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By the time the end of the day rolls around, I’m looking for easy to make dinner ideas. I usually don’t feel like making a huge deal about meal time, but no matter what, I want it to taste good. I’ve come up with 10 tried and true dinner recipes that I find very easy, whether you are cooking for just yourself or for many people. 

10. Garlic Shrimp

Photo Credit: disneymike

I usually get a bag of those frozen shrimps that don’t have tails on them and that have already been deveined. I don’t want to mess with any of that stuff; otherwise, this wouldn’t be considered all that easy! Empty the bag in some warm water. While they are thawing, sauté half a stick of butter,one whole chopped onion and some garlic flakes. Brown the onions a bit and then add the drained shrimp. It doesn’t take long for the shrimps to cook in the hot butter, maybe five minutes or so. If you like spicy food, sprinkle some hot pepper flakes in while you’re cooking the shrimp. I usually serve the whole concoction over rice, but you could use noodles or eat it just like it is. It also goes great with some wine. Invite that special someone over and have a perfect romantic date. Yum!

9. Bacon-Wrapped Chicken

Photo Credit: marjuka

Using turkey bacon and skinless chicken is a great way to make this all time favorite with lower calories. This can be made with either frozen chicken breasts or fresh. I get my glass baking pan ready by adding a small amount of olive oil and spreading it around with a basting brush. I’ll then wrap two pieces of bacon around each piece of chicken, side by side, not on top of one another. Place the chicken in the dish and sprinkle some onion and garlic powder on them. Adding some parsley and black pepper will make it extra tasty. I then bake the whole thing in the oven for half hour covered with foil and a half hour uncovered at 375 degrees. The bacon adds an excellent flavor to the chicken. Having some mashed potatoes on the side seems to go well with this kind of chicken.

8. Burgers

Photo Credit: Vanessa Pike-Russell

Making burgers with either ground beef or turkey is one of the easy to make dinner ideas that is sure to please the entire family. You can hardly go wrong with burgers! I usually add a packet of onion soup mix to the meat and let it set while I’m getting everything else ready. Making homemade fries in the oven is easy and goes well with these burgers. I slice up some potatoes into wedges, coat a baking sheet with olive or canola oil, and lay the wedges on the sheet. Sprinkle with salt if you wish. I usually leave it off for health reasons, but some people find fries to be bland without salt. These usually take about an hour to bake; half hour on each side. For a quicker side dish, I generally pick up a tub of potato salad when I buy meat for the burgers. You can’t go wrong in my house with potato salad! I usually also  follow it up with one of my favorite desserts…. delicious cheesecake!

7. Spaghetti and Meatballs

Photo Credit: cavidanny

Pasta recipes are usually fast, easy and delicious. Making the meatballs will take the longest here, but you can always opt for frozen ones from the store. I find that having a bag of these on hand in the freezer is perfect for speeding up this easy meal. I generally make spaghetti sauce myself, with a can of crushed tomatoes and a can of diced with spices already added to them. I just like the chunks in my sauce! Some garlic and herb breadsticks are easy to make from canned biscuits and go perfect with this meal. I take each biscuit, roll it between my hands and then sprinkle with whichever herbs I want and some garlic powder. I might tie each little biscuit snake into a knot from time to time, just to change the appearance a bit. The kids seem to like them this way. I think it’s because they can stick the whole thing in their mouths at once. Teenagers!

6. Homemade Chicken and Noodles

Photo Credit: silkegb

This is easy, but it isn’t quick if you start with chicken that hasn’t been cooked. I usually make this meal after we’ve had chicken for dinner or with leftover turkey bits from Thanksgiving. I cut the meat up, add it to water, and bring to a boil. While this is cooking, I make the noodle dough. The easiest recipe I have is one my mother always uses: 1 cup flour, 2 eggs, and 2 egg shells filled with milk. Try to crack the eggs such that there’s at least half an eggshell left, to make a nice little cup for measuring the milk. Knead all this together and let it set for 20 minutes. When it’s ready, roll it out on a floured surface and cut to desired width. I find that cutting them very thin makes them easier to eat, since these noodles do puff up quite a bit in the water. Drop them into the boiling chicken/turkey water and then bring to a boil again. Cook for 20 more minutes. Pouring this over mashed potatoes makes a hearty meal. I like to have a piece of bread or a dinner roll to sop up the excess juice as well. This is such a great comfort food, too!

