12 Exciting Dinner Ideas For Those Busy Weeknights

Posted: March 8, 2022 4:22 pm

Do you find yourself in a busy schedule and short on time but still want to eat healthy? If so, you are not alone! These quick and easy dinner ideas will help you stay on top of your diet even when you’re too busy for cooking. You’ll find recipes for every dietary preference. Finding quick healthy dinner ideas can be difficult, especially if you’re not one for cooking. These dinners are quick and easy but still tasty and healthy. They don’t take too much time to prepare, and you won’t end up with a bunch of dishes in your sink to clean later that night.

1. Rice Noodles Pork and Broccoli


This recipe is perfect if you want to eat healthy but still want something other than a boring salad for dinner. This dish is simple and tasty. It’s also a great way to sneak more vegetables into your diet. This recipe is sure to impress friends and family while also being easy enough that you can whip it up in minutes. All you need are some rice noodles, chicken broth, a little olive oil, broccoli, carrots, and pork. After cooking the noodles, boil them for about six minutes and drain them. Then, add the garlic and onions to the pan until fragrant. Add the mushrooms and cook until browned. Add the chicken broth, carrots, and broccoli to the pan and let it cook for another minute or two before adding your pork.

2. Hummus and Veggies

This is a great recipe to share with family and friends. This can be a tasty dip for tortilla chips or a tasty sandwich filling if served between two pieces of whole-grain bread. If you’re watching your carbs, you could even serve it as a side dish and skip the whole grain bread! You’ll need some hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and carrots. You can also add black olives for extra flavor. You can make this dish in about half an hour, so get it on the table fast.

3. Steak Stir-Fry with Vegetables

This recipe is perfect for a weeknight dinner. It’s quick, easy, and tastes delicious. You’ll need some soy sauce, cornstarch slurry, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic to create your stir-fry sauce. Cook up some cubed steak with your oil and meat tenderizer and put it in a bowl until cool enough to handle. Then, you can add in your bean sprouts, water chestnuts, and other vegetables. You’ll have a delicious meal in about 15 minutes.

4. Pan-Seared Steak with Mushrooms and Onions

This easy steak recipe is sure to make the whole family happy. While this dish does require a little bit of prep work, it’s still incredibly worthwhile once you sink your teeth into that tender steak! Start by cooking up some onions, mushrooms, and garlic in a pan until tender. While that’s cooking, cut a steak into thin strips. Add the steak to the pan along with some olive oil and cook until browned on both sides. While your steak and veggies cook, get to work on some couscous. Just add water, herbs, butter and salt, and pepper to a pot over top of high heat until it boils. Then cover the pot and turn off the heat.

5. Spicy Flank Steak Tacos

This easy taco recipe is sure to hit the spot, especially if you love a good Tex-Mex twist on your meals. This steak recipe is great for a busy weeknight meal when you don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen preparing your food. The key to this dish is getting the steak cooked to just the right doneness. If you try to cook it too well-done, it will be dry, but if you undercook it, it will be tough and chewy. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and get ready for some great tacos.

6. Chicken in a Pint of Mayo

This easy chicken recipe is fun, quick, and tasty. While it’s not a very healthy recipe because of all the mayo, it’s still pretty low in calories if you cut down on the amount of mayo you use. This recipe also makes for a great main dish for a picnic or barbecue. You’ll need about an hour to make this recipe, so get started by making your sandwich buns. Next, you’ll want to make your chicken. You can use leftover chicken or purchase some from your local grocer. Just slice it up and add it to the mayo with a little mustard. After that, slice up your onions and add them to the mixture. Then, stir in your pickle, relish, and mustard until you’re happy with the flavor. Finally, put the chicken salad into your sandwich buns and enjoy!

7. Turkey Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes

This recipe is sure to hit the spot while being healthy enough to enjoy at night before bed. You’ll need some frozen meatloaf, potatoes, mayo, and mustard. Begin by combining your meatloaf ingredients together well in a large bowl. You’ll want to mix together your potatoes into small pieces as well. Add the mayo, mustard, and seasonings to your mixture and mix everything together well with wooden spoons or your hands. Then, evenly place your turkey mixture in a loaf pan that you’ve lined with plastic wrap or parchment paper. Place in your oven and cook at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes. After that, turn your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and let it cook for another 20 minutes or until the meatloaf is cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

8. Grilled Salmon with Brown Rice

Salmon is an excellent source of omega fatty acids, which are great for your skin and heart. This meal also makes for a tasty dinner that won’t take too long to prepare. You can find salmon in any grocery store, and all you need for this recipe is brown rice, garlic, and pepper. You’ll want to add a little olive oil to your skillet. Then, you can add the garlic and pepper while heating up the pan. Once they begin to sizzle, add your salmon and the rice. After that, cover the skillet with a lid and let it cook on medium heat until your rice is cooked through.

9. Pasta Salad with Tuna and Shrimp


This recipe is perfect for a family dinner because it’s easy to make and delicious. Anyone in the family can enjoy this ethnic dish, so don’t be afraid to make it for yourself or for a friend! You’ll only need canned tuna and some pasta, but you’ll need to cook up some shrimp to get your shrimp ready. To do this, boil some water and boil your shrimp until they’re done. Pour the water out and rinse with cold water once your shrimp is tender. After you’ve prepared your shrimp, boil up some pasta until it’s tender and drain it. Then, pour the tuna into a container along with the drained pasta and the shrimp. Stir it all together well and add in some parsley or chives for extra flavor.

10. Chicken Parmesan with Spaghetti

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This recipe is great for a quiet night at home because you don’t have to go out to get a delicious dinner. While you’ll need to prep some time, you’ll find that making this meal is pretty straightforward. You’ll need boneless chicken breast and some thick spaghetti noodles, but you can also add in your tomato sauce, mushroom, onion, and garlic if you’d like. Just cook them all together for about 30 minutes, or until your chicken is done to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, you can add in your parmesan and serve.

11. Grilled Salmon with Mango Salsa


This healthy taco recipe is light and refreshing. The mango salsa is full of flavor and the perfect companion to the sweet grilled salmon. Make sure you’re using a wood-fired grill, as this will allow the salmon to stick to the grill and cook perfectly as you prepare it, removing any need for oil or butter. While this recipe does take some time to make, it’s definitely worth the effort.

12. Grilled Chicken with Basil

This easy chicken recipe is great for a night where you don’t have much time, but you still want to eat something healthy and tasty. You’ll only need a few ingredients, and you can easily cook your chicken in under an hour. You’ll need some olive oil, salt, pepper, assorted herbs, and basil. Just cut your chicken up into bite-sized pieces and add it to the skillet along with the other ingredients of your choice. Season it well and cook on medium heat for 20 minutes. After that, you can serve the chicken with your favorite sides, like spaghetti.

These are just a few of the many healthy and tasty recipes that you can prepare with some simple produce. Since all of these recipes are easy to make, you obviously don’t need to find the days when you have time to devote to cooking. These recipes can be made on a weekly basis, meaning that you’ll just need a bit of planning and prep work.

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