Sometimes, we’re just too busy or tired to cook ourselves a proper meal once we get home from a long day at work!

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So many recipes out there require so much time and effort, and a massive grocery list’s worth of ingredients! Sometimes it’s all a little too much, and it ends up easier to just throw something in the microwave instead.

This is a common problem that’s affecting many people in their day-to-day lives. The trouble is, depending on ready-made meals and fast food to fuel us every single day can prove to be very disastrous for our weight and our general health.

We know how difficult it can be to find the perfect quick and easy recipe so that you can enjoy fresh food every night, so we decided to put together this fully comprehensive list of 30 of the absolute best easy weeknight dinners that you can depend on to fill your empty stomach while also filling your soul with goodness.

On a busy schedule but still want to prove your culinary skills? Read on to find out some of the amazing foods you could make today!

1. Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

Risotto is a very popular dish amongst people who want quick and easy, but entirely fulfilling food. Risotto rice is naturally rich in nutrients and is able to absorb massive amounts of flavor, which makes every bite a taste explosion in your mouth!

This recipe only requires a few ingredients and still creates a great end dish!

2. Kimchi Udon Noodle Stir Fry

Kimchi has a very sweet, sour, and rather tart taste. It’s no surprise that it’s a Korean favorite and that its amazing flavor profile is spreading across the world.

Mixing some thick and wholesome udon noodles with lots of kimchi, bacon and Korean sauces is a great way to create an entirely new kind of amazing dish! Try placing a fried egg on the top and watch as the golden yolk drips through the noodles.

3. 10- Minute Beef and Black Bean Stir Fry

Black bean sauce and beef taste as if they were created for one another. Black beans have a rich but also very subtle and warming flavor that compliments the taste and texture of strips of beef.

Mixed with plenty of green beans, garlic, and ginger, and then served on top of a bed of fluffy rice? How could you possibly resist a flavor and texture combination as perfect as this?

4. Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry

Stir-fries are amongst some of the most popular quick-dishes across the world. They’re easy to make, and still very healthy, packed with fresh vegetables and cuts of succulent meat.

Let’s look at some of the best stir fry recipes. First is this simple chicken and vegetable stir fry from ‘Tasty’. If you’re new to stir-fries and want a simple flavor experience, then this is definitely the recipe for you!

5. Ginger Chicken Stir Fry

For a little bit of added spice and flair, add some ginger to a basic stir fry recipe. Ginger, as well as tasting good, also has many medicinal benefits that make it a great addition to any dish.

Ginger can help to settle stomach issues and generally help to ease all manner of ailments. With plenty of extra vegetables mixed in, this is a great dish for those of you who want a fulfilling meal!

6. Taiwanese Beef Stir Fry

Taiwanese beef stir fry is definitely the best next step for those of you who want to experience some mind-blowing flavors that they can’t experience anywhere else.

This dish requires a little more time than other recipes, to allow the beef to soak in lots of flavor and juices overnight, but it’s still very easy, and well worth the early preparation!

7. Easiest Vegetable Stir Fry

For the vegetarians amongst you, you don’t have to feel left out from the amazing stir fry action. This recipe is purpose-built to draw out the amazing inherent flavors of all of your favorite vegetables to create a truly addicting dish that you’ll be making night after night.

And it’s easy to make too, with just a little bit of stirring needed to create it! Sweet!

8. The Best Ever Tomato Soup

Tomato soup is one of the simplest dishes in the world, and yet, it still prevails as one of the most ingenious dishes ever put together!

Simply blending together some juicy and fresh tomatoes with plenty of herbs and spices and then serving it piping hot can lend itself to some amazingly warming food that makes for a perfect winter-time staple dish that is sure to warm you up from head to toe!

And this is one of the best tomato soup recipes we’ve seen!

9. Creamy Pasta Bake with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

This one requires a little more preparation than others, to prepare the pasta, the cheese, and the tomatoes and vegetables, but once they’ve all been dropped into a baking tray and left to bake in the stove you can relax and take it easy.

And once it’s finished cooking, you’ll be left with a moreish medley of Italian goodness, packed with flavors to delight your tongue!

10. Mushroom Stroganoff

This mushroom stroganoff is one of the richest and most decadent recipes on this list. The soft and moist mushrooms melt away in your mouth with every bite, while the pasta delivers lots of extra bite and plenty of sauce with every single scoop.

With lots of cracked black pepper and plenty of fresh thyme, it’s definitely one of our top recommendations from this list, and it’s suitable for vegetarians too!

