21 Easy and Cheap One-Pot Recipes You’re Going to Love

Because no one likes washing the dishes.

Maybe you have a fancy dishwasher with all the bells and whistles, or maybe the fancy dishwasher is you. But either way, fewer dishes to clean is always something to love. These cozy, one-pot weeknight dishes are some of our readers’ favorites for getting a complete meal on the table with minimal cleanup.

1. One-Pot Chicken Meatballs With Greens

Dry meatballs? No such thing in this dish from Yasmin Fahr, in which you brown chicken meatballs on the stovetop, then cover them with chard while they finish cooking to ensure maximum tenderness. Pile on top of pasta or rice, then ladle the lemony pan sauce over everything and enjoy.

Recipe: One-Pot Chicken Meatballs With Greens

2. Smoky Bean and Sweet Potato Burritos

The filling for these tinga-inspired burritos from Kristina Felix is made in one pot, simmering until the sweet potatoes and beans meld together. Canned chipotles in adobo add smokiness. Serve it over rice, or tucked into flour tortillas. For meal prep, wrap them in aluminum foil and freeze — future you will thank you.

Recipe: Smoky Bean and Sweet Potato Burritos

3. Ras el Hanout Chickpea and Spinach Stew

Nargisse Benkabbou’s speedy, comforting stew is made entirely with pantry staples. Canned chickpeas, baby spinach, tomato paste and ras el hanout, a warm Moroccan spice blend, come together to make a perfectly seasoned vegetarian meal, with umami depth from soy sauce. If you don’t have ras el hanout, she includes instructions for how to make your own.

Recipe: Ras el Hanout Chickpea and Spinach Stew

4. Vegetable Tofu Curry

You know the thick solids at the top of a can of coconut milk? Instead of stirring it into the rest of the can, Genevieve Ko scoops it out and uses it to sauté the veggies in this 20-minute vegetarian curry before pouring in the rest of the milk. This imbues the entire dish with a rich, nutty flavor.

Recipe: Vegetable Tofu Curry

5. Skillet Broccoli Cheddar Rice

Ali Slagle takes the classic broccoli casserole and breaks it down to its most basic, but beautiful, elements in this comforting recipe. It’s as easy as it sounds — buttery rice combined with broccoli florets, nestled under a gooey blanket of cheese. Eat it on its own, or add a can of beans or chopped leftover chicken to make it more filling.

Recipe: Skillet Broccoli Cheddar Rice

6. Pasta and Lentils (Pasta e Lenticchie)

This hearty Italian dish from Ali Slagle is quintessential cucina povera, or peasant food, which is characterized by simple dishes made with a handful of affordable ingredients. Here, pasta, lentils, tomatoes, onion and garlic cook in the same pot so that the pasta starches thicken the liquid into something almost luxurious.

Recipe: Pasta and Lentils (Pasta e Lenticchie)

7. Sheet-Pan Sausage Meatballs With Tomatoes and Broccoli

Yasmin Fahr uses uncased sausage to make cute little meatballs that cook alongside broccoli, tomatoes, mushrooms and garlic bread in this complete sheet-pan dinner that can be on the table in about 40 minutes.

Recipe: Sheet-Pan Sausage Meatballs With Tomatoes and Broccoli

8. One-Pot Japanese Curry Chicken and Rice

“I wake up craving this sometimes — I love it so much,” wrote one reader about Kay Chun’s one-pot, weeknight version of the classic Japanese stew. No need for store-bought instant curry roux. Instead, curry powder, ground nutmeg and Worcestershire sauce are bloomed in butter for a rich sauce that mimics its flavor.

Recipe: One-Pot Japanese Curry Chicken and Rice

9. Burrito Bowls

Forget Chipotle. You can, and should, make burrito bowls at home, especially if they’re as easy as these from Ali Slagle. Spicy rice and beans, cooked together in one pot, gets spooned into bowls and topped with avocado and a quick corn salsa.

Recipe: Burrito Bowls

10. Roasted Cabbage and Butter Beans

Cabbage, ever the budget-cooking workhorse, shines in this dish that is at once showstopping and simple. Dan Pelosi roasts wide ribbons of cabbage on a sheet pan, then tops it with a mixture of butter beans coated in anchovy olive oil. Whether you treat it as a vegetarian main or a hearty side, it deserves a spot in your rotation.

Recipe: Roasted Cabbage and Butter Beans

11. Brodo di Pollo con Pastina (Chicken Soup With Pastina)

Now is the time to whip out those little star or alphabet noodles you bought on a whim. In this one-pot chicken soup from Naz Deravian, boneless chicken breasts, carrot, onion, celery and garlic cook together for a simple, comforting soup that’ll make you feel better about, well, everything. “Over the past few years, I’ve made this soup at least 100 times,” wrote one reader.

