Our 30 Most Popular 30-Minute Dinner Recipes

By
Dillon Evans
Dillon Evans
Dillon Evans
Dillon Evans fell in love with cooking at a very young age. He remembers the novel experiences of microwaving a bowl of oatmeal without his parents' permission and asking to make his mother's morning pot of coffee. These moments became catalysts for his interest in cooking and baking.
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Published on February 16, 2024
One-Skillet Cheesy Ground Chicken Pasta
Photo: Victor Protasio

Out of hundreds of dinner recipes, these 30 are the ones EatingWell readers have visited the most in the past year. In 30 minutes or less, you can have a healthy, fan-favorite soup, stew, pasta, grain bowl and more on the table. Flavorful dishes like our Salmon Rice Bowl and One-Skillet Cheesy Ground Chicken Pasta are sure to be the next best additions to your evening meal rotation.

01 of 30

Chicken & Spinach Skillet Pasta with Lemon & Parmesan

Chicken & Spinach Skillet Pasta with Lemon & Parmesan

This one-pan chicken pasta combines lean chicken breast and sautéed spinach for a one-bowl meal that's garlicky, lemony and best served with a little Parm on top. I call it "Mom's Skillet Pasta," and she called it "Devon's Favorite Pasta." Either way, it's a quick and easy weeknight dinner we created together and scribbled on a little recipe card more than a decade ago, and it remains in my weekly dinner rotation to this day. It's a simple dinner the whole family will love.

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02 of 30

Chopped Power Salad with Chicken

Chopped Power Salad with Chicken
Jason Donnelly

Enjoy this filling and colorful salad for lunch or dinner. The dressing gets made in the same bowl that the salad is tossed in, so the greens absorb every bit of flavor.

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03 of 30

Spaghetti & Spinach with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

Spaghetti & Spinach with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce (tk final title)
Photography / Kelsey Hansen, Styling / Greg Luna

To achieve flavor quickly in this sun-dried tomato pasta recipe, we use the oil from sun-dried tomatoes to create the base of the cream sauce. Meanwhile, the residual heat of the pasta wilts the spinach in record time for a fast weeknight dinner.

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04 of 30

Salmon Rice Bowl

Salmon Rice Bowl
Ali Redmond

Inspired by the viral TikTok trend, this salmon rice bowl makes for a tasty lunch or dinner. With healthy ingredients like instant brown rice, salmon and veggies, you'll have a flavorful meal in just 25 minutes.

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05 of 30

One-Skillet Cheesy Ground Chicken Pasta

One-Skillet Cheesy Ground Chicken Pasta
Victor Protasio

Make this cheesy ground chicken pasta recipe for a busy weeknight dinner. Serve with a simple side salad and a glass of red wine.

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06 of 30

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup with Rotisserie Chicken

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup with Rotisserie Chicken

This creamy chicken noodle soup recipe has a delicious potpie feel to it. We call for rotisserie chicken to streamline your prep time—look for a nice big one with lots of breast meat on it. Pair this comforting soup with a green salad.

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07 of 30

Creamy Garlic Skillet Chicken with Spinach

Creamy Garlic Skillet Chicken with Spinach
Marty Baldwin

Quick-cooking chicken cutlets are coated in a garlic cream sauce, while spinach adds a boost of color and nutrition in this easy, one-skillet recipe.

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08 of 30

One-Pot Garlicky Shrimp & Broccoli

One-pot garlicky shrimp & broccoli recipe cooked and ready in a stainless steel pan

Diana Chistruga

Shrimp and broccoli cook quickly in this easy, one-pot recipe, making it perfect for busy weeknights. Serve this healthy shrimp recipe over whole grains or rice.

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09 of 30

Cheesy Ground Beef & Cauliflower Casserole

Cheesy Ground Beef & Cauliflower Casserole
Jason Donnelly

Ground beef and cauliflower combine to create a hearty weeknight casserole that both kids and adults will love. Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream.

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10 of 30

Chhole (Chickpea Curry)

close-up shot of chickpea curry in a bowl

Andrew Scrivani

This healthy Indian recipe is a flavorful chickpea curry that you can make in just 20 minutes. Also called chana masala, this dish is a comforting and delicious dinner.

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11 of 30

Weeknight Lemon Chicken Skillet Dinner

Weeknight lemon chicken skillet dinner recipe

Victoria Jempty

This one-pan chicken dinner doesn't get much easier, or more satisfying. In just half an hour, you can have a complete meal on the table that doesn't require loads of dishes afterwards. We call for tender haricots verts because they're quick cooking; traditional green beans likely won't be tender enough after the brief cooking time at the end. If that's all you have on hand, steam them first, and then add them to the pan for the final step. Serve this hearty chicken and potatoes dinner with a simple side salad to sneak in another serving of veggies.

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12 of 30

American Goulash

American Goulash

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 be made in just one pot.

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13 of 30

White Bean & Sun-Dried Tomato Gnocchi

White Bean & Sun-Dried Tomato Gnocchi
Jacob Fox

Sun-dried tomatoes are the star of this recipe—providing texture and umami. Combined with the spinach, they make this dish a great source of vitamins C and K.

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14 of 30

Shrimp & Fish Stew

a recipe photo of the Shrimp & Fish Stew served in a bowl
Christine Ma

This hearty shrimp and fish stew is inspired by cioppino, an Italian-American dish that originated in San Francisco. Serve with crusty bread to soak up every last bit of the savory broth.

