Dinner Ideas & Recipes

I make them every week.

Sliced cucumbers can't be boring when they're made to be bright and tangy.

Years ago, when I was just beginning to cook for myself, I felt intimidated by shrimp. Like other crustaceans from the deep, they seemed mysterious, expensive, and exotic. But then I learned that shrimp are incredibly easy to cook.One of my favorite walk-in-the-door meals is shrimp, roasted until hot and juicy, tossed over a bowl of pasta, on top of creamy polenta, or in a hearty kale salad .

It's amazing on fish tacos.

Southern biscuits are the perfect fictional device for telling the narratives of Southern families. One cook makes his biscuits with White Lily flour only because that’s how his Maw Mae did it. Another swears by lard, as her family never had the funds for high-dollar butter or shortening. Most Southern cooks bake biscuits at least once a week — a ritual and rite of passage as the recipe is handed down through the generations. My biscuit recipe is much the same.

In a sea of Passover briskets, make braised lamb.

Plus, it’s endlessly customizable.

It's so good I ate it straight from the pot.

It's the most comforting thing you'll make all week.

Mom always knows best.

The foolproof recipe is inspired by two greats: Ina Garten and Julia Child.

Despite being beautiful, delicious, and good for you, artichokes don’t get much play in the kitchen because — let’s face it — they’re a little intimidating. But with just a tiny bit of prep work, artichokes are surprisingly easy to pick, cook, and eat. The next time you’re at the farmers market or grocery store, pick up a few and give it a go. I’ll walk you through everything you need to know.

It cooks in less than 15 minutes.

As much as I love a classic quiche, broccoli is my all-time favorite add-in for quiche. The crisp-tender veggie lends a pop of color — and a dose of nutrients — to each and every slice of the creamy, cheesy egg bake. But not all broccoli quiches are created equal. Read on for my secret to the best-ever broccoli and cheese version — the one you’ll want to serve for any and all occasions, be it a holiday brunch, morning breakfast, or weeknight dinner.

Brisket is a hearty cut of beef that requires time and technique to tenderize, making it one of the best cuts for braising and slow cooking. While you’ll see beef brisket served as corned beef in the spring and smoked down in Texas, the classic holiday beef brisket is typically braised in a sweet and tangy gravy. (To learn more about brisket and get tips for buying it, check out our brisket for beginners guide.

Behold the single food that has revolutionized my weekly meal plan – shredded chicken! The very best thing about cooking up a batch of shredded chicken are all the possibilities it brings to mealtime. It can mean a week’s worth of dinners — everything from chicken tacos and chicken burritos to chicken salad are made more satisfying with shredded chicken. It’s an easy solution for make-ahead lunches and weeknight dinners the whole family will love.

Bonus: It’s super easy.

The best thing to happen to egg noodles.

It's a match made in heaven.

Tender sautéed greens are an easy go-to vegetable side everyone should know how to make. They pair with everything from quick pastas to weeknight chicken dinners, and come together in minutes. These mustard greens are smothered in lots of garlic, kicked up with a pinch of red pepper flakes, and brightened with balsamic. When you have the main dish squared away, mustard greens are the easiest answer to “What should we have with it?

I’m a firm believer that make-ahead dinners are one of the very best gifts you can give to your future self. Walking into the kitchen at the end of the day knowing that dinner is prepped, cooked, and just waiting to be reheated feels like a total treat. And not only that, but dinners like classic beef chili and slow cooker beef stew happen to taste even better a day, even two or three, after they’re made.

The pro move: Eat it on a cheesy open-faced sandwich.

Everything you love about garlic bread, but make it chicken.

It takes only 20 minutes.

You can prep it in just 10 minutes.

It’s like quiche but way easier.

Hello, gorgeous.

lasagna's lazier cousin.

You can have the roast turkey. Leave the glazed ham. Prime rib — what’s that? In my house, leg of lamb is the celebratory roast; I love its tenderness and flavor. Though roast leg of lamb sounds intimidating, the sweet little secret is that leg of lamb is actually one of the easiest, most foolproof cuts of meat to cook. Here’s our remarkably simple, fuss-free leg of lamb recipe. It will turn out perfectly every time.

The sticky glaze is everything.

Meet your new go-to weeknight dinner.

"Fancy without effort."

Yes, it’s really that good.

