Favorite Dinner Recipes for Bowls, Pasta, and Bakes
Ground beef, chicken, black beans, pasta, and other firm vegetables, such as sweet potatoes and broccoli, are good dinner choices. Dinner recipes include spicy and cheese-topped quesadillas and shrimp with lime, as well as other Greek-inspired chicken dishes and cream-sauce pasta dishes, cranberry chicken salad, and broccoli Alfredo casserole. Other ingredients, including feta cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese, add variety.
Why These Dinner Recipes Are Good Options
- Pantry Items: Beef and chicken, black beans, quinoa, pasta, and tortillas are good items to serve at home-cooked meals because they are common foods.
- Variety of Produce: Sweet potatoes, broccoli, cucumber, arugula, avocado, celery, and lime provide variety in texture and flavor to these recipes.
- Cheese Products: Feta, mozzarella, cheddar, Parmesan, and Alfredo sauce can add taste and texture to protein-rich foods.
- Make-Ahead Foods: Precooked chicken and prepared beef filling, shrimp, and quinoa and chopped vegetables can save time when preparing meals.
1. Hot Honey Beef Bowl with Charred Sweet Potatoes and Arugula
Use 90/10 ground beef to give the dish flavor and beef flavor without excess fat; 90/10 ground beef is one ingredient in a Hot Honey Beef Bowl. Other ingredients in a Hot Honey Beef Bowl are charred sweet potatoes, arugula, avocado, pickled onions, and lime. Sweet potato cubes add a savory element to the dish and are roasted in avocado oil and sea salt and black pepper. Honey coats and sweetens the cubes. Seasonings added to beef cubes include sriracha and garlic powder and smoked paprika. Arugula, avocado, and pickled red onion, and lime juice are served as toppings and sides, adding bitterness and other cooling flavors to balance the sweetness of the coating. Potatoes should be fully cooked and tender when prodded with a fork. Beef should be browned in a 12-inch pan without overcrowding and turning or moving while cooking. Overcrowding and turning the meat in a pan while cooking will cause the meat to steam. Lowering the heat before adding honey will help prevent burning of the glaze. Add roasted potatoes and sweetened beef and other toppings to each bowl. Store unused portions of dish ingredients separately from the arugula, avocado, and onions. Reheat the beef and potatoes for serving to help keep arugula and avocado fresh-tasting.
2. Ground Beef Quesadillas with Black Beans and Two Cheeses
Precook the beef and black bean filling the day before. Make tortillas right before cooking. The recipe makes four quesadillas filled with shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheeses and beef and jalapeño, served in crispy flour tortillas. Extra-lean ground beef keeps the filling less greasy. Onion, garlic, jalapeños, green-chile diced tomatoes, black beans, paprika, and cumin add flavor to the filling. Mozzarella and sharp cheddar cheeses add texture and flavor. Fresh cilantro and filling and cheese are added to one half of a flour tortilla. Tortillas are folded over and pan-fried. Cook onions until tender and garlic until aromatic. Sauté beef and jalapeños. The cooked filling mixture, including canned beans and tomatoes and other ingredients, should be moist but not soggy. Tip: Do not pack too much filling into each tortilla, or it will be hard to roll up the tortillas and filling will spill out before both sides are toasted. For meal prep, prepare the beef filling ahead of time and heat before making quesadillas. Slice cooked quesadillas into thirds and serve with guacamole and salsa. Unassembled tortillas will remain crispier than cooked quesadillas stored overnight in the refrigerator.
3. Cilantro Lime Shrimp Quinoa Bowl with Black Beans and Avocado
Plan and prepare four meals in advance using cooked shrimp, quinoa, and black beans. Purchase avocados and limes to serve with these planned meals. This cilantro lime shrimp and quinoa recipe features cooked shrimp marinated in lime juice and topped with sliced avocado when served, along with quinoa and black beans. Freshly squeezed lime juice, low-sodium soy sauce, lemon pepper seasoning, Grill Mates BBQ seasoning mix, cilantro, and salt and pepper are mixed with peeled and deveined shrimp in a resealable bag. Allow shrimp to marinate 30 to 45 minutes before cooking to pick up flavor. Quinoa and canned black beans are filling base ingredients for the meal. Sliced avocado is a cool, soft topping. This meal is simple to prepare in advance for the week. Shrimp take about 3 to 4 minutes to turn pink on a medium-sized griddle. Warm the beans in a separate pan over medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes before serving over quinoa. Tips for preparing shrimp include looking for a pink color as a sign that the shrimp are cooked, not grill marks. Reheated overcooked shrimp will be tough to eat later. For meal planning with lunches, keep avocado and lime separate, as suggested in the original item, from other lunch ingredients, including reheated shrimp, quinoa, beans, and vegetables. Consider adding roasted cauliflower and broccoli to your meal plan. Prepare fresh ingredients for your lunch when eating or planning ahead for lunch.
