6 one-pan dinners
One pan to cook in and one pan to wash. These dinners go from raw ingredients to the table without a second pot in sight.
CThe Cookpath kitchen9 min read · 6 recipes
One-Pan Mushroom Spinach Pasta
- 15 mintotal
- 17 gprotein
- 600kcal
- Beginnerlevel
- 2servings
Why it's here: The fastest one here.
13 ingredients · 5 steps · 8 min hands-on
Fifteen minutes, 8 of them hands-on, and everything goes into one wide, deep pan: tagliatelle, mushrooms, onion, garlic, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, with cream, stock and cream cheese. A serving is 600 kcal with 17 g of protein. The pasta cooks in the sauce, so there is no second pot to wash. It is rated beginner, which fits a weeknight when the energy is low.
Pour in the cream and stock so the pasta is mostly under the liquid, cover, and stir every few minutes so it cooks evenly and does not stick. Then take the lid off and simmer until the sauce thickens and coats the pasta. Slice the mushrooms thin so they cook fast. Serve with parmesan. Leftovers keep 3 days; reheat with a splash of stock or cream.
Chickpea Lentil Curry
- 15 mintotal
- 12 gprotein
- 390kcal
- Beginnerlevel
- 4servings
Why it's here: The fastest one here.
16 ingredients · 5 steps
Also 15 minutes, with 390 kcal and 12 g of protein a serving. Chickpeas and cooked lentils go into a spiced tomato and coconut milk sauce with cumin, turmeric, ginger and garlic, finished with lime and coriander. It makes four portions, so the pot covers a few dinners. It is rated beginner, and the whole thing is built in one big pot on a fairly high heat.
Toast the cumin in the hot oil for about 45 seconds until it darkens, then add the garlic, ginger and ground spices and stir for 2 minutes so nothing burns. Simmer the tomatoes for about 10 minutes before the coconut milk, chickpeas and lentils go in. Add the maple syrup and lime juice a little at a time and taste. It thickens as it stands, so add a splash of water when reheating.
Cheesy Beef Macaroni
- 20 mintotal
- 56 gprotein
- 950kcal
- Beginnerlevel
- 4servings
Why it's here: The most protein on this list.
17 ingredients · 6 steps · 12 min hands-on
The big one on the page: 56 g of protein and 950 kcal a serving, from 500 g of beef mince, 400 g of macaroni and 220 g of cheddar. It is a from-scratch version of the boxed classic, cooked in a single frying pan, in 20 minutes with 12 of them hands-on. It makes four servings and is rated beginner, so it is a sensible way to feed a family.
Stir the tomato paste for 2 to 3 minutes until it turns a deeper red, then add the chopped tomatoes and the stock. Add the macaroni, cover and simmer on medium, stirring every few minutes, until the pasta is cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed. Stir in the cheddar once the heat is off. Spring onions and sour cream go on top. It keeps 3 days in the fridge.
Pesto Chicken & Tomatoes
- 20 mintotal
- 38 gprotein
- 450kcal
- Beginnerlevel
- 4servings
Why it's here: Packs well for work.
13 ingredients · 6 steps · 15 min hands-on
Chicken breast is sliced thin, browned and finished in a pesto cream sauce with cherry tomatoes and spinach, all in one frying pan. It gives 38 g of protein for 450 kcal a serving, and it makes four portions in 20 minutes, 15 of them hands-on. The pan does the work of both the chicken and the sauce, which is the whole appeal of a one-pan dinner.
Brown the chicken for just 1 to 2 minutes a side and take it out, as it finishes cooking in the sauce later. Cook the tomatoes about 5 minutes until they brown and release some juice, then stir in the spinach, pesto, cream and stock. Return the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes, spooning the sauce over it. Serve over rice or pasta.
Tofu Shakshuka
- 20 mintotal
- 33 gprotein
- 440kcal
- Beginnerlevel
- 2servings
Why it's here: A good one to have in the rotation.
15 ingredients · 6 steps
A shakshuka with no eggs: lentils, quinoa, pepper and chopped tomatoes in a harissa and smoked paprika sauce, topped with smoked tofu and spinach. A serving gives 33 g of protein for 440 kcal, with no meat and no egg. Twenty minutes, two servings, rated beginner. The lentils and quinoa are already cooked, which keeps it quick, and the tofu is fried separately while the sauce simmers.
Cook the harissa, tomato paste and half the paprika for a minute to bring out their flavour. While the sauce simmers, fry the tofu cubes in a dry non-stick pan over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes until golden, then toss them with salt and the rest of the paprika. Warm the stock first, and stir the spinach in just before serving so it wilts without overcooking.
Shakshuka
- 25 mintotal
- 17 gprotein
- 370kcal
- Intermediatelevel
- 2servings
Why it's here: A good one to have in the rotation.
12 ingredients · 6 steps
The egg version, and the slowest on the page at 25 minutes: four eggs cooked in a spiced sauce of onion, pepper and tomatoes with cumin, paprika and coriander. Two servings come to 370 kcal and 17 g of protein each, which makes it the lightest dinner here. It is rated intermediate, and most of the care goes into the eggs.
Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes until it is thick, since a watery sauce will not hold the egg wells. Make a hollow with the back of a spoon for each egg before cracking it in. Cover, keep the heat low and check the whites after 5 minutes so the yolks stay runny. Add the chilli powder a little at a time. Serve with toast. The sauce keeps 3 days; cook the eggs fresh.
One-pan cooking works because everything shares the same fat and the same heat. The meat leaves flavour in the pan, the vegetables pick it up, and the sauce is made from what is left on the bottom. Nothing is wasted and nothing needs its own pot.
It is also the easiest way to cook when you are tired. There is one thing to watch, one thing to wash, and the order of the steps is mostly the order of the ingredients.
The dishes are sorted fastest first, so the top of the list is the weeknight option. The ones further down take longer but need very little attention from you.
Pick the right pan. A wide pan with a lid works for most of these, and a heavy base holds heat better than a thin one. If yours is small, cook in two rounds rather than piling everything in.
Three things that help
More surface means browning instead of steaming. A crowded pan makes soup, not dinner.
Potatoes and onions go in before anything that cooks quickly, so everything is done together.
The brown bits are the sauce. A splash of water or stock lifts them and adds flavour to the whole dish.
Every dish here is in the app with timers inside the steps, servings you can change and a shopping list that builds itself.
