You know that feeling when you’re tired of eating the same things over and over, but you don’t want to make anything complicated either? You can break out of that rut with easy recipes that call for just a few ingredients and, in some cases, dirty only one pan.
I’ve gathered 12 simple meals here, sorted by how much time you have (depending on your hunger, your hurry or your patience): up to 15 minutes, 20 to 30 minutes, or with the oven doing the work for you.
Just one thing I want to make clear first: I’ve made some of these recipes at home, but most of them made the list because they’re practical, even if I haven’t cooked them yet. The times are approximate and change with your stove, your pan and the amount you cook, and the food safety reference for meat, chicken, eggs and fish comes from the USDA, which I mention further down.
What makes a recipe truly easy
For a recipe to count as easy and make it onto this list, I set a few criteria, because plenty of recipes that call themselves easy actually aren’t. In practice, these are the four criteria:
- It takes 4 to 8 ingredients, almost all of them easy to find at any grocery store.
- It uses one pot, one skillet or one sheet pan, not all three at once.
- It only calls for basic techniques: sautéing, boiling, browning or baking.
- It needs little hands-on time, even if the oven needs more.
Notice that the last point changes everything. Chicken thighs that spend 50 minutes in the oven can be less work than a 20-minute breaded cutlet, because while they bake, you’re free to give the kids a bath or check their homework.
It also helps a lot to keep these ingredients at home: eggs, rice, pasta, tomatoes, onions, garlic, potatoes, a bag of frozen vegetables and a protein portioned in the freezer (in these recipes, we’ll use chicken). If you don’t have them, it’s worth adding them to this week’s grocery list, because they’re the wild cards of the kitchen.
Up to 15 minutes: 4 meals for nights that can’t wait
1. Scrambled eggs with tomato and bread (about 10 minutes)
Sauté half a chopped tomato in a drizzle of olive oil, add 4 beaten eggs with salt and stir over low heat until they’re completely set, with no runny parts. With bread and a piece of fruit, it’s a full dinner for two.
2. Garlic and oil pasta with broccoli (about 15 minutes)
Add the broccoli to the pasta water for the last 3 minutes of cooking, then drain everything together. Meanwhile, brown two sliced garlic cloves in olive oil and toss it all together. That’s one less pan to wash. I also like to add heavy cream right after sautéing the garlic and only then stir in the pasta and broccoli: it turns out creamy and delicious.
3. Leftover fried rice with egg and vegetables (about 15 minutes)
Heat the cooked rice in a skillet with grated carrot and frozen peas, make a space in the middle, crack in two eggs and stir until they’re cooked. If you usually keep rice in the freezer, it goes straight in here, and the safe step-by-step is in the post on how to freeze cooked rice.
4. Cheese and tomato tapioca crepe (about 10 minutes)
Tapioca crepes are a Brazilian classic made with hydrated tapioca starch, sold ready to use at Brazilian and Latin markets. Spread a thin layer in a hot, dry skillet, wait until it sets and fill it with cheese and tomato. Older kids can put theirs together with you by their side.
When the evening gives you a little more breathing room, about 20 or 30 minutes, there’s time for a dish that feels like a proper home-cooked lunch.
20 to 30 minutes: 4 one-pot meals
5. Chicken and vegetable skillet (about 25 minutes)
Brown about 1 pound (500 g) of diced chicken breast in a very hot skillet, add onion, carrot and zucchini in small pieces and cover for about 10 minutes. Serve with rice (it helps if you already have some in the freezer).
6. One-pot pasta with tomato and smoked sausage (about 25 minutes)
Brown sliced smoked sausage (in Brazil it’s calabresa; kielbasa works well), add tomato sauce, water and the dry pasta, and cook, stirring now and then, until the pasta is tender and the sauce thickens. The amount of water depends on the type of pasta, so add it a little at a time.
This one can easily be your Saturday lunch, and on that day it can come with grated cheese and a soda. Water is always the best choice, of course, but having something different once in a while is fine. Tip: go for the zero-sugar option.
7. Skillet fish with tomato and onion (about 20 minutes)
Season tilapia fillets with salt and lime, place them on a bed of sliced onion and tomato in the skillet and cover over medium heat. The fish is done when it turns opaque and flakes easily with a fork. Mashed potatoes make a good side: I didn’t include the recipe here, but they also count as an easy option.
