This dish gets a lot of flavor from a few ingredients in about 30 minutes, making it a weekday dinner hero. You could easily halve the recipe to serve just two, but then you’d miss the delicious leftovers — which you are definitely going to want.

A combination of curry paste and powder delivers a big wallop of flavor to this mostly hands-off curry, in which leafy kale gets soft and tender. Served with quinoa, it’s a satisfying, wholesome meal made for two. 

A classic chicken Parmesan can be a labor of love, but this sped-up version is all love with much less labor. Adding penne to the skillet along with a jar of your favorite marinara makes this a whole hearty meal in one skillet.

Rich with coconut milk and vibrant with Jamaican jerk seasonings, this is another low-effort, high-reward dinner that’s surprisingly simple to make given the complexity of flavors. Skin-on chicken breasts get perfectly crispy and juicy as they cook on top of the rice and beans.

Skin-on chicken thighs get perfectly crispy as they lend their shmaltzy flavor to a bed of Israeli couscous. An herbaceous dill and caper topping brightens up this one-pan meal. If you plan to enjoy leftovers the next day, reserve some of the dill mixture to add after heating up the chicken and couscous to keep it fresh.

Your favorite app becomes an entrée in this creamy one-pot meal. Ditching standard cheddar for Gouda, Gruyère, and Parmesan makes this a mac and cheese you won’t forget (and you won’t mind eating the leftovers).

Perfect for a night on the couch, these garlic noodles have tons of umami, thanks to oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, and Parmesan cheese. Enjoy it with a marathon of your favorite TV show.

After about 20 minutes of prep work, this quick-cooking shrimp stir fry comes together in just 10 minutes. Developed to serve two, it’s a great choice for a quick dinner with steamed white or brown rice.

Turns out the takeout staple is even better when you make it yourself, and with this 30-minute recipe, you can have it on the table in less time than it takes to wait for delivery. 

This one-pan recipe makes a strong argument for keeping paneer on-hand at all times. The bouncy cubed cheese provides the backbone of this spice-forward dish. Serve with basmati rice or toasted naan and a quick, homemade raita. 

In the time it takes to cook rice in the rice cooker, you can whip up this easy, comforting one-pan meal, which is zesty and vibrant thanks to peppery harissa and orange zest and juice. A velvety, glossy sauce coats chunks of chicken and broccoli florets, so every bite is delicious.

When it comes to versatile, customizable dinners, sheet pan nachos are legendary. Start with a base of chips, cheese, and chicken, and then gild the lily to your heart’s content with sour cream, salsa, lettuce, jalapeños, and whatever else you dream up. Use a rotisserie chicken to cut prep time down to mere minutes.

Think of this recipe as a template for your own creations. All you need are a few sausage links and whatever vegetables you have on hand — broccoli and bell peppers, like the recipe suggests, or mushrooms, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, or zucchini — and you’ve got a complete meal for two without much work.

The great thing about the bowl format is that it allows you to make every serving to your and your dining companion’s exact specifications. You can load up one bowl with sliced cucumbers and shredded carrots, while another bowl can skip the veggies entirely. The two sauces provide yet another layer of customization.

Like the sheet pan sausage and vegetables recipe, this highly rated sheet pan meal is ripe for customization. Start with your favorite store-bought gnocchi, and combine with whatever veggies you like. Serve with burrata and Parmesan cheese to add depth and creaminess.

Cubed ahi tuna gets tossed in a savory marinade in this Hawaiian-style poke bowl recipe, which invites riffing — add edamame, pickled veggies, imitation crab salad, sliced avocado, and whatever else you’ve got hanging around in the fridge to make this dish your own. Scale back the tuna and other ingredients as needed to make the quantities appropriate for two.

Creamy, luxurious penne alla vodka is a quick and easy route to leveling up your night. Serve with crusty bread for soaking up the sauce and a bottle of wine to share with the one you love.

This classic steak au poivre is perfect for date night. Halve the recipe to serve two, and throw in some homemade or frozen french fries for dipping in the creamy peppercorn pan sauce.

If you’re looking for a quick yet impressive recipe, this shrimp linguini will deliver. The lemony garlic butter sauce is memorably delicious, and lets the plump shrimp and al dente pasta shine. 

Using bone-in pork chops and building a pan sauce using the drippings from said chops produces a delightfully flavorful dinner for two that’s ready in just 15 minutes.

There is so much deliciousness going on in this sheet pan. Crispy-skinned chicken, briny olives and feta, and roasted tomatoes, onions, and peppers — it’s got it all. So all you have to do is pop it in the oven and then enjoy some quiet time while it does all the work.