Weeknights can be hectic! Especially if you work and are also the primary cook in your family. It is hard to come home and make a nice dinner. That’s why it’s important to have some tasty and easy dinner recipes on deck for those tough nights. All of these quick and easy weeknight dinners are perfect for your long workdays. A lot of the recipes have parts that can be prepared ahead, perfect for your weekend meal preppers. Some of them are so easy you can make the whole meal right after work and be sitting at the table within 30 minutes. YAY!
I have connected with some awesome food bloggers to create this tasty list of 25 Quick Weeknight Dinners. Each recipe provides a link to the creator, so if you love their recipe, be sure to check out more from them!
If you like recipe roundups like this don’t forget to let me know in the comment section down at the bottom of the page. I’m always interested in your questions, thoughts, and opinions! Your thoughts help me know what content to keep creating. If you think your friends would love quick weeknight dinners too, don’t forget to hit the share buttons at the bottom of the post.
If you want more recipe roundups right now, be sure to go to the “Recipe Roundups” Page.
1. Jumbo Gluten Free BBQ Meatballs
These delicious jumbo meatballs are so easy to prep ahead. They use oats instead of breadcrumbs to make them gluten-free. Made extra special with a sweet and zesty BBQ sauce that is so simple to make. Great served with potatoes, rice or pasta. Get the Recipe Here.
2. Quick Sweet Orange Savory Tilapia Dinner
Easy to make in about 30 minutes, gorgeous Tilapia filets on a bed of yellow rice with a fresh side of vegetables. A quick and healthy dinner on a Friday night after a long week of work! The best part is the leftovers can be used as part of our meal prep lunches! Enjoy your Quick Sweet Orange Savory Tilapia Dinner! Get the Recipe Here.
3. Curried Rice Cauliflower with Shrimp
This delicious Curried Riced Cauliflower recipe with shrimp is low carb, paleo and keto friendly. Ready in 20 minutes for a quick weeknight dinner idea. It is so good, that not even your kids will notice that you swapped the rice for cauliflower. The easiest way to “hide” veggies into the little one’s diet. Get the recipe here.
4. Quinoa Brussels Sprouts Beet Salad
This vegan and gluten free Quinoa Brussels Sprouts Beet Salad is a great salad for the Wintertime or actually anytime. Roasted Brussels sprouts and beets lightly dressed with lemon and olive oil. Then topped on Quinoa mixed with greens. Easy to prepare ahead and perfect for dinner or a quick go to lunch. Get the recipe here.
5. Easy Baked Fish with Juicy Rainbow Peppers & Hawaij Spices
This easy baked fish doesn’t disappoint! The pan juices are a wonderful combination of flavors – perfect spooned over rice as a side. You can see for yourself how pretty those rainbow-hued peppers looked. And yes, minimal washing up. Easy to make, easy to eat, and easy to clean up – win-win-win! Get the recipe here.
6. Dairy Free Potato Crust Pizza
This is a pizza in almost every sense of the word. The only difference? The crust. Instead of your typical pizza crust, I used thinly sliced potatoes layered into a nice little circle. Oh wow, those potatoes are delicious as a pizza crust. It’s the perfect combination of flavors and textures. Very easy to make on your prep day and then pop in the oven after a long workday. Get the recipe here.
7. Squash and Kale in Coconut Milk
If you love kale and coconut milk, here is an easy and healthy recipe to use both in one dish – Squash and Kale in Coconut Milk! Filled with clean nutrient-rich ingredients, this is a quick meal that will leave you and your family happy and healthy. Get the recipe here.
8. Creamy Gluten-Free Tomato Soup
This soup is so delicious and easy to make. With only a few ingredients, it can be thrown together in 1/2 an hour, with 2 Cans of Tomatoes and a Can of Coconut Milk. You can use any kind of canned tomatoes for this recipe, which means you can probably make it without a trip to the store, yay! Get the recipe here.
9. Crispy Chicken Thighs with Garlicky Kale
Crispy Chicken Thighs are the perfect busy weeknight meal! Especially served over tender kale sautéed with bacon and garlic. With this recipe, you’ll have a delicious dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes! Get the recipe here.
10. Thai Chicken & Sweet Potato Noodle Bowls
These Thai Chicken & Sweet Potato Noodles Bowls are a delicious way to give into your Thai craving while staying low-carb. Spiralized sweet potato “noodles” take the place of rice noodles, and are covered in a spicy satay-like sauce. Add in some fresh veggies and tender chicken, and you have a perfect meal for any night of the week! Get the recipe here.
11. Slow Cooker Tater Tot Casserole
This Slow Cooker Tater Tot Casserole is a really easy weeknight dinner that is also budget friendly. It’s a yummy twist on a classic tater tot casserole. Instead of baking it, you can throw all the ingredients into your slow cooker. It’s such an easy gluten-free meal to make on the cheap. A great way to extend your grocery budget and make great use of your time. Using frozen veggies and frozen tater tots, this meal couldn’t be any easier. Get the recipe here.
12. Korean Ground Turkey & Rice Bowls
This recipe is a total cheater recipe because it is many times removed from the original Korean Beef that it is based after. So, even though it’s not 100% authentic, it is cheap, healthy, and a fast version of this beloved dish that anyone can make. Korean Ground Turkey & Rice Bowls are so incredibly easy, it is a recipe that literally anyone could make and it is done fast, like dinner on the table in 20 minutes fast. Get the recipe here.
