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    Home » Recipe Roundups

    22 Fancy Meals That Are Surprisingly Simple to Prepare

    By Emmeline Kemperyd on June 20, 2024, updated November 22, 2024 - Leave a Comment

    Cooking fancy meals at home can seem intimidating, but many elegant dishes are surprisingly easy to make. With just a few simple ingredients and straightforward techniques, you can impress your family and friends with restaurant-quality meals. Whether it's a special occasion or just a cozy dinner, these recipes will help you create something special without the stress.

    Miso Mushroom Ramen

    a bowl of miso mushroom ramen.

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    Make a quick, flavorful dashi and serve with the most flavor-packed mushrooms you've ever had.

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    20 Minute Burrata Pizza

    Burrata pizza topped with arugula.
    Photo Credit: Midwest Foodie.

    Pesto and burrata pizza is a simple meal that everyone enjoys, and it only takes 20 minutes to make. It’s a fun twist on pizza night with a tasty combination of basil pesto and creamy burrata.

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    Oven Roasted Five Spice Peking Chicken

    ©Photo Credit: Pups with Chopsticks

    Chinese five-spice chicken is marinated with a mix of five spice, ginger, garlic, and soy sauce, then baked until the skin is crispy and glazed. Serve it with a fresh ginger scallion sauce for a tasty twist on roasted chicken.

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    Air Fryer Lobster Tails

    A serving of air fryer lobster trails.
    Photo Credit: Cheerful Cook.

    Lobster tails in lemon garlic butter sauce offer a simple way to enjoy a fancy dinner at home. Air frying them until they're tender and pairing with lemon wedges brings a nice touch of elegance with minimal work.

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    White Bean Panzanella

    White Bean Panzanella
    Photo credit: J Cooking Odyssey.

    This dish features fresh tomatoes, white beans, and crunchy bread tossed in a flavorful Italian dressing. It's an easy meal that looks fancy and is sure to impress your guests.

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    Puff Pastry Pizza with Blue Cheese & Apples

    Puff Pastry Pizza with Blue Cheese & Apples.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    Puff Pastry Pizza is a simple twist on traditional pizza, combining salty, savory, and slightly sweet flavors. Topped with mild blue cheese, red apples, green asparagus, and crunchy kale chips, it’s great for a meal, appetizer, or snack.

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    Duck With Orange Sauce

    Duck Breasts with Orange Sauce
    Photo Credit: always use butter.

    Duck Breasts with Orange Sauce is an elegant dish that's easy to prepare and sure to impress. The sweet and tangy orange sauce complements the tender duck perfectly, making it a great option for any meal.

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    Salmon Risotto with Leeks & Lemon

    Salmon Ristotto with Leeks & Lemon
    Photo credit: always use butter

    Salmon Risotto is a quick dish that you can whip up in under 40 minutes without needing to stir it all the time. With fresh lemon, leeks, and parsley, it’s a tasty meal that looks great on the table, making it ideal for dinner parties or busy weeknights.

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    Beef Chow Fun

    beef chow fun.
    Photo Credit: always use butter.

    Beef Chow Fun is a simple and quick dish that works well for a weeknight dinner. Made with rice noodles, bean sprouts, scallions, and flank steak, it’s a satisfying meal.

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    Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos

    Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos
    Photo Credit: always use butter.

    These tacos bring together the bold taste of buffalo with fresh ingredients like cauliflower, avocado, blue cheese sauce, and cilantro. They are easy to prepare in about 40 minutes, using either the oven or an air fryer.

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    Smoked Italian Pasta Salad

    Smoked Italian Pasta Salad with Pepperoncini Dressing.
    Photo credit: xoxoBella.

    This smoked Italian pasta salad gives a delicious twist to the classic dish with a deep smoky flavor. It's an easy yet elegant option for dinner that meat and pasta fans will love.

