Dinner
8856 recipes found
Creamy, Lemony Pasta
This 15-minute pasta lets you decide how much effort to put in: If you’ve had a day and need an easy, no-nonsense meal, then make it as-is and use kitchen shears to cut your scallions. If you’re feeling slightly more ambitious, then make a topping that adds texture, vibrant green color and more lemony flavor to the dish (see Tip). But don’t cut corners when it comes to the yogurt: Use a thick, strained whole-milk yogurt like labneh, Greek or skyr, as it will give the finished dish an irresistibly rich and tangy taste.
Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
This tangy, mildly spicy white-bean chili is as warming and comforting as a traditional chili, but in a lighter, brighter form. Plenty of green chiles — fresh and canned — provide kick while creamy white beans mellow it all out. To decrease the heat level, remove and discard the seeds from the jalapeño before you mince it. A large handful of chopped cilantro added at the end brings freshness, but if you don’t care for cilantro, pass it at the table along with the other toppings or omit it entirely. Continuing the spirit of customizing your chili, you can make this in the slow cooker or on the stovetop. Use 3 cups chicken stock in the slow cooker and 4 cups on the stovetop, where liquid is more likely to evaporate.
Honey-Glazed Chicken and Shallots
The combination of a sweet glaze, tangy shallots and pan-roasted chicken makes this a quick but decadent one-pan meal. Caramelizing shallots first, then tossing them with sherry vinegar gives them a pickled but syrupy bite. A little heat from a spicy chile and some freshness from parsley leaves balance this flavorful dish. Serve right off the stove, over cooked grains or alongside a crisp salad.
Crispy Gnocchi With Burst Tomatoes and Mozzarella
Pan-fried gnocchi is like a faster version of baked pasta. Store-bought gnocchi can simply be browned in a pan for an exciting mix of crispy outsides and chewy middles, no boiling required. This dish is studded with juicy tomatoes and melty pockets of mozzarella. Cherry tomatoes are reliably more flavorful year-round than larger, more watery varieties like beefsteak and heirloom. (That said, taste yours, and if they’re more tart than sweet, add 1/2 teaspoon sugar in Step 2.) Toss the tomatoes with browned butter, red-pepper flakes and garlic, then hit them with a little heat, and they’ll burst into a bright sauce. Stir in the gnocchi, dot with mozzarella, then broil until the cheese is molten and the tomatoes are blistered in spots.
Slow-Cooker Dijon Chicken With Barley and Mushrooms
This glossy, risottolike dish is inspired by the French bistro classic of chicken in tarragon-mustard sauce. Here, those flavors are transformed into a whole-grain, one-pot weeknight meal: The barley, mushrooms and chicken cook together first, then just before eating, finish with a bag of frozen peas and a tangy mixture of crème fraîche (or sour cream) and Dijon. Make the dish vegetarian by omitting the chicken and using your favorite vegetable broth, but add about ½ cup more liquid, to substitute for the chicken juices.
Pasta With Feta and Green Olives
Bold, briny and tangy, this 15-minute pasta is full of personality. Olives are first slightly blistered in oil, drawing out their brininess, then crumbled feta is stirred into the pasta at the end until melty. Keep the feta chunky when breaking it apart so that the squares become soft and creamy, tasting almost baked. Castelvetrano olives are best here for their meaty texture and gentle flavor, but you can also use your preferred olive. Smash them with the flat side of a chef’s knife — or even the heel of your palm in a pinch — then use your fingers to pluck the olive flesh off the pit. Any stubborn meat clinging to the pit is fair game to be eaten then and there.
Spaghetti all'Assassina (Spicy Singed Tomato Pasta)
This spicy one-pot pasta dish is common on menus in Bari, Italy, but can easily be prepared at home. Like many classic dishes, there are a couple versions of its origin story. According to one, a distracted chef accidentally left his pasta cooking until the sauce burned, while another attributes the recipe title to the dish’s killer spiciness. The method involves treating spaghetti as you would risotto: Heat some garlic, red-pepper flakes and tomato paste in oil, then add the pasta and cook it gently, slowly adding tomato broth little by little. Once the pasta soaks up the flavorful liquid, it starts to char. Bari is famous for serving this dish extra “piccante,” but at home, you can make it as mild or spicy as you wish.
Moroccan-Spiced Chicken Meatballs
Chicken meatballs may not be a traditionally Moroccan dish, but they work beautifully when spiced with paprika, cumin, cinnamon, ginger and garlic, which are commonly found in the country’s cuisine. Whole-milk yogurt does double duty here: It’s used to make the meatballs moist and tender, and makes for a speedy sauce to serve with them. Don’t use ground chicken made with ultralean breasts; look for labels that show a mix of white and dark meat. (Or if you’re feeling ambitious, grind your own boneless, skinless chicken thighs in the food processor.) Serve the meatballs with couscous and a green vegetable for a flavorful weeknight dinner that’s well worth the effort.
