Mediterranean Salmon In Foil
Salmon, store-bought pesto, onion, tomato, and cherry tomatoes get cooked in tin foil so that the fish is perfectly tender and flaky. If you have extra ingredients in your fridge, consider adding capers, olives, sun-dried tomato, or fresh oregano. Get the recipe for Mediterranean salmon in foil here.
Delicious Healthy Dinners You Can Make With 7 Ingredients Or Less
Home » Eat Empowered » Delicious, Healthy Dinners You Can Make With 7 Ingredients or Less
Ever come across a delicious and seemingly simple #foodstagram post, only to discover that the DIY version would call for 12 different spices, five types of mushrooms, and two kinds of quinoa? While we love to find new ways to experiment in the kitchen, were also really big fans of no-nonsense cooking, AKA minimalist dinners.
And hows this for a challenge? We set out to find recipes for healthy dinners with a super-strict seven ingredient max. The rules were simple: any recipe that used more than seven food items were out of the question. And the quicker the prep time, the better.
Chicken + Onions + Peppers + Seasoning + Whole
Go gourmet: Follow the full recipe from Simply Recipes.
For our cheat version: Simply Recipes’ recipe is, unsurprisingly, really pretty simple. To save yourself from rummaging through your spice draweror having to shell out cash on individual spicesjust grab a premixed spice blend like McCormick’s Perfect Pinch Mexican to season your chicken, and you’ll have dinner on the table in no time.
When you’re picking up peppers, go for a medley of red, yellow, and orange and leave the green on the shelf. The warmer-colored peppers have almost three times more beta-carotene and one and a half times more immunity-boosting vitamin C than their green counterparts.
You May Like: Keto Recipes Without Almond Flour
Make It A Pitaya Bowl
To make a fun dragon fruit smoothie bowl, make the smoothie thicker by only using 1 1/8 cups of milk.
Be sure to use frozen bananas, strawberries and dragon fruit to help you get that thick consistency.
Once blended, pour into a bowl and add your choice of smoothie bowl toppings.
Topping Idea: Some fun topping ideas would be nuts, seeds, sliced fresh fruit, granola, honey, cacao nibs and a drizzle of almond butter.
Have Leftover Pitaya? Try this easy Pink Smoothie for another way to use your frozen dragon fruit.
Healthy And Easy Meals
I love good food and am very conscientious about eating healthy. However, when it comes to cooking, I am pretty no-nonsense. If a recipe calls for more than five ingredients, I’m usually not interested. I’m simply too tired to put together a complex dish after a long workday. That said, I’m also unwilling to compromise on nutrition and flavor.
The good news is that by selecting my ingredients carefully, I can create tasty and nourishing meals pretty quickly and effortlessly.
Here are six super healthy meals with few ingredients. Not only are they nutritious and easy to make, but they are also delicious and very satisfying!
Don’t Miss: Pork And Rice Recipes Easy
Best Easy Dinner Recipes For A Family
- Sheet Pan Olive Bar Chicken. Full of rich flavors, almost NO prep, and using only one pan, this dish is destined to become a new favorite.
- Five Spice Chicken Sheet Pan Dinner. Chicken thighs and cabbage get a little dose of flavor from Chinese five spice, and a little oven time on a sheet pan and boom! Dinners done.
- Sheet Pan Quesadilla with Jalapeño Ranch. Stuffed with cheese and avocado, this giant, melty, upgraded cheese sheet pan quesadilla is good on its own, but we take it over the top with a side of homemade jalapeño ranch for dipping.
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese. Whats easierand way betterthan instant mac and cheese? Rich, creamy, homemade Instant Pot mac and cheese! Why? Because it takes about 5 minutes start-to-finish.
- Crock-Pot Chicken Taco Meat. Wait wait waittaco night can be even easier? Yep! Meet our 3-ingredient Crock-Pot chicken taco meat recipe!
- Mango Chutney Chicken Sheet Pan. A jar of store-bought mango chutney is the secret to this ultra easy dinner.
- Old Bay Shrimp and Sausage Sheet Pan Dinner. Need we say more? Old Bay makes everything taste goodnot that shrimp and sausage need any help.