11. Easy Chili

Good old Chili. A perennial favorite across the world, thanks to its amazing warmth, plenty of flavors and textures, and its easy preparation.

You can make a world-class chili all for yourself or your family right after work with this easy recipe that just requires one pot and a little bit of mixing. Careful not to salivate too much, smelling those delicious aromas as you stir!

12. Meatball Carbonara

This meatball carbonara makes the absolute best of both delicious and juicy meatballs and a simple and fulfilling spaghetti carbonara.

The creamy sauce of the carbonara contrasts slightly against the savory taste of the meatballs, to create a dish that is satisfying to eat, no matter how much of it you do eat!

Sprinkle some chopped parsley over the top of the finished dish to add a little extra herbiness to it!

13. Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese

Mac and Cheese doesn’t just have to mean fast and unhealthy microwave dinners. This amazing macaroni and cheese recipe creates a massive yield of mac and cheese that you and your family can enjoy together, or you can simply save the leftovers for the next day.

This is a great recipe for a busybody who wants a classic and nostalgic flavor that brings them back to childhood!

14. Easy Honey Lemon Chicken

This dish is sure to awaken all of your senses. Its fresh and tangy smell is apparent during preparation and then soon permeates throughout the home during the cooking process.

And once you get it out of the stove and chow down, you’re in for one hell of a party in your mouth! Serve it with some fresh peas alongside it to create an additional healthy extra texture and taste that you can bite through alongside the chicken. It’s truly great.

15. Quick & Easy Creamy Herb Chicken

Want something a little more creaming for your next chicken dinner? We don’t blame you. It’s hard to resist a dish that looks as good as this!

The chicken breasts are set to bake in the creamy and herby sauce for a good amount of time until the skins become golden brown and crispy, and the tender meat inside has absorbed so many of the amazing herby flavors.

This dish is great either in summer or winter, thanks to its warming taste and texture, combined with its fresh flavors.

16. 15-Minute Honey Garlic Chicken

Garlic makes everything better. But imagine how great garlic would taste when it’s also blended with plenty of sweet and wholesome honey!

Mix this amazing blend with some chicken chunks, and then serve it all on top of some fluffy rice, and prepare to experience the most amazing and soul-fulfilling flavor cacophony ever!

This dish only takes 15 minutes to make and tastes simply amazing. You need to try it. And you could just as easily substitute the chicken for a vegetable of your choice for a vegetarian option!

17. Marry Me Chicken

You’ll likely want to propose marriage to this dish once you taste it. Every element of the recipe is chosen with the utmost care and passion. It’s definitely a great labor of culinary love.

The tender chicken, beneath the crispy skin, is juicy and packed to brim with the flavors that it has absorbed over the cooking process. This dish only requires a few ingredients more than some of the other recipes, but the results make it all so worth it.

18. Pesto Pasta

You could make this pesto-infused pasta dish in just 15 minutes! This is the perfect recipe for those amongst you with extremely tight schedules.

It’s light, but packed with herby flavors so that you can feel deeply satisfied without having to drag around a full belly! Lightly scatter some parmesan cheese on top of the finished product to add a slight savory hint that tickles your tongue with delight.

19. Easy and Quick Homemade Pizza

Pizza is one of the most dominant foods in the takeaway business. Flat and wide bread bases piled with lots of ingredients? It’s no surprise they’re as popular as they are. The trouble is, pizzas can be pretty difficult and time-consuming to make.

That was, until now! We were blown away by how simple this recipe was, and how great the end result still turned out to be. You need to try it out for yourself to truly believe us!

20. Spaghetti Bolognese

Spaghetti bolognese is already really satisfying, so imagine just how much more satisfying it will be when it’s this easy to make.

Lots of minced beef, tomatoes, and onions placed on top of long tangles of spaghetti makes for an easy-to-eat dish that you can eat with just one fork! It’s wholesome, fulfilling, easy to eat, and just as easy to make. This recipe is truly heaven-sent.

21. Lemony Steamed Fish

Steamed fish is one of the healthiest dishes around. It requires no frying, no roasting, and no need for any fattening cooking oils. All it needs is lots of water, a fresh filet of fish, and plenty of lemon and herbs.

Drench each filet in lemon juice and cover it with flakes of dill and then allow them to steam for around 30 minutes. The resulting dish is refreshing, extremely pleasant to the mouth, and so addictive.

22. Homemade Fish Sticks

No need to buy frozen fish sticks in bulk ever again! Simply grab yourself some filets of your favorite white fish, coat them in this breadcrumb concoction, set them to bake for around 18 minutes, and there you go!

