Dinner, Faster

Our Most Popular 30-Minute Dinners Are Here to Save Your Weeknights

Surprise: There's a lot of pasta.

February 25, 2019

I'll level with you. As much as I like to spend hours tinkering with a complicated recipe every now and then (I once lost an entire weekend to these Parisian macarons), the majority of the time I crave fast and easy dishes that still deliver tons of flavor.

That's where the reliable 30-minute meal comes in. The 30-minute meal embodies everything I believe in: quick, simple, and inherently smart. Endlessly useful.

Because dinner's the name of the game, I've combed through our top-secret records to find out which time-saving, always-delicious recipes you all turn to over and over and over again. From the creamiest Instant Pot butter chicken to an umami-rich miso-mushroom pasta you'll want to keep in your weekly rotation from now until forever, here are 10 of our most popular 30-minute dinner all-stars. The best of the very best.


Our Best 30-minute meals

1. Martha Stewart's One-Pan Pasta

Ah Martha, you never cease to impress us, and this one-pan pasta is no exception. Toss the linguine, tomatoes, onion, garlic, red-pepper flakes, and basil all together and boil away for a simple, satisfying dinner.

2. Gong Bao Ji Ding

If you haven't met gong bao ji ding yet, let me introduce you: It’s an addictively good stir-fried chicken dinner with a spicy-savory sauce that’s on the table in just 25 minutes. I'll let you two take it from here.

3. Buffalo-Glazed Salmon With Blue Cheese Kale Salad

If you're a fan of Buffalo-style anything, you're guaranteed to love Eric Kim's Buffalo-glazed salmon paired with a blue cheese–dressed kale salad. The best part: It's ready in 20 minutes tops.

4. Instant Pot Butter Chicken

This Instant Pot butter chicken from Urvashi Pitre packs in so much creamy flavor—garlic, ginger, garam masala, and more—and clocks in right at 30 minutes.

5. Sautéed Shrimp with Lemon, Garlic, and Parsley

Pile this über-simple sautéed garlic shrimp atop crusty French bread and pair with a glass of crisp white wine or rosé for an impressive-looking meal that's actually very easy.

6. Spaghetti Aglio e Olio e Salsiccia

This absurdly easy sausage spaghetti from pasta-ficionado Ella Quittner gets its silky, cheesy sauce by cooking the dried noodles in a skillet or sauté pan.

7. Lemon Chicken

Longtime Food52 community mrslarkin writes of her lemon chicken recipe: "Had some chicken breast in the fridge. Didn't feel like breading them, so I made this." Enough said.

8. Miso-Mushroom Pasta

You won't thick twice about adding miso to your pasta after trying this spaghetti with red miso, mushrooms, lots of butter, sherry vinegar to balance the creaminess, and scallions for a bright touch.

9. Yotam Ottolenghi's Shakshuka

Shakshuka for dinner? Oh yes. Ottolenghi's take on this breakfast and brunch classic makes the coziest-ever dinner when topped with thick labneh and herbs, and served alongside warm pita bread.

10. Skillet-Grilled Fish Tacos with Cilantro-Lime Crema

I saved these skillet-grilled fish tacos for last because good things come to those who wait—and these spicy tacos topped with a tangy crema and cabbage slaw are oh-so-good and oh-so-speedy.

Join The Conversation

Top Comment:
“Out of curiosity, when you say "I've combed through our top-secret records to find out which time-saving, always-delicious recipes you all turn to over and over and over again" do you mean by the number of views? The number of saves? The number of comments?”
— Girlfromipanema
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What's your favorite 30-minute meal? Tell us in the comments below!
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Erin Alexander

Written by: Erin Alexander

Erin Alexander is the Managing Editor of Food52.

4 Comments

dgeorge8 March 3, 2019
I’d love to see the vegetarian version of this list :)
 
Danielle March 3, 2019
Plant based too! But you can make the miso mushroom pasta with almond milk in for the cream and olive oil for the butter and it’s still amazing (I just cooked some up tonight).
 
Dashmore May 18, 2021
I made the amazing miso mushroom pasta with cashew cream and olive oil last week and it was soooo good! Cashew cream is a great cream substitute and easy to make if you have a good blender or ninja smoothie maker. Just a cup of raw cashews and and enough water to blend and whir until its smooth and creamy (1 to 2 minutes). Some recipes tell you to soak the cashews but if they're fairly fresh they really don't need it. Freeze the extra into cubes and use it anywhere you need creaminess (doesn't work for whipped cream though).
 
Girlfromipanema February 26, 2019
Out of curiosity, when you say "I've combed through our top-secret records to find out which time-saving, always-delicious recipes you all turn to over and over and over again" do you mean by the number of views? The number of saves? The number of comments?