Many of us have our Thanksgiving meal planning down pat. We’ve mastered the menu and are ready to celebrate with a fantastic feast, family and friends. And many of us have no idea how or why to cook a turkey, or much of anything else, and are more than a bit anxious about hosting the holiday meal this year. No matter where you fall on this spectrum, this event can easily be overwhelming.

For surefire hospitality tips, we’ve turned to the professionals, two of the Las Vegas Strip’s most experienced chefs working in two very popular restaurants at Paris Las Vegas. Vincenzo Scarmiglia is executive room chef at The Bedford by Martha Stewart, and Vincent Pouessel is executive chef at Mon Ami Gabi. It’s no surprise that both restaurants will offer tempting Thanksgiving day dinners (in case you decide to skip the kitchen and take the family out) because both chefs are big fans of the holiday, and they have more to share than just turkey tips and side dish recommendations.

Get organized and start early.

Decide on the dishes that need to be prepared, designate who is making and bringing which items, and get as much prep and cooking done in advance of the big day as you can. “Especially if you are preparing the whole meal on your own, you have to start a few days in advance. But you can ask everybody else to bring their casserole or mashed potatoes, whatever they want to bring,” Scarmiglia says. “You can do the traditional bread stuffing days before and just warm up the day of. Cranberry sauce can be done ahead, and gravy too, because there’s never enough gravy. You can cook the turkey and use the juice to [make gravy] but that won’t be enough, so make some or buy extra in advance.”

Don’t get trapped by tradition.

Pouessel says the Mon Ami Gabi dinner is shaped by the classics, because that’s what guests want every year. But home cooks shouldn’t feel bound by the standards, especially if those dishes aren’t what you want to make or what your guests want to eat. “Now you have unlimited access online, with videos on YouTube and every kind of recipe showing you how to cook a turkey or brine a turkey,” he says. “If you happen to cook a meal like Thanksgiving regularly, that’s how you master those dishes.” But there’s less pressure when you’re making food you love for people you love, so feel free to break the rules.

Grazing sets the right tone.

Thanksgiving dinner is not just turkey, it’s about providing a feast of options and variety, and serving tasty snacks before the dinner is a great way to showcase that approach. Scarmiglia recommends easy finger foods: “I like to have arancini, maybe a charcuterie board with some crostini and bruschetta,” he says. “It can be easy and quick. You have many items to prepare so you want to go easy when it comes to that stuff.”

The keep-it-simple approach can be applied to side dishes as well. Instead of the traditional heavy green bean casserole, Pouessel opts for green beans with sauteed garlic and shallots and finished with shaved almonds “for a nice crunch.” At his home holiday meal, his family prepares sweet potatoes every year, pre-cooking them in the oven so they can be easily peeled, sliced into medallions, and glazed with a mixture of butter, maple syrup, sage, rosemary and a touch of Tabasco. “Some people do marshmallow on top, but I’ve found the maple glaze with a hint of salt and spice works out perfect.”

Brine and slow-roast that bird.

Both chefs get quizzed every year for tips on the perfect turkey. “You’ve got to control the temperature. Cranking the oven all the way up may cook it super fast, but that’s the fastest way to make it dry,” Scarmiglia says. “It needs a slow cook and bastings [at] no more than 325 or 350 degrees. It can be higher, maybe 400, but only about an hour.”

And brining the turkey—marinating the entire bird in a spice and herb soak to saturate the meat with flavor— is a must. The turkeys at Mon Ami Gabi will be resting for two days in orange juice, vinegar, sugar and herbs including rosemary, thyme, bay leaves and sage. Then they’ll dry fully on trays in the refrigerator, an important step but not as easy for the home cook that doesn’t have hotel facilities, Pouessel says. That’s where that early organization comes in. “The brine can be made even weeks prior, just save the liquid in a pot or a ziplock in the back of the fridge so you’re ready to go,” Pouessel says. “Organizing everything you’ll need is critical to success.”

Skip the Kitchen

For the ultimate low-stress Thanksgiving that’s still sophisticated, try a prix fixe meal offered at numerous local restaurants. Here’s what’s on the menu at these Strip spots:

THE BEDFORD BY MARTHA STEWART

Paris, 702-946-4361, caesars.com.

Thanksgiving menu: Roasted honey nut squash salad; Big Martha’s pierogi; roasted turkey stuffed with herbed breadcrumbs and leg confit roulade with potato purée, haricot verts, bread stuffing, orange-cranberry sauce and white wine-sage gravy; pumpkin cheesecake with caramel sauce and whipped cream. Starting at $130 for two people.

MON AMI GABI

Paris, 702-944-4244, monamigabi.com.

Thanksgiving menu: Smoked salmon with pumpkin spice brioche OR endive and pear salad with blue cheese and candied pecans; Fairy Tale pumpkin soup; Herb-roasted turkey with caramelized yams, garlic and sage cornbread stuffing, haricots verts, potato purée, bourbon gravy and vanilla-cranberry relish; Pumpkin bread pudding with maple crème anglaise and vanilla ice cream OR pecan chocolate tart. $55 per person.

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