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15 of 30

Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl

Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl

This black bean and quinoa bowl has many of the usual hallmarks of a taco salad, minus the fried bowl. We've loaded it up with pico de gallo, fresh cilantro and avocado plus an easy hummus dressing to drizzle on top.

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16 of 30

One-Pot Garlicky Shrimp & Spinach

a recipe photo of the One-Pot Garlicky Shrimp & Spinach

Photographer: Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist:Christine Keely, Food Stylist:Chelsea Zimmer

Shrimp, spinach and garlic brown and cook quickly for a simple one-pot weeknight dinner. A fast pan sauce gets life from zesty lemon juice, warm crushed red pepper and herby parsley. Serve with a slice of whole-wheat baguette to swipe up every last drop of sauce.

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17 of 30

Creamy White Chili with Cream Cheese

creamy-white-chicken-chili-with-cream-cheese

This rich, yet healthy, white chicken chili recipe comes together in a flash thanks to quick-cooking chicken thighs and canned white beans. Mashing some of the beans acts as a fast thickener when your soups don't have a long time to simmer. Cream cheese adds the final bit of richness and a hint of sweet tang.

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18 of 30

Salmon with Lemon-Herb Orzo & Broccoli

Salmon with Lemon-Herb Orzo & Broccoli
Jacob Fox

This healthy salmon dish is as balanced as it is delicious. You add broccoli right into the pot along with the pasta during its last minute of cooking to save time here. One less thing to wash too!

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19 of 30

Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

A casserole of with chicken and broccoli in a white dish on a dark surface
Jennifer Causey

This one-pan chicken and broccoli casserole is prepared in a skillet on the stovetop, then finished in the oven until it's browned, cheesy and bubbling. Serve with a crunchy green salad.

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20 of 30

Spinach & Artichoke Dip Pasta

spinach-artichoke-dip-pasta

If you've ever wanted to make a meal out of warm spinach and artichoke dip, this creamy pasta is for you. And here's what's almost as good as the flavor of this comforting dish: the fact that this healthy dinner takes just 20 minutes to prepare.

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21 of 30

Creamy Chicken & Mushrooms

Creamy Chicken & Mushrooms

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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22 of 30

20-Minute Creamy Tomato Salmon Skillet

20-Minute Creamy Tomato Salmon Skillet
Jamie Vespa

Salmon fillets cook quickly and are coated with a delicious creamy sauce made with tomatoes, zucchini and Italian seasoning. This easy salmon dinner is sure to become a new weeknight favorite the whole family will love. The best news: you can get this meal on the table in 20 minutes flat.

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23 of 30

One-Pot Spinach, Chicken Sausage & Feta Pasta

5172229.jpg

A little bit of Sunday meal prep goes a long way in this one-dish pasta recipe. The pasta is cooked ahead of time and stored in the fridge to use for meals all week, but any leftover cooked pasta you have on hand will do. Chicken sausage with feta is especially good in this recipe.

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24 of 30

Italian Wedding Soup

Bowl of Easy Italian Wedding Soup on a gray cloth background

Jennifer Causey

Forget the marble-size meatballs you find in many versions of this Italian Wedding Soup. In this easy recipe, they're full-size, full-flavored and plenty filling.

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25 of 30

Chickpea & Quinoa Bowl with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Mediterranean Chickpea Quinoa Bowl

Quinoa and chickpeas pack this vegetarian grain bowl with plenty of plant-based protein. Whip up a batch of these flavorful grain bowls and pack them in lidded containers to stash in the fridge for easy, healthy grab-and-go lunches all week long.

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26 of 30

One-Pot Tomato Basil Pasta

One-Pot Tomato Basil Pasta

This one-pot pasta with tangy tomato-basil sauce is a simple, fast and easy weeknight dinner. All of your ingredients go into one pot, and with a bit of stirring and about 25 minutes of cook time, you'll have a healthy dinner the whole family will enjoy.

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27 of 30

Beef Stir-Fry with Baby Bok Choy & Ginger

Chinese Ginger Beef Stir-Fry with Baby Bok Choy

All the ingredients for this easy beef stir-fry recipe are cooked in one wok (or skillet), so not only is the meal-prep fast for this healthy dinner, cleanup is quick too. Look for Lee Kum Kee Premium oyster-flavored sauce in the Asian-foods aisle of your grocery store. It has the most concentrated oyster flavor. 

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28 of 30

Turkey Burgers with Spinach, Feta & Tzatziki

Greek Turkey Burgers with Spinach, Feta & Tzatziki

Creamy tzatziki and crisp sliced cucumber add a refreshing twist to this easy burger recipe loaded with feta and spinach. No tzatziki? No problem! Make your own at home by combining plain strained yogurt with a squeeze of lemon, dill and finely chopped cucumber.

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29 of 30

Shrimp Cauliflower Fried Rice

Shrimp Cauliflower Fried Rice

Amp up your veggie servings with this healthy cauliflower fried rice for a quick low-carb dinner.

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30 of 30

Chicken & White Bean Soup

Chicken & White Bean Soup

Rotisserie chickens can really relieve the dinner-rush pressure—especially in this Italian-inspired soup that cries out for a piece of crusty bread and a glass of red wine.

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