Low effort, big reward: 5 weeknight dishes
Home cooking is often about finding the balance between wanting to cook beyond the boundaries of your routine and whatever requires the least effort. That might mean making stuffed pasta shells because they enter your consciousness and refuse to leave. Or using chimichurri to enliven roast chicken, which means you’ll have to roast potatoes, too: Chimichurri and potatoes are a celestial pairing. But you may also boil pasta to toss in jarred marinara, and throw salmon in the oven with salt, olive oil and lemon. Low effort, solid reward.
Here are five dishes for the week:
Stuffed Shells
Of all the baked pasta dishes, stuffed shells are beloved for good reason: The fluffy ricotta filling, punchy tomato sauce, melted cheese and oversize noodles creates the ultimate comfort food, and the make-ahead aspect is equally compelling.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings; Total time: About 2 hours. From Ali Slagle.
Ingredients FOR THE SAUCE:
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped Kosher salt
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly
sliced
3 tablespoons tomato paste 1 (28-ounce) can tomato purée FOR THE FILLING AND ASSEMBLY: Kosher salt and black pepper 1 pound fresh ricotta (about 2
cups)
10 ounces fresh mozzarella,
grated (about 2½ cups) 5½ ounces Parmesan, finely
grated (about 2 cups)
2 egg yolks
1 garlic clove
12 ounces jumbo shells
Directions
Make the sauce: In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat the olive oil over medium. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until the paste turns one shade darker, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato purée, season with salt, then bring to a simmer. Cover halfway to reduce splattering, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened slightly, 20 to 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Make the filling: In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta with 1½ cups mozzarella, 1 cup Parmesan and the egg yolks. Grate the garlic directly into the bowl, then season with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Stir to combine, then set aside.
Add the shells to the boiling water and cook until just shy of al dente. (You’ll want to cook the shells about 2 minutes less than the minimum time listed on the package, as the shells will continue to cook in the oven in Step 5.) Reserve ½ cup pasta water, then drain the pasta and rinse it under cold water to cool. Count out 24 shells. (You will have cooked off more shells than will fit in the dish; that’s insurance in case any rip. Reserve extras for another use.)
Stir the pasta water into the sauce, then add half the sauce to a 3-quart/9-by-13-inch baking dish and spread it in an even layer. Spoon about 2 tablespoons filling into each of the 24 shells, lining up the stuffed shells in the dish as you go. Spoon the remaining sauce over the shells, then sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and 1 cup Parmesan.
Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake, uncovered, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. (If you’d like to brown the cheese, you can broil for a few minutes.) Let sit 5 minutes, then serve.
Sheet Pan Chicken With Potatoes, Scallions and Capers
This one-pan chicken dinner requires only five ingredients, making it perfect for busy weeknights.
Yield: 4 servings; Total time: 40 minutes. By Kay Chun.
Ingredients
12 scallions, trimmed (about 1
pound)
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes (about 3 large), sliced k-inchthick (about 4 cups)
8 large bone-in, skin-on chicken
thighs (about 3 pounds) 2 tablespoons drained capers 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus 4 lemon wedges for serving (optional)
Directions
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place scallions in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil and season with salt and pepper. In a medium bowl, season potatoes with salt and pepper and toss with 2 tablespoons oil. Spread half of potatoes in a single layer over scallions. Season chicken with salt and pepper, drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and place on top of the potatoes. Arrange remaining potatoes around chicken. Roast until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are tender and golden, 30 to 35 minutes.
Transfer chicken, potatoes and scallions to serving plates. Scrape remaining pan juices and drippings into a small bowl, stir in capers and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Spoon over chicken and serve with lemon wedges, if using.
Baked Tofu With Peanut Sauce and Coconut-Lime Rice
A spicy, fragrant peanut sauce reminiscent of the groundnut stews that are popular across West Africa anchors this recipe.
