Meal-prep dinners
Recipes that are as good on day two as on day one — which rules out most crisp things and anything dressed in advance. Cook once on Sunday, scale the servings up, and eat properly on the nights you have nothing left. 33 in the library, the quickest done in 25 minutes, most around 40. Every one serves four.
AsianSweet and Savory Ground Pork Rice Bowls
Caramelized ground pork over rice with crunchy cucumber and pickled carrot. Five-ingredient sauce, huge flavor.
IndianBeef Keema with Peas and Rice
Spiced ground beef simmered down with peas. Cheap, fast, freezes well, and tastes better the next day.
Middle EasternChicken Shawarma Bowls with Garlic Yogurt
All the shawarma spice on chicken thighs that crisp in a hot pan, with a garlic yogurt worth double-dipping.
LatinCuban Mojo Pork Bowl
Citrus-and-garlic marinated pork over rice and black beans. Big flavor from a marinade that takes two minutes.
MexicanStreet Corn Chicken Bowl
Everything good about elote — charred corn, lime, chili and salty cheese — turned into a bowl with spiced chicken.
MexicanCarne Asada Bowls
Lime and cumin marinated steak charred hard, sliced thin against the grain, over rice with avocado and charred corn.
Middle EasternChicken Shish Taouk
Lebanese garlic-and-lemon marinated chicken, charred hard and served over rice with a garlic sauce worth making properly.
LatinCuban Picadillo with Rice
Beef simmered with cumin, olives and raisins — savoury and faintly sweet at once. A weeknight staple across the Caribbean.
Middle EasternHarissa Chicken and Couscous Bowl
Chicken and vegetables roasted hard on one pan with harissa, then piled onto couscous with cooling yogurt.
AmericanWeeknight Turkey Chili
Lean, cozy chili with turkey, two kinds of beans, and enough warmth to carry a Tuesday. Ready in under 40 minutes.
- Latin
Brazilian Beef with Rice and Beans
Garlicky beef over rice with slow-simmered black beans and a sharp tomato salsa. The everyday plate of Brazil.
MexicanClassic Chili con Carne
Beef, beans and warm spice simmered until it thickens and darkens. Better the next day, if it lasts.
- Mediterranean
Italian Sausage and White Bean Stew
Sausage browned hard, beans simmered until creamy, spinach wilted in at the end. Bread on the side for the bowl.
MexicanLoaded Beef Burritos
Spiced beef, rice and beans rolled tight, then toasted in a dry pan until the outside goes crisp and golden.
ItalianMeatballs in Cream Sauce with Rigatoni
Browned meatballs in a tomato-cream sauce that coats every tube of rigatoni. The one that empties the pan.
MexicanMexican-Style Beef and Pasta Bake
Chili-spiced beef, pasta, and melted gouda baked into one dish. The tray everyone goes back to.
IndianTandoori-Style Chicken with Cucumber Raita
Yogurt-and-spice marinated chicken roasted hard, with a cooling cucumber raita and basmati underneath.
MexicanChicken Enchiladas Verde
Rolled tortillas under tangy green salsa and melted cheese, baked until the edges go dark and chewy.
ItalianWeeknight Spaghetti Bolognese
A quick take on the Italian classic. Deeply savory beef ragu served over spaghetti with plenty of parmesan.
MexicanChicken Pozole Rojo
A red chili broth with hominy and shredded chicken, finished at the table with raw cabbage, radish and lime.
AmericanClassic Cottage Pie
Savoury beef and vegetables under a cheese-browned mash lid. The dish everyone goes back to the oven for.
- Latin
Colombian Chicken and Potato Stew
Chicken simmered with potato and corn until the broth turns thick and golden, with rice and avocado alongside.
MediterraneanGreek Lemon-Oregano Chicken and Potatoes
Chicken and potatoes roasted in one tray with lemon, oregano and enough garlic to matter. The tray goes on the table.
Middle EasternMoroccan Chicken Tagine with Apricots
Warm-spiced chicken braised with apricots until the sauce goes sticky and sweet against the salt. Couscous underneath.
- Latin
Peruvian Chicken with Green Sauce
Cumin and paprika roasted chicken with a sharp herb-and-garlic green sauce, rice, and a bright tomato salad.
- Mediterranean
Spanish Chicken and Chorizo Rice
One pan: chicken browned in chorizo fat, rice cooked in the same pot until it takes on all the paprika.
- BBQ
BBQ Meatloaf with Mash
A glazed meatloaf baked thin so it cooks in half the usual time, over buttery mash with blistered green beans.
- Danish
Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf with Potatoes
The Danish Sunday loaf — pork and beef under a bacon lattice, with boiled potatoes and a cream gravy from the pan.
AmericanHearty Beef Stew
Beef braised with carrot and potato until the sauce turns glossy. Cut the meat small and it fits a weeknight.
MediterraneanMediterranean Stuffed Peppers
Bell peppers filled with seasoned beef, rice, tomato, and feta, then baked until tender. Meal-in-a-vessel.
MexicanPork Carnitas Tacos
Pork simmered in orange and cumin, then crisped under high heat so the edges shatter. Onion and cilantro, nothing else.
IndianWeeknight Chicken Biryani
A one-pot shortcut at the real thing — spiced chicken and rice steamed together so the grains take on all of it.
IndianLamb Rogan Josh
Kashmiri-style lamb braised with warm spice until the sauce turns deep red and clings. Worth the extra simmer.