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Say hello to delicious, stress-free easy meal ideas! Here’s a treasure trove of 30 minute meals your taste buds and busy schedule will love.

30 minute meals
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There are lots of sites out there claiming to “save your weeknights” with their fast and easy meal ideas. But how many times can you actually finish them in 30? And how often are they tasty enough to make again next week? Introducing, our top 30 minute meals that actually take 30 minutes and are so delicious, you’ll want to make them again and again! With each recipe, we’ve offered a few tips for simple sides to round them out into a meal.

And now, our top easy 30 minute meals!

More fast and easy meal ideas

Want more inspiration, or options for special diets? Browse these recipe collections for more fast and easy meal ideas:

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30 Minute Meals for Busy People

30 minute meals
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5 from 1 review

A hummus bowl makes the best easy lunch or dinner: no cooking required! Layer a dollop with crunchy veggie toppings.

  • Author: Sonja Overhiser
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 1 bowl 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: No Cook
  • Cuisine: Mediterranean
  • Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

Scale
  • ⅓ cup hummus
  • 8 English cucumber slices (or standard cucumber, peeled)
  • 1 handful red onion slices (or shallot)
  • 1 handful cherry tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 handful Kalamata olives
  • 2 tablespoons feta cheese, to sprinkle (optional)
  • 1 handful baby greens or chopped lettuce (optional)
  • ½ cup cooked rice or packaged pre-cooked rice (optional) or Easy Couscous or Easy Orzo
  • 1 pita bread, pita chips, or gluten free crackers
  • Optional toppings: roasted red peppers, caper berries, fresh herbs, etc
  • Protein adders (optional): Frozen or homemade falafel, precooked chicken, canned tuna or salmon, 5-minute shrimp, etc

Instructions

  1. Place greens and rice in the bowl, if using (try packaged pre-cooked rice for a quick shortcut). If using rice, season it with salt and a drizzle of olive oil.
  2. Top with hummus, sliced cucumber, sliced red onions, sliced tomatoes, olives and feta cheese. Eat with pita wedges, using the hummus as a dip / dressing for the veggies.

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About the authors

Alex & Sonja

Hi! We’re Alex & Sonja Overhiser, authors of the acclaimed cookbooks A Couple Cooks and Pretty Simple Cooking—and a real life couple who cooks together. We founded the A Couple Cooks website in 2010 to share seasonal recipes and the joy of home cooking. Now, we’ve got over 3,000 well-tested recipes, including Mediterranean diet, vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, smoothies, cocktails, and more!

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3 Comments

  1. Wendi seal says:

    Your recipes look delicious but the number of adds on the page makes it an unpleasant experience. Even if I use the jump to recipe option – adds still cover the info.

  2. Sabrina says:

    thank you for all of these, love all of your recipe collections, nice to have some options on short notice too, cheese tortellini in creamy marinara looks like a nice place to start