30 Minutes or Less

Marinate shrimp in a sweet-spicy mixture of apricot preserves, lime, habanero, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger—then throw them on the grill for dinner in 15 minutes.

Poaching boneless, skinless chicken breasts in well-salted water yields juicy, flavorful meat that won’t dry out. Crunchy veggies and a punchy Dijon vinaigrette make this hearty salad complete.

Who needs beef? When you combine chicken with shredded veggies and a tangy Greek yogurt sauce, you get a burger as thick and juicy as any other.

For a gluten-free version, toss the shallots in cornstarch rather than flour.

You can use ground turkey or chicken here, or swap in a vegetarian protein of your choice. 

This salad evolved from my father’s favorite road-trip snack—carrot sticks with roasted almonds, lemon juice, and salt. I’ve punched it up with fresh ginger, lots of parsley, and dates.

Using a sliced whole lemon gives you unbeatable fresh aroma from the skin, bitter complexity from the pith, and tart, puckery juice from the flesh. Thin slices soften evenly and ensure that the lemon plays nicely with the pasta, butter, and Parmesan.

The salad works best with strips of Persian flatbread, but plain tortillas work just as well. The addition of golpar, with its citrusy aroma, really lifts this dish, accentuating the sweetness of the pomegranates and adding a wonderful depth of flavor, so try and track some down if you can.

These turkey burgers are my nod to the Mediterranean, packed with fresh herbs, lemon, and red onion.

A punchy, chile-spiked fish sauce vinaigrette works as both marinade and dressing for glass noodles and handfuls of basil and cucumber.

When your mind is stuck on pasta, but your soul is calling out for vegetables, turn to a rich, luxurious sauce that’s made of leafy greens. This recipe calls for pistachios, but you can use any nuts you have on hand.

This is a quick summer dish that capitalizes on juicy tomatoes and requires the stove to be turned on for just a few minutes.

Nachos can stand an ingredient riff, but to make sure that the cheese is melted throughout and that each bite has the requisite combination of tastes and textures, follow this plan.

Chicken and broccoli may sound like a ho-hum dish, but you can make it finger-licking with the right marinade and dipping sauce.

Made of chiles, garlic, basil, shallots, lemongrass, and ginger—green curry paste packs amazing flavor.

These savory Japanese pancakes are stuffed with shredded cabbage, red pepper, and your choice of meat or seafood. Top with crumbled seaweed, bonito flakes, and mayo for the full experience.

This recipe assumes you have fresh or leftover cooked plain pasta in the fridge, but if you happen to magically have leftover pesto pasta, throw that in (no extra sauce required).

This recipe picks up speed by calling for (slightly) wet greens. The water that clings to the leaves will help the greens cook; the fact that you don’t have to haul out the salad spinner is a time-saving bonus.