- Za’atar Chicken Sheet Pan Dinner. We dressed up basic cauliflower and chicken with our latest favorite spice blend, zaatar.
Who Is This For
Recipes with limited ingredients tend to favor beginners due to their simplicity and help boost confidence of those learning to cook.
Cooking 5 ingredients or less makes it much easier to prepare food for kids. And for the same reason the same recipes are also easy for kids to cook and learn how to prepare food.
You May Like: Vitamix Green Smoothie Recipes For Weight Loss
Choosing Healthy Dinner Ideas
A healthy balanced meal consists of lean protein, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats and fiber.
In terms of food items, it means meat/seafood/plant based protein, whole grain or starchy vegetable, avocado or healthy oils, and veggies. It also falls into a daily recommended limit of sodium intake for your gender and age. This is a general rule of thumb.
The healthiest dinner you can eat, in my opinion, is a balanced meal that covers all food groups mentioned above, and made with fresh local and/or organic ingredients.
The healthy dinner ideas you will discover here are made with balanced, nourishing and wholesome ingredients that your family will actually love!
Peppers + Cilantro + Quinoa + Pepper Jack + Cowboy Salsa
Go gourmet: Follow the full recipe from Damn Delicious.
For our cheat version: With just some skillful shopping, you can whip up Damn Delicious’s quinoa stuffed peppers using only five ingredients. Grab a “cowboy salsa” with beans, corn, and tomatoes to substitute the salsa, beans, onion, and corn. It’ll also be prepared with loads of spices, which means there’s no need to add your own.
We couldn’t leave out the cilantro, though. This herb not only brings a hint of green to your dish, but it also brings its detoxifying properties. Cilantro is a natural chelatorwhich means it can help rid your body of toxic heavy metalsand can thus diminish stored fat and lessen the appearance of cellulite.
Read Also: Parrot Bay Coconut Rum Recipes
One Pot And Healthy Sheet Pan Dinners
These one pot and sheet pan dinners prove that healthy dinner ideas can be flavorful without washing 3 pots!
With one pan cooking its important to figure out the right combination of foods, so pasta doesnt get mushy or meat not fully cooked. Below, are all tried and true healthy one pot meal wonders.
I own two 6 quart Lodge dutch ovens and they are worth every penny. They last forever, are affordable and cook food evenly and very-very nicely. A must for a healthy cook! Keep in mind that dark baking sheets cook faster, too.
Browse our best collections with over 45 healthy Instant Pot recipes for major one pot cooking inspiration.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- This apple pie recipe is so easy to make. You dont need to blind bake the refrigerated pie crust or cook the apple slices before assembling and baking the pie!
- This dessert pie uses minimal ingredients that are mostly pantry staple items.
- The filling is warm with deliciously soft and sweet cinnamon apples and a natural sweet syrup from the apples cooking in the pie.
Welcome in the fall and winter months with warm homemade apple pie. Its an iconic dessert that shouldnt be missed out on!
Don’t Miss: Hot Ones Chicken Wings Recipe
Pasta Primavera With Ham And Mushrooms
It’s hard to beat pasta primavera. But it’s even harder to beat a 20-minute pasta primavera that only requires one skillet. Use a frozen broccoli, cauliflower, and carrot mix to save time and add color, texture, and nutrition. This recipe is one to keep in your back pocket for busy afternoons when there’s no time for prep.
Ingredients Or Less 17 Easy Recipes
Especially during the summer months cooking has to feel easier! With schedules changing and just needing that feeling of less scheduled meals even I want cooking to be as light and easy as possible. Thats why Im offering you 5 Ingredients or Less! 17 Easy Recipes that will become game changers for you and your family over the next few months when cooking is just about the last thing you want to do.
Even looking through the images below I bet youll be shocked that so few ingredients can make meals that are incredibly satisfying while being simple to prepare and light on your budget. They range from quick breakfast ideas for lazy mornings or before quick send offs to camp like Refrigerator Oatmeal and Breakfast Pizza as well as one of our favorites Roast Chicken with Caramelized Lemons, Cherry Tomatoes and Olives or Matzo Chicken Tenders which are no brainers during the week even when youre trying to feed a hungry crowd.