Pressure Cooker Chipotle Chicken Pozole
A pressure cooker is the perfect tool for making a quick pozole that tastes like it has simmered for a long time. Traditional red pozole usually requires toasting and puréeing dried chiles for a flavorful broth, but this one relies on canned chipotles for smoky complexity. Chipotles can be fiery, so feel free to use fewer peppers if you’re concerned about the heat, but don’t skimp on the adobo sauce: It’s milder than the peppers and is packed with loads of smoky, garlicky flavor. Serve the soup in bowls with plenty of crumbled cheese, diced avocado and crushed chips, for topping. The slow-cooker version of this dish uses bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, carrots and celery, is available here.
Spiced Roast Chicken With Tangy Yogurt Sauce
This weeknight meal is inspired by the spiced chicken and rice that draws lines at halal street carts across Manhattan. Whether it’s lunchtime or late at night, the scent and Mediterranean flavors of grilled and chopped chicken served over turmeric-tinged yellow rice (or wrapped in pita) alongside shredded iceberg salad lures a crowd. Everything gets an imperative, generous drizzle of that signature creamy and tangy white sauce, made here with a blend of yogurt, mayonnaise and spices. Fresh garlic, cilantro and lemon juice are combined with a tasty mix of fragrant spices, then rubbed all over the chicken before it’s roasted until golden and crispy. The iceberg-and-tomato salad offers a cool, refreshing contrast to the spiced chicken.
White Bean Piccata Pasta With Broccoli
The bright lemon-caper sauce for which chicken piccata is known plays equally well with other proteins, like swordfish, or creamy white beans, and forms a glossy, tangy sauce well suited to pasta. Throw broccoli — or any another quick-cooking vegetable, like asparagus, broccoli rabe or peas — into the pasta’s boiling water in the last few minutes, and you’ve effortlessly managed to squeeze a green into this vegetarian dinner.
Shrimp Piccata Spaghetti
The zesty piccata sauce of fresh lemon juice, briny capers and rich butter is the inspiration behind this weeknight seafood pasta. Plump, meaty shrimp pair perfectly with the pantry-staple sauce, which is simple yet fresh and bright. The chopped shrimp are gently cooked over low heat in a shallot and garlic-infused olive oil to keep them tender. Peas are an easy way to add a vegetable with pops of sweetness. (Thawed frozen corn would also work well.) The dish is finished with fresh parsley, but other herbs like basil, chives or dill would yield equally delicious results.
Spaghetti With Burrata and Garlic-Chile Oil
Burrata — a cousin of mozzarella with a creamy core — is a splurge, but it does all the heavy lifting in this simple dish, adding a rich finish that renders a basic bowl of whole-wheat noodles sophisticated. A spicy-sweet seasoned oil made by sautéing fennel, garlic and red-pepper flakes in good-quality olive oil over low heat is drizzled over the top, complementing the velvety texture of the cheese and the nuttiness of the noodles.
Salmon With Garlic Butter and Tomato Pasta
In less than half an hour of swift multitasking, you’ll be feasting on crisp-skinned salmon and delicate noodles dotted with caramelized tomatoes and fresh basil. Start by broiling salmon, skin side up, alongside little tomatoes. Without flipping or stinking up the house, the salmon skin sears and protects the tender flesh from overcooking while the tomatoes grow heavy with juices and char in spots. Meanwhile, cook angel hair pasta on the stovetop with garlic and butter. When both elements are done, stir the tomatoes into the pasta: They’re like water balloons of sweetness and tang among the glossy, unapologetically garlicky noodles.
Creamy Chive Pasta With Lemon
This recipe is a good way to showcase any fresh chives you may have. In the spirit of buttered noodles with chives — or stir-fried lo mein with Chinese chives — this recipe uses the delicate alliums as an ingredient instead of a garnish. Their gentle onion flavor adds freshness to lemon-cream sauce, which is not unlike a delicate sour cream and onion dip. You can use crème fraîche for more tang, heavy cream for an Alfredo vibe, or ricotta for a hint of sweetness. To use another spring allium like ramps, leeks or a combination, thinly slice and simmer in heavy cream (not crème fraîche or ricotta) to soften before adding the other ingredients.
