Fast Dinner Ideas - A Couple Cooks

Shrimp Scampi

Sonja Overhiser — Thu, 06 Feb 2025 15:00:00 +0000

This shrimp scampi recipe is pure bliss and made in minutes! Sauté shrimp and toss with a luxurious lemony garlic butter sauce.

Shrimp, butter, garlic, lemon, and white wine: what could be better? Yes, it’s the Italian American shrimp scampi, a classic that’s been stealing hearts and minds for decades. There’s no right way to make a scampi: it’s a thing of elusive beauty that’s up to the chef to define.

We think this version is pretty stellar! Alex and I have created a simple recipe for juicy, garlicky shrimp swimming in a rich, tangy butter sauce. Sop it up with crusty bread, or pour it over pasta—either way, it’s divine.

Ingredients in this shrimp scampi recipe

Shrimp scampi is an Italian American creation, a riff on a classic Italian preparation of scampi by cooking them with olive oil, onion, garlic and white wine. Scampi are also called langoustines: a small, pink shellfish that looks like a large shrimp but is actually part of the lobster family. In this dish, Americans swapped in shrimp for the scampi, but kept both names in the title, creating name that’s more like “shrimp lobster” or “shrimp shrimp.”

As with any popular dish, there are many interpretations of what ingredients a classic shrimp scampi includes! Most dishes have shrimp, garlic, butter, lemon and white wine; others add in onions, tomatoes, or breadcrumbs. It’s popularly served with pasta, but it’s not required. Here are the ingredients for this classic spin on shrimp scampi (or jump to the recipe below):

Medium shrimp: Tail on or peeled. We like using fresh shrimp here to make it fast and easy, but you can use frozen too: just make sure to thaw the shrimp in advance.
White onion
Garlic
Parsley
Olive oil and butter
White wine or vegetable or chicken broth, as a non-alcoholic option
Lemon zest

How to make shrimp scampi: basic steps

The great part about shrimp scampi: it comes together in minutes! You can make the entire recipe in about 15 minutes. Here’s a brief outline on how to make this shrimp scampi recipe! A few important tips are listed below, then once you’ve read them head to the recipe below:

Sauté onion and garlic, then the shrimp in olive oil. You’ll want to use your largest skillet for this and keep the shrimp in a single layer so they’re all touching the pan.
Just cook the shrimp, then remove them. You’ll want them just nearly cooked, because you’re going to take them out of the pan and then add them back in after you make the sauce.
Make the butter sauce. In the same skillet, sauté the butter, white wine, lemon zest and parsley to make a sauce.
Return the shrimp to the pan and toss with the butter sauce. Serve with pasta or crusty bread (see below!).

A note on serving size

This shrimp scampi recipe uses 1 pound of shrimp for 4 servings. But if you’re feeding 4 very hungry eaters, you may want to increase the amount of shrimp to 1.5 pounds. You can use all the same amounts of ingredients for the sauce: just increase the salt to ¾ teaspoon kosher salt.

You can also use 16 ounces pasta instead of 8 ounces, and add other side dishes to the meal like a green salad or sautéed vegetables.

Tips for serving with angel hair pasta

Shrimp scampi is often served with angel hair pasta. After making this recipe multiple times, we found some best practices on working with this unique type of pasta:

Serve the pasta on the side! Trying to mix the shrimp and pasta in a pan is difficult because the pasta can clump up. Even more importantly, angel hair pasta absorbs a large amount of liquid. So it will absorb the entire butter sauce if you let it! A better practice is serving it on the side of the shrimp, and spooning the butter sauce over the shrimp and the pasta.
8 ounces is enough for 4 servings. Often we’ll make 12 to 16 ounces pasta for four, but angel hair expands when cooked. It feels like you’re getting more than with 8 ounces of spaghetti or linguine.
Rinsing the pasta helps. Rinse the pasta in lukewarm water also helps keep it from absorbing too much liquid. Then toss it with 1 tablespoon olive oil and ¾ teaspoon kosher salt to season before serving as a side. Or use our Easy Angel Hair Pasta recipe for seasoning ideas.

Best ways to serve shrimp scampi

Shrimp scampi is ideal for a dinner party or special romantic meal, but it also works for quick weeknight meals, too! It does not always have to be served with pasta, though it can! Here are our serving suggestions for this dish:

Serve with 8 ounces pasta. You can use any shape of pasta (linguine, spaghetti, etc) and season however you’d like. We like keeping it fairly basic with olive oil and salt, then spooning a little extra butter sauce over the top.
Add crusty bread. Instead of pasta, crusty bread is even easier! Toast it up and add a little butter, then use it for dipping.
Or, serve with rice. A non-traditional pairing is serving with rice as a gluten-free option. It would be especially tasty with Spinach Rice.
Add a green salad. Salads that pair well: Easy Arugula Salad, Chopped Salad, Fennel Salad, Frisee Salad, Endive Salad, Pear Salad, Kale Salad or Goat Cheese Arugula Salad.

Dietary notes

This shrimp scampi recipe is gluten-free and pescatarian.

Shrimp Scampi

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5 from 1 review

This shrimp scampi recipe is pure bliss and made in minutes! Sauté shrimp and toss with a luxurious lemony garlic butter sauce.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Seafood
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

1 pound medium shrimp*, deveined (tail on or peeled)
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
¼ cup finely minced white onion
6 garlic cloves, finely minced
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons salted butter
½ cup dry white wine (like Pino Grigio) or broth
Zest of 1 lemon
To serve: 8 ounces Angel Hair Pasta** or pasta of choice, crusty bread, or rice

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Instructions

Thaw the shrimp, if frozen. Pat the shrimp dry. In a bowl, sprinkle it with ½ teaspoon kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper and stir to combine.
Chop the onion, garlic and parsley.
In a very large skillet, heat the olive oil on medium high heat. Add the minced onion and garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the shrimp in a single layer (without stacking it) and cook for about 3 minutes, turning halfway through, until just cooked. (The shrimp will continue cooking after removing from the heat.) Remove the shrimp to a bowl while making the sauce.
In the same skillet add the butter, wine, lemon zest and parsley. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes until slightly thickened. Add the shrimp back to the skillet and rewarm it for a few seconds. Serve immediately, with pasta on the side**, rice or crusty bread (drizzle spoonfuls of the sauce over the shrimp and the pasta on the side).

Notes

*To serve very hungry eaters, you can increase to 1 ½ pounds shrimp and ¾ teaspoon salt, using the same amount of other ingredients. You may have to sauté the shrimp in batches depending on the size of your skillet.

**Cook 8 ounces angel hair pasta for 4 minutes, then rinse in lukewarm water. Mix with 1 tablespoon olive oil and ¾ teaspoon kosher salt. Optionally, you can add ½ teaspoon garlic powder and ½ tablespoon each dried oregano and dried basil. We recommend serving the angel hair pasta on the side of the shrimp. Don’t mix it together with the shrimp in the pan: it is difficult to mix and it absorbs all of the butter sauce. (See Easy Angel Hair Pasta for more.)

More shrimp recipes

Shrimp scampi is one in a long list of great shrimp recipes! Here are a few more ways to eat this tasty protein:

Try shrimp pasta, a classic shrimp boil or BBQ shrimp
Make shrimp nachos or a shrimp burger
Try shrimp tacos, shrimp fajitas, or marinated shrimp skewers
Go for easy honey garlic shrimp, Cajun shrimp or Cajun shrimp pasta

Creamy Shrimp Pasta

Classic Shrimp Boil

Cajun Shrimp Pasta

Quick Shrimp Tacos

Chimichurri Salmon

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 03 Feb 2025 14:00:00 +0000

This chimichurri salmon pairs moist flaky salmon with the tangy, garlicky punch of this herby sauce—these flavors were made for each other! It’s so quick and easy to make broiled, or you can try it baked or grilled.

If there’s one secret sauce we’d recommend to make everything taste better, it’s chimichurri. This bright, punchy, garlicky Argentinian sauce truly is all that. As cookbook authors, here’s a trick we’ve been using for years as an easy healthy dinner idea: chimichurri salmon!

Salmon on its own can be kind of boring (right?). But salmon with chimichurri sauce is transcendental, adding an herby brightness to each bite. It’s the perfect easy dinner that works for weeknights or for impressing friends and family: and you can make it broiled, baked or grilled depending on your preference! Our family can’t get enough of it (and it’s a perfect Mediterranean diet recipe if you eat that way).

Featured reader comment

“Oh my goodness is this chimichurri salmon delicious! I’m going to do this brining and broiling method every time now. Nice crispy top, flaky insides. The chimichurri is delicious, it perfectly complements the salmon. I love how simple yet flavourful this dish is.” -Tanvee

Ingredient notes for this recipe

Here are a few notes for when you’re shopping for the ingredients for this chimichurri salmon recipe:

Look for skin-on salmon that’s about 1 inch thick. We like buying it in small fillets so it’s already pre-portioned, but you can buy a large fillet as well.
Buy fresh salmon, wild caught if possible. Salmon fresh from the fish counter usually has the best flavor. Frozen can work, but opt for highest-quality possible. Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms; see Seafood Watch Consumer Guide.
Use fresh oregano if possible; otherwise substitute cilantro. Fresh oregano is most traditional in an Argentinian chimichurri sauce, but it can be expensive at the grocery (we always grow it in the summer). Cilantro is a great budget friendly swap and has great flavor.

About chimichurri sauce

Chimichurri is a classic Argentinian sauce often served with grilled meats, chicken or fish. It’s made of chopped parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, oregano and red wine vinegar.

In creating this chimichurri recipe, Alex and I took inspiration from Argentine chef Francis Mallman (featured in the documentary Chef’s Table). His classic method uses a salmuera or brine to bring flavor and body to the sauce. It may sound counterintuitive to add water to oil, but it makes a lovely silky body. This sauce is rustic and hand chopped: no blenders or food processors required.

Tips for making chimichurri salmon

This chimichurri salmon recipe is so simple: all you have to do is cook the salmon using your favorite method and make the chimichurri sauce while it cooks. Here are some tips for the recipe:

Broiling is our top choice. Making broiled salmon is so quick: you don’t even need to preheat the oven and it cooks in 10 minutes or less.
As alternatives, you can make baked or grilled salmon. If you don’t have a broiler, baked salmon is simple. And if it’s grilling season, we highly recommend making grilled salmon to infuse smoky flavor notes.
Leave time for making the sauce. You don’t need a blender for chimichurri, but it does take a bit of time to hand chop everything. It will take about 10 minutes total for the sauce, so keep that in mind!

Storing leftovers and make ahead tips

You can store leftover chimichurri salmon for up to 3 days refrigerated. To reheat broiled salmon, place it on a baking sheet, loosely cover with foil, and reheat at 275°F for about 15 minutes. Avoid microwaving as it can dry out the fish, and reheating it in a skillet can overcook the fish.

To make this recipe ahead, you can make the chimichurri in advance and refrigerate up to 2 weeks. Keep in mind the olive oil solidifies when cold, so bring to room temperature before serving.

Serving suggestions

To make it a meal, serve chimichurri salmon with lemon rice, couscous, or quinoa. You can also add a salad recipe like arugula salad, kale salad, kale Caesar salad, or apple salad.

Dietary notes

This chimichurri salmon recipe is pescatarian, gluten-free, and dairy-free.

Chimichurri Salmon

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5 from 1 review

This chimichurri salmon pairs moist flaky salmon with the tangy, garlicky punch of this herby Argentinian sauce—these flavors were made for each other! It’s so quick and easy to make broiled, or you can try it baked or grilled.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main Dish
Method: Oven
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

For the salmon

1 pound wild caught salmon fillets, skin on
Olive oil, for brushing
½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for brining
Freshly ground black pepper

For the chimichurri

3 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
6 garlic cloves, minced
¾ cup very finely chopped Italian parsley (1 bunch)
¼ cup finely chopped fresh oregano or cilantro leaves
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
⅓ cup olive oil

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Instructions

Brine the salmon (see Notes): In a shallow dish, whisk together 4 cups room temperature water and 3 tablespoons kosher salt until it dissolves. Place the salmon in the water and wait for 15 minutes. Meanwhile if baking, preheat the oven to 400°F or if grilling preheat a grill to medium-high heat (375 to 450°F). Otherwise, skip this step and preheat the broiler in Step 3.
Make the chimichurri: Combine water and kosher salt in a small saucepan and heat until dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool. In a large bowl, stir together the minced garlic, Italian parsley, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Whisk in red wine vinegar, followed by olive oil and then the salt water. Taste and add additional red pepper flakes if desired.
Preheat the broiler to high.
Prepare the salmon: Place a large sheet of aluminum foil on a baking sheet and brush it with olive oil. Pat the salmon dry and place it on the foil skin side down. Brush salmon with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with the ½ teaspoon kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Broil the salmon: Broil 4 to 5 minutes for very thin salmon or 7 to 10 minutes for 1-inch thick salmon, until it’s just tender and pink at the center (the internal temperature should be between 125 to 130°F in the center). See Notes for baking and grilling instructions. Remove from the oven. Serve topped with the chimichurri sauce.

Notes

Baked salmon: Bake 10 to 16 minutes, depending on thickness, until just tender and pink at the center (the internal temperature should be between 125 to 130°F in the center). A 1-inch thick fillet should cook in about 15 minutes total.

Grilled salmon: Grill the salmon skin side up for 3 to 5 minutes (where the flames aren’t directly touching the fish), until grill marks appear and it releases from the grates. Flip and cook another 2 to 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the salmon, until flaky and just pink at the thickest portion and the internal temperature is 125 to 130°F.

*Note on brining: The brining step helps to bring the salmon to room temperature, which is important when broiling to ensure the salmon is cooked through. It also seasons the salmon and helps to prevent albumin, the white stuff that sometimes rises to the surface of salmon when it cooks.

Easy Chickpea Curry

Sonja Overhiser — Sat, 01 Feb 2025 13:00:00 +0000

This chickpea curry is a reader favorite—a healthy and easy weeknight dinner! It’s done in 20 minutes, plant based, and full of flavor.

Everyone is always asking us for fast and easy weeknight dinners. So Alex and I are always experimenting and on the lookout for the best concepts for quick and easy dinner ideas. So we present: our favorite this chickpea curry!

It takes only about 20 minutes to make! Warm spices and coconut milk make it one the most tastiest things you can make in that short time window—hands down. This recipe has become a reader favorite over the years for its quick cook time and satisfying flavor.

