Food & Drink

25 Delicious 5-Ingredient (or Less!) Recipes That Will Make Your Life Easier

written by ALEX PIZARRO
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Source: Erin Clarke of Well Plated
Source: Erin Clarke of Well Plated

Despite the ever-present urge to pick up my phone and order take-out, I’m committed to preparing delicious, home-cooked meals as often as I can. But cooking at home isn’t always as easy as it seems–especially when you need to buy loads of ingredients that you end up having to throw out. We can all admit we’ve brought home ingredients, used them for one specific recipe, and then forgotten they existed. Instead of buying tons of groceries to sit unused in my refrigerator until they go bad, I’m leaning on 5-ingredient recipes (or less!) to help eliminate waste.

Coming up with new meals to cook every day is a challenge (I can’t always just lean on my favorite air fryer recipes), but the options below make it so much easier to stick to my goal. Bonus: because they require so few ingredients, they’re quick and painless to put together on days when I really just don’t feel like cooking. Check out some of my favorite 5-ingredient recipes below:

 

1. Chipotle Lime Shrimp Lettuce Cups

 

2. Chicken Fajita Casserole

 

3. Instant Pot Sweet & Spicy Meatballs

instant pot meatballs

Source: A Night Owl

 

4. 5-Ingredient Chicken Feta Pasta

 

5. Flank Steak 

 

6. Creamy Sausage and Tortellini Soup

 

7. Coconut Curry

Source: Pinch of Yum

 

8. Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

 

9. Vegan Vodka Pasta 

Source: Pinch of Yum

 

10. Roasted Garlic Butter Salmon 

 

11. One Pot Pasta with Chicken Sausage

 

12. Garlic Parmesan Zoodles

 

13. Sourdough Havarti Grilled Cheese

 

14. Tomato Soup 

 

15. Mac and Cheese

 

16. Crispy Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tacos

 

17. Garlic Butter Shrimp 

Source: 40 Aprons

 

18. Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings 

 

19. Crockpot Greenbean Casserole

 

20. Roasted Red Pepper Pasta 

Source: From My Bowl

 

21. Easy Chili 

 

22. Baked Spinach and Mozzarella Ravioli 

 

23. Sheet Pan Gnocchi

 

24. Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken

 

25. Iceberg Wedge Salad