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    Buffalo Cauliflower Pizza

    Buffalo cauliflower pizza.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    Buffalo cauliflower is transformed into a delicious pizza on a crispy puff pastry base. With cheese and a drizzle of blue cheese sauce, this vegetarian dish is great for dinner, a snack, or an appetizer.

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    Chilli Chicken

    ©Provided by Pups with Chopsticks

    This dish brings together Indian and Chinese flavors with crispy chicken coated in a spicy chili sauce. It's an easy and tasty meal you can make right in your kitchen.

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    Sweetheart Cabbage Salad with Gyoza Chickpeas

    sweetheart cabbage salad.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    This salad is quick to prepare, taking only 15 minutes to prep, and features fresh spinach, sweetheart cabbage, chickpeas, and plenty of Parmesan cheese. It's a healthy choice that even people who usually don't like salad will appreciate.

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    Massaman Chicken Curry

    A bowl of massaman chicken curry.

    This authentic Massaman Chicken Curry (Gaeng Massaman Gai) is made in one pot in just 45 minutes, using store-bought curry paste. With coconut milk, chicken, potatoes and peanuts it's super creamy, subtly sweet and not so spicy.

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    Tortellini Carbonara

    Tortellini carbonara.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    This version of carbonara is quick and easy to whip up with ingredients you can find at any grocery store. It's a straightforward meal that looks fancy but is simple enough for anyone to make.

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    Chicken Stuffed with Feta Cheese

    Feta stuffed chicken.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    Chicken filets stuffed with Feta cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil offer a delicious and easy gourmet dinner. It's a great way to impress your guests without spending too much time in the kitchen.

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    Halloumi Portobello Burgers

    A portobello halloumi burger.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    Halloumi Burgers are loaded with creamy avocado, tasty portobello mushrooms, zesty chèvre cheese, peppery arugula, and sweet caramelized onions. This is a simple meal that everyone will enjoy!

    Get the recipe

    Buffalo Chicken Quesadillas

    Buffalo chicken quesadillas.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    This dish brings together cheesy and spicy flavors for a filling meal. It's a great option for a quick and delicious dinner on a busy weeknight.

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    Easy Paella

    Paella.
    Photo credit: always use butter.

    This paella is a simple yet satisfying dish that everyone loves. Packed with saffron, white wine, shrimp, chicken, peas, and bell peppers, it's great for dinner parties and tastes just as good the next day.

    Get the recipe

    Black Bean Tacos with Feta Cheese & Pico de Gallo

    Vegetarian Tacos with Black Beans, Feta Cheese & Pico de Gallo
    Photo Credit: always use butter.

    These vegetarian tacos are packed with refried black beans and crumbled feta cheese, all topped with fresh pico de gallo. This is a delicious meal that you'll want to make again and again.

    Get the recipe

    Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy

    Salisbury steak in mushroom gravy.
    Photo credit: Bowl of Delicious.

    Salisbury steak is a simple and satisfying meal that comes together in just 30 minutes. It’s like a big meatball shaped like a steak, cooked in one skillet and topped with a rich mushroom gravy.

    Get the recipe

    More Recipe Roundups

    • Chicken bacon pasta.
      Stress-Free Cooking: 22 Easy Dinners You Can Set and Forget
    • 25 Stupid Simple Recipes Straight From Grandma’s Kitchen
    • Chicken drumsticks & potatoes.
      22 Dump-And-Go Dinners We’re Making Every Week
    • Creamy crockpot tortellini.
      Simplify Summer: 18 Crockpot Dinners You Can Set and Forget

    About Emmeline Kemperyd

    Emmeline Kemperyd is a writer, food blogger, recipe creator and food photographer and the founder of alwaysusebutter.com. She has 20+ years experience creating and simplifying recipes so they taste good, and are quick, easy, and approachable. She is a regular contributor to MSN and her work has been featured by The Guardian, Well+Good, Vulture, SheKnows, Good Men Project, and The Feed Feed, among others.

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    Hi, I'm Emmeline! I love tasty food, but I'm always in a hurry. And I have the quick and easy recipes to prove it!

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