4. Greek Chicken Bowls with Crunchy Cucumber and Creamy Feta
Prepare four servings of Greek chicken bowl dishes by cooking the meat and chopping other ingredients in advance. Combine ingredients at mealtime. Other ingredients for Greek chicken bowls include oregano-seasoned chicken, cucumber, tomato, olive, and feta cheese over quinoa or rice. Olive oil provides a pan-fried taste to diced chicken. Garlic powder, oregano, salt, and pepper provide additional flavors in a short amount of time. Other salad ingredients include quinoa or rice and diced cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onion, feta cheese, and olives. Lemon juice is added to the salad after the chicken to provide lemon flavor without affecting other ingredients or portion sizes. Check for color cues while the chicken cooks. Serve the chicken and vegetables separately on a serving plate so that the vegetables are visible and well mixed. Hints that the food has been mishandled include clumps of feta cheese mixed with the grains. Overcooked diced chicken is dry, and overhandling of other ingredients, including tomatoes and feta cheese, can cause damage. Serve the bowls warm or at room temperature with parsley. Other serving suggestions from the article include warm pita bread, tzatziki sauce, green salad, and roasted vegetables. If you plan to serve the bowls for lunch, consider leaving out the parsley to pack leftovers in an airtight container for future meals. The cucumber will break down some over time.
5. Marry Me Chicken Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Parmesan
Peel the chicken breasts to reduce cooking time and make the chicken main dish in Marry Me Chicken Pasta. Other dish ingredients include rigatoni pasta and a creamy sun-dried tomato and garlic sauce with Parmesan cheese and optional red pepper flakes for a slightly spicy flavor. A seasoned flour blend of Italian herbs, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika is used to coat chicken. Drain oil from sun-dried tomatoes before adding them to the pan. Heavy whipping cream and chicken broth are used as ingredients in the sauce. Seasoned flour is mixed into the sauce and added to the pan with the chicken to coat rigatoni in a Parmesan-thickened sauce. Browned chicken can be removed from the skillet, leaving other browned foods in the skillet to season the sauce. Add garlic directly to the skillet and cook only until fragrant; do not brown or burn garlic. Allow the pasta and chicken with sauce to simmer uncovered to thicken the sauce and coat the rigatoni; the sauce may be too thin if not simmered long enough. Serve the pasta hot with Parmesan cheese mixed through as directed. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Cream sauce may separate when reheated. When reheating leftovers, add a small amount of milk and stir.
6. Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad with Sweet-Tart Cranberries and Crunchy Celery
This eight-serving cranberry pecan chicken salad recipe takes 20 minutes to make. Use for lunch or save croissants and rolls to serve with the chicken salad. Cooked chicken is a good choice for this salad. Dried cranberries and other ingredients provide texture to the chicken salad. The salad base consists of boneless, skinless cooked chicken breast. Cooked chicken thigh is also an option for the base. Dried cranberries, finely chopped, add tart and sweet flavors and textures to the salad. Pecans and finely chopped celery also add texture. Chopped green onions add flavor. Dressing ingredients include mayonnaise, lemon juice, honey, salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Making the dressing separately ensures that honey and other ingredients are evenly distributed in the salad. Small chicken and vegetable pieces ensure even spreading of toppings on sandwiches. Chicken and vegetables with dressing but little mayonnaise show that they have been properly coated. Large chicken and vegetable pieces and uneven distribution of ingredients on each sandwich show improper chopping. Thoroughly mix chicken and vegetables from the bottom and sides of a mixing bowl. Stir frequently over medium heat when toasting pecans for sandwiches. Chop toasted pecans. Serve the salad in croissants, soft bread buns, tortillas, lettuce leaves, or without bread. When making this recipe in advance, hold off on serving it with bread until just before serving to avoid soggy bread. You can also serve this cold dish on a party platter. The original article notes that this dish can be made in advance for lunch and parties.
7. Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo Bake with Homemade Alfredo Sauce
This chicken and broccoli Alfredo casserole makes eight servings. The recipe is simple to make and prepare. I cook the pasta and broccoli at the same time in one pot and cook the Alfredo sauce in a separate pot while they cook. I include cooked chicken in the casserole when baking and top it with mozzarella cheese to heat the sauce and brown the cheese. Cook penne al dente, since it will cook more in the oven. Add broccoli to the pasta for 3 minutes at the end of the cooking process. Drain thoroughly. For the sauce, sauté garlic for 1 minute. Simmer the cream. Lower the heat and gradually stir in freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper. A 9×13-inch baking dish can hold the recipe. I suggest adding Panko bread crumbs for a crunchy topping, but the recipe can be made without them. Penne pasta can help catch plenty of sauce. I suggest taking the casserole out of the oven when the sauce is bubbly and the topping is golden brown and letting it sit for 5-10 minutes before serving to prevent serving just sauce. After adding sauce to the pizza, use a spatula to push the sauce to the outer edges of the pan before adding other ingredients. Ensure the sauce is distributed around the entire pizza, not just in the middle, to avoid areas of the pizza without sauce. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. The edges of the pizza should be bubbling, and some browning should appear on the cheese.
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