Food and Recipes Dinner 24 Dinner Recipes You Can Make in 20 Minutes or Less By Jenna Sims Jenna Sims Jenna is a Senior Digital Editor for Southern Living and joined the team in 2014. She writes, produces, and assigns content with a focus on email growth and commerce content. She covers a range of topics in the lifestyle space from holiday gift guides to new product launches to tips for cooking with your air fryer. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on July 21, 2022 Close Photo: Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Claire Spollen; Food Styling: Torie Cox There's no need to spend your whole evening in the kitchen to serve up a homemade dinner for your family. These quick and easy dinner recipes can be made in just 20 minutes, start to finish. Even though they come together quickly, they still deliver plenty of flavor. Plus, a 20-minute cook time means these recipes can be on the table even quicker than takeout. From salads to sheet pan suppers to soups, and more, read on for our favorite 20-minute dinner ideas that will save suppertime on your busiest days. Some of these recipes lean on convenience items like rotisserie chicken, microwaveable rice, and refrigerated pasta for a quick dinner solution. They may even fool your family into thinking you spent all day in the kitchen—and your secret is safe with us. 01 of 24 Crispy-Shrimp Salad with Avocado Dressing Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners Recipe: Crispy-Shrimp Salad with Avocado Dressing Homemade avocado dressing not only takes this shrimp salad to the next level, but leftovers can be used as a spread for sandwiches, dip for veggies, and more. 02 of 24 Grilled Cajun Shrimp Kabobs with Sausage Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Lydia Pursell; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer Recipe: Grilled Cajun Shrimp Kabobs with Sausage Serve these cajun kabobs alongside rice or grits for a complete meal. 03 of 24 Crispy Chicken-and-Broccoli Salad Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kathleen Varner; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall Recipe: Crispy Chicken-and-Broccoli Salad Turn deli chicken tenders into a salad that will have every member of the family enjoying their broccoli. 04 of 24 Burrito Bowls Photo: Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall Recipe: Burrito Bowls Serve up restaurant-quality burrito bowls in just 10 minutes. 05 of 24 Shrimp Salad Rolls Photographer Victor Protasio, Food Stylist Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist Christine Keely Recipe: Shrimp Salad Rolls For a taste of the coast wherever you are, whip up these shrimp rolls in just 10 minutes. Any hot dog or top-sliced bun would work, but we love the texture and delicate sweetness of potato rolls. 06 of 24 Chicken Noodle Bowl with Peanut-Ginger Sauce Greg DuPree Recipe: Chicken Noodle Bowl with Peanut-Ginger Sauce Shredded rotisserie chicken helps these bowl come together without you having to turn on the oven or stovetop. 07 of 24 Chicken-Bell Pepper Tacos Johnny Autry; Prop and Food Styling: Charlotte L. Autry Recipe: Chicken-Bell Pepper Tacos Give your classic ground beef taco recipe a night off and opt for this chicken version that gets plenty of flavor from onion, tomatillos, a serrano chile, and red bell pepper. 08 of 24 Sheet Pan Fajitas Photography and Styling: Karen Rankin Recipe: Sheet Pan Fajitas A sheet pan will allow you to cook the chicken and veggies at the same time. Not only is it quick, but cleanup is also a breeze. 09 of 24 Easy Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kathleen Varner; Food Styling: Maggie Ruggiero Recipe: Easy Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry Spreading beef into a thin layer that covers the bottom of the skillet will help it cook evenly. 10 of 24 Chipotle Shrimp Tacos Photographer Victor Protasio, Food Stylist Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist Christine Keely Recipe: Chipotle Shrimp Tacos Salad-size shrimp quickly cook while you're whipping up the fresh and tangy slaw. Having the bite-size shrimp for these tacos also means you get more seafood in each bite of this easy dinner idea. 11 of 24 Green Chile-Chicken Soup Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Recipe: Green Chile-Chicken Soup Not only does this soup come together in just 20 minutes, but it also can be kept in the freezer for up to six months. 12 of 24 Buttermilk Alfredo Chicken Spinach Pasta Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Claire Spollen; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Buttermilk Alfredo Chicken Spinach Pasta Chicken and pasta are always a winning combination. 13 of 24 Chicken Salad-Stuffed Tomatoes Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kathleen Varner; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Chicken Salad-Stuffed Tomatoes Turn homemade chicken salad into a dinner-worthy meal by serving it up in a fresh summer tomato and serving with a side salad. 14 of 24 Chicken Stir-Fry Greg Dupree Recipe: Chicken Stir-Fry Yes, it's possible to pull together this veggie-filled dinner in just 10 minutes. 15 of 24 Mediterranean Shrimp and Couscous Salad Photographer Victor Protasio, Food Stylist Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist Christine Keely Recipe: Mediterranean Shrimp and Couscous Salad To make this grain salad fast and easy, we use Israeli couscous, a petite grain that cooks quickly but remains chewy and bouncy. Have leftovers? This easy dinner idea makes an excellent leftover lunch. 16 of 24 Pulled Pork Nachos Antonis Achilleos Recipe: Pulled Pork Nachos You can also used shredded chicken instead of pork for these sheet pan nachos if you prefer. 17 of 24 Blackened Shrimp Rice Bowls Photographer Victor Protasio, Food Stylist Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist Christine Keely Recipe: Blackened Shrimp Rice Bowls Rice bowls are an easy dinner idea when you have a lot of pieces in the fridge or pantry and want to bring them all together in one dish. Use this shrimp rice bowl as inspiration, but feel free to personalize to what you like or have on hand. 18 of 24 Easy Grilled Salmon Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Melissa Gray; Prop Styling: Missie Neville Crawford Recipe: Easy Grilled Salmon Not only is the lemony-herby vinaigrette just the finishing touch grilled salmon needs, but it makes enough to cover some greens for a side salad. 19 of 24 Chicken-and-Prosciutto Tortelloni Soup Photo: Alison Miksch Recipe: Chicken-and-Prosciutto Tortelloni Soup This one-dish dinner gets plenty of flavor from onions, peppers, and celery accompanied by chicken-and-prosciutto tortelloni. 20 of 24 Pasta with Burst Tomatoes and Mascarpone Hector Sanchez Recipe: Pasta with Burst Tomatoes and Mascarpone Blistering tomatoes under a broiler is an easy way to dress up frozen cheese-filled ravioli 21 of 24 Tropical Chicken Lettuce Wraps Photo: Jennifer Causey; Prop Styling: Christine Keely; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Tropical Chicken Lettuce Wraps Butter lettuce serves as a pretty base for a sweet and slightly spicy chicken mixture. 22 of 24 Chicken Caprese Pasta Linda Pugliese; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Chicken Caprese Pasta Make sure to reserve some of the pasta waster after cooking the noodles. You'll need it later in the recipe. 23 of 24 Tuscan Pasta With Tomato-Basil Cream Ralph Anderson; Styling: Rose Nguyen Recipe: Tuscan Pasta With Tomato-Basil Cream Refrigerated ravioli and jarred sauce lend a helping had to help dinner come together in just 15 minutes. 24 of 24 Pan-Seared Flat Iron Steak Beth Dreiling Hontzas; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: Marian Cooper Cairns Recipe: Pan-Seared Flat Iron Steak The secret to searing the perfect steak at home is starting with a very hot skillet. In addition to the steak, you just need a couple spices and some oil for this recipe. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit