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When the temperature drops and you’re craving new meal ideas, check out these 13 Warm Weeknight Dinners Everyone Will Love. Packed with satisfying one-pan options and quick, comforting dishes, these meals will always deliver.
In this post, you’ll find:
- one-pan meals and delicious, creative ideas for cold weather dinners that take less than 1 hour
- common equipment and pantry staples for cooking weeknight meals
- a couple vegetarian, a couple beef, but mostly poultry & beans based recipes
- the best ways to store and reheat any leftovers from these meals
Why You’ll Love These Warm Weeknight Dinners:
The 13 recipes on this list are legitimately some of my favorites on Project Meal Plan! These warm weeknight dinners are perfect for the colder months: no complicated methods, packed full of flavor, and ideal for busy nights.
On this list of rockstar dinners, you’ll find one-pan meals, creative winter ideas, and pantry-friendly ingredients that keep things affordable and easy. There are almost always ways to customize things too. In fact, I encourage it!
There’s a little bit of everything here: a couple vegetarian options, a couple beef dishes, and plenty of poultry and bean-based meals to keep things balanced. Plus, almost every recipe reheats really well, so you can enjoy leftovers without any extra stress.
Related: Is it cold out? Browse all of my winter recipes.
Pantry Staples for Warm Winter Dinners
One of the best thanks about these warm weeknight meals is that you don’t need anything fancy to make them work. Most of the recipes rely on simple, dependable pantry staples: the kind of ingredients you can keep on hand all winter and pull out when you need a quick, comforting dinner.
I use broth, canned beans, canned tomatoes, and a handful of fridge condiments (looking at you, ketchup and worcestershire) in several of these dishes. They add flavor and richness without the extra effort. If you’re a Costco shopper, that’s a great place to get broth and canned foods in bulk.
And when a recipe calls for fresh veggies, feel free to swap in frozen versions. They’re affordable, convenient, and just as good for most weeknight meals (frozen green beans are a favorite in our house!).
Here are some of the pantry staples I reach for most often in cold-weather cooking ⬇️
Winter Pantry Staples List:
- Broth or stock (chicken, veggie, or beef), you can also use boullion.
- Canned beans (black beans, chickpeas, white beans, etc.)
- Canned tomatoes (diced, fire-roasted, and tomato paste)
- Pasta, rice, and grains (plus quinoa, farro, couscous)
- Cooking sauces & condiments (ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, soy sauce, hot sauce)
- Coconut milk or evaporated milk for creamy sauces – I also love Nutpods, shelf stable until opened.
- Olive oil and avocado oil for high heat cooking
- Garlic, onions, and basic spices (Italian seasoning, chili powder, paprika, cumin are go-tos! garlic and onion powder work really well too)
- Frozen vegetables (green beans, peas, corn, mixed veggies, cut peppers, etc)
Common Equipment & Tools for Warm Weeknight Meals
Here are some of the tools and kitchen accessories I use more often during weeknight cooking:
- For a cutting board, I recommend this Greener Chef XL Bamboo Cutting Board (affiliate link!). I use mine almost every day! The XL size is perfect and not too huge. I use it for everything except cutting raw meat.
- For your chef’s knife, definitely look into getting yourself a Misen Chef’s Knife (affiliate link!). This is an affordable, all-purpose knife useful for everything, but especially cutting the vegetables in a lot of these recipes.
- A good set of wooden utensils is a must-have for all kitchens. I use a wooden spatula for many of these recipes, plus it doesn’t scratch my nonstick pans. I love this 3-Piece OXO Wooden Spoon Set (affiliate link!)!
- For cooking pots and pans, I generally use my nonstick GreenPans (affiliate link!), or my Lodge 6 qt Cast Iron Dutch Oven (affiliate link!). I’m not too particular about pans as long as they’re made well and hold up to heat.
Now that you’ve got the equipment down, here’s the list you’ve been looking for! Browse and pick a couple for next week’s meal plan!
13 Warm Weeknight Dinners Everyone Will Love
Think warm tomato-y beans on toast, but turned into a full-blown meal, and you've got this Sloppy Ground Turkey White Bean Skillet. With white beans, tomatoes, onions, and a sauce inspired by sloppy joes, the whole family will love this one pot meal.
Hot, toasted, buttery and saucy, this is a dinner that will be requested again and again. You can make the meatballs ahead, then prep and broil the rest at meal time. Add your favorite kind of mozzarella (fresh pictured here!), serve with a side salad, and boom. It's dinnertime!
This Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep features juicy seasoned chicken thighs simmered in a rich sun-dried tomato sauce, served with your favorite grain or side. You'll be amazed at how flavorful and delicious that sauce is! Even though it's a recipe made for meal prep, you can easily serve it for dinner instead 🙂
If you're looking for a meal to please meat eaters and non-meat eaters alike, may I recommend this Soy Chorizo Skillet? With all the flavors of real chorizo and minus all the grease, this recipe is a cheesy one pan delight - there's even some zucchini in there!
This easy to make soup is packed with veggies and full of protein from chicken breast and beans, all in a bright comforting broth. Best served with crusty bread or crackers on a cold evening!
This meat and beans meal is a quick, filling dish that's a little sweet, a little spicy, and incredibly flavorful. Complete with a super simple mayo drizzle sauce, you can serve with rice and fresh veggies, or keep it as is for a simple one-pan meal.
A Project Meal Plan favorite, this a go-to for meal prep, or just a yummy, warm dinner the whole family enjoys. You have to trust the full 5 star rating, from 25 reviews! This one makes great leftovers too, so you've got lunch tomorrow covered!
Serve this with a can of tomato soup, and you've got yourself a higher protein classic meal, fit to break that winter chill! I'm a big fan of using the air fryer for the tuna melt. That way it's bit more hands off, and you can focus on another meal component. I just love a hot sandwich!
Of all the recipes on this list, I probably make this and the tuna melt most. We absolutely love this one-pan recipe not only because of the flavorful sloppy joe base, but the tots! I've started putting some cheese under the tots, and some cheese on top. This gives you melty underneath and crispy on top. It's amazing!
While I do point out some specific ingredients in this recipe, you can use any ramen, any broth, and any toppings you want. Even cook the egg to your liking. Make it soup your way on a rainy day. That being said, I do think my shiitake mushroom chicken thigh version is super comforting and delicious!
If you're looking for a hot take-out style rice bowl kind of dish, this is the one! It's designed for meal prep, but it works perfectly well as a weeknight dinner too. The sauce is delightful, with honey, soy sauce and garlic. 35 minutes total!
Another chicken soup (can you blame me for having two on this list?), but this one has red potatoes and a few more fresh herbs. We're using simple ingredients, but with methods that give the most flavor, like using the bouquet garni during cooking and a finishing with a small hit of half and half. You'll impress yourself with this one, I promise!
For a veggie based comfort food meal, you've got to try this incredibly flavorful hug in a bowl. The turmeric rice combined with the zucchini chickpea curry feels like you brought the restaurant right into your kitchen. Make it for dinner or for meal prep - either way, it's going to be the coziest thing you've eaten all week!
How to Store and Reheat These Dinners
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to:
- 5 days for vegetarian meals
- 4 days for poultry or beef meals
- 3 days for meals with fish.
Reheat: Most of these meals will reheat well in the microwave loosely covered for 90 seconds to 2 minutes. For recipe with recipe or anything that could use a little extra moisture, drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of water over the meal (especially the rice) to help create steam.
You can also use a HotLogic Mini Oven (affiliate link!) to reheat anything saucy. You’ll just need to give it at least 90 minutes, but you can set it and forget it. See my full review on the HotLogic here!
For any kind of meal you’d want crispy (such as the meatball subs), I would recommend reheating in a skillet or in a toaster oven.
Tips for Easier Weeknight Cooking
- Prep a little ahead: Chop veggies, cook a protein, or set out your ingredients on Sunday to speed things up later.
- Lean on shortcuts: Use frozen veggies, rotisserie chicken, or canned beans and veggies when you need to.
- Keep your staples stocked: Broth, canned tomatoes, pasta, rice, and condiments go a long way in quick dinners.
- Double up when you can: If you’re already cooking a base recipe such as rice or shredded chicken, make extra for tomorrow’s meal.
- Use fewer dishes: Sheet pans, skillets, and Dutch ovens make both cooking and cleanup easier.
- Taste as you go: A sprinkle of salt, a squeeze of lemon, or a dash of hot sauce can wake up most leftovers after reheating.
Related Posts You Might Like
- 10 Foods That Make The Best Leftovers – I’m sure you’ll agree that some foods are way better as leftovers than others. This list has categories that include several recipe ideas! Perfect for meal prep.
- 15 Cozy Recipes To Try This Fall – This is a similar list but with breakfasts, lunches and desserts too! The recipes are not quite so weeknight friendly, but they’ve got maximum cozy factor!
- 10 Must-Try Air Fryer Chicken Recipes – My air fryer friends, you have to check out this list! These are some of my most popular air fryer recipes! Lots of great dinners here too.
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