What’s great about this chickpea curry recipe

We created this chickpea curry for weeknights—it’s designed to get dinner on the table fast. At the same time, there are no flavor shortcuts! The way it comes together, you’ll be hooked on it as a go-to in your easy dinner ideas. Here’s why this is a great chickpea curry for weeknights:

It takes about 20 minutes to make. This depends on your ability to chop a few veggies quickly. The cook time is only 12 minutes, making this a super fast meal! Using fire roasted tomatoes helps shortcut the cook time.
It’s a healthy dinner full of plant-based protein. Chickpeas and spinach bring in nutrients to the veggie-based sauce.
It’s got big flavor. Onion, garlic and ginger make an aromatic base, and cumin, coriander and curry powder put it over the top. It’s got a swirl of coconut milk at the end for creamy body.

Is this an authentic Indian curry?

Is this chickpea curry authentic Indian cuisine? It’s similar to chana masala, the traditional Indian curried chickpeas. While this isn’t a 100% authentic Indian curry recipe, it uses the flavors of Indian cuisine to make a fast weeknight dinner.

If you’d like an authentic Indian dinner recipe, head to this masoor dal (Indian red lentils) recipe. This recipe was shared with us directly from Asma Khan, an Indian chef with a popular restaurant in London. Another great resource for authentic Indian recipes is chef and author Madhur Jaffrey.

Ways to serve chickpea curry

How to serve this weeknight chickpea curry? We like it with long-grain basmati rice. Here’s what we’d suggest for serving:

Basmati rice: Here’s our method for how to cook brown or white basmati rice: white takes about 15 minutes total and brown takes about 20 to 25 minutes. Brown rice is a bit more nutrient dense than white rice, which is why we like to take the extra time when we have it. You can also make Instant Pot Basmati Rice.
Naan bread: Store-bought naan bread is a great quick side dish for this chickpea curry. Or, try our homemade Garlic Naan or Vegan Naan.

Tips for making this recipe

When you’re ready to make the recipe, scroll down for the instructions! Here are a few tips for this chickpea curry:

Use fire roasted tomatoes. This type of tomatoes is key in this recipe, because of their sweet flavor right out of the can. These tomatoes have been charred over an open fire, then canned. Other tomato varieties can taste bitter out of the can, and need to be cooked for longer. Here’s where to find them online. If you can’t find them, substitute high quality canned tomatoes and cook the sauce 10 minutes longer.
Peel the fresh ginger with a spoon. This is the easiest way to peel it—much easier than a vegetable peeler which often gets stuck on the knobby exterior.

Frequently asked questions

How spicy is chickpea curry?

This chickpea curry is mild. If you prefer a spicier curry, you can add chili peppers or use spicy curry powder.

What can I serve with chickpea curry?

Chickpea curry is traditionally served with rice, such as basmati rice. It also pairs well with various Indian breads like naan, roti, or paratha. You can also serve it with a side of yogurt or raita (a yogurt-based condiment) for a cooling contrast to the spices. A simple salad can also be a refreshing addition.

Can I freeze chickpea curry?

Yes, chickpea curry freezes well. Allow it to cool completely before transferring it to freezer-safe containers. It can be stored in the freezer for several months. When you’re ready to eat it, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and reheat it on the stovetop or in the microwave.

Can I make chickpea curry ahead of time?

Absolutely! In fact, chickpea curry often tastes even better the next day after the flavors have had time to meld. You can make it 1 to 2 days in advance and store it in the refrigerator. Reheat it gently before serving.

Dietary notes

This chickpea curry recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.

Easy Chickpea Curry

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4.8 from 23 reviews

This chickpea curry is the ultimate healthy and easy weeknight dinner! It’s done in 20 minutes, totally plant based, and full of flavor.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Indian Inspired
Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

1 yellow onion
1 large garlic clove
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil
6 cups (5 ounces) baby spinach leaves (or chopped spinach)
28-ounce can crushed fire roasted tomatoes
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon coriander
¾ teaspoons kosher salt
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas
½ cup full fat canned coconut milk
White or brown basmati rice, to serve

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Instructions

If you’re serving with rice, start the basmati rice.
Mince the onion. Mince the garlic. Peel and mince the ginger (or grate it). Drain and rinse the chickpeas.
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and spinach and saute for 2 minutes until the spinach is fully wilted.
Carefully pour in the tomatoes, then add the curry powder, cumin, coriander, salt, and chickpeas. Cook for 5 minutes until bubbly.
Stir in the coconut milk until fully combined, then remove from the heat. Serve with basmati rice. Store leftovers up to 3 days refrigerated.

More easy weeknight dinners

If you’re in the market for easy weeknight dinners, here are a few of our top ideas! Some favorite healthy dinner ideas are:

These 5 minute tacos star a spiced egg filling that tastes like meat.
This creamy gnocchi sauce is basically gourmet fast mac and cheese, made with just Pecorino Romano cheese, butter and pepper.
This cilantro lime shrimp is a 10-minute recipe that pairs with rice, chips and salsa, or guacamole to make a fast and easy dinner.
For curry recipes, try our vegan curry, vegetable curry, or lentil curry.

Quick Vegan Curry

Quick Dinner Idea: 5 Minute Tacos

Cilantro Lime Shrimp

50 Easy Dinner Ideas

Creamy Tortellini Soup

Sonja Overhiser — Thu, 23 Jan 2025 13:00:00 +0000

This 5-star tortellini soup is lusciously creamy! It’s easy and under 30 minutes, with big flavor from tomatoes, spinach, and Parmesan.

Here’s a soup that will make people come flocking and might result in a few marriage proposals: this creamy tortellini soup! This might be one of our top favorites over here. You can make it in under 30 minutes, and the flavor that results is simply divine.

Tomatoes, basil, Parmesan and cream make a lusciously flavored broth that floats with doughy orbs of tortellini. In fact, Alex and I put down our spoons in amazement at first bite! Now it’s a family favorite recipe we make again and again.

Key ingredients in tortellini soup

There are many ways to make a tortellini soup. A traditional Italian way to serve it is called tortellini en brodo, where the filled pasta floats in a simple broth. For our spin, we went for a tomato-basil-meets-tortellini vibe, where a creamy tomato broth provides the backdrop for the delightful doughy pasta. Here’s what you’ll need for this Italian soup:

Refrigerated tortellini pasta (tortelloni): The pasta you’ll need here is actually tortelloni: a large version of tortellini with a filled center! It’s sold in the refrigerated and frozen section in the grocery store (avoid using dried).
Fire roasted tomatoes are a type of canned tomato that’s cooked over an open flame before canning. It makes the flavor beautifully sweet out of the can, instead of acidic like many canned tomato varieties. This type of tomatoes are becoming pretty easy to find in grocery stores in the US; they’re sold by several brands. Look in the canned tomatoes section. If you can’t find them, substitute the best quality canned tomatoes you can find.
Heavy cream or whole milk: This soup tastes best with heavy cream to make it creamy, but you can substitute whole milk if desired. See below!

Using heavy cream vs whole milk

Our recipes are generally Mediterranean diet recipes on the healthy side, so you won’t often see us cooking with heavy cream. But there are always exceptions and this creamy tortellini soup is one of them. Adding cream to a soup adds an intense richness, depth, and body of the soup that just can’t be replicated by 2% milk.

As a substitute, you can use whole milk or half and half instead. Heavy cream is 36% milkfat, whereas half and half is 10% and whole milk is 3%. So these types of dairy have significantly less fat than heavy cream. Pick whatever seems right for you!

Tortellini soup variations for any diet: vegetarian, vegan & more

This recipe is a vegetarian tortellini soup: assuming you use tortellini with no meat! It’s one of those recipes you wouldn’t think of being vegetarian…because it’s so packed with flavor. People of any diet love this one (promise!). You can also make it vegan, or add Italian sausage for meat eaters. Here are a few options:

Vegetarian tortellini soup: This is already vegetarian: just use a cheese or spinach ravioli!
Vegan tortellini soup: Buy vegan tortellini: there are some great brands out there these days! Then substitute Cashew Cream for the heavy cream and Parmesan.
Gluten free tortellini soup: Use gluten free tortellini. Again, there are some great options out there these days.
Sausage tortellini soup: Cook 1 pound Italian sausage in the pan until browned, about 3 minutes, draining the fat as necessary. Then make the remaining soup, using slightly less salt.

Let us know your favorite gluten free or vegan tortellini brands in the comments below! We’d love to know your recommendations.

Side dish ideas

This tortellini soup is delicious and satisfying, but not quite filling enough on its own to be a meal. We’d suggest pairing it with a salad or grilled cheese to make a full meal. Here are some ideas:

Salad: Try Easy Arugula Salad, Goat Cheese Salad with Arugula, Fennel Apple or Fennel Orange Salad, Frisee Salad, Endive Salad, Chopped Salad, Brussels Sprout Salad, or Perfect Italian Salad,
Garlic bread or toast: Opt for Easy Garlic Bread or Garlic Toast.
Grilled cheese: Baked Grilled Cheese, Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese or Gourmet Grilled Cheese would be lovely.
Crusty bread. Buy an artisan style bread or make your own no knead bread.

Storing leftovers and make ahead tips

This tortellini soup is best hot from the stove! But if you have leftovers or want to make it ahead, we’ve got some tips.

Store leftovers refrigerated, noting that the pasta soaks up the broth. The pasta soaks up even more of the broth when you refrigerate, so it can become very thick. You may want to add a splash of water when reheating.
Make the soup ahead without the tortellini. If you make it ahead, make it without the tortellini and refrigerate. Then heat it up and cook the tortellini right before serving.

Want more recipes with tortellini? Try Easy Tortelloni, Tortellini Salad or 15 Easy Tortellini Recipes (that use tortelloni!).

Dietary notes

This tortellini soup recipe is vegetarian. For gluten-free or vegan, see variations above.

Creamy Tortellini Soup (30 minutes!)

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 4 reviews

This 5-star tortellini soup is lusciously creamy! It’s easy and under 30 minutes, with big flavor from tomatoes, spinach, and Parmesan.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Soup
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Italian inspired
Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

1 small yellow onion
4 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons olive oil
28-ounce fire roasted crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
4 cups vegetable broth
1 teaspoon each dried oregano and dried basil
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
4 cups baby spinach (or chopped standard spinach), packed
1 handful fresh basil leaves (about 6 to 8 large leaves)
½ cup heavy cream (or half and half or whole milk)*
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
12 to 16 ounces frozen or refrigerated tortellini, any flavor

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Instructions

Dice the onion. Mince the garlic.
In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and sauté for about 5 to 6 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté 30 seconds more.
Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, broth, herbs and kosher salt. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 8 minutes.
Stir in the spinach, basil leaves, heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. Bring to simmer and add the tortellini. Cook according to the package instructions: about 2 to 3 minutes for refrigerated and 3 to 5 minutes for frozen. Taste and add additional salt as desired (we added another ¼ teaspoon). Serve immediately.
Make ahead and storage: Store leftovers refrigerated. The pasta does soak up quite a bit of the broth, so you may want to add a splash of water when reheating. If you make it ahead, we recommend making the soup without the tortellini; then heat it up and cook the pasta right before serving.

Notes

*Vegan variation: use vegan tortellini and substitute ½ cup Cashew Cream for the heavy cream and Parmesan, adding more to taste as desired.

Easy Broiled Salmon

Sonja Overhiser — Sat, 18 Jan 2025 18:54:00 +0000

Broiled salmon is the fastest and easiest way to cook this fish! It comes out flaky and full of savory flavor in only 10 minutes—a trick you’ll use again and again.

When it comes to easy dinner ideas, here’s one to add to your arsenal: broiled salmon! We love baked salmon, but broiling is faster, easier: and more delicious (we think). You don’t even need to preheat your oven!

While the salmon broils, you can make the rest of the meal: like a few sides or a salmon sauce. Alex and I exchanged glances of surprise when we first tasted this fish: it was so flaky and moist, we couldn’t stop eating it. Here are the tricks to making broiled salmon!

Featured reader comment

“Ohhhhh my goodness is this broiled salmon delicious! I’m going to do this brining and broiling method every time now. Nice crispy top, flaky insides. Aaaah it was perfect!” -Tanvee

Tips for broiling: temperature & position

If you only read one thing in this article, read this part! Here are a few things to know about broiling before you start:

Broilers vary, so watch the cook time carefully! A thermometer is helpful. The exact timing for this broiled salmon depends on your specific broiler and the thickness of the fish. It will be different every time: so watch closely! A food thermometer is nice for judging whether it’s done.
The salmon should be about 6 inches below the broiler heating element. Position the rack accordingly. Most broilers are about 3 to 5 inches from the heating element.
Do you need to preheat a broiler? You don’t need to preheat, but turn it on about 5 minutes before you want to cook to give it time to heat up.
What temperature is best for broiling? Many broilers don’t have temperature settings. If yours does, use a high broiler setting, which is around 500°F.

How to broil salmon: outline

There are just a few steps to broiled salmon; here’s what to know (or go right to the recipe):

Step 1: Preheat the broiler. Place the salmon in a salt water solution for 15 minutes; this also allows the salmon to come to room temperature. (If you don’t brine it, make sure to let the salmon come to room temperature so that it cooks evenly.)

Step 2: Place the room temperature salmon on a foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season (see full recipe).

Step 3: Broil the salmon for 4 to 5 minutes for very thin salmon or 7 to 10 minutes for 1-inch thick salmon, until just tender and pink at the center and the internal temperature is 125 to 130°F in the center.

Important: The time to broil will depend on the thickness (watch closely). The timing on when the salmon is done depends on the thickness of the piece of salmon and your broiler, so use your best judgement: using a food thermometer is key!

Tip: Why to brine salmon before broiling

Brining the salmon is technically optional, but it makes the absolute best flavor and texture for broiled salmon! It also does two important things: it helps to bring the salmon to room temperature, which is important when broiling to ensure the salmon is cooked through. It also seasons the salmon and helps to prevent albumin, the white stuff that sometimes rises to the surface of salmon when it cooks.

The type of salmon to buy

There are lots of options when it comes to salmon at the grocery store! If you’re looking for a great piece of salmon, here are some pointers:

Look for 1 to 1 1/2-inch thick salmon fillets. You might find this type labeled “center cut” at the store. You can also use thinner fillets like sockeye salmon, which take less time to cook.
Buy fresh salmon, wild caught if possible. Salmon fresh from the fish counter usually has the best flavor. Frozen can work, but opt for highest-quality possible. Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms; see Seafood Watch Consumer Guide.
Make sure to buy skin on. You’ll need skin-on salmon for this recipe.