5. Enchiladas

Photo Credit: neon.mamacita

I remember thinking that these would be very difficult to make, so I never considered them to be easy to make. But I found this super easy recipe on a cooking website that I have to share. Canned enchilada sauce is available in any store and come in all spice levels. I use a can of green sauce and a can of red. Cook up the meat, throw in some chopped onions and garlic, cook a bit longer, then drain off the grease. These can be made with beef, chicken, or even turkey. Have the baking dish ready for the enchiladas to go into. I use a glass cake pan for mine. Use the 8 inch flour tortilla shells, spoon in meat mix and roll. You can add some of the enchilada sauce into the meat to make them a bit more moist. Place them in the pan with the seam down and line them all right next to each other in the dish. Once you have them lined up, pour the sauce over them all and sprinkle with cheese. Bake them for about 20 minutes or so. Since the meat is already cooked, it’s basically just time to melt t he cheese and heat everything together. These make a perfect meal by themselves, but if there is a large group of people I’ll make up some Spanish rice for a side dish too.

4. Egg Noodles with Garlic

Photo Credit: rosy outlook

This is not only an easy recipe, but also a very quick one. Cook up some egg noodles and drain, add butter to them and some crushed garlic, then enjoy! I like to crush fresh garlic and sauté in some butter, then add this to the noodles. For some added texture, I will sometimes cook up some onions and add them to the noodles as well. I don’t dice them into little bits though, I usually cut the onion into rings and then cut these rings in half, leaving them as long pieces. Once they are cooked, they are no different than the noodles. You can sprinkle whatever spices you want on top. I usually stick with black pepper and some basil. Fresh basil is best since it adds a stronger flavor to the pasta dish.

3. Tacos

Photo Credit: cheezemaster

Whether you prefer hard corn shells or soft flour tortillas, tacos are one of the easy to make dinner ideas that are great for a large group of people. I usually cut everything up first — tomatoes, lettuce, and onions.  A small cooking tip, use the time while the meat is cooking to chop up other items. After putting each addition in its designated bowl, I get out the olives, cheese, sour cream, salsa, and whatever other taco topping I come across in the fridge. When using corn shells, I put them in the oven at a low temperature for about 10 or 15 minutes. Flour shells I usually heat up right before we eat. I put them on a plate in the microwave and place a damp paper towel on top of them, then heat for a minute, flip over the stack and heat for another minute. I like to make tacos for large groups since everyone is usually fine with the assembly line method of making tacos and this leaves the table clear of bowls.

2. Beef Stir-fry

Photo Credit: FotoosVanRobin

Since my husband is anti-veggies, for the most part, our stir-fry generally contains nothing but beef, onions, and garlic. I will throw in some pea pods, broccoli, or carrots in another pan and sauté them for myself, but I don’t add them to the main mix. I usually brown the beef chunks first in a hot wok, then add in Teriyaki sauce with the onions and garlic. Once this has all cooked thoroughly, I will put in some stir fry sauce. There are many brands that have a much lower sodium content than soy sauce. This cooked combo is great over any kind of rice.

1. Chicken Quesadillas

Photo Credit: Sashertootie

I feel that these are the easiest dinner item to make out of my entire list here, so I’m putting them at number one. Plus, I haven’t met anyone that doesn’t like these! I take one flour tortilla, sprinkle some shredded cheese on it, add in some cooked chicken, then place another tortilla on top. I put the whole thing in the microwave for one minute. I then take either my cast iron tortilla pan or a large skillet, that has been warming up on med-high heat, and flop the tortillas in it to toast. I get each side a bit brown and this doesn’t take long at all; maybe 30 seconds on each side. I like to get them a little crisp, but it isn’t necessary. You can take them directly out of the microwave and eat them like that too. A pizza cutter is perfect for cutting these into fourths for serving. Mixing some salsa or taco sauce with a little blob of sour cream makes an excellent dip for these. Follow up with a yum chocolate dessert.

Well, there’s my list of easy to make dinner ideas and I haven’t had any complaints on them yet! The whole family enjoys them and many don’t take much time at all to prepare. I hope you find some of these useful when you are trying to come up with an idea of what to make for dinner next time. Share them with a friend!