Whether you plan to serve roasted leg of lamb, pan-seared lamb chops, or grilled lamb chops for a special dinner, you’ll want to choose some sides. The beauty of serving lamb as the main is that you can serve it with a wide variety of sides and the meal will taste great. Hearty potatoes dishes pair just as well as bright snappy veggies like green beans.

You'll love it.

Plus, you only need 6 ingredients.

Bonus: It's super easy.

Drown everything in savory brown gravy.

Such a catch.

The perfect make-ahead meal.

If you’re a Thousand Island fan, it’s likely you’ll love this Russian dressing just as much, if not more. Both sauces have similar origins and start with that delicious combination of mayonnaise and ketchup or tomato-based chili sauce (such as Heinz Chili Sauce). It’s super easy to make and won’t take more than five minutes to prepare, but it’ll substantially increase the tastiness of whatever you’re slathering it on.

If you love creamy mashed potatoes, you’ll love colcannon, a traditional Irish dish. Keeping with tradition, we didn’t mess with the potatoes or cabbage, but swapped the plain melted butter that is typically served in a pool on top for fragrant browned butter. We just couldn’t help ourselves! The nutty browned butter is a wonderful warm contrast to the sharp green onions that get scattered before serving, giving this dish an easy, elegant twist.

If pork chops and beef steaks are the only chops you sear, it’s time to try lamb chops. Lamb chops have a distinctively rich and savory flavor, and while they’re fancy enough for a dinner party, quick-cooking lamb chops also add variety to weeknight meals. These easy lamb chops are rubbed with fresh thyme, seared in a hot skillet, and topped with a decadent (and oh-so-simple!) pan sauce flavored with dry white wine, a squeeze of lemon juice, and a knob of butter.

There are a lot of ways to cook up a hearty, comforting pot of beef stew, but if you ask me, absolutely nothing compares to Guinness beef stew. It also happens to be my favorite dinner to cook for St. Patrick’s Day. In this version, thick chunks of chuck roast are seared and then simmered low and slow in a Guinness-spiked sauce on the stovetop.

Bonus: It's ready in 30 minutes.

If you’re skeptical about cabbage, this is the recipe that will turn you into a believer. And if, like me, you already adore cabbage (and are always looking for cabbage recipe ideas), this simple side will deepen your love. Simply put, Southern-style fried cabbage will forever change the way you think about this basic cruciferous vegetable.

Bubble and squeak, with its cutesy name, is a classic British day-after-holiday dish. It is incredibly versatile, as you can throw in any leftover vegetables or mashed potatoes into this comforting recipe — perfect for a relaxing meal after a hectic holiday. Usually made to use up leftovers after a Sunday roast dinner, or a major holiday like Easter or Christmas, bubble and squeak is quintessentially British and makes for a hearty breakfast, lunch, or even a quick weeknight meal.

Almost every culture has a homey version of chicken soup to comfort the sick or the soul weary, or to stave off the chill of cold weather, but the Greeks might just have one of the best: the egg and lemon soup known as avgolemono. Here’s how to make this classic comforting soup at home. First of all, it’s gorgeous. The broth is vibrant yellow from the eggs and heavily scented with lemon fragrance. The broth is rich, but not heavy.

Seed crackle is the new crouton.

If there’s one thing harder than deciding what to make yourself for dinner, it’s coming up with easy dinner ideas for your family. You want to get something on the table that’s fairly quick to make and doesn’t require a lot of effort. And you also want a meal that the kids (and ideally the whole table!) will devour, while contending with food preferences that can ping-pong from week to week. And it can feel even trickier when you have a picky eater on your hands.

It's all about the glaze.

Crisp, juicy, and so flavorful.

You won’t be able to resist.

If you’re new to cooking with cabbage (or steadfast skeptic), I encourage you to give this kielbasa and cabbage one-skillet dinner a try. Watch the crunchy crucifer turn tender, golden, and buttery alongside smoky sliced sausage and a sprinkle of caraway seeds, and you’ll be hooked. And since apples and mustard are classic accompaniments to both kielbasa and cabbage, finish this 30-minute meal with a splash of sweet and tangy apple cider vinegar and whole-grain mustard.

Trust us on this one.

It cooks in less than 10 minutes.

It’s the most flexible recipe ever.

Easy and brilliant.