Salmon sauce ideas

You don’t need a sauce for this broiled salmon, but it steps it up a notch! Here are a few of our favorite sauce ideas (in order of preference):

Chimichurri: Herby and bright chimichurri is a natural fit.
Dill sauce: This lemon dill sauce is creamy and tangy (or see lemon dill salmon).
Pesto: Try pesto salmon or drizzle it with bright green basil sauce.
Miso: This miso salmon that’s brushed with savory miso glaze.
Cilantro lime sauce: This zingy cilantro lime ranch or cilantro dressing are perfect for fish.

Storage tips and leftover ideas

Store leftover broiled salmon for up to 3 days refrigerated. To reheat broiled salmon, place it on a baking sheet, loosely cover with foil, and reheat at 275°F for about 15 minutes. Avoid microwaving as it can dry out the fish, and reheating it in a skillet can overcook the fish.

For leftover salmon, we like repurposing it into new things like salmon cakes or salmon salad.

Sides to serve with broiled salmon

Broiled salmon is one of our true go-to’s for a quick and easy healthy dinner ideas: especially on weeknights! Here are a few ideas for sides to serve alongside:

Try salad recipes like arugula salad, kale salad or apple salad
Go for grains like seasoned quinoa or lemon rice
Make sauteed veggies like sauteed peppers, sauteed vegetables, sauteed cabbage or peas with lemon

Dietary notes

This broiled salmon recipe is pescatarian, gluten-free and dairy-free (without the lemon butter sauce).

Easy Broiled Salmon

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Broiled salmon is the fastest and easiest way to cook this fish! It comes out flaky and full of savory flavor in only 10 minutes—a trick you’ll use again and again.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main Dish
Method: Broiled
Cuisine: Seafood
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

1 pound wild caught salmon fillets, skin on
Olive oil, for brushing
½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for brining
Freshly ground black pepper

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Instructions

Brine the salmon*: In a shallow dish whisk together 4 cups room temperature water and 3 tablespoons kosher salt until it dissolves. Place the salmon in the water and wait for 15 minutes.
Preheat the broiler to high. (Make sure the oven rack is positioned so the salmon is approximately 6 inches from the heating element.)
Place a large sheet of aluminum foil on a baking sheet and brush it with olive oil. Pat each piece of salmon dry and place it on the foil skin side down. Brush salmon with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon kosher salt (evenly divided among the fillets) and fresh ground pepper.
Broil 4 to 5 minutes for very thin salmon or 7 to 10 minutes for 1-inch thick salmon, until it’s just tender and pink at the center (the internal temperature should be between 125 to 130°F in the center). Serve spritzed with lemon wedges or with sauces like Chimichurri, Dill Sauce, or Lemon Caper Sauce. Store leftover salmon refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Notes

*The brining step helps to bring the salmon to room temperature, which is important when broiling to ensure the salmon is cooked through. It also seasons the salmon and helps to prevent albumin, the white stuff that sometimes rises to the surface of salmon when it cooks.

Salmon recipes you may enjoy

Here are a few more easy salmon recipes we make on the regular:

This blackened salmon or Cajun salmon are so simple.
Try salmon burgers with remoulade, or salmon cakes with tartar sauce.
Make seared salmon, pistachio crusted salmon, lemon garlic salmon, miso salmon, or maple glazed salmon that taste restaurant quality.

Blackened Salmon

Salmon Croquettes

Easy Pan Seared Salmon

Pecan Crusted Salmon

Shrimp and Orzo

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 14:00:00 +0000

This creamy shrimp and orzo recipe is a simple and tasty one pot meal! Juicy shrimp, tender orzo, salty feta and bright lemon come together into a satisfying dinner everyone will love.

With the Mediterranean diet topping the charts of best diets for the eighth year in a row, Alex and I are doubling down on Mediterranean diet recipes. Here’s a delicious way to infuse a little healthy seafood into your diet: this shrimp and orzo recipe!

This is a fun one pot meal that stars the juicy shellfish with its natural flavor pairings: garlic, lemon, feta cheese, and herbs. It’s so hearty and delicious—a bit of cozy comfort food that’s also a healthy dinner recipe!

Featured reader comments

“This shrimp and orzo was delicious and cozy, and made for a really nice Friday night dinner! We’ll definitely make this again. It’ll be nice for a date night or a dinner with another couple. Throw in a nice cold glass of wine and you’re good to go!” -Tanvee

Ingredients in this shrimp and orzo recipe

The Mediterranean diet was named the best diet of the year again by US News and World Report—it’s essentially lots of plant based recipes with a handful of pescatarian recipes and chicken recipes thrown in. Though orzo may look like rice, it’s actually a pasta! While this way of eating emphasizes whole grains, pasta in moderation can be enjoyed on the Mediterranean diet. Here’s what you’ll need for this shrimp and orzo recipe:

Raw shrimp: You can use medium or large; make sure to buy peeled or tail on and deveined. Here’s how to thaw shrimp in advance.
Dried orzo pasta: Use regular or whole wheat orzo, keeping in mind whole wheat
Chicken or vegetable broth: We like using chicken broth for the most pure flavor, but vegetable broth works too.
Milk: Use 2% or whole milk; you can also almond or oat milk (and omit the feta cheese) for dairy-free.
Spinach: Use baby spinach or chopped standard spinach (make sure to wash spinach from a bunch before using).
Feta cheese: This ingredient is optional, but it adds a nice pop of salty flavor.
Fresh herbs: We love using fresh dill, but parsley also works and is more economical.
Lemon: Citrus is key for lifting the flavor with a little brightness.

Tip for serving tail on shrimp

We like to use tail on shrimp for shrimp recipes, since it looks beautiful in the pan. However, it can be harder to eat (especially for children), and you’ll have to pull off the tails when eating. Make sure to serve with bowls for the extra tails!

Ways to make it a meal

This shrimp and orzo takes just 30 minutes to cook, so it’s a great easy weeknight dinner. It also works as a fun date night recipe, or a dinner party for two couples. Here are a few fun side dish recipes that make a sophisticated meal:

Add a green salad like this endive salad, radicchio salad, pomegranate salad, or pear gorgonzola salad
Serve with broccolini like roasted broccolini or sauteed broccolini
Go for asparagus like roasted asparagus or quick broiled asparagus
Try green beans like green beans almondine or sauteed green beans

Storing leftovers

Leftover cooked shrimp technically lasts up to 3 days refrigerated, but personally we prefer to eat shrimp the day it is cooked. For best results, store any leftovers refrigerated for up to 1 day. Save leftover broth for reheating; warm on the stovetop with a few splashes of broth until loosened and creamy.

Dietary notes

This shrimp and orzo recipe is pescatarian. For dairy-free, use oat milk and omit the feta cheese or use vegan feta (you may want to add extra salt).

Shrimp and Orzo

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5 from 2 reviews

This creamy shrimp and orzo recipe is a simple and tasty one pot meal! Juicy shrimp, tender orzo, salty feta and bright lemon come together into a satisfying dinner everyone will love.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Mediterranean

Ingredients

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound raw medium or large shrimp, peeled and deveined and thawed if frozen
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
1 teaspoon dried oregano
12 oz dried orzo pasta (regular or whole wheat)
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup milk (or non-dairy milk)
5 ounces baby or chopped spinach (about 5 packed cups)
½ cup feta cheese crumbles (or vegan feta)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or dill, for garnish (optional)
Lemon slices, for serving

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Instructions

Mince the garlic.
Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Place in a bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and the dried oregano. In a large skillet, over medium high heat, add the shrimp and cook for 1 to 2 minutes per side until just opaque and cooked through, turning them with tongs. Remove to a bowl.
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the garlic, orzo, and remaining 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the broth and milk and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a rapid simmer and cook, stirring, for 7 to 12 minutes (depending on the orzo brand), until the orzo is just al dente.
Add the spinach and cook 1 to 2 minutes more until the spinach is wilted. The orzo is done when it is cooked through but there is still a bit of liquid and creamy sauce (it will absorb more of the liquid as it sits). Stir in the feta and add the shrimp to the top. Spritz with lemon juice from a few wedges (about half the lemon) before serving. Serve with lemon slices and if desired, fresh chopped dill or parsley as a garnish.
Store refrigerated for up to 1 day. Save leftover broth for reheating leftovers; warm on the stovetop with a few splashes of broth until loosened and creamy.

More popular shrimp recipes

Here at A Couple Cooks, Alex and I love shrimp recipes: because this healthy protein is so quick to cook! A few more of our most popular shrimp recipes: this Shrimp Stir Fry is a fan favorite, Honey Garlic Shrimp is so quick and simple, and Pesto Shrimp and Old Bay Shrimp are super fast.

Shrimp Stir Fry

Honey Garlic Shrimp

Old Bay Shrimp

45 Easy Shrimp Recipes

Easy Baked Salmon

Sonja Overhiser — Sun, 12 Jan 2025 14:30:00 +0000

This oven baked salmon recipe perfectly seasoned, bursting with flavor, and ready in just 20 minutes! It’s ideal for busy weeknights or a quick meal to impress.

Stop right there and bookmark this baked salmon recipe, because you’ll never need another! As cookbook authors who have tried countless salmon recipes, this is the baked salmon that gets hands down rave reviews from friends and family. The tender fillet is perfectly seasoned with brown sugar and spices and has a lovely crisp topping. Here’s why we love it:

It’s perfectly seasoned. The smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder and thyme combination hits a home run (we also use it on our baked chicken thighs).
It has a crispy top. No more mushy salmon: this one comes out with a lovely crispy topping from a hint of brown sugar.
It’s so simple. It takes just 20 minutes to make! Get ready to impress your mother in law, neighbors, boss, or partner with no effort at all.

Featured reader comments

“It was absolutely delicious, and so easy to make! The fish was very flaky and tender and the smokey flavor is almost addictive. What could be better than having something that is easy to make and tastes wonderful?” -Annika

Ingredients for baked salmon

For the very best baked salmon recipe, you’ve got to start with a great fillet of fish. This is easier said than done, since there are many different ways salmon is sold at the store. In general, stay away from those big economy-sized freezer bags. Here are a few tips:

Look for 1 to 1 1/2-inch thick salmon fillets. You might find this type labeled “center cut” at the store. You can also use thinner fillets like sockeye salmon, which take less time to cook.
Buy fresh salmon, wild caught if possible. Salmon fresh from the fish counter usually has the best flavor. Frozen can work, but opt for highest-quality possible. Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms; see Seafood Watch Consumer Guide.
Add this simple seasoning blend. You’ll need a combination of brown sugar, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, dried thyme, cumin, and salt. Before seasoning, brush on just a thin coating of olive oil.

How to bake salmon: step by step

This baked salmon recipe calls for seasoning the fish with brown sugar and spices, then baking until tender. We used to only bake salmon in a foil packet, but it gets very moist and mushy. This method for baking salmon that makes a lightly caramelized top, which we find gets rave reviews! Here are the steps for how to bake salmon:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Allow the salmon to come to room temperature (or brine it in salt water).

Step 2: Place the room temperature salmon on a foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season (see full recipe).

Step 3: Bake the salmon for 10 to 16 minutes, until just tender and pink at the center and the internal temperature is 125 to 130°F in the center.

Try these salmon sauce ideas

The best part about this oven baked salmon recipe is that it’s perfectly seasoned on its own: it doesn’t required a sauce to make it taste great! But you’re welcome to add one to take it up a notch. Here are a few of our favorite salmon sauce ideas:

Butter sauce: Try a garlic butter sauce, lemon butter sauce or lemon pepper sauce.
Creamy sauce: Dip it into mustard sauce, classic remoulade, or dill sauce.
Chimichurri: Fresh cilantro and parsley combine into a fresh and tangy bright green chimichurri sauce.
Creamy pan sauce: Try flavor-popping sun dried tomato cream sauce.

Garlic Butter Sauce Mustard Sauce Chimichurri Dill Sauce Remoulade

Top sides to serve with baked salmon

Want to make it a meal? When we make baked salmon, we like adding side dishes that don’t require the oven: to keep it free for the salmon! Here are some easy sides for salmon that don’t require baking:

Green salads: A fresh green salad pairs well with this tender fish. We like serving with this chopped salad, apple salad, fennel orange salad, kale salad, or arugula salad.
Sauteed veggies: It’s simple to sauté some veggies while the fish cooks. Try steamed green beans, peas, broccoli, sauteed broccolini, or sauteed spinach.
Whole grains: Try serving salmon with lemon rice, couscous, orzo, or quinoa.
Potatoes: Add mashed potatoes or pan fried potatoes.

Arugula Salad Sauteed Broccolini Lemon Rice Orzo Endive Salad

Storing leftovers

Leftover salmon lasts refrigerated for up to 3 days, stored in a sealed container. Reheat it in a skillet over medium heat, or in a 400F oven until warm. Or, repurpose it in leftover salmon recipes like salmon salad, a salmon rice bowl, and more!

Dietary notes

This oven baked salmon recipe is pescatarian, dairy-free and gluten-free.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the best temperature for baked salmon?

400°F (200°C) makes for a tasty, tender piece of fish.

How long to bake salmon?

Bake salmon at 400°F (200°C) for 10 to 16 minutes, depending on thickness, until just tender and pink at the center (the internal temperature should be between 125 to 130°F in the center). A 1-inch thick fillet should cook in about 15 minutes total.

For a crispy top, when the salmon is at 115°F, broil for about 2 minutes (about the last 2 minutes of the cook time).

What is the white stuff on baked salmon?

The gooey white stuff that oozes on the surface after cooking a piece of salmon is called albumin: it’s a coagulated protein that seeps to the surface while baking. The amount of albumin varies depending on the fish, so it’s not something you can control. It’s safe to eat, but it does look unappealing.

How do you prevent the white stuff on salmon?

Buy quality fresh fish. It’s best to buy fresh salmon and the white stuff can vary based on the fish counter at each grocery store, even though there’s no labeling difference. Experiment to find a source you love.

Brine the fish before cooking. Placing the fish in a brine solution for 15 minutes before baking can help to reduce albumin (see notes in the recipe below).

Easy Baked Salmon Recipe

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4 from 1 review

This oven baked salmon recipe perfectly seasoned, bursting with flavor, and ready in just 20 minutes! It’s ideal for busy weeknights or a quick meal to impress.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main Dish
Method: Baked
Cuisine: Seafood
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds or 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets, wild caught if possible*
Olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon cumin

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Allow the salmon to come to room temperature (or brine it**).
Place a large sheet of aluminum foil on a baking sheet and brush it with olive oil. Pat each piece of salmon dry and place it on the foil skin side down. Brush with olive oil. Sprinkle the salmon with the kosher salt evenly divided among the fillets.
In a medium bowl, mix together the brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, and cumin. Sprinkle the mixture evenly on top of the fillets.
Bake the salmon for 10 to 16 minutes, depending on thickness, until just tender and pink at the center (the internal temperature should be between 125 to 130°F in the center). A 1-inch thick fillet should cook in about 15 minutes total. For a crispy top, when the salmon is at 115°F, broil for about 2 minutes (about the last 2 minutes of the cook time).

