40 One-Pot Recipes for Easy Weeknight Meals

Updated February 02, 2021

Make weeknight meals a little easier with these healthy one-pot recipes. All of these delicious dinner recipes use just one pot, pan or baking sheet to make cleaning up fast. Whether it’s One-Pan Chicken Parmesan Pasta or Delicata Squash & Tofu Curry, you’ll want to add these recipes to your weekly meal rotation.

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One-Pan Chicken Parmesan Pasta

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This chicken Parmesan pasta uses the one-pot pasta method to cook your noodles, chicken and sauce all in one skillet for a fast and easy dinner with minimal cleanup. Finish the dish under the broiler to achieve a delicious melted cheese crust.

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Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Chickpeas & Spinach

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Simmer eggs in a rich tomatoey cream sauce studded with chickpeas and silky spinach for a super-fast vegetarian dinner. Serve with a piece of crusty bread to soak up the sauce. Be sure to use heavy cream; a lower-fat option might curdle when mixed with acidic tomatoes.

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One-Pot Italian Sausage & Kale Pasta

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For a fast weeknight pasta dinner, why not cook your sauce and pasta all at once? By using the exact amount of water you need to cook the pasta--no colanders here--the starch that cooks off into your pasta water, which you usually drain away, stays in the pot, giving you delectably creamy results.

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Creamy Chicken & Mushrooms

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Whether you scored wild mushrooms at the farmers' market, found cultivated maitake or shiitake at the supermarket or just have some baby bellas on hand, this healthy creamy chicken recipe is delicious with any of them. Serve over whole-wheat egg noodles or mashed potatoes.

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Delicata Squash & Tofu Curry

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This easy tofu curry, made with pretty delicata squash and hearty greens, cooks up in one skillet. To speed up the prep, use bagged chopped kale. Delicata squash's thin skin is tender when it's cooked, so there's no need to peel--another time saver. Serve with quinoa or brown rice.

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American Goulash

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American goulash, also known as old-fashioned goulash, is the perfect economical family meal. The pasta cooks right in the sauce, so this satisfying dish can cook in just one pot.

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Sheet-Pan Chicken Fajitas

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One sheet pan is all you'll need to whip up these zesty chicken fajitas. They're quick and easy to make and cleanup is even faster!

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Zuppa Toscana

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This creamy soup is packed with savory flavor from Italian sausage and bacon. But don't worry, we tucked in healthy ingredients too, like kale and white beans, for added nutrition and fiber to round out a healthy dinner or packable lunch.

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Slow-Cooker Vegetarian Lasagna

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Sure, the slow cooker's great for stews and soups, but it also happens to make a mean lasagna! In this ingenious slow-cooker recipe, all you have to do is chop your veggies, then layer the ingredients (raw) into the crockpot. Serve with: Garlic bread and a green salad.

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Pressure-Cooker Chicken, Potatoes & Peppers

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Simple ingredients like chicken thighs, potatoes and bell pepper turn fall-off-the-bone tender in the pressure cooker or Instant Pot in just minutes. A splash of vinegar and a sprinkle of scallion just before serving add zing to this classic family dinner.

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Adobo Chicken & Kale Enchiladas

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Put out your favorite toppings for these quick and healthy layered enchiladas. We like cilantro, sour cream, guacamole and jalapeños.

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Garlic Roasted Salmon & Brussels Sprouts

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Roasting salmon on top of Brussels sprouts and garlic, flavored with wine and fresh oregano, is simple enough for a weeknight meal yet sophisticated enough to serve to company. Serve with whole-wheat couscous.

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Oven-Barbecued Asian Chicken

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This Asian “barbecued” chicken made in a casserole dish is truly finger-licking good! You can make this with 2 bone-in chicken breasts (about 12 ounces each) instead of thighs and drumsticks, if you prefer. Remove the skin and cut each chicken breast in half on the diagonal to get 4 portions about equal in weight. Serve with sautéed chard and whole-grain rice pilaf.

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Chickpea & Chorizo Fideos

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This quick, one-pot version of fideos, a toasted pasta recipe served in Spain, gets a smoky flavor from delicious chorizo. If you can't find Spanish chorizo, pepperoni works well in its place. Serve with a green salad drizzled with sherry vinaigrette.

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North Country Braised Chicken

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Homey, hearty and flavorful, this easy chicken stew recipe sings with apple cider, rutabaga and pears. Serve over whole-wheat egg noodles or spaetzle.

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Smoked Turkey, Kale & Rice Bake

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This hearty one-skillet dinner is loaded with celery, kale, tomatoes and quick-cooking brown rice. It's easy to make the recipe vegetarian by substituting smoked tofu for the turkey.

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Orange-Tomato Couscous with Chicken

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This cinnamon- and cumin-spiked couscous with chicken takes its inspiration from Morocco. It's made mostly with pantry staples--all you have to pick up is some chicken thighs, a bunch of cilantro and an orange. The orange slices become tender after cooking--you can eat them skin and all. For a variation, substitute diced, boneless leg of lamb for the chicken. Serve with steamed green beans or a spinach salad.

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Salmon & Asparagus Farro Bowl

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In this farro and salmon recipe, salmon is poached in a miso-infused broth with bites of tender asparagus and sautéed leeks. If you use farro that's labeled “pearled,” a faster-cooking farro, to make this recipe, start with a full cup of grains and reduce the cooking time to 15 minutes. To clean the leeks, trim off the green tops and white roots and split lengthwise. Place in a large bowl of water and swish around to release any sand or soil. Repeat until no grit remains.