Recipe: Brodo di Pollo con Pastina (Chicken Soup With Pastina)

12. One-Pot Chicken and Rice With Caramelized Lemon

Rendered chicken fat is the key to this beloved recipe from Dan Pelosi, which has over 9,000 ratings and counting. Caramelized lemon slices melt into the schmaltz, and shallots and Castelvetrano olives add flavor to every bite. “It turned out to be one of the best dishes I’ve ever made,” wrote one reader.

Recipe: One-Pot Chicken and Rice With Caramelized Lemon

13. Sheet-Pan Pierogies With Brussels Sprouts and Kimchi

Hetty McKinnon is a vegetable genius. In this clever recipe that is a reader favorite, she combines store-bought pierogi with brussels sprouts and kimchi for a filling vegetarian sheet-pan meal that is anything but boring.

Recipe: Sheet-Pan Pierogies With Brussels Sprouts and Kimchi

14. Tomato Rice With Crispy Cheddar

Technically, this dish is not one-pot — Priya Krishna calls for sautéing the vegetables in a pan, then transferring them to a baking dish — but if you prep them in an ovenproof pan, ta-da! It’s a one-pot wonder. One happy reader called it “a crispy dream!”

Recipe: Tomato Rice With Crispy Cheddar

15. Creamy One-Pot Pasta With Chicken and Mushrooms

In this recipe, Mark Bittman cooks pasta, shallots, mushrooms and chicken as one would risotto — by gradually adding broth and white wine to the pot and stirring until it’s absorbed for a creamy one-pot affair with nary a drop of cream. This recipe is a solid template from which to start, but kick up the herbs and spices as you see fit.

Recipe: Creamy One-Pot Pasta With Chicken and Mushrooms

16. Baked Eggs With Beans and Greens

Chock-full of herbed sausage and chickpeas, this dish from Colu Henry is like a more substantial version of eggs in purgatory, the classic Italian egg and tomato casserole. Substitute any white bean you like for the chickpeas, and for a vegetarian version, ditch the sausage.

Recipe: Baked Eggs With Beans and Greens

17. Skillet Chicken With Black Beans, Rice and Chiles

Adapted from Diana Henry’s “From the Oven to the Table: Simple Dishes That Look After Themselves,” this complete chicken dinner is a delightful mix of flavors and textures. The cumin-y rice and black beans soak up the chicken juices, and everything emerges from the oven perfectly cooked. One note: Be sure to use a 12-inch skillet; a smaller or larger pan might result in under- or overcooked chicken or rice.

Recipe: Skillet Chicken With Black Beans, Rice and Chiles

18. One-Pot Orzo With Shrimp, Tomato and Feta

Inspired by shrimp saganaki, the classic Greek appetizer, this recipe from Yasmin Fahr combines shrimp, tomatoes, orzo and feta for a vibrant, well-rounded meal. Stir in some baby spinach for a little green, a can of drained white beans for more heft, and feel free to use frozen shrimp in place of fresh; just thaw them first.

Recipe: One-Pot Orzo With Shrimp, Tomato and Feta

19. One-Pot Mujadara With Leeks and Greens

Mujadara is classic Middle Eastern comfort food made with lentils, rice and caramelized onions. This version from Melissa Clark calls for leeks because they cook faster, but you can certainly use onions in equal amounts instead.

Recipe: One-Pot Mujadara With Leeks and Greens

20. One-Pan Roasted Fish With Cherry Tomatoes

You can use perfectly ripe in-season tomatoes or the grocery store variety for this deceptively simple and, yes, kind-of sophisticated dish from Lidey Heuck. The tomatoes are roasted with garlic, shallots, sherry vinegar and a drizzle of honey, then everything is scooted to the side so the fish can cook nearby in the last 10 to 12 minutes of cooking time.

Recipe: One-Pan Roasted Fish With Cherry Tomatoes

21. Lemony White Bean Soup With Turkey and Greens

This delightfully “yummy and comforting” soup from Melissa Clark is delicious and warming on a chilly fall night. To thicken it, smash some of the beans; to loosen, add more broth. Substitute uncased turkey or chicken sausage for the ground turkey. Toss in whatever greens you have in the fridge. And if you don’t have fresh herbs on had, just follow the smart reader advice above until a spoonful makes you nod and smile.

Recipe: Lemony White Bean Soup With Turkey and Greens

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