Notes

*Lemon salmon variation: Go to Lemon Salmon. Or, brush a medium baking dish with olive oil, add the slices of 1 lemon, and drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil (or salted butter, cut into pats). Place the salmon on top of the lemons and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon kosher salt divided among the fillets. In a medium bowl, mix 1 teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, and ½ teaspoon dried dill, then sprinkle the mixture evenly over the fillets. Bake in the salmon manner as Step 4 above, then spoon over the sauce in the pan before serving.

**Brine the salmon (optional): While the oven preheats, in a shallow dish mix together 4 cups room temperature water and 3 tablespoons kosher salt. Place the salmon in the water and wait for 15 minutes (this should be about the time it takes to preheat).

Salmon recipes you may enjoy

Love cooking with salmon? Here are a few more salmon recipes to try:

Opt for the basics: try it pan seared, marinated, grilled, or poached.
Make smoked salmon or sockeye salmon.
Try salmon tacos, a salmon sandwich or a salmon Caesar salad,
Opt for salmon burgers, a salmon bowl, or this tasty honey garlic salmon.

Easy Pan Seared Salmon

Grilled Salmon

Easy Salmon Marinade

35 Easy Salmon Recipes

Easy Fajita Veggies

Sonja Overhiser — Sat, 11 Jan 2025 02:27:00 +0000

Spice up your dinners with these flavorful fajita veggies! This easy recipe combines colorful bell peppers, onions, and a spice blend for serving with the protein of your choice or as fun side dish.

Want to make fajitas? After testing this recipe dozens of times, we can confirm: these are the best fajita veggies! Whether you’re making chicken, steak, shrimp, or veggie fajitas: you’ve got to have those signature sizzling vegetables.

This recipe makes the most tender, melt-in-your-mouth bell peppers, delicious savory onions, and meaty portobello mushrooms. Serve them as vegetarian fajitas with pinto beans, or use them as a topping for fajita salad (our favorite!). This recipe has become a fan favorite that readers always love.

Featured reader comments

“Made this last night for my book group and served it with shredded chicken. It was a bigger hit than the book!” -Janet

“Made these in our cast iron skillet for a football tailgate at our house! They were fantastic!!” -Katherine

Seasoning for fajita veggies

You don’t need to go out and buy packets of fajita seasoning for these veggies! Just a few spices you might already have on hand do the trick. Here’s what to use to season these tasty veggies:

Cumin
Chili powder
Garlic powder
Smoked paprika: Smoked paprika is also labeled as pimentón at the grocery store. It has a very smoky flavor and is worth seeking out (you can also use it for these smoked paprika recipes).

You can also make a batch of Homemade Fajita Seasoning using these ingredients.

Ingredients for the best fajita veggies

What do you need for fajita veggies? The list is simple and filled with good-for-you ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need:

3 bell peppers: We like using red, yellow and green for maximum color contrast. Orange bell peppers also have great flavor.
1 red onion: When it comes to onion, we opt for red onion for fajitas: it has a mellow flavor when cooked, and adds a lovely purple color.
2 portobello mushroom caps: They’re optional, but portobello mushrooms add big meaty flavor (especially if you’re making vegetarian fajitas).

Tip for using store-bought fajita seasoning

Want to use purchased fajita seasoning instead? You can do that too! Use 2 tablespoons store-bought seasoning instead of the spices listed below.

Important: most fajita seasoning has salt, so you’ll want to us less than the recipe specifies. Start with ¾ to 1 teaspoon kosher salt and add more to taste.

Side dishes to serve with fajitas

Once you’ve got your fajita veggies—how to make them into fajitas? Perhaps you already have a favorite recipe. But if you’re looking for inspiration, we’ve got some ideas:

Make chicken, steak, or shrimp fajitas by cooking 1 pound of meat with this fajita sauce. Or you can try our popular shrimp fajitas recipe or the grilled chicken in our fajita salad.
Make vegetarian fajitas using pinto beans.
Load up on toppings by layering the fajita veggies with sour cream, guacamole, hot sauce, and cilantro.
Add side dishes like a Mexican chopped salad, cilantro lime rice, guacamole, or Mexican street corn dip. Browse more of our top sides to serve with fajitas for more ideas!

Dietary notes

This fajita veggies recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.

Frequently asked questions

What kind of peppers should I use for fajita veggies?

The classic choice is a mix of bell peppers in different colors like red, yellow, and orange for visual appeal and varying flavors.

Can I make fajita veggies ahead of time?

While fajita veggies are best enjoyed fresh off the skillet, you can chop the vegetables in advance and store them in the refrigerator for a few hours. Just be sure to cook them right before serving to maintain their crisp-tender texture. Leftovers last refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Can I cook fajita veggies in a different way?

Absolutely! While skillet cooking is the most common method, you can also grill or roast your fajita veggies for a smoky char. Go to Fajita Salad for grill instructions or Vegan Fajitas or Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas for roasting instructions.

Easy Fajita Veggies

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5 from 4 reviews

Spice up your dinners with these vibrant and flavorful fajita veggies! Our easy recipe combines colorful bell peppers, onions, and a medley of spices for serving with the protein of your choice or as fun side dish.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6
Category: Essentials
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Tex Mex
Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

3 bell peppers (red, yellow, and green)*
1 medium red onion
2 portobello mushrooms
3 garlic cloves
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons cumin*
1 teaspoon each chili powder, garlic powder, and smoked paprika
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

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Instructions

Thinly slice the bell peppers and thinly slice the onion. Remove the stems and slice the portobello mushrooms. Smash the garlic cloves. Place them in a bowl and toss with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
In a large skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat. Add the veggies and cook about 15 minutes until tender and lightly charred, stirring occasionally. Add additional salt to taste (we usually add a few more pinches). Remove and discard the garlic cloves before serving. Store leftovers for up to 3 days refrigerated.

Notes

*If you have homemade or purchased Fajita Seasoning, you can substitute 2 tablespoons seasoning for the spices and use only 1 teaspoon kosher salt in the recipe.

Tex Mex recipes you may enjoy

If you love Tex Mex food as much as we do, you’ll want to check out some of our other favorite recipes.

Our vegetarian enchiladas or chicken enchiladas are a delicious and hearty meal that’s perfect for a busy weeknight.
These sheet pan nachos and this easy quesadilla are a big fan favorite, as are our shrimp tacos and our cauliflower tacos.
Or try our Tex Mex migas for something a little different!

Easy Vegetarian Enchiladas

Ultimate Nachos Recipe

Easy Quesadilla

Tex Mex Migas Recipe

Pesto Gnocchi

Sonja Overhiser — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 14:00:00 +0000

This pesto gnocchi recipe comes out irresistibly creamy in 10 minutes! Use this trick for a tasty and easy side dish in a flash.

Here’s a trick to a fast side dish or simple dinner: this Skillet Pesto Gnocchi! Get this: you don’t even need to boil the gnocchi! Cook up these Italian potato dumplings right in a skillet and they cook right in the sauce, helping to thicken it as they release starch.

Stir in purchased pesto and you’ve got a bright and herbaceous sauce: in just 10 minutes total. This trick has become a staple in our house when we need a quick meal!

Basic steps for pesto gnocchi

Gnocchi (pronounced NYOW-kee) are Italian pasta dumplings made with potatoes, egg and flour. Typically in a gnocchi recipe, you boil it up then add the dumplings to a sauce. But in this recipe, everything cooks in one skillet! You can cook both the sauce and the gnocchi in just 5 minutes. That’s pretty magical, in our opinion! Here’s what to know about the process:

In a deep skillet, bring milk and basil pesto to a simmer. Once it’s ready, add the gnocchi.
Add uncooked gnocchi and cook about 5 minutes. The dumplings cook right in the sauce, and as they cook they release starch. The sauce becomes thick and saucy, then add the Parmesan cheese.

Best pesto to use

Here’s the thing about pesto: purchased pesto varies greatly between brands. Even more importantly, jarred pesto is nothing like the fresh flavor of the real thing. Many purchased brands taste intensely acidic or have an odd aftertaste. Here’s what to know:

Purchased pesto brands vary greatly, so find one you love. We’ve experimented with lots of different jars: and they all have a different salt and acid level. But when it’s the winter, it’s t the only option!
Homemade pesto has the best flavor! Again, this is only an option when you have loads of fresh basil. But Basil Pesto is best homemade.
After cooking the pesto gnocchi, taste and adjust flavors. Add a pinch or two of salt, then if it needs it add up to 1 tablespoon additional pesto. It all depends on the brand!
Lemon zest adds freshness. If you happen to have a lemon on hand, lemon zest balances out the flavor of purchased pesto.

Can you use homemade gnocchi?

If you have time and energy, you can make homemade gnocchi with potatoes and flour. But it’s a bit of a process! Do it on a day off when you have energy to channel Italian grandmother vibes. If you make homemade gnocchi, we don’t suggest using it here. We’ve only tested this recipe with purchased gnocchi, and homemade have a different texture. Add your favorite marinara or butter sauce for those!

Homemade pesto has a brighter green color and fresher flavor than purchased. If you don’t have access to fresh basil, use jarred pesto!

Serve pesto gnocchi as a side or main

You can eat pesto gnocchi as an easy side dish, or even a main dish if you accessorize it properly! Here are a few things to note:

Side dish: It works perfectly with salmon, shrimp or chicken.
Main dish: Make sure to add vegetables and a bit more filling protein. Try a green salad like Spring Mix Salad or Arugula Apple Salad, or add quick veggie sides like Green Beans, Pan Fried Broccoli, Peas, White Beans, or Chickpeas.

More recipes with gnocchi

There are lots of ways to cook gnocchi! Here are a few of our favorite gnocchi recipes:

Make cozy Baked Gnocchi, or Tomato Basil Gnocchi on a sheet pan
Make this creamy Cacio e Pepe Gnocchi Sauce
Bake up Cauliflower Casserole with Gnocchi
Make a pot of Tomato Basil Gnocchi Soup Recipe

Tomato Basil Gnocchi Soup Recipe

Easy Creamy Gnocchi Sauce

Sheet Pan Gnocchi

Baked Gnocchi

This pesto gnocchi recipe is…

Vegetarian. For gluten-free, use gluten-free gnocchi.

Pesto Gnocchi

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5 from 1 review

This pesto gnocchi recipe comes out irresistibly creamy in 10 minutes! Use this trick for a tasty and easy side dish in a flash.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 0 minutes
Cook Time: 7 minutes
Total Time: 7 minutes
Yield: 3 to 4
Category: Side dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Italian inspired
Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

1 pound purchased uncooked gnocchi
¼ cup basil pesto (purchased or Homemade Basil Pesto), plus 1 tablespoon to finish
1 ½ cup milk
½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to finish
¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Zest of 1/4 lemon, optional

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Instructions

In a deep skillet, bring the milk, pesto, and salt to a gentle simmer. Add the gnocchi, breaking it apart with your fingers if any are stuck together.
Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the gnocchi are tender and the sauce becomes creamy. Stir in the Parmesan cheese until it melts.
Taste the sauce and add salt (we usually add ⅛ teaspoon) and if it needs it, the final 1 tablespoon pesto. Add a bit of lemon zest if you have it, which freshens the flavors even more. The amounts will vary since all pesto brands are differently salted and flavored. Serve immediately. The sauce becomes very thick as it sits, so if necessary, add a splash of milk and reheat, stirring until creamy. Store leftovers refrigerated for 3 days and reheat in the same way. (You can also serve this as a main dish like pasta: just add some vegetables and additional protein.)

Shrimp Stir Fry

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:00:00 +0000

This shrimp stir fry is a go-to fast and healthy dinner! Use any veggies you like with this flavor-packed stir fry sauce.

Here’s a go-to fast and easy dinner: shrimp stir fry! This one is packed with flavor with a glossy, savory stir fry sauce that coats the juicy shrimp and colorful veggies. Use your favorite vegetables to make a super-satisfying dinner that pleases everyone around the table.

It’s quick to whip up: just add rice or noodles to make it a meal! As busy working parents and cookbook authors, we’re all about meals like these—and this one has become a fan favorite with readers throughout the years!

Featured reader comments

“My new favorite stir fry recipe!! I’m a seasoned cook and super picky! This sauce is perfect and versatile.” -Amy

“This is an incredible recipe. Hands down, the best stir-fry recipe I have ever made. I’m kind of obsessed actually.” -Ashley

Ingredients in this shrimp stir fry

This shrimp stir fry recipe is versatile and customizable based on your tastes. All you need is shrimp and stir fry sauce: then use whatever veggies you love! Here’s what we included as essential ingredients: but you can customize based on your liking:

Shrimp: Fresh or frozen both work in this recipe.
Broccoli or broccolini: Typically we use broccoli, but broccolini has a sweet flavor and a nice look with the long stems.
Bell peppers: Peppers are quick to cook and pack in the nutrients.
Mushrooms (optional): Shiitake mushrooms add big savory flavor, but you can use any type of mushroom, like portobello, cremini, oyster, or maitake.
Green onions: Scallions are quick to cook and add a fresh flavor.
Ginger (optional): Fresh ginger root adds big flavor if you have it.

More vegetables to add

There are lots more veggies you can add to customize this shrimp stir fry. But keep in mind, it’s important not to overstuff your pan! More veggies is not necessarily better. Using too many makes them stack on each other and steam instead of stir fry, resulting in soggy veggies. Use your largest skillet and approximately 6 to 8 cups of vegetables total. Here are a few ideas for more vegetables and how long they take to stir fry:

6 to 7 minutes: broccoli, bell pepper, onion, mushrooms, carrots (thinly sliced or matchsticks)
3 to 5 minutes: cabbage (thinly sliced), zucchini, summer squash, edamame (frozen and shelled), snap peas or snow peas, bok choy (chopped)
1 minute: garlic (minced), ginger (minced), green onion (thinly sliced)

What to look for when buying shrimp

There are lots of options at the store when it comes to shrimp! When you’re shopping for this shrimp stir fry, keep this in mind:

Find medium shrimp (or large). Medium shrimp is our favorite because it’s bite-sized and distributes well with the veggies. Large works too, but the size can overwhelm in a stir fry. Medium is labeled as 41 to 50 count, and Large as 31 to 40 count (indicating how many shrimp there are per pound).
Use tail on or peeled. Tail on looks nice, but you do have to remove the tails with your hands as you eat them! Peeled is nice, especially when serving kids.
Fresh or frozen. Both have essentially the same freshness because most shrimp are immediately flash frozen after they are caught. Make sure to thaw the shrimp in advance.
Look for wild caught. Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms; see Seafood Watch Consumer Guide.