You could even make a large batch and send a bunch of them into your freezer for use at a later date. Not only is this recipe far healthier than frozen fish sticks, but it is also far more affordable in the long run!

23. Easy Chicken Curry

When people think of quick one-pot dishes, they very often think of a classic curry. However, there are so many different types of curry out there, so how do you know which one to do?

If you want a simple but effective chicken curry recipe that is non-confusing and tasty, why not give this one a try?

24. Chicken Fajita Traybake

Make yourself a set of delicious chicken fajitas without any need for fattening tortillas! This traybake can be done on just one tray, with all of the classic elements of any good chicken fajita dish, including chicken strips, peppers, onions, and a massive blend of spices.

You might even want to serve this dish with a side of sour cream, guacamole, and salsa to drench over it! Yum!

25. Savory Pork Salad

Add some extra excitement to a very ordinary salad with some savory cuts of delicious and tender pork! The pork is cooked with garlic, ginger, and oil to create rich strips of pork that melt away on your tongue.

This recipe also teaches you how to make a perfect dressing to accompany the salad, which you can drench over the salad warm, to create an interesting blend of warm meat and dressing with cold salad leaves.

26. Fried Rice

Fried rice is perhaps the quickest dish on this list. All you need to do is throw in a large helping of your favorite kind of rice, and then throw in any of your favorite ingredients.

However, in order to make a truly mind-blowing fried rice, you should definitely try following this recipe, packed with scrambled egg, spring onion, and small chunks of carrot.

The great thing about fried rice is that it allows for experimentation, so you can change the flavor as you see fit.

27. Thai Pineapple Fried Rice

And here is definitive proof that fried rice is incredibly versatile and open to experimentation! Want to add an exciting sweet flair to your next fried rice?

Have you ever tried adding some pineapple into the mix? It might sound as crazy as adding it to pizza but trust us, it makes for one hell of a flavor experience.

28. Leek, Bacon, and Pea Risotto

The sharp saltiness of bacon mixes well with the creamy and herby taste of this risotto recipe. With plenty of healthy greens, such as peas and leaks, this dish is both delicious and good for you!

Risotto is naturally absorbent but also slightly crunchy, so each grain is packed with flavor and is satisfying to bite into.

29. Quick and Easy Thai Green Curry

Now for something really exotic and exciting. Thai green curry is one of the most aromatic and refreshing dishes in the world currently.

It employs the wonderful freshness and crunch of green vegetables, and coconut milk to create an amazing curry sauce that is packed with satisfying texture and fresh flavor. This recipe makes the otherwise complex green curry extremely easy to make.

30. Spiced Falafel Burgers

In this day and age, it’s become very clear that you can make a great burger out of anything! Falafel makes for a great beef burger alternative that’s perfect for vegetarians or meat-eaters alike!

It is extremely delicious to eat through, and is still remarkably healthy without ever being boring or a chore to eat! Why not give this recipe a try if you want to reinvent the standard burger?

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is The Best Weeknight Dinner For A Family?

The best weeknight dinners for a family are typically quick and easy recipes where you can create enough portions to feed the family. Meals such as casseroles or filled wraps are super easy to put together.

What Is The Most Popular Weeknight Dinner In The US?

The most popular weeknight dinner for many Americans is pizza. Whether you enjoy a classic, thin pizza or a sourdough base, pizza can be so versatile and you can add any topping you like.

What Weeknight Dinner Can You Cook In 5 Minutes?

If you are really tired but still want to enjoy a delicious meal, then there are a few options for a superfast weeknight dinner under 5 minutes. Omelettes, pasta salad or a quick wrap with your favorite ingredients are fantastic options that you can enjoy any day of the week.

The 30 Best Easy Weeknight Dinners

Finding time to cook good food every single night can be very tiring. So why not take a look at 30 of the best easy weekday dinners that you can try?

Ingredients

Directions

Pick a recipe from the list above
Click the recipe name and visit the website
Collect the ingredients and cook the food
Enjoy – don’t forget to leave a review

Recipe Video

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Jess Smith

Hi, my name is Jess Smith, and I love cooking in my spare time. Around three years ago, I decided to give up my day job as a teacher to pursue my passion for food. While I have enjoyed sharing tips and tricks on Social Media, I have decided to expand my horizons through this blog.

Through this blog I hope to help others learn the basics and more intricate details of cooking. I know from personal experience how frustrating it can be to cook a meal, only to realize you are missing one ingredient from your list. This is why I love to write articles chatting readers through some great substitutes that can be used in an emergency.

I hope you will find this blog useful, and that it will help you to develop your culinary skills, to help you cook up a storm!