On a busy weeknight, the hard part of dinner is rarely the cooking. It is deciding what to make, discovering you are missing two things, and giving up in favor of takeout. Short ingredient lists fix most of that: fewer things to buy, fewer things to forget and less washing up.
Below you will find five complete dinners, each built on five main ingredients, with quantities, step-by-step methods and timings. After the recipes come swaps for different diets, a short guide to storing leftovers safely, and a checklist to make this a habit rather than a one-off.
How we count to five
Salt, black pepper, cooking oil and water do not count, because nearly every kitchen has them. Everything else does, including garlic and lemons. Each recipe serves about four adults, and the timings are typical for a standard home oven and stovetop, so use them as a guide and trust your eyes as well.
The trick to making five ingredients taste like fifteen is to choose a few that bring lots of flavor at once. Sausage, jarred salsa, soy sauce, smoked paprika and a lemon each do the job of several spices. Lean on them and you will not miss a long ingredient list.
Five dinners to cook this week
1. Sheet-pan sausage, potatoes and peppers
About 45 minutes, mostly hands-off. This is the one to make when you want to put everything on one tray, set a timer and walk away.
- 1 lb (450 g) sausages, fresh or smoked, cut into chunks
- 1.5 lb (680 g) small potatoes, halved
- 2 bell peppers, cut into strips
- 1 red onion, cut into wedges
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
- Toss the potatoes with 2 tablespoons of oil, the paprika and a good pinch of salt. Spread them on a large sheet pan and roast for 20 minutes.
- Add the peppers, onion and sausage, toss, and roast for another 20 to 25 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and browned.
- Before serving, check that fresh sausage is cooked all the way through, with no pink in the center.
2. Lemon garlic pasta with white beans and spinach
About 20 minutes. A meat-free pantry dinner that still tastes fresh, and a good one for the end of the week when the fridge is nearly empty.
- 12 oz (340 g) dried pasta, such as penne or spaghetti
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 can (about 15 oz or 400 g) white beans, drained and rinsed
- 5 oz (140 g) baby spinach
- 1 lemon
- Cook the pasta in well-salted water. Scoop out a mug of the cooking water before draining.
- Meanwhile, warm 3 tablespoons of oil in a large pan over low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until fragrant but not brown, then stir in the beans to warm through.
- Add the drained pasta, spinach, grated lemon zest, the juice of half the lemon and a splash of pasta water. Toss until the spinach wilts and the sauce turns glossy.
- Season with salt and pepper, and add more lemon to taste.
3. Black bean and corn quesadillas
About 20 minutes. Children often like these, and they are easy to scale up or down for however many people are home that night.
- 8 medium flour tortillas
- 1 can (about 15 oz or 400 g) black beans, drained
- 2 cups (about 8 oz or 225 g) grated cheddar or Monterey Jack
- 1 cup corn kernels, canned and drained or frozen and thawed
- 1 jar (about 16 oz or 450 g) salsa
- Mash the beans roughly with a fork and stir in 3 tablespoons of the salsa.
- Spread the mixture over half of each tortilla, scatter over the corn and cheese, and fold.
- Cook in a dry or lightly oiled skillet over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until golden and the cheese has melted.
- Cut into wedges and serve with the rest of the salsa.
4. Soy-honey salmon with broccoli and rice
About 30 minutes. One tray goes in the oven and one pot sits on the stove, so there is very little to clean afterward.
- 4 salmon fillets, about 5 to 6 oz (150 g) each
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1.5 cups (300 g) white rice
- 1 large head broccoli, cut into florets
- Start the rice following the packet instructions, and heat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Stir the soy sauce and honey together, then pour a third of it into a separate cup for serving.
- Toss the broccoli with a little oil and salt on a sheet pan and roast for 10 minutes.
- Push the broccoli to one side, add the salmon, brush it with the larger portion of sauce and roast for 10 to 12 minutes, until the fish flakes easily.
- Drizzle the reserved sauce over the plates, and throw away any sauce that touched the raw fish.
5. Eggs baked in spiced tomato sauce
About 25 minutes. A simple take on shakshuka that works as well for a weeknight dinner as it does for a slow weekend brunch.
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 tsp ground cumin, or smoked paprika
- 1 large can (about 28 oz or 800 g) crushed tomatoes
- 8 eggs
- Crusty bread, to serve
- Soften the onion in 2 tablespoons of oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat for about 8 minutes.
- Stir in the cumin for 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes and a pinch of salt. Simmer for 10 minutes, until slightly thickened.
- Make eight small wells, crack an egg into each, cover and cook over low heat for 6 to 8 minutes, until the whites are fully set.
- Serve straight from the pan, with bread for dipping.
Easy swaps that keep it to five
- Meat-free sheet pan: replace the sausage with a drained can of chickpeas, added at the same point.
- Dairy-free quesadillas: use a dairy-free cheese that melts, or skip the cheese and add mashed avocado after cooking.
- Gluten-free: choose gluten-free pasta and corn tortillas, and check the soy sauce label, since many contain wheat.
- No salmon: the soy-honey glaze also works on chicken thighs or firm tofu. Chicken needs longer in the oven and must be cooked through.
Storing leftovers safely
Get leftovers into the fridge within two hours of cooking, or within one hour on a very hot day. Divide big batches into shallow containers so they cool quickly, and keep your fridge at 40°F (4°C) or below. Most cooked leftovers are best eaten within three to four days; if you will not get to them by then, freeze them.
A food thermometer takes the guesswork out of cooking and reheating. US food-safety guidance is 145°F (63°C) for fish, 160°F (71°C) for fresh pork sausage and 165°F (74°C) for chicken and reheated leftovers. Cooked rice deserves extra care: cool it promptly and refrigerate it rather than leaving the pot on the stove all evening.
Some of these dishes freeze better than others. The tomato sauce from the baked eggs freezes well without the eggs, so a double batch is worth making. Assembled, uncooked quesadillas can be frozen flat between sheets of baking paper, while the pasta and the salmon are best eaten fresh.
Make it a weeknight habit
Pick two or three of these recipes, put their ingredients on one shopping list and keep the flavor-packed items, such as soy sauce, salsa, canned beans and spices, in stock. Buying those shelf-stable staples when they are on offer, and stacking coupons with cashback where your store allows it, keeps the cost per dinner down.
If you like having dinner half-ready before the week starts, our beginner’s meal prep plan shows how to cook components on a Sunday and combine them into different meals. The two approaches work well together: prep on the weekend, then fill the gaps with a five-ingredient dinner midweek.
Quick checklist
- Choose two or three recipes for the week and shop for them in one trip.
- Keep salt, pepper, oil and a few flavor-packed staples on hand.
- Check that meat and fish are cooked through before serving.
- Refrigerate leftovers within two hours, in shallow containers.
- Eat leftovers within three to four days, or freeze them.
Five ingredients will not cover every craving, but they cover a lot of Tuesdays. Start with the recipe that sounds easiest to you, and once it feels like second nature, add another. You will find more ideas in our food section.