Tips for the stir fry sauce

This shrimp stir fry sauce is customizable to work for any stir fry! We made it first with this tofu stir fry, then realized it would be delicious with just about any protein.

Use this sauce for any stir fry that’s intended for 4 servings and 1 pound of protein, be it chicken, tofu, steak or shrimp. You can make the sauce in advance if you like: whip it up and store in a covered jar or container until you’re ready to cook.

How to serve shrimp stir fry

Once you’ve whipped up this shrimp stir fry, what are the best ways to serve it? Here are a few options for serving suggestions and side dishes to make it a complete meal:

Jasmine rice: Jasmine rice has a lovely fragrant flavor and light texture that makes it our favorite variety, or make any type of white rice or brown rice.
Quinoa: We like mixing it up and serving a stir fry with quinoa every now and then.
Noodles: Serve with these quick and easy soba noodles.
Edamame: Pair this stir fry with edamame or spicy edamame as a side.
Fried Rice: Add fried rice for a filling meal.

Dietary notes

This shrimp stir fry recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, and pescatarian.

Frequently asked questions

What is miso?

Miso is a Japanese fermented soybean paste that’s full of nutrients and salty flavor. It’s known for its intense savory notes, otherwise known as umami. Try to find yellow or white miso for this stir fry sauce if you can. Red or brown miso has a very strong flavor, but it would also work here since the sauce uses a small quantity.

How can I prevent my shrimp from becoming overcooked and rubbery?

Shrimp cook quickly! The key is to not overcook them. Add them to the stir-fry towards the end of the cooking process, and cook just until they turn pink and opaque.

Can I make shrimp stir-fry ahead of time?

It’s best served fresh, but you can prep ingredients ahead of time. Chop your vegetables and make your sauce the day before. Store them separately in the refrigerator, then stir-fry everything together when you’re ready to eat.

Easy Shrimp Stir Fry

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4.7 from 6 reviews

This shrimp stir fry is a go-to fast and healthy dinner! Use any veggies you like with this flavor-packed stir fry sauce.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Asian inspired
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

For the shrimp stir fry

3 tablespoons sesame oil
1 pound shrimp, deveined and shelled (or tail on), wild caught if possible
1 pound broccoli or broccolini (stem on), about 4 cups
2 bell peppers, any color
4 ounces shiitake mushrooms (optional)
2 green onions
1 tablespoon minced ginger, optional

For the stir fry sauce

¼ cup soy sauce (or tamari or coconut aminos)
6 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon yellow or white miso
2 teaspoons cornstarch (or arrowroot powder)
¼ teaspoon garlic powder

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Instructions

Thaw the shrimp, if frozen.
Chop the veggies: Chop the broccoli. Thinly slice the bell peppers. Remove the stems of the shiitake mushrooms and slice (or if using baby shiitakes, you can leave the stems on).
Make the stir fry sauce: Whisk together all ingredients until a smooth sauce forms.
Cook the vegetables: In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium high heat. Add the broccoli or broccolini, bell pepper and mushrooms. Add 2 pinches kosher salt and cook 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crisp tender. Remove the vegetables to bowl.
Cook the shrimp: Add the additional 1 tablespoon sesame oil to the pan. Add the shrimp, green onions and ginger (optional). Cook for 1 to 2 minutes until the shrimp are almost opaque, turning once. Then add back the vegetables and the sauce. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the sauce is thickened.

More shrimp recipes

Love eating pescatarian recipes? Here a few shrimp recipes to add to your arsenal:

Try shrimp risotto, shrimp fra diavolo or shrimp lettuce wraps.
Go for a shrimp and rice skillet, or pastas like shrimp linguine, garlic shrimp pasta or shrimp primavera.
Mix it up with quick Cajun shrimp or honey garlic shrimp.

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Easy Shrimp and Rice Skillet

Honey Garlic Shrimp

45 Easy Shrimp Recipes

Easy Tortelloni

Sonja Overhiser — Sun, 01 Dec 2024 15:00:00 +0000

This tortelloni pasta could not be tastier paired with tomato cream sauce! The rich, tangy sauce pairs perfectly with chewy pasta pillows.

Got tortelloni? This delicious pasta is often mistaken for tortellini, but it’s easily the better of the cousin pasta shapes. The larger of the two is delightfully tender, with a generous gooey filling.

Here’s our favorite way to serve them: with a tangy, garlicky tomato sauce, with a touch of richness from a hint of cream. It’s a great way to make them into a tasty vegetarian dinner or easy side dish. This one has been a huge hit with all our friends and family!

What is tortelloni?

It’s easy to grab a package of tortelloni pasta and mistake it for the smaller pasta shape. What is tortelloni vs tortellini?

Tortelloni is a pasta shape that is larger than tortellini with a filled center. Tortellini is smaller and ring shaped, with a hole in the middle. In traditional Italian cooking, tortelloni filling is vegetarian whereas tortellini often has meat. Tortellini is also often served in broth, whereas tortelloni is served with creamy sauces.
Where to find it? Tortelloni is easy to find the refrigerated section at your local grocery. It’s usually not available dried or frozen (though you can find tortellini dried and frozen).
How to tell the difference quickly? Tortellini has a hole in the middle, tortelloni has a solid center that encloses the filling.

Ways to serve tortelloni: sauces, soups and more

Tortelloni is our preference over tortellini because it’s larger and more substantial. It’s great for serving with creamy sauces, whereas the smaller pasta shape can get lost. Here are some of the top ways to eat tortelloni:

Tomato sauce: Tortelloni works well with marinara sauce or tomato cream sauce.
Cream sauce: Try garlic butter sauce, white wine sauce or parmesan cream sauce.
Pesto sauce: Swirl the pasta in pesto cream sauce or make pesto tortellini.
Soup: Add a basil-scented tomato broth for tortelloni soup.
Pasta salad: Use tortelloni for a simple tortellini salad.
Baked: Make this easy cheesy baked tortellini.

Tips for the tomato sauce

This tomato cream sauce is our favorite way to serve tortelloni. It’s similar to a vodka sauce, but instead of slow cooking it for hours you can whip it up in just 30 minutes.

Find best quality canned tomatoes. Our top choice is fire roasted tomatoes: the flavor is sweet and developed right out of the can. Or look for San Marzano, an Italian variety of tomato with a sweet flavor. If you can’t find either, just find the best quality canned tomatoes you can find.
Use fennel seeds. The fennel adds add hearty, meaty flavor that can’t be replicated.
Simmer until thickened. This should take between 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the brand of tomatoes. Longer is always better, if you have the time!

Make it a meal—side dishes for tortelloni

Whip up a pan of this tortelloni, and you’re on your way to a delicious meal! You can serve it as a meatless main, or a side dish in part of a larger spread. We’ve served it as a side dish for salmon in a meal al fresco, and all our guests raved! Here are some ideas for making it into a meal:

Broccoli: Serve it with pan fried broccoli or roasted broccoli.
Green beans: Try sauteed green beans or roasted green beans.
Asparagus: Make broiled asparagus or roasted asparagus
Greens: Mix up leafy greens like sauteed kale, sauteed rainbow chard or sauteed spinach.
Salads: Try goat cheese salad, arugula salad, spring mix salad, Italian salad or chopped salad.

Dietary notes

This tortelloni recipe is vegetarian. For gluten-free, use gluten free tortelloni.

Easy Tortelloni

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

Tortelloni could not be tastier paired with tomato cream sauce! The rich, tangy sauce pairs perfectly with chewy pasta pillows.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 0 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Italian inspired
Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

18 ounces refrigerated cheese tortelloni*
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
28 ounce crushed tomatoes (fire roasted if possible)
1 ½ tablespoons (double concentrated) tomato paste or 3 tablespoons normal tomato paste
6 tablespoons heavy cream
1/2 yellow onion, peeled
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Fresh ground black pepper
To serve: Parmesan cheese, fresh basil (optional)

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Instructions

Make the sauce: Mince the garlic. Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and fennel seeds and cook for about 1 minute until fragrant and the garlic is golden (do not allow to brown). Turn the heat to medium low. Add the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, ¼ cup of the heavy cream, the half onion, and the salt. Simmer 20 to 30 minutes until the sauce is thickened. When thickened, remove the half onion and stir in remaining 2 tablespoons heavy cream.
Cook the pasta: Start a large pot of well-salted water to boil. Boil the pasta until al dente according to the package instructions (usually around 2 minutes).
Serve: When the sauce is done, add the pasta to the skillet. Top with Parmesan shavings and fresh basil, if desired.

Try it in these tortellini recipes

Can you use tortellini in this tortelloni recipe? Absolutely! These pasta types are easy to swap. You can also use tortelloni in these tasty tortellini recipes:

Try creamy tortellini soup or vegetarian tortellini soup
Mix up cheese tortellini in creamy marinara sauce or pesto tortellini
Make tasty tortellini salad
Fire up the oven for baked tortellini

Creamy Tortellini Soup

Cheese Tortellini in Creamy Marinara

Easy Tortellini Salad

Baked Tortellini

Quick Dinner Idea: 5 Minute Tacos

Sonja Overhiser — Sat, 30 Nov 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Need quick easy dinner ideas for tonight? These simple 5-minute tacos actually deliver in minutes. Prepare to be amazed!

Hello, hungry eater in need of a quick and easy dinner idea! We’re obsessed with finding meals that are three things: fast, simple, and delicious. Here’s a question: Is a 5-minute dinner recipe possible?

Well, we think we’ve nailed it with this recipe. Try these 5 minute tacos, filled with a hearty filling that really does come together in minutes. WOW. You’ve got to try these.

Our top quick dinner idea

What’s for dinner tonight? It all started with a challenge from my sister. I asked her what kind of recipes she’d like to see on our website. She asked, “Can you make a 5-minute dinner recipe?” Of course, that got our wheels turning. Because the question we’re asked again and again is: What are your top quick and easy dinner ideas?

The format: a taco. We often make tacos or quesadillas as weeknight dinners, and they’re a good format for quick and easy dinners.
The filling: a taco-spiced scramble. Adding cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder to scrambled eggs and cooking them on low heat magically forms a meaty substance that’s perfect for tacos. The texture looks oddly similar to chorizo.
The verdict: so good. We whipped up a batch and served our 5-minute tacos to my sister. Her response: “Whoa. These are SO good.”

Can you really make them in 5 minutes?

That’s a good question. 5 minutes is pretty ambitious, right? Our answer: Yes, these tacos can be made in 5 minutes. Depending on your environment, it may take you between 5 and 10 minutes to finish this recipe. But either way: it’s one of the quickest dinner ideas you’ll make. Here’s what you need to pull it off in 5 minutes:

A quick chef who’s confident in the kitchen.
No children or pets interrupting things!
Memorizing the recipe before you start. We’ve made it easy to memorize using ½ tablespoon of all the spices and olive oil.

How to keep tortillas warm

A warm tortilla is key to a good taco. You can warm them over a flame on the stovetop, in a skillet, or in the microwave (see How to Warm Tortillas). Tortillas start cooling the moment they’re off the flame, so they can end up cold within minutes.

Luckily, there’s an invention for this problem: a tortilla warmer! It’s an insulated pouch traps in the heat and keeps them perfectly heated. It’s optional, but we like having one around at the rate we eat tacos!

More topping ideas

Of course, you can use any toppings you’d like for these 5-minute tacos! This quick dinner idea is completely customizable to what you have in your kitchen. If you have some things laying around in your refrigerator, this is the perfect way to use them! Here are a few more adders we’d suggest: but only if you have them on hand:

Sour cream or cashew cream
Avocado slices
Chopped tomatoes
Shredded cheese
Pickled red onions
Sliced cabbage
Lime juice

Dietary notes

This 5 minute tacos recipe is vegetarian and gluten-free.

Quick Dinner Idea: 5-Minute Tacos

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5 from 6 reviews

Need a quick easy dinner idea for tonight? These simple 5-minute tacos actually deliver in minutes. Prepare to be amazed!

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 2 minute
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 2 servings (4 tacos)
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Mexican Inspired

Ingredients

4 eggs
½ tablespoon chili powder
½ tablespoon garlic powder
½ tablespoon cumin
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
½ tablespoon olive oil
4 taco sized tortillas or 8 mini tortillas
Purchased salsa fresca or pico de gallo
1 handful thinly sliced red onion
Torn cilantro leaves
Hot sauce

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Instructions

In a medium bowl, whisk together the 4 eggs. Add the chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, and kosher salt, and whisk until combined.
In a skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the eggs and cook over medium low heat, scraping as the eggs solidify, about 3 to 4 minutes total. As you scrape, they’ll start to form together into a meat-like texture. Don’t scrape too much or you’ll make too small of pieces: just enough for that it comes together!
If time, warm and char the tortillas by placing them on an open gas flame on medium for a few seconds per side, flipping with tongs, until they are slightly blackened and warm. (See How to Warm Tortillas.)
Top with salsa fresca (drain extra liquid before serving), thin sliced red onions, torn cilantro leaves, and hot sauce.

Notes

The filling for these quick tacos we call taco-spiced eggs. We stumbled on this trick and we use it all the time. In addition to this quick dinner idea, you can use taco-spiced scrambled eggs for a tasty breakfast or brunch, filling for a breakfast burrito or breakfast sandwich, protein for a burrito bowl or rice bowl, or in place of taco meat in a taco salad.

More fast and easy dinner recipes

Here at A Couple Cooks, we love fast and easy dinner recipes! Here are some of our favorite seriously fast recipes and collections:

Try our favorite easy dinner ideas or dinner ideas for one
Make a chickpea salad sandwich, this easy quesadilla recipe, or a 5-minute seared tuna recipe
Go for this easy gnocchi sauce or a pita pizza

50 Easy Dinner Ideas

40 Top Vegetarian Dinner Recipes

50 Healthy Dinner Ideas

25 Easy Pasta Dinner Ideas

Honey Garlic Shrimp

Sonja Overhiser — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 13:00:00 +0000

This honey garlic shrimp is so irresistible, you’ll want to eat it every night! A sweet savory glaze covers succulent shrimp, and it’s done in 10 minutes.

Every now and then a recipe comes along that knocks our socks off—and so it was with this honey garlic shrimp recipe! There’s nothing like the sweet savory combination of honey garlic glaze and juicy shrimp. The best part? It takes 10 minutes to make.

This honey garlic shrimp hits all the comforting, satisfying dinner notes with a lightning fast prep speed: making it one of Alex and my favorite easy dinner ideas after over a decade of creating recipes! It’s hard to find those recipes with that trifecta of healthy, simple, and delicious—and this one is a keeper.