Yield: 4 servings; Total time: 25 minutes. By Yewande Komolafe. Note: Peanut sauce can be made 2 to 3 days in advance and stored refrigerated until ready to use.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil, plus more for brushing the pan and drizzling M cup lime juice (from about 5
limes), and zest of 1 lime Kosher salt
8 baby bell peppers or 1 medium bell pepper (any color will do), stemmed and thinly sliced lengthwise
Black pepper
1 cup long-grain rice like jasmine
or basmati
½ cup full-fat coconut milk
1 cup smooth, natural peanut
butter
1 tablespoon red miso 1 tablespoon grated ginger 1 tablespoon fish sauce
(optional)
2 teaspoons chopped habanero pepper, stem and seeds removed, or 1 tablespoon sambal
2 tablespoons buckwheat honey
or molasses
2 (14-ounce) package extra-firm tofu, drained and sliced crosswise, ¼-inch thick
3 cups peppery greens, like arugula, mizuna or baby mustard greens
2 scallions, trimmed and thinly
sliced
Directions
Heat the oven to 450 degrees and lightly brush a large rimmed sheet pan with oil.
In a small bowl, stir 4 tablespoons lime juice with ½ teaspoon salt until salt dissolves. Add the sliced peppers, a few cracks of black pepper and set aside.
In a small pot, combine the rice with 1 cup water and the coconut milk. Season with salt and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook over medium-low until the rice is just tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit, covered, until ready to serve.
In a medium bowl, whisk 4 tablespoons lime juice with the peanut butter, miso, ginger, fish sauce (if using), habanero, 2 tablespoons oil, 1 tablespoon honey and ¾ cup water. Stir until smooth and season to taste with salt.
Arrange the tofu pieces in a single layer on the oiled baking sheet and season with salt. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the peanut sauce over each, covering the top and allowing the sauce to run down and coat the sides. Drizzle the tops with some oil, and roast until glaze is set, deep brown and caramelized along the edges, 18 to 20 minutes. Add the remaining lime juice and 1 tablespoon honey to the leftover peanut sauce in the bowl to make the dressing; set aside.
Divide the greens among bowls. Add the lime zest and half the sliced scallions to the rice, then fluff with a fork. Top the greens with the rice, then the tofu. Spoon the peanut dressing over everything, and garnish with the drained pickled peppers and remaining sliced scallions.
Roasted Salmon Glazed With Brown Sugar and Mustard
This is what we call around here a no-recipe recipe, the sort of meal you can cook once off a card and you’ll know it by heart.
Yield: number of servings vary; Total time: 15 minutes. By Sam Sifton.
Ingredients
Salmon fillets, preferably wild or
farmed organically
Dijon mustard
Brown sugar
Salt and black pepper
Directions
Heat your oven to 400 degrees.
Make a mixture of Dijon mustard and brown sugar to the degree of spicy-sweetness that pleases you. Salt and pepper the salmon fillets.
Place the salmon fillets skinside down on a lightly oiled, foillined baking sheet. Slather the tops of the fillets with the mustard and brown sugar glaze and slide them into the top half of your oven. Roast for about 12 minutes, then serve.
Spicy Sheet-Pan Sausage and Squash
Feel free to switch up the squash for carrots, broccoli, potatoes: Any vegetables that are good roasted will work well in that liquid gold. Tip: The squash and sausage can be roasted 3 days in advance. Reheat in a low oven before serving.
Yield: 4 servings; total time: 30 minutes. By Ali Slagle.
Ingredients
1 (2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 pound spicy sausage (fresh chorizo, Italian, Andouille or otherwise)
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil Kosher salt and black pepper 1½ cup parsley leaves 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more as desired
Flaky salt, as desired
Directions
Heat the oven to 425 degrees and stick a large baking sheet in the oven. Prep the squash and sausage: Cut the squash into ½ inch-thick slices, then cut the slices crosswise in half. Transfer to a large bowl. Score the sausages in a few places on both sides, making sure not to cut all the way through. Transfer to the bowl with the squash, then stir to coat with the olive oil and fat pinches of salt and pepper.
When the oven comes to temperature, carefully dump the squash and sausage mixture onto the hot baking sheet and spread it out into a single layer. Roast, stirring every so often to coat the squash in the rendered fat, until the squash is tender and sausages are crisp and cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes. (To add some color, put them under the broiler for a minute or two.) Let cool slightly while you prepare the parsley.
In a small bowl, mix together the parsley and lemon juice, and add salt and pepper to taste. Slice the sausage diagonally in thirds. Serve the sausage and squash on a platter with a pile of parsley on top and sprinkled with an extra squeeze of lemon and flaky salt, if desired.