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Creamy Pea & Chicken Stew

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This cheesy, saucy one-pot pea and chicken stew reminds us of the filling in chicken potpie. While it tastes rich and comforting, it has plenty of peas and cauliflower, too, so you get lots of veggies. Serve this creamy healthy pea and chicken stew recipe with biscuits or over brown rice.

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Arroz con Pollo

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Arroz con pollo, or chicken cooked with rice, is a common dish in Spain, Latin America and the Caribbean. We use quick-cooking brown rice here to help you get this on the table in just 40 minutes. Serve with a mixed green salad tossed with cilantro-lime vinaigrette.

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Saucy Coconut-Chicken Stir-Fry

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Thai flavors of coconut and basil come together in this fresh and spicy chicken and cabbage stir-fry. If your family prefers a milder meal, forgo the jalapeño. Serve with: Rice noodles and mango slices.

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Quick Chicken Tikka Masala

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One of the most popular Indian dishes in the U.S. and the U.K., chicken tikka masala usually involves several steps including marinating and grilling the chicken before simmering in a curried tomato cream sauce. We've simplified it to a one-skillet dish and lightened it by increasing the vegetables, omitting the butter and using less cream. Serve with brown basmati rice and, for dessert, dates.

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Creamy Scallop & Pea Fettuccine

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This rich pasta dish is full of sweet seared scallops and plump peas. Low-fat milk and flour thicken the sauce, giving it creamy texture without the extra calories and fat found in traditional cream sauces. Serve with a small Caesar salad on the side.

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Turkey Sausage with Fennel Sauerkraut & Potatoes

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Inspired by the Alsatian classic choucroute garni, this comforting, one-pot meal takes a shortcut with bagged shredded cabbage. Serve topped with additional brown mustard, if you like.

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Hamburger Buddy

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Very finely chopping onion, mushrooms and carrots in the food processor is not only fast--it makes the vegetables hard to detect for picky eaters. They also form the base for the sauce of this ground beef skillet supper. Make it a meal: Serve with a green salad.

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Bean Bolognese

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Fiber-rich beans stand in for the beef and pork in this surprisingly rich-tasting vegetarian take on pasta Bolognese. Without the meat, the dish has only a third of the fat and 80 percent less saturated fat. To make the perfect meal, serve with a peppery arugula salad and warm, crusty Italian bread.

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Fennel-Crusted Salmon on White Beans

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Delicious warm white beans and fennel are topped with succulent fennel-seed-crusted salmon for a double hit of flavor. For an extra-fresh look, set aside some additional chopped fennel fronds to use as a garnish.

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Cantonese Chicken & Bok Choy Fried Rice

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In this healthy fried rice recipe, chicken, bok choy and carrots are tossed with Cantonese oyster sauce for a delicious one-bowl dinner. If you don't have leftover cooked rice on hand, be sure to thoroughly cool your rice before adding it to the wok--if it's too warm, it creates too much steam and sticks to the wok. To quickly cool warm rice, spread out on a large baking sheet and refrigerate while you prep the rest of your ingredients, about 15 minutes.

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Quick Chicken Braciole

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In this healthy stuffed chicken recipe, pounded chicken breasts are stuffed with a flavorful chard, prosciutto and mozzarella filling and then simmered in store-bought marinara sauce. Serve over whole-wheat fettuccine tossed with parsley or on polenta.

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Chicken Stew with Turnips & Mushrooms

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In this healthy chicken stew recipe, we save prep time by using pre-sliced mushrooms and pre-chopped kale (found near packaged fresh greens). If you don't like turnips, potatoes are an easy substitution.

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Quick Chicken Parmesan

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Ooey-gooey cheese, crispy breadcrumbs and plenty of sauce are the hallmarks of any good chicken Parmesan recipe, and this one-skillet version of chicken parm is no exception. We made this recipe easier by skipping the breading on the chicken and loading the top of the dish with cheese and breadcrumbs. Serve with whole-wheat pasta to soak up the extra sauce.

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Roast Chicken & Sweet Potatoes

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Caramelized sweet potatoes and red onion are the bed for chicken thighs that cook up fast in a very hot oven--perfect for a quick healthy chicken dinner. Serve with a fall salad of mixed greens, sliced apples and blue cheese.

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Summer Corn & Scallop Pasta

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The naturally sweet taste of scallops partners beautifully with summer corn at its peak in this corn and scallop pasta recipe. To get the most corn flavor into the creamy pasta sauce for this summer pasta recipe, we use the dull side of a knife to remove the extra bit of the corn kernels and the sweet corn “milk” from the ear after cutting off the fresh kernels. Try this technique anytime you are adding fresh corn to sauces or soups.

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Mediterranean Chicken Skillet

Credit: Victor Protasio
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In this one-skillet Mediterranean chicken recipe, chicken thighs are infused with lemon, garlic and herbs and paired with orzo that's perfectly al dente. Charred tomatoes and onions add full flavor to complete this easy Mediterranean dinner.

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One-Skillet Salmon with Fennel & Sun-Dried Tomato Couscous

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Sun-dried tomato pesto and lemon do double duty to season both the salmon and the couscous in this healthy one-pan dinner recipe. Serve the salmon with extra lemon wedges and a dollop of plain yogurt, if desired.