Eggplant and Zucchini Pasta With Feta and Dill
This simple yet hearty weeknight pasta is packed with two whole pounds of vegetables. Meaty eggplant makes this vegetarian meal satisfying, while zucchini adds texture and a touch of natural sweetness. Since eggplant tends to absorb oil like a sponge, the key here is to sauté it slowly in a nonstick skillet until it softens and caramelizes without adding too much oil. The feta does double duty, adding bright tang to the dish and creating a creamy sauce. Fragrant dill is a natural pairing for eggplant and zucchini, but fresh parsley or basil would also be great.
Midnight Pasta With Anchovies, Garlic and Tomato
Tomato paste gives this speedy midnight pasta, studded with anchovy and garlic, its color and umami. If you’re not an anchovy fan, you can substitute a few tablespoons of chopped capers or olives. Be generous when adding the pasta water to the pan. The mixture should look soupy at first, but the sauce will thicken up as you toss.
Spicy and Saucy Cherry Tomato Pasta
In this incredibly easy weeknight pasta, red-pepper flakes, capers and tomato paste turn a simple cherry tomato sauce into something hearty enough for cold weather. Sautéeing tomato paste until it caramelizes develops deep flavor, while pan-fried capers add crunch and red-pepper flakes provide heat. For smokier undertones, you can use dried ancho chile or chile de árbol, chipotle powder or Aleppo pepper in place of the red-pepper flakes. A dollop of ricotta, freshly grated pecorino or Parmesan, or shaved ricotta salata is not necessary, but takes the dish up a notch.
Five-Ingredient Creamy Miso Pasta
This one-pot pasta comes together in minutes, and requires zero prep and minimal cleanup. It builds on the classic combination of pasta, butter and cheese with a spoonful of miso paste for complexity. But you could experiment with using any other condiments or spices you have on hand, such as red pesto, curry paste or ground turmeric in place of the miso. To achieve a silky smooth pasta, you’ll need to put your cacio e pepe skills to work: Vigorously toss the pasta, grated cheese and pasta water together to achieve a properly emulsified sauce. Top with shrimp, edamame, frozen peas or any steamed vegetable. The optional nori or furikake imparts an unexpected flavor of the sea, and it’s worth using if you have it on hand.
Sausage and Peppers Pasta With Broccoli
The classic Italian combination of sausage and peppers creates a satisfying and easy weeknight meal when combined with pasta. Broccoli is a fantastic nutritious addition that adds texture and cooks up quickly, or you can opt for broccolini or broccoli rabe if you want a more assertive vegetable. Sweet Italian pork sausage is used here, but there's no need to feel tied to the recipe: Substitute with spicy Italian sausage for extra heat, use chicken-apple sausage for a healthier take, or swap in fresh chorizo or breakfast sausage to turn this dinner into brunch.
Blistered Broccoli Pasta With Walnuts, Pecorino and Mint
The trick to creating deeply browned, pan-seared broccoli involves two things: high heat and no touching. Allowing your florets and stems to sear in an even layer, undisturbed, gives them time to blister without cooking all the way through, so they retain some crunch. While many pasta sauces are finished with starchy pasta water, this one isn’t, since the hot water would strip the broccoli of that color and crunch you worked so hard to achieve. Instead, toss the cooked pasta in the skillet with the broccoli, walnuts and cheese. A drizzle of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon will provide any additional moisture you need.
Zucchini Scampi
While scampi is a type of crustacean (also known as langoustines), the word has also come to refer to the garlicky lemon-butter sauce that drapes shrimp at Italian American restaurants. But what if you lost the shellfish altogether? When zucchini, or any kind of summer squash, is sliced and cooked only part way, they have a juicy snap similar to shrimp, no mushiness. This rendition also maintains the lively flavors of garlic and lemon, which are only slightly mellowed by the residual heat of the sauce. Eat with pasta or crusty bread, or as a side dish to any summery meal.
Crispy Rice Salad With Halloumi and Ginger-Lime Vinaigrette
If you delight in leftover rice — and the infinite ways to put it to good use — here’s another technique to add to your repertoire: Crisp cooked rice in just a couple tablespoons of hot oil until it’s scorched in spots, and simultaneously crunchy and chewy. The turmeric-stained rice clusters are used as salty croutons in this salad of ginger-lime marinated onions, seared halloumi and a pile of baby greens, a delicate backdrop that highlights the rice’s crunch and the halloumi’s squeak. A riot of texture, this salad crackles and pops.
Pasta With Green Puttanesca
Puttanesca is a sauce that plies its trade all year round, with ingredients — pantry staples like anchovies, garlic and olives — at the ready whenever the desire strikes. But this puttanesca takes advantage of spring greens, using fat green garlic cloves and baby spinach to lend a pungent verdancy to a tried-and-true dish. (If green garlic isn’t available, use regular, but use less.)