One pot meals that save your weeknights and your dishes

My slow cooker and my Dutch oven get more use between October and March than every other pan in my kitchen combined. Fewer dishes matter on a Tuesday when I’ve already done three loads of laundry, but the bigger reason I cook this way is flavor. When everything simmers in one pot, it all ends up tasting like part of the same dish.

These are the one-pot dinners my family finishes, in the order I cook them most often.

Why one pot works better than it sounds

When everything cooks together, the starch from the rice or pasta, the fat from the meat and the aromatics all end up in the same liquid. That’s why one-pot chicken and rice tastes more finished than chicken served next to plain rice. The trade-off is timing. Ingredients that cook at different speeds have to go in at different points. Get that order right and one-pot cooking is hard to mess up.

What you need

A 5 to 6 quart Dutch oven or a deep, heavy skillet with a lid covers every recipe below for a family of four. A heavy base spreads the heat so rice and pasta don’t scorch on the bottom. A wooden spoon for scraping up the browned bits is the only other tool you need.

Six one-pot dinners worth keeping in rotation

1. One-pot chicken and rice

Season six bone-in chicken thighs and brown them skin side down for about seven minutes, then set them aside. Pour off all but two tablespoons of fat and soften a diced onion and two garlic cloves in it. Stir in 1½ cups of long grain rice, then add 2¾ cups of chicken broth and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom. Nest the chicken back on top, skin side up, cover and cook on low for 25 minutes. The rice under the chicken gets less direct heat, so keep the burner low once the chicken goes back in, and let the pot sit covered for five minutes before serving.

2. Sausage, peppers and potato skillet

Cut a pound and a half of potatoes into three-quarter inch cubes. I learned this the hard way with quartered potatoes that stayed crunchy while everything else was ready. Brown a pound of sliced smoked sausage and set it aside, then cook the potatoes in the fat, covered, for about 12 minutes, stirring now and then. Add sliced peppers and onion, uncover, and cook until everything is browned. Return the sausage for the last few minutes.

3. One-pot beef and noodles

Brown a pound of ground beef with a diced onion and drain most of the fat. Add four cups of beef broth, a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce and eight ounces of uncooked egg noodles straight into the pot. Simmer, stirring often, for 8 to 10 minutes until the noodles are tender. As the noodles cook they release starch that thickens the broth into a sauce, so you don’t need flour. Stir in half a cup of sour cream off the heat for a stroganoff-style finish.

4. Chickpea and spinach curry

Cook a diced onion in oil until soft, add garlic, ginger and two tablespoons of curry powder and fry for a minute. Pour in a can of crushed tomatoes and a can of coconut milk and simmer for 10 minutes. Canned chickpeas need almost no time, so add two drained cans at the end with a few handfuls of spinach, just long enough to warm through and wilt the greens. Serve with rice or naan.

5. One-pot taco pasta

Brown a pound of ground beef with a packet of taco seasoning. Add a 15-ounce can of crushed tomatoes, 2½ cups of broth and 12 ounces of small pasta shells, bring it to a boil, then cover and simmer for about 12 minutes, stirring halfway, until the pasta is tender. Stir in a cup of shredded cheddar at the end. My picky eater eats this one without complaint, which is the highest praise available in my house.

6. Lentil and vegetable soup

Soften a chopped onion, two carrots and two celery stalks in olive oil. Add garlic, a teaspoon of cumin, a cup and a half of rinsed lentils, a can of diced tomatoes and six cups of broth. Simmer for 30 to 35 minutes. Brown or green lentils keep their shape and give you a brothy soup. Red lentils break down into something closer to a thick stew. Both are good, so pick whichever texture you like.

Tips for one-pot cooking

Brown the meat first and don’t rush it. Those dark bits on the bottom of the pot turn into the flavor of the sauce once the liquid goes in. Add ingredients in order of how long they take: dense vegetables and grains early, quick-cooking greens, beans and seafood at the end. Keep the lid on for rice and pasta dishes so the liquid doesn’t boil off before they’re cooked, and resist lifting it to check too often.

If you’d rather use the oven, our dump and bake casseroles work the same way in a baking dish. For pasta specifically, see our one-pot pasta recipes, and for a whole week of easy dinners, our quick dinner ideas.

Storage

Most one-pot dinners keep for 3 to 4 days in the fridge in a sealed container. The soup and curry freeze well for up to three months. Pasta and rice dishes thicken as they sit, so add a splash of broth or water when you reheat them.

Frequently asked questions

Can I make these in a slow cooker instead?

The rice and pasta dishes work best on the stove, where you can control the liquid as they cook. The chickpea curry and lentil soup adapt well to a slow cooker on low for 6 to 7 hours.

What size pot do I need?

A 5 to 6 quart Dutch oven or a deep skillet with a lid is enough for a family of four, with room for leftovers.

Can I double these recipes?

Yes, but use a wider pot rather than a deeper one. Grains and pasta need surface area to cook evenly, and in a very deep pot the bottom layer can turn mushy before the top is done.

Why does my rice burn on the bottom?

The heat is usually too high after the liquid comes to a boil. Turn it down to the lowest setting once the lid goes on, and use a heavy-bottomed pot if you can.