Weeknight
3491 recipes found
Chicken Nuggets
This is a mash-up of two kids’ menu standbys: chicken nuggets and meatballs. And the result is adult-appropriate, too. The combination is a streamlined mix of flavors and textures, since some of the ingredients added to ground meat for classic meatballs (bread crumbs, garlic, and Parmesan) are often used in the crispy coating on chicken nuggets. Cooking the panko and Parmesan-coated meatballs on the stovetop in a mixture of olive oil (for browning) and butter (for flavor) means no splatters — and meatballs that are tender on the inside and crispy on the outside. Eat with ketchup, ranch or honey mustard; pasta; or with a layer of tomato sauce and mozzarella like chicken Parmesan.
Harissa Chicken Thighs With Shallots
Chicken thighs, bathed in a broth spiked with spicy, earthy harissa, are at the heart of this quick, flavorful weeknight dinner. Here, the chicken fat is smartly used to sauté shallots until just softened. (They're finished off with the chicken, melting down in the sauce.) If you don't like spicy, don't fret: A showering of fresh herbs and a good squeeze of lime nicely cuts the heat.
Weeknight Fancy Chicken and Rice
This is a truly glorious one-pot weeknight meal. Feel free to experiment with the garnish, adding dried cranberries, hazelnuts, pine nuts or your own favorites. Ghee adds a nuttiness to the dish, but if you cannot find it, you can make it with unsalted butter using the chef Asha Gomez's method. Simply melt the butter in a pot over low heat. Let it simmer until it foams and sputters. Once the sputtering stops and the milk solids in the pot turn a khaki color, remove it from the heat and skim off the foam with a spoon. Strain remaining butter into a container, leaving behind any solids in the pot. Ghee keeps for up to six months in the refrigerator.
Tea-Soaked Drunken Chicken With Cilantro-Scallion Oil
Made from fermented glutinous brown rice, Shaoxing wine is what gives this dish its slightly sweet flavor and nutty fragrance. The dish relies heavily on the wine's aroma and flavor, so if you can’t find it, substitute with a good quality dry sherry (a Manzanilla variety will work well). Here, the chicken is poached instead of simmered, guaranteeing a moist bird that soaks in the flavor of its cooking liquid. But if it's a more intense flavor you're looking for, allow the chicken to chill in the poaching liquid overnight.
Vinegar Chicken With Crushed Olive Dressing
This tangy, turmeric-stained, sheet-pan chicken makes the most of the schmaltzy bits left behind on the pan, which is deglazed with fresh garlic, briny olives and a bit of water. Think pan sauce, but done on a sheet pan.
Weeknight Chicken Marbella
The chicken Marbella recipe from “The Silver Palate Cookbook” is rich and deeply flavorful, but time-consuming. It also requires overnight marinating, which doesn’t suit last-minute cravings or weeknight grocery runs. This no-marinade-needed Marbella gets the job done — and well — in under an hour. Chicken thighs are seared hard until deep golden brown to render the fat, which also helps amp up the chicken flavor. This version is also significantly less sweet than the original, but if you like your brown sugar, use 1/3 cup instead. The reduced pan sauce is easy to love, so be sure to serve with a loaf of crusty bread to mop it all up.
Ginger-Lime Chicken
Though this may look like regular old chicken, don’t be fooled: It’s buzzing with the bright flavors of ginger and lime. Mayonnaise is the secret ingredient in this recipe, which is a trick J. Kenji López-Alt has written about. When slathered on boneless chicken and cooked, the beloved condiment carries flavor, sticks to the meat well, encourages browning and prevents the pieces of lime zest and ginger — or whatever seasonings you choose — from burning. Try this technique first with ginger and lime zest, then experiment with grated garlic, jalapeño, lemon, Parmesan and whatever else you can imagine. Serve with a pile of white rice and a fresh green salad topped with thinly sliced avocado.
Keema Shimla Mirch (Ground Chicken With Bell Peppers)
Bell peppers provide a sweet, crunchy freshness that perfectly complements spiced ground chicken in this winning mix of textures, flavors and convenience. A weeknight staple in many Pakistani households, this dish includes lemon juice, garam masala and fresh cilantro for a layer of brightness and warmth no matter the time of year. It all comes together in 30 minutes with very little prep.
Sesame Chicken With Cashews and Dates
Dates add a touch of sweetness to this savory chicken and scallion stir-fry. If you don’t have a wok or a 12-inch skillet, you might want to cook this in two batches in a smaller pan. That will ensure a nice, browned crust on the meat. And if you want to substitute chicken breasts, stir-fry them for only 2 minutes in Step 2 before adding the rice wine.
Sheet-Pan Chicken and Potatoes With Feta, Lemon and Dill
In this simple but elegant sheet-pan dinner, chicken thighs and potatoes roast together at a high temperature, coming out crispy and golden. A generous squeeze of lemon juice, along with a scattering of fresh dill and feta cheese, elevates this dish from weeknight meat and potatoes to dinner-party fare. While the chicken will still be delicious if marinated for just 30 minutes, marinating it for several hours will yield the best results.
