Fast & Easy Dinner Ideas

First up in our fast and easy dinner recipes: garlic shrimp! The shrimp come out impossibly juicy with the best garlic flavor. The best part? It takes under 10 minutes to make. Yep, that’s pretty unheard of in dinnertime territory. Serve with pasta or couscous and a salad for a speedy meal. Also try Cilantro Lime Shrimp. Scroll down for the recipe!

Total time: 10 minutes

Here's the very definition of easy dinner recipes: 5 Minute Tacos! Can dinner really be made in 5 minutes? Yes, dinner will materialize before your eyes! These tacos are filled with "chorizo-style eggs", which take on a meaty texture and flavor in a flash. Top them with salsa fresca, red onion slivers, cilantro & hot sauce, and prepare to be amazed.

Total time: 5 minutes

Who doesn’t love a good grilled cheese sandwich? Here’s one with a glamorous twist: the avocado grilled cheese. Simply adding an avocado and tomato to a standard grilled cheese makes it fit for serving to company! Although it’s a simple dish, grilled cheese can be gussied up as much or as little as you like. 

Total time: 10 minutes

Some pasta recipes stand a head above the rest, and this is one of them. Try this cheese tortellini in creamy marinara sauce! In just 15 minutes, you’ve got a pasta skillet that’s a literal symphony flavor. The fresh basil-infused marinara sauce is perfectly complimented with pillows of tangy goat cheese. (In fact, it’s like this baked goat cheese dip made into a main dish.)

Total time: 15 minutes

It’s simple, it’s elegant, but it tastes like something you’d order at a restaurant: Sheet Pan Salmon and Asparagus! Roasting it up on a sheet pan with lemon slices and fresh herbs adds effortless flavor that feels fresh yet refined. This sheet pan meal is the perfect weeknight meal.

Next up in our easy dinner recipes: this mushroom pasta! It's a fan favorite recipe because of the big flavor that's possible in under 30 minutes. Imagine: creamy goat cheese and savory mushrooms, seasoned with thyme and oregano and paired with the bite of chewy pasta. An absolute showstopper.

Also try: Mushroom Pasta with Parmesan

Total time: 25 minutes

This chickpea curry is the epitome of healthy weeknight dinners! It can be made in just 20 minutes, a speed record for sure. But there are no flavor shortcuts: it's bursting with garlic, ginger, cumin, and curry powder, with a bit of coconut swirled in for a creamy body. Serve with basmati rice and it's a true gem.

Total time: 20 minutes

Here's the ultimate quick weeknight meal, a filling vegetarian dinner that comes together in 20 minutes flat. Meet this soba noodle bowl! It’s filled with stir fried broccoli, red pepper and onion, mix with a savory sauce with creamy peanut butter. Even better: eggs are scrambled right into the mix (like fried rice, but with noodles!).

This chickpea bowls recipe is a common repeat in our easy dinner recipes repertoire. In just 25 minutes, you have a fresh bowl of veggies that’s smothered in a tangy lemon tahini sauce. If you’re just starting to eat plant based recipes or have been eating them for years, this one is a truly tasty way to eat your veggies.

Total time: 25 minutes

Here’s our ultimate fast and easy dinner recipe: Naan Pizza! Get this: it’s faster than delivery pizza, healthier, and it tastes better. So why order out when you can make tasty pizza in? Packaged naan bread is easy to find these days, making it easy to run to the store on a naan pizza run. You’ll never need delivery or frozen pizza again! 

Total time: 15 minutes

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 fast 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.

Total time: 20 minutes

Is there anything better than shrimp tacos? Add chips and salsa as a side, and we can’t think of much better. The cilantro sauce drizzle is creamy like ranch, but with cilantro and cumin. This easy dinner idea is fast enough for weeknights and fancy enough for entertaining: making it a double whammy.

Total time: 20 minutes

Looking for a healthy and easy weeknight meal? Try this shrimp and broccoli! The pair are cooked with soy sauce and and rice vinegar until bright and savory. The contrast of the crisp tender broccoli against the juicy shrimp is really something. Serve it with rice or noodles to make it a complete meal that comes together quickly.

Total time: 20 minutes

This recipe makes the humble solo meal into a delicious fast and easy dinner, resulting in a big batch all at once on a sheet pan! All the quesadillas are done at the same time, and they come out with a beautifully crispy exterior. In fact, it feels like a whole new version of this classic: like Quesadillas 2.0. Here's how to whip up a pan of baked sheet pan quesadillas that are so good, everyone will be begging for more.

Total time: 25 minutes

For this creamy mac and cheese, Greek yogurt is stirred in at the end, to give a creamy texture. Fresh spinach is gently wilted in for all the added nutrients without a strong flavor, and turmeric gives a tiny immunity boost and some extra color. And the flavor? Spot on delicious. The combination of cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese and fresh garlic makes it irresistible.

Total time: 25 minutes

These loaded quinoa tacos are a true crowd pleaser and one of our go to’s for quick weeknights! The quinoa filling is toasted and filled with taco spices and lime. Then combine it with a bell pepper slaw, spicy sour cream, salsa, and feta cheese, and you’ve got a new level of delicious. Oh and pickled red onions for color and crunch!

Total time: 30 minutes

If you've got no time at all: spring for tuna salad! This classic tuna salad is surprisingly satisfying: it hits all the right savory notes to make the very best sandwich! To make it ultra creamy, it uses both mayo and Greek yogurt; Greek yogurt ups the creamy factor while keeping calories low. Also try: Tuna Salad with Egg or Avocado Tuna Salad

Total time: 10 minutes

Ready in just 30 minutes, we affectionately call this soup “pizza soup” because it tastes like liquid pizza! The pizza flavor comes in part from the San Marzano tomatoes, an Italian variety of tomato that’s available canned. Combine with fennel and smoked paprika, throw in some Tuscan kale to the mix, and you've got one delicious soup that reminds you of your favorite pizza pie.

Total time: 30 minutes

Salmon is so quick to prepare and full of nutrients that it prominently features in our easy dinner recipes. Here this 10-minute baked salmon recipe makes for an ultra quick dinner, paired with a bright green pesto sauce. Serve with a whole grain like our pesto quinoa or rice.

Total time: 30 minutes