"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
Source: The Defined Dish
2. Chicken Fajita Casserole
Source: Closet Cooking
3. Instant Pot Sweet & Spicy Meatballs
Source: A Night Owl
4. 5-Ingredient Chicken Feta Pasta
Source: By Erin Clarke of Well Plated
5. Flank Steak
Source: Spices in My DNA
6. Creamy Sausage and Tortellini Soup
Source: Fox and Briar
7. Coconut Curry
Source: Pinch of Yum
8. Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Source: Erin Clarke of Well Plated
9. Vegan Vodka Pasta
Source: Pinch of Yum
10. Roasted Garlic Butter Salmon
Source: Gimme Delicious
11. One Pot Pasta with Chicken Sausage
Source: Kristine’s Kitchen
12. Garlic Parmesan Zoodles
Source: Gimme Delicious
13. Sourdough Havarti Grilled Cheese
Source: My Sequined Life
14. Tomato Soup
Source: Feel Good Foodie
15. Mac and Cheese
Source: Show Me The Yummy
16. Crispy Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tacos
Source: She Likes Food
17. Garlic Butter Shrimp
Source: 40 Aprons
18. Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings
Source: A Sassy Spoon
19. Crockpot Greenbean Casserole
20. Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Source: From My Bowl
21. Easy Chili
Source: Gimme Some Oven
22. Baked Spinach and Mozzarella Ravioli
Source: With Salt and Wit
23. Sheet Pan Gnocchi
24. Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken
Source: Hello Spoonful
25. Iceberg Wedge Salad
Source: I Heart Naptime