Making dinner can be a stressful process. Deciding what to cook, following complicated recipes, and the cleanup of all the pots and pans can be overwhelming. With all the responsibilities you have during the week, making dinner should be a simplified process that helps you save time and headache. Thankfully, there are plenty of recipes that offer you a simple, quick dinner with minimal clean up, so you can spend less time cooking and more time enjoying your meal.
Effortless Skillet Meals
Skillet meals and one-pan meals can be a lifesaver on days when time is short but you still want to prepare a delicious homemade meal for your family. These meals are generally straightforward, with only a little preparation needed and very few recipe steps. In many cases, you can prep some of the ingredients ahead of time, helping further reduce stress in your weekday routine.
Plus, these meals make cleanup much easier. No more washing a sink full of pots and pans after preparing dinner—you’ll just have one skillet to clean!
Skillet Meal Tips and Tricks
Skillet meals are simple, but there are a few helpful tips to keep in mind to make your next one-pan dinner one to remember:
- Balance flavor and texture. Since all ingredients meld together in skillet meals, it’s essential to balance flavors and textures to avoid a one-dimensional dish. Incorporate ingredients with different textures, or finish with a crunchy topping to get some variation in consistency. Using spices throughout the dish can also create harmony among the ingredients for a more cohesive dish.
- Pay attention to cook times. Different ingredients require different amounts of time to cook, which can be a challenge when everything goes in the same skillet. Be sure to follow the steps of the recipe, combining ingredients in the right order, so you don’t over or under cook anything.
- Add flavor to your base. Many skillet meals have rice as a base, and you can incorporate a lot of additional flavor to your meal by cooking the rice in liquids other than water. Chicken broth and coconut milk are popular substitutes, or you can combine water with ingredients like diced tomatoes to help marry the flavors into the rice.
Versatile Skillet Recipes for Family Meals
Save yourself some time and hassle in the kitchen with these skillet and one-pot recipes. They’re incredibly easy to prepare so you can spend more of your weekdays enjoying time with your family or unwinding after a day of work. Best of all, these recipes are delicious and sure to be a hit with your entire family!
Chicken and Brown Rice Pilaf
The classic pairing of chicken and rice gets an upgrade with this Chicken and Brown Rice Pilaf dish. By using Minute Instant Brown Rice – which is ready in 10 minutes – instead of standard long cook rice, this dish saves you valuable time in your weeknight routine. After cooking the chicken, use the same skillet to prepare Minute Instant Brown Rice, using chicken broth to add a depth of flavor. After you combine the rice with mushrooms, onions, peas and the chicken and allow the flavors to meld together, you’re ready to serve this incredibly easy and delicious meal.
Cheesy Chicken and Rice Recipe with Broccoli
For another classic chicken and rice dish, try this Cheesy Chicken and Rice Recipe with Broccoli, which incorporates the tried and true combination of broccoli and cheese together in an easy skillet meal. This recipe uses a mixture of chicken broth, milk, butter, garlic salt and onion powder to prepare the Minute Instant White Rice, creating a delicious and decadent base for this meal. You can mix this meal up with other leftover vegetables in place of the broccoli to keep your weeknight dinners fresh!
One-Pot Beef and Rice Skillet
Another delicious and easy skillet meal that satisfies your cheese and broccoli craving is this One-Pot Beef and Rice Skillet, which can be ready in just 15 minutes—perfect for a weeknight meal. Simply brown ground beef in a skillet, then add in water, Italian dressing and oregano for a zesty, flavorful base to make your rice. Add in broccoli and Minute Instant White Rice until the rice is cooked, top with cheese, and you’re ready to eat in minutes!
Quick and Easy Paella
This Quick and Easy Paella is a take on the traditional Spanish dish that you can make in your own home. The delicious combination of fresh vegetables, shrimp and classic spices like turmeric come together to create a dish that’s as colorful as it is delicious. Plus, it’s as easy to make as adding the ingredients to your skillet.
Quick Breakfast Skillet
Skillet meals can be a great option for breakfast as well, saving you time and hassle in the morning. This Quick Breakfast Skillet combines classic breakfast ingredients like bacon, eggs and cheese with a delicious Minute Butter & Sea Salt Jasmine Rice Cup to give your whole family a great start to their day. All the ingredients come together in one skillet in under 10 minutes to save you some clean-up time on busy mornings!
One-Pot Rice Shakshuka
This One-Pot Rice Shakshuka is the perfect skillet meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner—whenever you need to prepare a quick, no-fuss meal for the whole family. This tasty egg dish combines onion, bell pepper, tomato and Minute Instant White Rice in a single skillet, all seasoned with cumin and smoked paprika and topped with eggs. After a little bit of prep, the whole skillet goes in the oven to finish cooking for a perfect hassle-free meal.
Rice and Turkey Sausage Skillet
This Rice and Turkey Sausage Skillet created by recipe creator Balancing Pieces is another great one-pan meal that comes together quickly for weeknight dinners. After sauteeing onions and peppers, simply add in your favorite turkey sausage and Minute Instant Basmati Rice. Balancing Pieces mixes lime juice and parsley into the rice after it’s prepared to add more depth of flavor to the dish.
Meatless Skillet Recipes
Whether you’re a dedicated vegetarian or just want some meat-free meals in your weeknight rotation, skillet recipes are a great way to pack a lot of flavor and hearty ingredients into your meals without using meat.
One great meatless option for a skillet dinner is this Spicy Rice, Bean and Cheese Skillet. This recipe combines some classic Mexican ingredients, like black beans, tomatoes, Minute Instant Brown Rice, cilantro and green chilies to create a meal that’s filling and delicious, with a touch of spice.
For some more meatless skillet inspiration, check out this Southwest Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Brown Rice Skillet from recipe creator A Half Baked Mom. With hearty ingredients like sweet potatoes, avocado, black beans and Minute Instant Brown Rice, this dish is perfect for a filling weeknight dinner. And with plenty of spices including chili powder, paprika and cumin, meat-free certainly doesn’t mean flavor-free with this delicious dish.
If you still want the taste of meat on your meat-free meal days, try this Meatless Taco Rice Skillet. This recipe offers everything you love about tacos in a vegetarian version using meatless ground beef. With taco seasoning, crispy lettuce, juicy tomatoes and melty cheese, you certainly won’t miss the ground beef in this skillet recipe!
Stress-Free Dinner Tips
Skillet and one-pan meals are an excellent way to reduce dinner stress, but there are some additional ways you can simplify weeknight dinners.
- Plan and prep ahead. Reduce your stress by planning your week’s meals ahead of time, so you don’t have to decide what to make for dinner each day. Planning meals also helps you grocery shop, ensuring you pick up everything you need for the week. Additionally, prep any ingredients you can ahead of time to save yourself time on busier weekdays. Pre-chop vegetables, or cook proteins in advance to use in multiple meals, to save yourself valuable time.
- Use leftovers. Skillet meals are perfect for using leftovers, as you can combine them with fresh ingredients in the same pan. Using leftovers helps you eat down your fridge to avoid food waste, and it can be a great way to creatively combine ingredients that you wouldn’t normally pair together.
- Simplify your side dishes. Skillet meals are usually packed with ingredients that bring a variety of textures and flavors to the dish, so you can keep your side dishes simple. Simplifying your sides reduces stress and time spent in the kitchen, and also keeps the flavors of the meal more focused.
Skillet meals are the perfect weeknight dishes for anyone with a busy schedule who doesn’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen. Best of all, they don’t compromise flavor for convenience. There’s a one-pan meal to suit every taste, and endless possibilities to combine different ingredients in a single skillet to make something everyone will enjoy.