If youve ever made any of these recipes let me know your thoughts in the comments below or if you have any 5 ingredient or less recipes you love to make please share them with us!
Also Check: Dinner Recipes For Picky Toddlers
Quick Stir Fries And Curries
My family loves curry and stir fry healthy dinner ideas. Stir fries are loaded with crisp veggies and are super healthy especially when you make homemade stir fry sauce.
For proper consistency homemade thick stir fry sauce use cornstarch and do not cover when cooking. This makes veggies leak their juices and the dish watery. Spices like curry powder, chili powder, and cumin need to be fresh for the most flavor.
You can eat stir fry on its own for a low carb meal or with a complex carb side. Healthy meals made easy!
Fruit And Vegetable Smoothies
Smoothies are quick and easy ways to pack a ton of nutrition into a flavorful drink. My favorite is a strawberry, banana and spinach smoothie with shredded ginger. I make it often for breakfast during the week and on the weekends. It’s easy to substitue kale or chard for spinach, or use a combo of these, depending on what’s in my fridge.
Recommended Reading: Belly Fat Burning Tea Recipes
Fruit Jam Oatmeal Squares
My roommate found this recipe off of a TikTok video and it was extremely quick and easy to make. It’s also pretty healthy, and depending on the type of butter you use, it can become vegan-friendly. The ingredients and steps are laid out clearly in the video, but for quick reference, here are the ingredients you’ll need:
Oatmeal Base:
– 2 tablespoons of vegan butter/regular butter
– Cinnamon
Fruit Jam Filling:
– 1 cup of frozen fruit
– 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
As shown in the image above, they turned out pretty well. Since we used actual fruit instead of pre-made jam, the filling was just the right amount of tart and sweet. My roommate and I were pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to make these and how great they tasted. These would be a great post-class or post-workout snack, and we also saved some for breakfast the next day.
Our Best Easy Healthy Dinner Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken Marinara With Polenta. Our simple equation for this easy, satisfying dinner goes something like this: chicken thighs + a jar of marinara sauce = dinners done.
- Broccoli Pesto Pasta. To make broccoli pesto, broccoli florets are whizzed right into the pesto sauce itself, adding an even more vibrant punch of emerald green to the sauce as well as a seriously healthy boost.
- Lemon Chicken. This easy recipe shines with a sunny, lemony zing. Garlic and herbsplus a glug of white winemean that juicy, tender chicken breasts are as delicious as they are healthy.
- Ratatouille Sheet Pan Dinner With Sausage. While ratatouille is delicious served all on its own, weve added sausage to the mix to take this healthy sheet pan dinner to new heights.
- Salmon en Papillote. Who knew that such an elegant meal could be so very easy.
- Baked Salmon with Grapefruit Salad. Moist, flaky, melt-in-your-mouth salmon perfection. This is the easy salmon recipe youve been waiting for. Oh, and did we mention it cooks in just 15 minutes?
Recommended Reading: Weight Watchers Turkey Chili Recipe
Pork & Sausage Make Everything Taste Amazing
- Sausage, Kale and Potato Skillet Dinner. An easy one-pan sausage, kale and potato skillet that pleases everyone, from cook to clean-up crew.
- Hoisin Glazed Pork Chops. Having a few punchy ingredients on-hand is a great way to make a simple dinner out of just a few ingredients. Hoisin sauce is one of our go-to super-ingredients for easy dinnersjust slather it on some pork chops, and youre well on your way to dinnertime bliss.
- Pork Chops with Mushroom Cream Sauce. Speaking of pork chops, this versionwith a super creamy mushroom sauceis ready in just 30 minutes.
- Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Chimichurri. Grilling always makes for an easy dinner, right? Its so fast, and the clean up is minimal. Sliced up this pork tenderloin and serve it with a bowl of chimichurriyoull be hearing raves for days.
- Cauliflower Gnocchi with Bruschetta Sauce and Sausage. This hearty, low-carb supper that bursts with bright, bold flavors and comes together in under ten minutes. It just doesnt get easier or healthier than that!
