There are certain foods that have the power to stop me when I roll by them at the grocery store, even if they’re not on my shopping list.
One of them is paneer, the firm, fresh Indian cheese. I picked it up last week and knew immediately that I’d use it in mattar paneer, with its creamy, spiced tomato sauce suffused with ginger and garlic. Our version on New York Times Cooking is streamlined for easy prep on busy nights. (I’m probably not the only one among us staring down a packed schedule these days.)
That recipe is below, along with four others for the week that will hopefully grab you, delight you or just plain help you out. Requests? Ideas? Favorite recipe from “Easy Weeknight Dinners”? (Thank you to everyone who has picked up a copy!) Email me anytime at [email protected]. I love to hear from you.
I’m also making:
Salt-and-pepper roast chicken, roasted carrots, perfect buttermilk pancakes, s’mores.
1. Mattar Paneer (Peas and Paneer in Spiced Tomato Gravy)
I don’t think I’ll ever forget this description from Emerson, 6, which appeared in a special feature we did about Cooking recipes kids love: “Just the flavors are just like dancing … like they’re dancing on your tongue and … really just like delicious.” Zainab Shah’s version of this classic dish is indeed delicious, and you can use firm tofu instead of paneer if that’s what’s readily available — or if you’d like to make it vegan.
2. Seared Chicken Thighs With Cherry Tomatoes and Olives
Briny olives, sweet tomatoes, pan juices enriched with chicken schmaltz — this recipe from Carolina Gelen sounds utterly delicious, and I can’t wait to make it. Skip the final step of broiling the chicken to crisp the skin if you just need to get dinner done.
3. Lemon-Garlic Linguine
Garlic goes big in this simple pasta from Ali Slagle, exactly the kind of recipe you want to keep in your back pocket to serve with fish, shrimp, vegetables (or all by itself). It’s buttery, so it’ll please kids, too, though you may want to tone down the garlic. Your call.
4. Sheet-Pan Chile Crisp Salmon and Asparagus
Yasmin Fahr coats salmon with a mixture of chile crisp, soy sauce and honey for fish with a sweet, hot bite. Coupled with asparagus (green beans would work, too), this dish is practically begging to be strewed atop a grain bowl.
5. Roasted Broccoli With Shrimp
This five-star recipe is a weeknight gift from Melissa Clark, requiring one pan and about 25 minutes of your time. She tosses the broccoli and the shrimp with coriander and cumin, but you can vary the spices to your taste or omit them for a plainer but no less satisfying supper.
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