The secrets behind honey garlic shrimp—in 10 minutes

There’s no marinating time needed with this honey garlic shrimp. It’s the ultimate fast and easy dinner idea that comes together in just 10 minutes! Here are a few of the secrets to this kitchen magic trick (or jump to the recipe below):

Mix the shrimp with minced garlic, onion powder, and salt. This allows maximum coverage of the seasoning on the shrimp first.
Mix together a quick sauce. Honey, soy sauce, and rice vinegar is all you need!
Sauté 1 to 2 minutes per side. It’s perfectly seared, just like our popular sautéed shrimp.
Turn off the heat and add the sauce! Removing the heat is important so the sauce doesn’t evaporate when it hits the hot pan. Stir until everything is fully coated in glossy sauce.

The best shrimp to buy

When you’re shopping for shrimp, there are so many options at the store. If you’re making this honey garlic shrimp, here’s what we’d recommend:

Find medium shrimp (or large). Medium is nice because you get more bites! Medium is also labeled as 41 to 50 count, and Large as 31 to 40 count (which indicates how many shrimp there are per pound).
Use tail on or peeled. Tail on looks nice, but you do have to remove the tails as you eat them! Peeled shrimp is helpful if desired.
Buy fresh or frozen. Both are essentially the same freshness because most shrimp are immediately flash frozen when caught. Just make sure to thaw the shrimp in advance.
Look for wild caught. Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms; see Seafood Watch Consumer Guide.

How to thaw shrimp

What’s the best way to thaw shrimp? The easiest way is to remember to place it in the refrigerator the night before! But if you’re like us and rarely think ahead, there’s a quick method too. Here’s the best way to thaw shrimp:

Day before: Place the frozen shrimp in the refrigerator overnight.
Day of: Place the frozen shrimp in a large bowl with very cold water. Stir the bowl every 5 minutes to break up clumps of shrimp that freeze together. The shrimp should defrost in about 15 minutes. Make sure to pat it dry before using!

Ways to serve honey garlic shrimp

All you need are a side dish or two to make honey garlic shrimp into a healthy dinner that everyone will love. Our favorite picks is serving simply with rice and broccoli. Every time we make it, everyone around the table raves. Even our kids inhale it! This is one of those recipes I could eat at least 6 out of 7 days of the week and be happy. Here are a few side dish ideas:

Broccoli: Whip up pan fried broccoli in a separate pan, or use the same pan after you cook the shrimp.
Rice: Go to white rice or brown rice. (Or try lentil rice, rice made from lentils: it cooks even faster!)
Veggie sauté: Pair with these sauteed veggies.
Edamame: Try edamame or shelled edamame.
Stir fry: Pair with a cauliflower stir fry for a stunning meal.
Snow peas: Try easy snow peas.

Dietary notes

This honey garlic shrimp recipe is pescatarian, gluten-free and dairy free (with olive oil).

Honey Garlic Shrimp (10 Minutes!)

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 5 reviews

This honey garlic shrimp is so irresistible, you’ll want to eat it every night! A sweet savory glaze covers succulent shrimp, and it’s done in 10 minutes.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 6 minutes
Cook Time: 4 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Seafood
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds medium or large shrimp, deveined (tail on or peeled)
3 garlic cloves
½ teaspoon onion powder
Heaping ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup honey
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoon cornstarch
3 tablespoons sesame oil

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Instructions

Thaw the shrimp, if using frozen.
Mince the garlic. Pat the shrimp dry. Stir it together with the minced garlic, onion powder and kosher salt.
Mix the honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and cornstarch in a small bowl, mixing until mostly smooth (a few small lumps are ok).
In a large skillet, heat the sesame oil on medium high heat. Cook the shrimp for 1 to 2 minutes per side until opaque and cooked through, turning them with tongs.
Turn off the heat and remove the shrimp. Add the glaze to the pan and stir until thickened, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Once thickened, stir the shrimp back into the sauce and serve.

More shrimp recipes

There are so many great ways to eat this tasty seafood! Shrimp features in many of our easy dinner ideas. Here are some of our favorite healthy shrimp recipes:

Go for fast dinners, like a shrimp stir fry, BBQ shrimp or shrimp fajitas.
Opt for classic shrimp scampi, shrimp linguine or shrimp and rice.
Make pasta like garlic shrimp pasta or shrimp primavera.
Grab a shrimp roll, Cajun shrimp or blackened shrimp.
Whip up fan favorite shrimp pasta, shrimp pizza, or shrimp fried rice.

Easy Shrimp and Rice Skillet

Shrimp Stir Fry

45 Easy Shrimp Recipes

Shrimp Linguine

Baked Tilapia with Lemon

Sonja Overhiser — Thu, 14 Nov 2024 15:00:00 +0000

This baked tilapia recipe is bursting with flavor! Pair the fish with lemon, tomatoes and feta for an impressive yet easy dinner. This recipe has become a fan-favorite with many 5 star reviews!

Here’s a tilapia recipe with a total wow factor: this baked tilapia with tomatoes and feta! The tender, flaky fish is covered in a lemon garlic sauce, cozied up with burst cherry tomatoes, Mediterranean seasonings and gooey bits of feta cheese.

If you think baked fish sounds boring, this recipe is for you! Each bite is savory with just the right pop of brightness. It’s ready in just over 30 minutes and great for impressing on weeknights or dinner parties. This one has been made and loved by many readers over the years!

Featured reader comments

“I loved this recipe. Simple, tasty and healthy. Even my fussy eaters enjoyed it. This will become a regular meal at my home.” -Nicole

“This is my new favorite A Couple Cooks recipe! So flavorful and easy to make. This is absolutely going on the regular dinner rotation at our house!” -Sarah

Ingredients for this baked tilapia recipe

This baked tilapia recipe is the ideal healthy dinner that’s impressively delicious. To be honest, when we’re meal planning the idea “baked fish” never feels that exciting. But this one? It was so tasty the first time we made it, we couldn’t wait to share it with you. The zing of the lemon, melty feta and tomatoes, and briny pop of capers make it irresistibly fresh. Here’s what you’ll need for this recipe:

Tilapia fillets
Cherry tomatoes, shallot, garlic, and lemon
Olive oil
Feta cheese
Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, smoked paprika
Capers
Parsley, for garnish

How to bake tilapia

Tilapia is a white fish with a mild, subtly sweet flavor. It doesn’t tasty fishy, so it’s good for people who think they don’t like fish. Tilapia is easy to bake: you can simply season with olive oil and salt, or add the tomatoes and feta like in the recipe below. Like any fish, how long to bake tilapia depends on its thickness:

Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Season the fish with olive oil and salt, and add any vegetables that will be cooking alongside it (see below.)
Bake for 23 to 28 minutes, depending on thickness, until the tilapia is flaky or reaches an internal temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit.

A few tips for seasoning

This baked tilapia is one of our favorite weeknight dinner recipes to date, because it looks and tastes so beautifully fun and fresh. A Mediterranean diet recipe, it goes big on lemon, garlic and olive oil. Here are a few notes on the seasoning here:

Bake the tilapia with lemon slices, then remove when serving. Mixing the lemon slices right into the veggies makes for bold citrus flavor. Remove them when serving: unless you love very citrusy flavors. If so, you can definitely eat the lemon slices: they’re extra tangy!
Don’t omit the capers! Capers are a berry of the caper bush that’s native to the Mediterranean. They’re round and dark green gray, about the size of a peppercorn. Find them in the jarred section next to the olives at the grocery store. Their briny, salty flavor absolutely makes the dish!
Feta is also key. You can omit it for dairy-free diets. But the small melty chunks of feta cheese sprinkled throughout is what makes this dish! We’ll admit, we were loosely inspired by the viral TikTok baked feta pasta for this flavor combination: and it’s spot on.

What to look for when buying tilapia

Is tilapia a sustainable fish? The vast quantity of tilapia available to buy is farm raised, so you’ll want to look for responsibly farmed tilapia. Here’s what Monterrey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch recommends:

Look for tilapia farmed in Peru in raceways and Ecuador in ponds. Then look for tilapia from Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, Indonesia, and Taiwan.
Tilapia is a Best Choice when farmed in indoor recirculating tanks with wastewater treatment and a Good Alternative when the wastewater isn’t treated.
Also, look for tilapia certified by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council, Best Aquaculture Practices, and Naturland.

Sides to serve alongside

Make this baked tilapia into a meal by pairing it with a quick salad or veggie side dish! Here are a few ideas that keep the oven free:

Green salads like romaine salad, butter lettuce salad, fennel salad, endive salad, frisee salad, kale salad or arugula salad.
Sauteed vegetables like sauteed green beans, sauteed broccolini, pan fried broccoli, or sauteed vegetables.
Whole grains like spinach rice, lemon rice, or seasoned quinoa.
Pasta like angel hair pasta, linguine pasta, couscous, orzo, or couscous salad

Dietary notes

This baked tilapia recipe is pescatarian and gluten-free. For dairy-free, omit the feta cheese.

Baked Tilapia

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.9 from 27 reviews

This baked tilapia recipe is bursting with flavor! Pair the fish with lemon, tomatoes and feta for an impressive yet easy dinner.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main dish
Method: Baked
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small lemon, thinly sliced into rings
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
4 ounce block feta cheese
1 1/2 pounds tilapia
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
½ teaspoon smoked paprika (or standard paprika)
2 tablespoons drained capers
Finely chopped fresh parsley or basil, for garnish
Fresh ground black pepper

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Chop the tomatoes, shallot, garlic, and lemon as noted above.
Place the chopped vegetables and lemon slices in the bottom of a 9 x 13″ baking dish and mix with 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and fresh ground black pepper. Crumble the feta cheese into rough chunks and add it to the pan, tossing gently to combine.
Pat the tilapia dry. Rub it with 1 tablespoon olive oil and ½ teaspoon kosher salt, split between the filets. Place it on top of the vegetables and feta in the pan. Sprinkle both fillets with the Italian seasoning and a few grinds fresh ground black pepper, then add the red pepper flakes and smoked paprika. Sprinkle the capers over the top.
Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes (depending on the thickness of the fish), until the fish is flaky and the internal temperature is 140 degrees Fahrenheit when measured with a food thermometer. Garnish with chopped parsley and remove the lemon slices when serving (or eat them if you like!).

More tilapia recipes

Tilapia is a favorite fish around here: it’s even milder than salmon, so it’s great for pleasing everyone. Here are a few more tilapia recipes to sample:

Grab crispy parmesan crusted tilapia or blackened tilapia
Make tasty pan fried tilapia or lemon pepper tilapia
Make crowd-pleasing tilapia fish tacos or fire up the grill for grilled tilapia
Try other fish recipes like our cod recipes or salmon recipes

Easy Grilled Tilapia

Tilapia Fish Tacos

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

Easy Blackened Tilapia

Cauliflower Stir Fry

Sonja Overhiser — Tue, 12 Nov 2024 13:00:00 +0000

This easy cauliflower stir fry is a healthy and easy dinner idea! It’s full of nutrients and covered in a punchy sauce.

Hands up if you love cauliflower! (All hands raise, over here.) This vegetable has star status among veggies these days: because there are endless creative ways to use it. Make it into tacos, use it as a plant based stand-in buffalo wings, or hide it in vegan alfredo sauce.

Here’s our new favorite way to use these tasty florets: in a cauliflower stir fry! Fry it until lightly charred and tender, then add bell peppers and a punchy stir fry sauce. It’s the best way to make eating your veggies irresistible! Try it as a healthy side dish or an easy plant based dinner (with the protein adders below).

Ingredients in this cauliflower stir fry

This cauliflower stir fry is fast and easy to make! On its own it works as a side dish, but eat it with a plant based protein (see below) and it’s an easy dinner. The main thing to note is that cauliflower requires much more time to stir fry than other veggies, so you’ll need to add it to the pan first. Here are the basic ingredients you’ll need for this stir fry:

Cauliflower
Bell peppers
White onion
Green onions
Stir fry sauce: rice vinegar, soy sauce, miso, gochujang (optional), sugar, sesame oil and cornstarch

Nutrition note: This recipe uses 2 bell peppers along with the cauliflower. 1 medium red bell pepper provides 169% of your daily vitamin C, so using 2 knocks this vitamin off the charts (Source)!

Notes on the stir fry sauce

This cauliflower stir fry has an incredible stir fry sauce that brings in lots of savory, salty and sweet flavor! Use the recipe as printed, or another option is our Go To Stir Fry Sauce. It’s just as good and is an oil free option. Here are a few notes on the ingredients in the stir fry sauce:

Soy sauce: Use regular sodium to get the full seasoning. Tamari is a gluten free soy substitute, or use coconut aminos for a soy free gluten free substitute. You may need to add a pinch more salt in both cases.
Cornstarch: Arrow root powder is an effective substitute for cornstarch in stir fry sauces!
Miso: Miso is a Japanese fermented soybean paste that’s full of nutrients and savory flavor. It’s a must in this sauce and can’t be replicated. You can find miso in the international foods aisle near the Japanese ingredients. There are lots of types of miso: we used yellow or light miso here (use the rest for these 10 Easy Miso Recipes).
Gochujang (optional): Want to add a little spicy funkiness to your sauce? This Korean chili paste steps it up a notch.

How to make a cauliflower stir fry: some tips!

This cauliflower stir fry is easy recipe, but there are a few things to note to make it come out perfectly. Here’s what to know:

Stir fry the cauliflower about 5 minutes before adding other veggies. Here’s the kicker: cauliflower takes much longer than other veggies to stir fry. If you add them all at once, it will come out too tough. Make sure to follow the instructions exactly.
Use medium high heat. The point of a stir fry is to cook at high heat: quickly. This will get nice char marks onto your cauliflower.
Don’t double the recipe. The biggest tip for a stir fry: you can’t crowd the pan! If there are too many veggies, they’ll steam instead of stir fry. If you want to increase quantities, cook the veggies in batches then re-warm everything together.

Add protein to make it a main dish

Are you serving this cauliflower stir fry as a main dish? It’s a perfect healthy meal or fast and easy dinner idea. Just make sure to serve with a whole grain and consider adding protein to keep it filling. Here are some ideas:

Serve with Rice: Rice has protein (about 10% of your daily needs in 1 cup cooked) and fiber, which helps to make a filling meal. Try our White Rice, Brown Rice, or Instant Pot Rice.
Cashews: Throw ¾ cup cashews into this stir fry when you add the cauliflower. This makes a main dish of about 2 to 3 servings.
Edamame: Add 1 cup shelled, frozen edamame in the last 2 to 3 minutes of the cook time. Or eat edamame in the shell as a side: try Easy Edamame or Spicy Edamame.
Tofu: Cook Marinated Tofu or Pan Fried Tofu, then add it once the stir fry is done.
Shrimp: Make Garlic Shrimp but use sesame oil instead of butter and omit the lemon.

