple syrup infuses both the apples and the cake, making the dessert taste like a stack of apple pancakes.