8. Vegetable soup with alphabet pasta (about 30 minutes)
Cook diced potato, carrot and chayote (or zucchini) with onion and garlic, and add the alphabet pasta for the last few minutes. If you have ground beef in the fridge, you can add it here. It makes dinner with leftovers for the next day, and (let’s be honest) letters on the plate usually spark more conversation than complaints.
One rule applies to every dish with meat, chicken, fish or eggs: use a food thermometer in the thickest part. The USDA safe minimum internal temperature chart lists 165 °F (73.9 °C) for poultry, 160 °F (71.1 °C) for ground meat and egg dishes, and 145 °F (62.8 °C) for fish. Without a thermometer, cut into the piece and make sure nothing is raw or pink.
Now, if the problem isn’t the total time but having to stand next to the stove, the answer is to let the oven do the work.
Oven or air fryer: 4 meals that almost cook themselves
9. Roasted chicken thighs with potatoes and carrots (about 1 hour, 10 minutes hands-on)
Season the chicken thighs with salt, garlic and paprika, spread them on a sheet pan with chunks of potato and carrot and drizzle with olive oil. Roast at 400 °F (200 °C) for about 45 to 50 minutes, until the skin is golden and there’s no pink near the bone.
10. Air fryer pita pizza (about 10 minutes)
Spread tomato sauce and cheese on a pita, top with whatever you have in the fridge and leave it in the air fryer for a few minutes, until the cheese melts. Since the time varies from one model to another, keep an eye on it the first time. More ideas at the same pace are in these easy air fryer recipes. It works in the oven too.
11. Blender chicken pie (about 50 minutes, 10 minutes hands-on)
This is a classic Brazilian shortcut pie. Blend 2 to 3 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 2 tablespoons of oil, 3 cups of all-purpose flour, salt to taste and 1 tablespoon of baking powder; pour half into the pan, spread shredded chicken with corn on top and cover with the rest of the batter. The batter should be fairly thick, almost creamy, but not so thick that it gets heavy. It goes into the oven at 350 °F (180 °C) for about 40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
12. Baked bananas with cinnamon (about 15 minutes)
And now a dessert with no added sugar: bake bananas cut in half with cinnamon until they’re soft. They go well with oats or plain yogurt and use up the bananas that were getting too ripe.
How to fit these easy recipes into your week
The Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population (in Portuguese) include two steps that speak directly to this: developing and sharing cooking skills, and planning your time so food gets the space it deserves. In a busy week, it would look something like this:
- Pick 5 meals over the weekend and write them on the fridge door.
- Mix the time ranges: two under 15 minutes, two one-pot meals and one oven dish for the calmest day.
- Make a double batch of the soup or the chicken and vegetables and put the leftovers in the fridge soon, because the USDA advises refrigerating leftovers within 2 hours. No forgotten pot on the stove until the next day.
- Chop before you turn on the stove: the onion, the garlic and the vegetables. This habit even has a name, mise en place, and it shortens any recipe.
And when your child turns up their nose at the plate? Many kids reject new foods, and some even want everything separated on the plate. If your child says they don’t like it, ask if they’ve ever tried it. If they refuse to even taste it, I’ll tell you what I do. I say: “Sweetheart, this is tonight’s dinner, I didn’t make anything else. It’s this or you’ll go hungry, and there won’t be a snack later.” No bribes and no yelling, because my kids know I do what I say. Don’t be afraid to let your child face the consequences of their choices.
What may help reduce that resistance is inviting your child to help cook, like cracking the eggs, spreading the cheese on the pizza or picking the letters for the soup, because kids who helped make the food usually at least try it.
Just don’t turn the table into a menu negotiation, or tomorrow you’ll be cooking three different dinners.
Where to start today
If you only keep one idea, keep the criteria from the top: few ingredients, one pan and little hands-on time. Pick one meal from each time range for this week, and the easy recipes on this list will turn into routine before you know it.
This content is for information only and does not replace advice from a registered dietitian or doctor, especially in cases of allergies, intolerances, diabetes or other health conditions.
