22 Easy Five-Ingredient Recipes For Nights When You Need Dinner Done ASAP (2024)

Whenever we need an easy weeknight dinner that doesn't require much, this is what we make. It works with whatever veggies you already have and requires basically zero effort. Most of the time spent is waiting while the sheet pan is in the oven, and there are minimal dishes to clean when it's all said and done. What more could you need?

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Cajun seasoning is a top 5 go-to seasoning mix for our Test Kitchen chefs. We love the spicy, zesty flavors it can provide to everything it touches. The spice also makes this stuffed chicken dish a perfect leftover contender because the flavor last and lasts.

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This easy dinner harnesses the power of seasoned sausage, jarred marinara, and fresh potato gnocchi to make a super-flavorful dish with minimal prep and active cooking time. Perfect for a lazy night when you're craving the 3 C’s: comfort, carbs, and CHEESE.

Get the One-Pan Cheesy Sausage Gnocchi recipe.

With only 5 ingredients, these black bean tostadas are the easiest and fastest meal to throw together. You can always add on additional toppings like corn salsa, avocado ranch, or endless crunchy veggies like radishes or pickled red onions, but these are also delicious if you keep things simple, like we did here.

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Philly cheesesteaks are iconic—and for a really good reason! The combination of thinly sliced ribeye, jammy caramelized onions, and ooey-gooey melted cheese is truly addictive. We added bell peppers and mushrooms like they often do on the West Coast, but feel free to keep it simple (or add more to make it your own!).

Get the Homemade Philly Cheesesteaks recipe.

Orecchiette, literally translating to "little ears" in Italian, is a crazy-underrated and underutilized pasta. The tiny little indentations catch so much sauce! Here, the sauce is similar to that of cacio e pepe. You just need butter, pasta water, pepper, and cheese. Toasting the pepper in butter is key, folks. DO NOT skip it.

Get the Orecchiette With Broccoli Rabe recipe.

Need a quick meal on the fly? We bet you’ve got the ingredients for this in your kitchen already. Believe it or not, if you've got eggs, canned white beans, and some marinara, you can make this! The best part? This easy, cheesy recipe comes together in less than 30 minutes. 😉

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We can thank the cuisine of Tex-Mex for the origin of the classic fajita. These days you can find steak, chicken, shrimp, or even vegetarian fajitas, so go wild! Whatever you choose, minimal prep, cook time, and ingredients means these can be on your dining room table FAST.

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Missing summertime BBQ chicken? Stuff sweet potatoes with rotisserie chicken and your favorite BBQ sauce, then top them with Gouda for a healthy chicken dinner you can enjoy long into fall and beyond.

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This is easy to make and even easier to indulge in. The real Italian way uses guancial—cured pork jowl—which has a slightly sweet, delicate flavor. If you can't find it, use pancetta or thick-cut bacon instead!

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Allow us to make a case for bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. In our humble opinion, they're all-around better. The reason? More fat equals more flavor. Plus, is there anything more delicious than crispy chicken skin?

Get the Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs recipe.

This easy mahi-mahi recipe comes together in 30 minutes or less. After searing the fish for a few minutes per side, make a super-simple lemon butter sauce with garlic. We like to sauté some asparagus too, but use whatever vegetable you like (or skip it altogether).

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With a prep and cook time of just under an hour, this budget-friendly dinner hits all the marks for a comforting weeknight meal. Cube steak is particularly tasty here, dredged in a seasoned-flour mix and prepared with an irresistible gravy flavored with onion soup mix.

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Looking for an easy chicken recipe? This lemony chicken piccata is so easy to throw together. While many piccata recipes bread the chicken, we skip that to get this on your table FAST.

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We bet you're already familiar with making store-bought ramen when you need a quick meal, but have you ever considered skipping the soup and just using the noodles? Trust us, adding pesto and Parmesan (and ditching the flavor packet) can make even the most rushed of dinners into something a bit more special.

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Chicken Parmesan is absolutely incredible, but it can be a bit heavy. When you're trying to be healthy, but are really craving good Italian food, make this vegetarian cauliflower dish. You won't be disappointed.

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You can't go wrong with this summery combo. Tomatoes cooked in balsamic vinegar are the perfect sweet-tart complement to this cheesy chicken.

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This is probably THE simplest recipe... ever? A slow-cooker meal made with only 4 ingredients is really something to celebrate. The chicken falls apart and becomes immensely tender, brimming with the familiar flavors of chunky salsa and taco seasoning, and brightened up with bursts of lime juice. Yum!

Get the Crockpot Salsa Chicken recipe.

To re-create the beloved pizza hot pocket, we used canned pizza dough, store-bought marinara, cheese, and pepperoni. The egg wash gives the crust a beautiful shine and helps it get golden brown, but you can skip it if you like!

Get the Copycat Pizza Hot Pockets recipe.

Most of the time, we don't get very excited over pork chops. Often overdone, they come out dry, sad, and flavorless. Cooking them in an air fryer changes all that! Due to the intense heat circulation that happens, the outside crisps slightly while the inside stays nice and juicy.

Get the Air Fryer Pork Chops recipe.