- Sheet Pan Italian Sausage Heros with Honey Mustard. The brilliant thing about breaking out your sheet pan to make italian sausage sandwiches with peppers is that it makes it so easy to make Italian hoagies for a crowd! Gather the hungry masses and let the feeding begin.
Oatmeal With Yogurt Nuts And Berries
Oatmeal is high in fiber, so eating it regularly is a great way to help keep your cholesterol in check. It’s so easy to add fruit and other good stuff, such as Greek yogurt and nuts, for a wholesome and balanced meal. It’s the perfect comfort breakfast in the winter, but I enjoy it year-round! Below is my personal favorite variety.
Also Check: The Complete Ketogenic Diet For Beginners Recipes
Cod + Miso Glaze + Mushrooms + Garlic + Baby Bok Choy
Go gourmet: Follow the full recipe from Closet Cooking.
For our cheat version: You can buy ready-made miso glaze at the store so you don’t have to fuss about buying ingredients like sake, mirin, and miso paste that you might otherwise never use. As for the sauté, use oil, water, and part of the miso glaze, along with garlic, to boost the flavor of your veggies.
While bok choy is a good source of vegetarian iron, it’s unique in comparison to other iron-rich sources like potatoes and watermelon because it’s also high in vitamin C, the vitamin necessary for the proper absorption of iron into your bloodstream. For the same reason, strawberries and kale make a great pairing to make your smoothies healthier.
Chicken + Ginger + Rice + Teriyaki Sauce + Frozen Stir
Go gourmet: Follow the full recipe from Cooking Classy.
For our cheat version: Frozen veggies to the rescue! These medleys are frozen at their peak, so they’re typically concentrated with nutrients and are a great thing to always keep in your kitchen. Instead of making your own, grab a bottled teriyaki sauce, like Soy Vay’s Veri Veri Teriyaki, from the supermarket. Nothing can beat the taste and bloat-banishing capabilities of fresh ginger, though, so we opted to leave that in.
Recommended Reading: Lindt Classic Recipe Chocolate Bar
Fun Variations To Try
With mango: If you want to make this dragon fruit smoothie without banana, swap in one cup frozen mango for the frozen banana.
With apple juice: For a dragon fruit apple smoothie use apple juice in place of the milk to blend.
With protein powder: Make it a protein-packed dragon fruit shake by adding 2 scoops of your favorite vanilla protein powder.
With yogurt: Up the protein in this recipe by adding cup unsweetened Greek yogurt.
Tip: Dragon fruit pairs well with lots of different fruits so feel free to get creative and add in any fruit you like! Blueberries, pineapple, strawberries, raspberries, bananas, kiwi, and peaches would all be delicious choices.
Chicken With Brown Rice And Vegetables
Dishes that involve cooking meat, of course, take a little longer to prepare. I have been using an iron skillet in the kitchen for years and love how it helps meat retain its natural flavor. Add brown rice or another grain, along with your favorite vegetables on the side, and you have a complete meal.
Read Also: Low Sugar Low Cholesterol Recipes
Easy French Toast Casserole
Easy French Toast Casserole. If you happen to have some stale bread , this recipe will save it and make a delicious breakfast recipe for the entire family. You can also enjoy it as a dessert, served with a ball of vanilla ice cream.
Ingredients youll need:
- All the basic ingredients mentioned above, minus the baking powder
- Stale bread or brioche
Recipe For Oatmeal With Greek Yogurt Blueberries And Walnuts
Prep time: 5 min.
- 1 serving of instant oatmeal
- 1 tbsp flaxmeal
- Substitute blueberries with strawberries, rasberries, or a mix of berries.
- Rather than walnuts, use chopped pecans, almonds, or a mix of nuts.
- Add a handful of dark chocolate chips.
Frozen Veggies
Frozen vegetables and fruits retain most of their nutrients, so they’re smart substitutes for fresh ones. Keep several bags in your freezer for days you don’t have fresh produce available.
Omelettes are highly nutritious and so effortless to make.
Pixabay
You May Like: Apple Salad Recipe With Mayonnaise