Here is a quick guide to help make hosting during the holiday season so much easier. Know exactly how much turkey and ham to prepare per person for your next holiday meal.
It can be stressful to plan your family’s holiday lunch or dinner, especially if you don’t know how big of a turkey or ham you need to buy. If you don’t eat enough of the main course, you might have a bad conversation. If you eat too much, you waste money and food. Here is an easy-to-follow guide for holiday cooks on how much turkey and ham each person needs. Perfect for beginners and experienced cooks![feast_advanced_jump_to].
The holidays are a time for friends, family, and plenty of delicious food Two classic holiday centerpieces are turkey and ham. But how much should you plan to serve per person, especially if you are serving both? Getting the right amount ensures there’s enough to go around without too many leftovers Follow this guide for tips on serving sizes, calculations, and more.
Turkey Serving Size Per Person
For whole turkey, plan on about 1-1.5 pounds per person. This accounts for bones and other waste. So a 12 lb turkey feeds 8-12, and a 20 lb turkey feeds 13-20.
For boneless turkey, you only need 1/3 to 1/2 pound per person since there is no bone waste.
For bone-in turkey breast, plan on 3/4 pound per person.
Turkey serving sizes can vary based on your guests’ appetites ages, and activity levels. If you have big eaters attending lean towards the higher end of the ranges above.
Ham Serving Size Per Person
Boneless ham needs around 1/4 to 1/3 pound per person. A 3 lb boneless ham serves 10-12 people.
For a bone-in ham, allow 1/3 to 1/2 pound per person to account for the bone. A 5 lb bone-in ham serves 10-15 guests.
Spiral sliced hams are the easiest to serve since they require minimal carving.
Ham serving sizes may need adjusting if you have hearty eaters at your holiday meal.
Serving Both Turkey and Ham
If serving both turkey and ham, an easy calculation is to take the total number of guests and split that number in half. Use one half to determine turkey amount and the other half for the ham amount.
For example, for 20 total people:
- Get turkey for 10 people = 15 lb whole turkey
- Get ham for 10 people = 5 lb boneless or 8 lb bone-in ham
This estimates that about half your guests will prefer each meat, but people can take some of both.
Recap of Serving Sizes
Whole turkey:
- 1 – 1.5 lbs per person
Boneless turkey:
- 1/3 – 1/2 lb per person
Bone-in turkey breast:
- 3/4 lb per person
Boneless ham:
- 1/4 – 1/3 lb per person
Bone-in ham:
- 1/3 – 1/2 lb per person
Adjust up for extra hearty eaters.
Other Tips for Holiday Meats
Here are some other tips to ensure you get the right amount of turkey and ham:
- Make a headcount – Get an accurate guest list RSVP before shopping
- Plan for second helpings – Add a little extra meat in case people want seconds
- Check sales and deals – Look for holiday discounts on turkeys/hams at grocery stores
- Consider leftovers – Too many leftovers are a pain, but some are great for sandwiches
- Offer other dishes – Sides, appetizers, and desserts help fill up guests too
- Use a meat thermometer – Ensure turkey and ham reach the proper internal temperature
- Let the turkey rest before carving – This helps retain juices for better yield
With the serving size estimates above and these extra tips, you’ll be ready to perfectly plan the holiday meats for your next gathering. Focus on the friends, family, and memories, and let the turkey and ham take care of themselves!
When should you thaw the turkey?
Place the turkey on a baking sheet or roasting rack to help collect the juices. After your turkey has been thawed, you can keep it stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 days.
Salt Brine: This doesn’t take into account how long a dry or wet salt brine needs to set, which should be done 24 to 48 hours before cooking.
In the refrigerator thawing time:
- 4-12 pounds: 1-3 days thawing time.
- 12-16 pounds: 3-4 days thawing time.
- 16-20 pounds: 4-5 days thawing time.
- 20-24 pounds: 5-7 days thawing time.
How long to bake your ham or turkey?
- Ham baking time: 10 to 12 minutes per pound. The “baking process” changes the taste of the ham, which is already cooked. You can reglaze the ham every 30 minutes.
- How to know when to take the ham out of the oven: Use a thermometer to make sure the internal temperature of the ham is 130°F.
- Turkey baking time: If your turkey isn’t stuffed, roast it breast side up for 13 to 15 minutes per pound. Even though every oven is different, try to get the turkey cooked and out of the oven 30 to 60 minutes before your guests arrive. This will give you time to rest the turkey and cut it up.
- When to take the turkey out of the oven: the turkey breast should read 165°F. An instant-read thermometer is best for this. To keep the turkey from being overcooked, take it out of the oven when the internal temperature reaches 155°F to 160°F. The internal temperature of the roast turkey will continue to rise as it rests (30 minutes to an hour is best). This way, it will reach the right temperature without going over.
How much Honey Baked Ham is needed per person?
FAQ
How many people does a 20 lb turkey feed?
How many people will a 10 lb ham feed?
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Number of People
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Amount of Boneless Ham
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8 – 10
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4 – 5 lbs
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10 – 12
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5 – 6 lbs
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15 – 20
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8 – 10 lbs
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25 – 30
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13 – 15 lbs
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How many pounds of turkey do I need for 10 people?
How much turkey for 7 adults with leftovers?
How much Turkey should I buy per person?
With our handy guide, you’ll know exactly how much turkey should you be buying per person and whether that 15-pound bird is big enough or a few extra pounds are needed. As a general rule when buying turkey, plan on 1 pound of turkey per person. This allows approximately 7 cooked ounces of meat per serving.
How much Turkey should a person eat per person?
As a general rule when buying turkey, plan on 1 pound of turkey per person. This allows approximately 7 cooked ounces of meat per serving. Though if you’re wanting to enjoy turkey leftovers (obviously!), our Test Kitchen recommends 1 ½ pounds of turkey per person so everyone can literally get stuffed with enough leftover for a few extra meals.
How much meat is in a 12 pound turkey?
So for example, from a 12 pound turkey, you will roughly get 5 pounds cooked meat; 3 1/2 pounds white meat and 1 1/2 pounds dark meat. Obviously, while the range of weights you’ll find on turkey at the store varies, it’s rarer to find birds less than 10 pounds or over 30 lbs.
How much meat does a Thanksgiving turkey eat?
Here’s a breakdown of how much light meat versus dark meat you can expect to get from your Thanksgiving turkey. You usually get 2 to 3 times as much white meat as dark meat from a whole turkey. So for example, from a 12 pound turkey, you will roughly get 5 pounds cooked meat; 3 1/2 pounds white meat and 1 1/2 pounds dark meat.
How long do you cook a 10 pound turkey?
For 10 people, you’ll want a turkey between 10 and 15 pounds. If you want leftovers, go bigger. How long do you cook a turkey per pound? The standard rule of turkey roasting time says 13 minutes per pound for unstuffed birds and 15 minutes per pound for the stuffed ones. At what temperature should I cook turkey?
What size Turkey should I buy?
If you haven’t already bought your turkey, we advise that you buy a turkey that’s between 12 and 15 pounds—anything larger could result in uneven cooking. If you must buy a 24-pound turkey, we’ll still provide a time range, but we recommend buying two smaller birds instead.