Or serve cauliflower stir fry as a side dish

You also can serve this cauliflower stir fry as a side dish instead! It would be fantastic with the following healthy whole food dinner recipes:

Salmon: It would be perfect with teriyaki salmon , pan seared salmon, or miso salmon.
Fried Rice: Add alongside takeout-style fried rice or shrimp fried rice.
Noodles: Serve with quick soba noodles or this soba noodle bowl.
Tofu: Serve alongside your favorite tofu recipe.

Another great stir fry? Try Baby Bok Choy Stir Fry.

Dietary notes

This cauliflower stir fry recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.

Easy Cauliflower Stir Fry

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 8 reviews

This easy cauliflower stir fry is an ideal healthy and easy dinner idea! It’s full of nutrients and covered in a punchy sauce.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 3 to 4 as a main with added protein, 4 as a side
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stir Fry
Cuisine: Asian inspired
Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

1 medium head cauliflower (2 pounds)
1 red bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 medium white onion
3 green onions
3 tablespoons rice vinegar*
¼ cup soy sauce (or tamari or coconut aminos)
1 tablespoon light miso
½ tablespoon gochujang (optional)
2 tablespoons sugar (or maple syrup)
2 tablespoons sesame oil (regular, not toasted)
1 teaspoon cornstarch (or arrowroot powder)
3 tablespoons neutral oil for stir frying, divided
To serve as a main dish: Add ¾ cup cashews with cauliflower**, add 1 cup shelled frozen edamame in the last 2 to 3 minutes, or add Marinated Tofu, Pan Fried Tofu, or Sauteed Shrimp and serve with rice

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Instructions

Chop the cauliflower into small florets. Thinly slice the bell peppers. Thinly slice the white onion. Thinly slice the green onion.
In a medium bowl, whisk together rice vinegar, soy sauce, miso, gochujang, sugar, sesame oil, and cornstarch (or make the Go To Stir Fry Sauce).
In large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons neutral oil over medium high heat. Add the cauliflower and a pinch of salt and cook unstirring, for 3 to 4 minutes until charred. Flip the florets and continue cooking for 2 minutes.
Add the bell peppers, white onion, a pinch of salt and the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and cook 4 to 6 minutes until tender.
Turn off the heat. Pour in the sauce and add the green onions. Stir until the sauce coats everything and thickens. Serve immediately.

Notes

*Or substitute the Go To Stir Fry Sauce for the sauce ingredients (oil free).

**Adding cashews would serve about 2 to 3 as a vegetarian main; adding tofu can stretch it to 4.

More great cauliflower recipes

There are so many tasty cauliflower recipes to try if you love this healthy veggie! Here are a few of our favorites:

These buffalo cauliflower wings are crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and tossed with spicy buffalo sauce.
No one can resist this Parmesan roasted cauliflower! It’s as irresistible as French fries, baked in a hot oven until browned and crisp.
This cauliflower sauce is like a healthy alfredo sauce, using cauliflower as a base! It has less calories and all the benefits of this healthy veggie.

Lemon Ricotta Pasta

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 15:00:00 +0000

This lemon ricotta pasta recipe makes a creamy, zingy sauce in minutes! It’s a shortcut that makes mealtime easy.

Here’s a quick and simple pasta recipe that’s the perfect shortcut for weeknights: lemon ricotta pasta! Mixing ricotta cheese with olive oil, Parmesan and a little pasta water makes a makeshift white sauce that’s ideal for coating on long noodles (who knew!).

This quick weeknight trick has become a staple over here: the zing of the lemon zest makes it absolutely irresistible not to keep slurping down noodles.

Ingredients in lemon ricotta pasta

Ricotta is a creamy Italian cheese with a mild flavor that’s famous for its use in lasagna: but it’s ideal for long noodles, too. The great part about this lemon ricotta pasta? It requires just 1 minute of cooking to form a beautifully creamy white sauce. You’ll literally stir together a few ingredients and voila: a creamy sauce. Here’s what you’ll need for whipping up this pasta at home:

Bucatini or spaghetti noodles (or your noodle of choice)
Ricotta cheese
Olive oil
Grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper
Lemon zest

Tips for lemon ricotta pasta

This lemon ricotta pasta recipe could not be easier: boil the pasta, stir together the sauce ingredients, and combine! There’s not much cooking here. But there are a few minor tips that can make or break the recipe:

Save the pasta water! This ingredient is used to make a creamy sauce. It’s easy to forget (been there), so my mom shared a tip with us that helps. After you start the pasta, place your strainer in the sink, then place a liquid measuring cup inside as a reminder. When you go to dump the pasta, you’ll think: what’s that liquid measuring cup? Oh yes, I need to save the pasta water!
Make sure to cook the pasta to al dente. This means “to the bite” in Italian: when it’s tender with a small white speck inside when you bite into a piece. Boil it a few minutes less than the package instructions indicate, and start taste testing early!
The texture is best when served immediately. This lemon ricotta pasta is best when the pasta is freshly cooked and it’s warm: especially since you use the pasta water to help create the sauce. You can eat it later, but it does get drier in texture.

Storing leftovers

Want to eat this lemon ricotta pasta the next day? You can, though it’s not quite as good as the day of. This pasta is best with piping hot fresh pasta and sauce warm from the stove. It does get a gummier texture as it sits, and especially once it’s cooled. Here’s how to freshen up your leftovers:

Leftovers become drier over time, and with refrigeration. You can store the pasta about 2 days refrigerated, but the texture becomes drier.
How to reheat it? You can reheat the pasta with a splash of milk on the stovetop, and revive the flavors with a pinch or two of salt. Make sure to generously garnish with grated Parmesan cheese as well.

What to serve with lemon ricotta pasta

Want a few fast and easy side dishes to serve with this pasta? Anything from a quick green salad to lemony peas works here. If you’re serving it as a main dish, think about dishes that add additional protein. Here are a few ideas:

Green salad like arugula salad, grapefruit salad, butter lettuce salad, or spring mix salad
Legumes like peas with lemon or white beans
Veggies like shaved Brussels sprouts, roasted broccoli and cauliflower, sauteed green beans, roasted broccoli or roasted broccolini.

Dietary notes

This lemon ricotta pasta recipe is vegetarian. For gluten-free, use gluten-free pasta.

Lemon Ricotta Pasta

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.9 from 8 reviews

This lemon ricotta pasta recipe makes a creamy, zingy sauce in minutes! It’s a shortcut that makes mealtime easy.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Pasta
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Italian
Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

12 ounces bucatini or spaghetti
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more to garnish
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Zest of 1 lemon (plus reserve some for garnish)
¼ cup pasta water
For the garnish: chopped parsley, red pepper flakes (optional)

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Instructions

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until it is al dente, testing a few minutes before the package instructions indicate. Using a glass liquid measuring cup, reserve ½ cup of the hot pasta water, then drain the pasta.
In a saucepan, mix the ricotta, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, kosher salt, black pepper, lemon zest, and ¼ cup pasta water. Warm over medium heat and stir until a creamy sauce forms, about 1 minute.
Pour the sauce onto the noodles and stir to combine. Add another splash of pasta water to help the sauce coat the noodles. Serve with chopped parsley, additional grated Parmesan cheese and the reserved lemon zest. (Leftovers last 2 days refrigerated but the sauce becomes thick when cold. Reheat with a splash of milk and additional kosher salt to revive the flavors.)

More ricotta recipes

Ricotta makes magic with pasta, toast, desserts, and more! Here are some of our favorite ricotta recipes:

Try irresistibly tasty Lemon Ricotta Pancakes or Ricotta Pancakes
Go for creamy Whipped Ricotta
Opt for fun and customizable Ricotta Toast
Try Lasagna with Ricotta or Ricotta Pizza

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Vegetarian Lasagna with Ricotta

Ricotta Pizza

Ricotta Pancakes

Easy Black Bean Chili

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 15:00:00 +0000

This black bean chili recipe is easy to make and full of big flavor! This is the one we make on the regular, and it impresses our friends and family every time. A fan fave!

Can you have too many chili recipes? We think not. Introducing our new favorite easy spin…this black bean chili recipe! It’s beyond simple to make, and the flavor is outstanding. (We hope you’ll agree.)

It’s got a hint of smokiness to highlight the tangy tomatoes and savory black beans. Top it with your favorite toppings, and it’s so hearty and savory, you’ll forget it’s healthy, too.

Ingredients in this black bean chili recipe

This vegetarian black bean chili recipe was inspired by open fire cooking. In fact, we first made it around our firepit during a kitchen reno! We adapted our healthy chili recipe to be even simpler so it was easy enough to cook on a fire. This is the stovetop version of it, and it’s got lots of great ingredients to bring massive flavor with little effort:

Onion and garlic: Aromatic veggies form the base of this chili.
Olive oil and butter: Butter adds the richness you crave in a vegetarian chili (substitute vegan butter if desired).
Quinoa: Whole grain quinoa adds thickness and depth.
Black beans, corn, and canned tomatoes: We like using fire roasted tomatoes for the best sweet flavor.
Mustard, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce: These condiments add tangy and savory notes.
Chili powder, oregano, garlic powder, cumin, and smoked paprika: The smoked paprika emulates the smokiness of the campfire chili.

Chili toppings: dress it up!

This vegetarian black bean chili is simple and elegant. In fact, you only really need to dice an onion and garlic, and let your stove do the rest of the work for you! Once it’s done, dress it up with the toppings of your choice. Here are our top choices, and then a few more creative ideas:

Sour cream and cheese: Just a little goes a long way! We think these are required. For vegan, use Cashew Cream or Vegan Queso.
Green onion: Thinly sliced green onion is the best fresh accessory.
Cilantro: Fresh cilantro leaves are a great addition.
Hot sauce: Naturally! A favorite is a Mexican hot sauce like Cholula.
Roasted salted pepitas: This unique option adds a salty crunch.
Pickled jalapenos or onions: Pickled jalapeños add a kick! If you think ahead, pickled onions are a favorite of ours: they add bright color and tangy flavor.

Storing leftovers

This black bean chili recipe stores well and is great for leftovers! Here are a few notes on leftover storage:

Refrigerate for up to 3 days. It can become very thick, so you may need to add a splash of water when reheating.
Freeze for up to 3 months. This recipe works well frozen in a freezer-safe container.

Ways to serve black bean chili

There are so many ways to serve this black bean chili recipe — straight up in a bowl, or with more creative options! Here are a few ways to accessorize it:

Cornbread or corn muffins: Try cornbread muffins, Mexican cornbread, skillet cornbread, homemade cornbread or vegan cornbread.
Salad: Try goat cheese salad, Brussels sprout salad or kale salad.
Baked potatoes or sweet potato wedges: Try chili baked potatoes or as a topping for sweet potato wedges.
Serve over fries: Make it into chili cheese fries.

Variation: cook it on an open fire

This black bean chili recipe is an ideal campfire chili, too! We first made this one over an open fire when our kitchen was undergoing a renovation. The fire infuses an incredible smokiness to the flavor.

If you can, use a hardwood for the fire (oak or cherry). These woods have the best flavor for cooking food.
Omit the smoked paprika if desired. You don’t need it since the fire infuses smoky flavor.
You can prep in advance for camping. If you’re taking it camping, prep the minced onion and garlic and place in a sealed container. Place the ingredients from water through salt in another large sealed container (keep out the dry quinoa and add when cooking).

Dietary notes

This black bean chili recipe is vegetarian and gluten-free. For vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free, replace the butter as noted in the recipe below.

Easy Black Bean Chili

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.2 from 11 reviews

This black bean chili recipe is easy to make and full of big flavor! This is the one we make on the regular, and it impresses our friends and family every time. A fan fave!

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
Category: Main dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

1 medium yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
⅓ cup dry quinoa
1 cup water
3 15-ounce cans black beans, drained (not rinsed)
2 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes, fire roasted if possible
4 tablespoons salted butter (replace with 2 tablespoons olive oil or refined coconut oil for vegan)
1 15-ounce can corn (or 1 ½ cups frozen corn)
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ cup ketchup
2 tablespoons each chili powder and dried oregano
1 tablespoon each garlic powder and cumin
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon smoked paprika

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Instructions

Dice the onion. Mince the garlic.
In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, until tender.
Add all other ingredients except for the smoked paprika. Simmer for 25 minutes, then stir in the smoked paprika. Serve immediately with toppings of your choice. Store leftovers refrigerated for up to 3 days, or frozen for 3 months.
Campfire chili instructions: Follow the instructions above, but remove the smoked paprika (the fire will add smoky flavor). If you’re taking it camping, prep the minced onion and garlic and place in a sealed container. Place the ingredients from water through kosher salt in another large sealed container (keep out the dry quinoa and add when cooking). Keep everything cool until making the chili.

More chili recipes

This black bean chili is our new favorite, but we’ve got lots of other chili recipes for the season! Here are a few to try:

Go for our favorite vegetarian chili or this flavorful vegan chili.
This quick chili recipe takes just 25 minutes and can be vegetarian or meat-filled.
Got a pressure cooker? Try our Instant pot vegetarian chili.
Opt for our favorite healthy chili recipe, or add potatoes for a sweet potato chili.

Quick Chili Recipe

Ultimate Vegan Chili

Easy 3 Bean Chili

Best Vegetarian Chili

Easy Tofu Tacos

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 13:00:00 +0000

This tofu tacos recipe is what easy dinners are made of! The filling is spiced to perfection, making it a vegan meal everyone will love.

Here’s a fast and easy dinner that went over like a charm over here: tofu tacos! While it’s not typically served in a tortilla, tofu is ideal for tacos. Its neutral flavor takes on whatever flavors you season it with: and these tofu crumbles are quite the kitchen trick. Add cumin, garlic powder, chili powder and smoked paprika, and the filling is bursting with flavor!

You can whip up these easy tacos in just 20 minutes, making them ideal for weeknight meals. Wait: you can make a block of rubbery white tofu into a crazy good vegan tacos filling? Here’s how.

How to turn a block into tofu tacos filling

Yes, it’s easier than you think to make a flavorless block of pressed soy into a delicious tofu tacos filling! The secret: tofu crumbles. You’ll break the tofu into smaller irregular shaped pieces, then mix it with delicious seasonings. Here’s what to do:

Crumble the tofu with your fingers. Yep, throw it right into a bowl and crumble it up! It’s usually pretty cold at this point (since it’s refrigerated), so you’ll have to grin and bear it.
Add olive oil and the secret spices. In this case, that’s cumin, garlic powder, chili powder and smoked paprika.
Cook in a skillet for 8 to 10 minutes. You’ll want it to be just browned and becoming lightly crisp on the outsides.