13. One Pan Pork Chop Skillet with Bacon and Brussels Sprouts
This One Pan Pork Chop Bacon Brussels Sprout Skillet is an easy to prepare, low carb, paleo, one pan wonder meal. Don’t you love it when a complete meal can be made in one skillet that includes the meat and the veggies in a delicious sauce? It means less dishes to do after eating this tasty meal. Get the recipe here.
14. Smokey Chicken and Green Beans over Quinoa
This Smokey Chicken and Green Beans Over Quinoa is loaded with flavor. Chicken pieces are cooked in ghee, shallots, fresh garlic, and smoked paprika, then tossed with green beans, more smoked paprika, and fresh grape tomatoes. All those flavors result in an easy and healthy meal your whole family will enjoy! Get the recipe here.
15. Gluten Free One Pot Pasta with Chicken Sausage
Not only is this gluten free one-pot pasta easy, but it’s also super flavorful. Cooking your pasta right in the pot with the sauce, veggies, and chicken sausage infuses the pasta with so much flavor. This beautiful dairy free cream sauce is simply made by combining stock, dairy free yogurt, and just a little dairy free cheese. The perfect flavorful meal that is simple to make and even easier to clean up when you are done. Get the Recipe Here.
16. Creamy Cajun Mushroom Pasta
This dish will be one of your favorites with its great spicy flavor and quick prep and cook time. Just saute vegetables, blend garlic cashew cream and add to cooked pasta. If you choose to use lentil pasta, you will have additional protein with every serving in addition to the vitamins and minerals from the vegetables. Good, and good for you. Vegan, gluten free and dairy free and ready in less than 30 minutes. Get the recipe here.
17. Curried Red Lentil & Quinoa Vegetable Soup
This hearty Curried Red Lentil and Quinoa Vegetable Soup is easily made in one pot and finished in a blender for a creamy and chunky texture. It’s very filling and so flavorful. Making it even better, this soup also happens to be vegan and gluten-free. Get the Recipe Here.
18. Quick and Easy Beef Ragout with Tomatoes and Pearl Onions
When you have a painfully long workday or afternoon plans that run late, this beef ragoût with tomatoes and pearl onions is one of those delicious, effortless meals that you can turn to in a pinch. And it’s made in just one pan so clean up is easy, too. Get the Recipe Here.
19. Slow Cooker Pineapple Pulled Pork with Cauliflower Rice & Guacamole
Pork shoulder slow cooked with fresh pineapple, bacon, garlic, and apple cider vinegar. Served over cilantro lime cauliflower “rice” and topped with fresh guacamole. Feeds a crowd and also provides amazing leftovers. An easy and extremely flavorful meal that you can get ready in the slow cooker while you go about your day. A great meal for your weeknights or even to make for company. Get the Recipe Here.
20. Gluten Free Spaghetti Pie
If the week already feels crazy and time is getting in front of you then this easy weeknight dinner is for you. A fun twist on spaghetti night. This spaghetti pie is topped with a dairy free cream sauce and flavorful ground meat. Even better, this spaghetti is easy to make ahead on your meal prep day. Get the Recipe here.
21. Lemon Thyme Chicken Sheet Pan Dinner
It’s easy to struggle with what to put on the table for dinner. This is part of what makes sheet pan dinners so appealing – one pan to cook with and dinner is done. Prepping this meal is like the perfect dance, while the chicken is marinating you prep and then cook the potatoes. Then while the potatoes are cooking you prep the other veggies. It all comes together after the potatoes cook and you put everything in the oven together. Then it’s just waiting for it to cook all the way through and dinner is good to go. Get the recipe here.
22. Italian Lentil Quinoa Meatballs
These Italian seasoned mashed lentil quinoa meatballs look just like real meatballs, perfect for pairing with your favorite marinara sauce and nestling into a big bowl of warm noodles. They are vegan, plant-based, nut-free, and soy-free. Italian lentil quinoa meatballs are really easy to assemble, they’re packed with protein, and they bear a striking resemblance to real meatballs. Get the recipe here.
23. Maple Baked Bean Shepards Pie
This Shepherd’s Pie inspired casserole uses sweet and smoky baked beans as a base, elevating them beyond side status. The beans are topped with a creamy sweet potato cauliflower mash (because what is a vegan meal without at least one hidden vegetable). The mashed potatoes are blended until creamy using a hand mixer and a splash of almond milk. Fresh sage and a touch of salt finish them off. Get the recipe here.
24. Loaded Meaty Potatoes
These loaded potatoes though are so flavorful. They taste similar to sloppy joes, but without all the junk. It’s a great weeknight meal because once you get everything in the pot to simmer you can walk away and get other things done. It’s also a very cost-effective meal. The two cans of beans leave you with a very large amount of food for very little money. Get the recipe here.
25. BLT and Avocado Quinoa Salad with Maple Vinaigrette
This super simple BLT and Avocado Quinoa Salad with Maple Vinaigrette are made with only 9 ingredients, 1 knife + chopping board, 2 dishes, and your microwave. This BLT and Avocado Quinoa Salad with Maple Vinaigrette definitely takes things up several notches on the nutrition level, with the addition of protein and fiber-rich quinoa, baby spinach in place of the iceberg lettuce, heart-healthy {and delicious!} creamy avocado, and, last but not least, maple vinaigrette to add a hint of sweetness sans Miracle Whip. Get the recipe here.