Weeknight Meals

Tender lettuces get topped with juicy spiced chicken, ripe mangos, soft avocado, and cherry tomatoes. There's so much flavor and texture going on that there's barely a need for a dressing: just a hit of lime juice, salt, and EVOO, and dinner is done.

The trick to keeping this salad crisp? Salt, drain, and squeeze excess liquid from the cucumbers before dressing them. Add a swoosh of yogurt and juicy oven-baked meatballs to make it a flavorful, filling meal.

This coconut rice recipe appears in Leela Punyaratabandhu's cookbook, Bangkok, as part of a meal that includes green papaya salad, sweet shredded beef, and chicken red curry.

When tomatoes are at their best, we recommend making the salsa roja. During the rest of the year (even in winter), tomatillos still have plenty of flavor and can be your go-to salsa base.

Nothing against pan-frying fish to get that crispy skin, but cod and other whitefish shine brightest when nestled into a rich bed of aromatics and steamed to tender flakiness.

The truth is, there’s a time and a place for whole-wheat pasta. Its nutty, earthy flavor isn’t the best match with a light tomato sauce, but it works quite well with bolder ingredients like capers and anchovies, which can stand up to the pasta’s wholesomeness. Hearty vegetables pair well, too. Here, broccoli is cooked down and transformed into an extra-chunky, extra savory sauce. For even more texture, grated cheese is swapped for toasted bread crumbs. In Italy, they’re known as pan grattato, or “grated bread,” as peasants once used them as a cheese replacement on their pasta because they couldn’t afford the real deal. Nowadays both are easily within reach, but the crunch they add here makes it easy to leave the Parmesan behind.

There are many variations of Gobernadores, but they typically include shrimp, mild chiles, and cheese. Here, chef David Castro Hussong adds bacon, which gives the dish a surf-and-turf feeling.

Smashing some of the tomatoes as they cook helps create a chunky sauce, while others stay whole for juicy surprises in every bite.

Set yourself up for success: The farro, tofu, eggs, dressing, and pickles can all be made up to five days ahead.

Very loosely inspired by Lebanese fattoush, this is one of those dishes where you want to use only the ripest, most fragrant tomatoes in the bunch.

This one-skillet chicken gives you the best of both worlds: crispy skin atop tender dark meat that gently cooks in the bubbly sauce underneath.

This dish is all about assembly, not time at the stove. You’ll quickly sauté chickpeas and corn, then gather the supporting characters: lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, feta, and lime.

This recipe shines for its simplicity. However, in order for it to be spectacular, the quality of the three ingredients really matters.

Juicy ripe tomatoes and sweet summer corn perk up this fresh take on the old-school Southwestern casserole. Bonus: it just happens to be gluten-free.

Chef Lucas Sin of Junzi taught us this technique for fried rice in which every single grain is coated in egg yolk and fries up perfectly distinct and chewy.

These veggie patties are streamlined enough for a weeknight dinner, packed with protein, and deeply savory thanks to mushrooms and mellow white miso.

Fresh ramen noodles become a dreamy throw-together summer meal thanks to a kaleidoscope of crunchy veggies and a tangy pantry-staple dressing.

Seasoning just-cooked rice with a mix of rice vinegar, salt, and sugar turns it into a dynamic side you'll want to snack on right out of the pot.

Toss grilled carrots and fresh avocados with a chile-ginger dressing that's sweetened with honey for a simple side that can easily double as a light lunch.

Let’s be honest, this salad is a vehicle for eating crispy, melty cheese for dinner. Not just any cheese, but rich and dense grillable cheeses like bread cheese, Halloumi, or paneer. When grilled or seared, these varieties brown and crisp on the outside while becoming soft and meaty inside, without melting into a puddle.