Chicken Fajitas
You might think fajitas are too fussy for a weeknight, but this easy, foolproof version roasts on a sheet pan and can be ready in an hour. Because the ingredients are thinly sliced, everything cooks in a flash — and with little attention required. Smoked paprika, chipotle chiles and a quick stop under the broiler provide the smoky flavor that would traditionally come from the grill. This recipe is very adaptable: Chicken is called for here, but you could also use shrimp or skirt steak. For a vegetarian version, substitute fresh corn kernels, mushrooms, poblano peppers or zucchini for the meat. Cut the vegetables into sizes you’d want in a taco, coat them in the lime-chipotle marinade, roast until cooked, then broil until charred.
Chicken Puttanesca
Classic Italian puttanesca sauce is typically served over pasta, but it is paired with chicken in this comforting weeknight dish. Chicken thighs are browned, then set aside while you assemble a simple but bold tomato sauce made with briny capers and olives, salty anchovies and spicy red-pepper flakes. Serve the chicken over rice, orzo or egg noodles, with a hunk of bread to round out the meal.
Middle Eastern-Inspired Herb and Garlic Chicken
This recipe was inspired by the Middle Eastern dried seasoning mix called za’atar, a combination of herbs (usually thyme, oregano and marjoram), sesame seeds and sumac, often spiked with salt. Here, fresh herbs are substituted for the dried, which, along with fresh parsley and mint and plenty of lemon and garlic, are used to marinated boneless chicken thighs. If you can’t find sumac, just leave it out. It does add a nice tang and vibrant color, but the dish will work without it. Optimum marinating time here is 8 hours. But feel free to leave it for as little as 15 minutes or as long as 24 hours. If you would rather use white meat, substitute boneless skinless breasts but reduce the cooking time by a few minutes.
Black Pepper Chicken Thighs With Mango, Rum and Cashews
Pairing spicy chilis and sweet mango in salsa is a classic. Here's a twist on a chicken sauté, spiked with plenty of black pepper, a little rum and mangoes folded in at the end to brighten the mix.
Elaine’s Fettuccine Alfredo
This recipe came to The Times in a 2004 article about Elaine Kaufman, the founder and proprietress of the famed New York restaurant and celebrity hot spot that bore her name and where this dish was served. There is nothing fancy or complicated about it — it’s glorified macaroni and cheese, really — but it is delicious and deeply satisfying. (Fun fact: Jackie O. was a fan.)
Smashed Avocado-Chicken Burgers
These zippy chicken burgers are loaded with ginger, garlic, cilantro and scallions for fresh flavor and some textural crunch. The secret ingredient is a little mashed avocado that’s added to the ground chicken before cooking, which keeps the burgers tender and light. A citrusy soy mayonnaise is used both inside the patties and slathered on top. (Fish sauce could be used in place of the soy. Decrease the amount and adjust to taste.) Kewpie is a Japanese mayonnaise made with rice wine vinegar and egg yolks rather than distilled vinegar and whole eggs, but you can just as easily use your preferred mayonnaise. Fresh jalapeños offer a satisfying crunch when biting into the burger, though pickled ones could be used for extra acidity.
Kale Sauce Pasta
This recipe for a vivid, vegetarian pasta sauce, made from blanched kale leaves and loaded with good olive oil and grated cheese, comes from Joshua McFadden, the chef at Ava Gene’s in Portland, Ore., and was inspired by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers of The River Café in London. The technique is absurdly simple and quick from start to finish, but the result is luxurious and near-creamy. Feel free to play with the pasta shape, but no matter what you choose, be sure to let the blender run for a while at a powerful setting: You want the kale to completely break down into a smooth, bright, airy green puree.
Spicy Sesame Noodles With Chicken and Peanuts
In this quick and spicy weeknight noodle dish, sizzling hot oil is poured over red-pepper flakes, orange peel, crunchy peanuts, soy sauce and sesame oil. While you brown the ground chicken, the mixture sits, and the flavors become more pronounced and fiery. Tossed with soft noodles and browned chicken, the bright chile-peanut oil shines. If you crave something green, throw in a quick-cooking green vegetable when you break up the chicken in Step 3. You can also swap the chicken with ground pork or beef, or crumbled tofu.
Chicken Miso Meatballs
Ground chicken breast meat is fairly lean, so milk is added to this recipe to keep them moist and tender. As the meatballs bake, the miso caramelizes into savory bites of sweet-salty umami. Crumbled Ritz crackers add richness and create a more juicy meatball (but plain, dry bread crumbs will also work). To make the Ritz crumbs, place the crackers in a resealable plastic bag and lightly crush them with the back of a wooden spoon or measuring cup. These also make a tasty hors d’oeuvre: Simply roll the mixture into smaller 1-inch balls. For a quick dipping sauce, combine 2 parts soy sauce to 1 part distilled white vinegar, and add sliced scallions, or red-pepper flakes, if you like heat.
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.
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.