The easiest taco toppings

To keep these as a quick and easy dinner recipe, we went for the simplest toppings imaginable. Of course, you can customize them as you’d like! Here’s what we do when we’re in a rush:

Sliced red cabbage with lime: Thinly slice it, then spritz with lime juice and add a few pinches salt. You don’t even need to measure!
Pico de gallo: Get store-bought for the quickest prep.
Torn cilantro: No need to chop: just tear it with your fingers.
Yogurt mixed with hot sauce: This is our other favorite taco sauce trick! Take some vegan yogurt and swirl it with Mexican hot sauce (we like Cholula). It makes an instant creamy, spicy sauce. You can also use storebought salsa or taco sauce (or make homemade).

More tofu tacos topping ideas

The toppings listed above are the quickest and easiest: and usually they’re all we need! But if you want to get fancier, we’ve got lots of great options. Here are some fun tacos fillings ideas:

Refried beans (homemade or purchased)
Sauteed peppers and onions
Easy black beans
Pickled onions or pickled jalapenos
Creamy cilantro sauce or cilantro lime sauce
Chipotle sauce

Tip: warm your tortillas

Here’s our biggest tip for tofu tacos, or tacos of any kind: warm your tortillas! There’s nothing worse than a taco with a tough, cold tortilla. Here’s how to warm tortillas like a pro:

Place them over the flame of a gas burner (preferred!). The best way? Place each tortilla directly on a gas burner for a few seconds per side. It lightly chars the edges and warms the tortillas. Then throw them into a tortilla warmer!
Or, warm them in the oven. If you don’t have a gas burner, you can warm them in the oven. Go to How to Warm Tortillas.

Is tofu healthy?

There’s a lot of misinformation related to the health benefits of this soy product, so we get this question a lot. Here’s the thing: tofu in moderation can be part of a healthy diet (eaten several times per week). Per to the Harvard School of Nutrition, soy is a nutrient-dense source of protein that can safely be consumed several times a week. It’s likely to provide health benefits, especially when you eat it as an alternative to red meat and processed meat.

For more, go to Straight Talk About Soy and Is Tofu Good for You?. For years we avoided tofu, though we ate mostly vegetarian and vegan recipes. In the years, we’ve come around to it as a delicious and easy to prepare vegan protein!

Dietary notes

This tofu tacos recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.

Easy Tofu Tacos

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 16 reviews

This tofu tacos recipe is what easy dinners are made of! The filling is spiced to perfection, making it a vegan meal everyone will love.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 8 tacos
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Mexican inspired
Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

For the tofu

12 to 14-ounce block extra firm tofu
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

For the tacos

2 cups red cabbage
Lime wedges
Fresh cilantro leaves, torn
Pico de gallo (purchased or homemade)
Vegan yogurt (or regular), mixed with salt and Mexican hot sauce to taste (we like Cholula brand)

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Instructions

Make the tofu crumbles: Drain the tofu container, then pat the tofu dry with a clean dish towel. Place the tofu in a large bowl and use your fingers to break the tofu into roughly bite-sized crumbles. (It might be a little cold on your hands: don’t worry, it should only take a few seconds!). Stir in the soy sauce, vinegar, salt, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil.
Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large non-stick skillet. Add the tofu and cook on medium high for 8 to 10 minutes, breaking up large pieces into bite sized chunks and stirring occasionally, until browned and lightly crispy and the liquid evaporates. (The exact timing depends on the tofu brand.)
Assemble the toppings: Thinly slice the red cabbage, and place it in a bowl. Spritz with the juice of 2 lime wedges and add a few pinches kosher salt. Mix the vegan yogurt with Mexican hot sauce to taste, and add a few pinches of salt.
Warm the tortillas: Warm and char the tortillas by placing them on an open gas flame on medium for a few seconds per side, flipping with tongs, until they are slightly blackened and warm. (See How to Warm Tortillas.)
Serve: Place the tofu crumbles in the tortillas, then top with toppings and enjoy.

More great tofu recipes

There are so many great recipes to make with tofu! Now that we know the best ways to prepare it, we always look forward to including it in weekly meals. How about you: are you a tofu convert too? Have you always loved this tasty soy protein? Here are a few more great tofu recipes we’d recommend in addition to these tofu tacos:

Opt for the best fast and easy dinner, coconut tofu curry.
Make baked tofu, or use it to top a tofu salad.
Try the ultimate comfort food, a great tofu stir fry.
Fry up pan fried tofu to go in grain bowls and ramen.
Mix up a tofu scramble, an ultra fast breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Easy Baked Tofu

Perfect Pan Fried Tofu

Go-To Tofu Stir Fry

30 Easy Tofu Recipes

More great tacos

Everything’s better in a tortilla! Here are more of our top tacos recipes:

Try 15 minute Easy Black Bean Tacos or Quick Refried Bean Tacos
Start the day with Epic Breakfast Tacos
Whip up Vegan Walnut Taco Meat for a vegan taco
Try Amazing Egg Tacos: meatless, but the taste like meat
Go for Epic Fish Tacos
Try delightfully Crispy Avocado Tacos

Pecan Crusted Salmon

Sonja Overhiser — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 13:00:00 +0000

This pecan crusted salmon is fast and easy, with a deliciously crunchy topping! Make it to impress on weeknights or for dinner guests.

Here’s a meal that consistently makes everyone who takes a bite say Wow. Try this pecan crusted salmon! It has an air of restaurant-style fancy, but it’s quick and easy to whip up on a weeknight. It takes basic salmon to the next level, coating it in a crunchy topping of nuts, seasoned breadcrumbs, and Parmesan cheese.

The flavors are elevated enough for dinner guests, but also tasty enough for kids to shovel in bites. Pull it out for dinner guests or an easy weeknight meal…you choose!

What you’ll need for pecan crusted salmon

Aside from the fish, all the other ingredients in this pecan crusted salmon are pantry ingredients! That makes this preparation great for if you’re looking for a great way to cook salmon but don’t want to think too hard. Once you’ve bought the Italian panko, you can keep it on hand for months. Here’s what you’ll need:

Salmon (wild caught if possible, see below)
Dijon mustard
Honey
Pecans
Italian panko (see more below)
Grated Parmesan cheese (that’s the kind that’s the texture of sand, not shredded)
Salt and pepper

The type of salmon to look for

The number one most important part of a salmon recipe? The quality of the salmon. Try to find the best quality salmon you can afford. Here are a few tips on locating a great piece of salmon:

Buy wild caught salmon. Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms; see Seafood Watch Consumer Guide.
Fresh salmon is best. You can find decent frozen salmon. But for the very best salmon, buy it fresh from your local seafood counter.
Coho is a good choice. We tend to like Coho salmon for its mild flavor: it’s a good middle of the road option in terms of price. Try to avoid Atlantic salmon as it is typically farmed salmon.

Use Italian style panko or this substitute

A key to this recipe? Italian-style Panko. Panko is a Japanese-style breadcrumb mixture that is airier and lighter than traditional breadcrumbs. Italian panko has herbs and salt added. You can also use breadcrumbs or Italian breadcrumbs here, but we like how panko give it just the right crunch. You should be able to find panko easily at your local grocery store. If you can’t find the Italian-style panko, you can do the following:

Use regular panko and add salt and Italian seasonings. Mix the 2 tablespoons panko with 1 pinch kosher salt and ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning (or ¼ teaspoon each dried oregano and dried basil).
Or look for Italian or plain breadcrumbs instead, or make your own breadcrumbs! For plain breadcrumbs, use the seasoning recommendations for panko above.

Make it gluten-free

Panko is made from bread, so to make this recipe gluten-free look for gluten-free panko or breadcrumbs in stores or online. You can also omit the breadcrumbs, but keep in mind the topping will be less delightfully crunchy (but still delicious).

Our top side dish for pecan crusted salmon

We created a custom side dish to go alongside this pecan crusted salmon. Readers often tell us it’s hard to find side dishes that pair well, are easy enough to make, and fill in the needed nutrients. Here’s one we created to fit with this recipe: arugula goat cheese salad! Here’s more about it:

Start with a few handfuls baby arugula, fluffy leafy greens. Make sure to buy baby, not standard arugula (which is very bitter). You can also substitute spinach or mixed greens.
Drizzle with creamy balsamic dressing, which has the best tangy sweet flavor.
Top with goat cheese crumbles, sliced shallots, apples, and pecans. It’s simple, but the flavor and texture contrasts make it taste incredible!

More side dishes to pair

Just a salad and pecan crusted salmon might need a little filling out as a full meal. So here are a few other quick side dishes to consider!

Asparagus: Try broiled asparagus or baked asparagus with Parmesan
Broccoli: Make pan fried Broccoli or broccoli and cheese
Brussels sprouts: Add Brussels sprouts with maple glaze or Brussels sprout salad
Green beans: Go for sauteed green beans.
Quinoa: Add seasoned quinoa or lemon rice
Garlic bread: This garlic toast is simple and irresistible

Dietary notes

This pecan crusted salmon recipe is pescatarian and gluten-free (with gluten-free panko).

Pecan Crusted Salmon

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4.7 from 10 reviews

This pecan crusted salmon is fast and easy, with a deliciously crunchy topping! Make it to impress on weeknights or for dinner guests.

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4
Category: Main dish
Method: Baked
Cuisine: Seafood
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

1 pound salmon fillet or fillets, skin on (wild caught if possible)
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
1 ½ tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 ½ tablespoons honey or maple syrup
¼ cup finely chopped pecans
2 tablespoons Italian panko (or Italian breadcrumbs; gluten-free if desired)*
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bring the salmon to room temperature and pat it dry. Season the salmon with the salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix the Dijon mustard and honey, then brush it on to the fish in an even layer.
In another small bowl, mix together the finely chopped pecans, Italian panko, and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle the nut mixture on top of the fish.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until the salmon flakes with a fork; the internal temperature should be between 125 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit in the center. Serve immediately.

Notes

*We recommend Italian panko or Italian breadcrumbs because they’re already seasoned. Panko is best since it’s the lightest and crunchiest. If all you can find is regular panko, mix 2 tablespoons panko with 1 pinch kosher salt and ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning (or ¼ teaspoon each dried oregano and dried basil).

Quick Coconut Lentil Curry

Sonja Overhiser — Fri, 08 Nov 2024 20:08:00 +0000

This coconut lentil curry is a fast and easy dinner idea that’s both healthy and full of flavor. It’s perfect for weeknight meals! Over the years, it’s become a fan favorite recipe that’s highly-rated by readers.

Alex and I have been working on our repertoire of fast and easy dinner ideas for years. It’s a constant challenge, trying to figure out those standbys that are quick, healthy, and delicious at the same time!

This coconut lentil curry comes from an idea I had one night trying to decide how to use some kale from the garden. I ad-libbed with some lentils and a can of coconut milk we had on-hand, threw in some curry paste, and voila! It turned out so tasty that we had to share it here. Fast forward a few years and this coconut lentil curry recipe has gone on to become a fan favorite, with loads of positive reader reviews!

Featured reader comment

“All I can say is MMMMM, MMMMM, MMMMM!!! Served it over rice…. absolutely AMAZING!!! Thank you for this recipe, I will definitely be using it often.” -Chrissy

“Great recipe. Simple but super flavorful, always have the ingredients in the pantry. I go back to this often for weeknight dinners.” -Jen

Tips for making coconut lentil curry

This coconut lentil curry is a quick way to get to something on the table that tastes like it’s been cooking all evening! This is not an authentic Indian or Thai curry, just a coconut lentil curry inspired dish that’s a fast dinner idea.

It has a fairly short ingredient list, so it’s feasible to make on a weeknight. The base of the curry is simple: just lentils, coconut milk, Thai curry paste, and tomato paste. (If you need a sub for coconut milk, head to our substitutes for coconut milk in curry.)

It’s also a great way to eat your dark leafy greens! You can throw in handfuls of any of your favorite greens. The easiest is throwing in handfuls of baby spinach that’s prewashed and boxed: or you can also add chopped kale or Swiss chard. When we talk to people about delicious ways to eat leafy greens, a curry is one of our top recs because the greens pick up all flavor of the lentil curry!

A key ingredient: Thai curry paste

The secret to this coconut lentil curry is using Thai red curry paste. Thai curry paste has beautifully fresh flavors: garlic, lemongrass, and ginger to make whipping up curry recipes a breeze. Grab a jar from the store in the international aisle, and it keeps for months in the refrigerator.

Some Thai curry pastes are spicy and some don’t have too much heat. Our favorite brand of Thai curry paste is Thai Kitchen, and it doesn’t add much heat to the overall dish. If you can’t find it at your local grocery, here’s a link to Thai Kitchen red curry paste on Amazon.

More great curry recipes? Vegetable Curry, Chickpea Curry or Quick Vegan Curry

Dietary notes

This lentil curry recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.

Coconut Lentil Curry with Greens

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4.6 from 20 reviews

This Coconut Lentil Curry is a 30 minute easy dinner idea that’s healthy and full of flavor; it’s a plant based recipe flavored with Thai curry paste.

Author: a Couple Cooks
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4-6
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Thai Inspired

Ingredients

2 cups uncooked white or brown basmati rice, to serve (or Instant Pot basmati rice)
2 cups brown or green lentils
8 cups chopped leafy greens: spinach, kale, or chard
1 tablespoon olive oil
13.5-ounce can coconut milk
3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper

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Instructions

Make the rice according to How to Cook Basmati Rice (or Instant Pot Rice).
Place the lentils in a saucepan with 6 cups warm water. Bring to a low boil, then boil for about 20 minutes until tender (taste to assess doneness). Drain, then add a few pinches of salt.
Meanwhile, wash the greens, remove the stems and chop the leaves. (If using prewashed baby spinach, you can skip this step.) In your largest skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the greens and sauté for several minutes until tender and bright green.
When the lentils are done, add them to the skillet with the greens. Over medium high heat, stir in the coconut milk, Thai red curry paste, tomato paste, kosher salt, and fresh ground black pepper. Cook for a few minutes until heated through and the sauce is thickened.
Taste and add a few pinches of salt if desired. Serve with rice.

More fast and easy dinner recipes

Looking for more easy dinner recipes? Here are a few quick and easy ideas:

Go for mac and cheese with broccoli or pesto tortellini
Mix up blackened tilapia, sauteed shrimp or honey garlic shrimp
Opt for quick chickpea tacos or an easy quesadilla