Quick and Easy Meals Under 20 Minutes

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Think you don't have enough time to make a healthy dinner? Think again. These healthy dinner ideas are ready in just 20 minutes, so you can get a flavorful dish on the table on even the busiest of days. From Easy Pea & Spinach Carbonara to One-Skillet Bourbon Chicken, these recipes are satisfying and quick to make.

Easy Pea & Spinach Carbonara

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Fresh pasta cooks up faster than dried, making it a must-have for fast weeknight dinners like this luscious yet healthy meal. Eggs are the base of the creamy sauce. They don't get fully cooked, so use pasteurized-in-the-shell eggs if you prefer.

Chhole (Chickpea Curry)

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Made with convenient canned beans, this quick and healthy Indian recipe is an authentic chickpea curry that you can make in minutes. If you want an additional vegetable, stir in some roasted cauliflower florets. Serve with brown basmati rice or warm naan.

Classic Sesame Noodles with Chicken

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Classic sesame noodles become a healthy meal with lean chicken and tons of veggies in this quick noodle recipe. Be sure to rinse the spaghetti until it's cold, then give it a good shake in the colander until it's well drained. Are you a spiralizing pro? Swap 5 cups of raw zucchini, carrot or other veggie "noodles" for the cooked pasta.

Spinach & Feta Scrambled Egg Pitas

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This meatless dinner comes together in only 15 minutes, thanks to the convenience of frozen chopped spinach and crumbled feta. We've added a flavorful burst of sun-dried tomato tapenade to spread over the whole-wheat pita before nestling the scrambled eggs inside. If you can't find it, basil pesto or sun-dried tomato pesto also work well.

One-Skillet Bourbon Chicken

Credit: Photography / Antonis Achilleos, Styling / Christine Keely, Ali Ramee

Coating the chicken in cornstarch might seem like an extra step, but the reward is twofold: it gives the chicken a crispy exterior and also thickens the sauce. Legend has it that bourbon chicken was originally named after Bourbon Street in New Orleans; it can often be found on menus at Chinese American restaurants.

3-Ingredient Refried Bean & Pico de Gallo Tostadas

Credit: Sara Haas

Making your own tostadas is easy. Use store-bought corn tortillas, brush them with olive oil and bake to crunchy perfection! Here we topped the tostada with refried beans and fresh pico de gallo for an easy 3-ingredient meal.

Scallop Scampi with Pasta

Credit: Victor Protasio

This scallop scampi with pasta is a delicious twist on the classic shrimp dish. Swap in whole-wheat angel hair pasta for a boost of fiber.

White Bean & Sun-Dried Tomato Gnocchi

Credit: Jacob Fox

Sun-dried tomatoes are the star of this recipe— providing texture and umami. Combined with the spinach, they make this dish a great source of vitamins C and K.

3-Ingredient Farro Bowl with Rotisserie Chicken

3-Ingredient Mediterranean Farro Bowl

Credit: Carolyn Hodges

To make this hearty grain bowl, grab a salad kit from the grocery store. Then, top the kit with farro and chicken for a high-protein lunch or dinner that's ready in minutes.

3-Ingredient Teriyaki Edamame Sauté

3 ingredient edamame salad

Credit: Carolyn A. Hodges, R.D.

Whip up this high-fiber, plant-based stir-fry for a quick and convenient dinner. Look for bottled teriyaki sauce labeledless sodium orreduced sodium to cut back on the salt without sacrificing flavor.

Breakfast Naan Pizza

breakfast naan pizza

Credit: Ted Cavanaugh

Give your morning eggs a tasty spin by building an easy individual pizza on a prepared naan.

Lentil Curry with Cauliflower Rice

Combine precooked lentils (often located in the produce section of your grocery store) with an Indian-style simmer sauce for a super-fast and flavorful curry. Serving it over riced cauliflower bumps up the vegetable count and keeps carb servings in check. This 3-ingredient dinner (not counting salt, pepper and oil) is really as easy as it gets. To be mindful of the salt, look for simmer sauces with less than or close to 350 mg sodium per ¼-cup serving.

Crispy Fish Taco Bowls

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The adobo sauce in a can of chipotles lends earthy heat to the crema that tops these bowls. Don't toss out the unused peppers! Freeze them in an airtight container and pull them out to add to sauces, marinades or chili.

Mozzarella, Basil & Zucchini Frittata

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This vegetable-studded frittata recipe is one of the quickest meals you can make. Make it for breakfast, or serve for lunch or dinner with a tossed salad and a slice of olive oil-drizzled crusty baguette.

Salmon Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

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An easy-to-make slaw served on the side of these salmon tacos makes for a filling and fast weeknight dinner. If you prefer more heat in these fish tacos, simply add a pinch or two of chipotle chile powder or cayenne with the chili powder.

Quick Shrimp Puttanesca

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Because refrigerated fresh pasta cooks much faster than dried pasta, this Italian-inspired pasta dish will be on the table lickety-split! Puttanesca, traditionally made with tomatoes, olives, capers, anchovies and garlic, gets shrimp for extra protein and artichoke hearts to boost the vegetable servings (and the fiber!). If you can't find frozen artichoke hearts, sub in drained canned artichoke hearts.

Beef Pad Thai

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We've bulked up the serving size of beef pad thai by adding in lots of healthy veggies like matchstick carrots, snap peas and scallions. Look for whole-grain brown-rice pad thai noodles to add an additional 3 grams fiber to each serving.

Vegan Coconut Chickpea Curry

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To make this 20-minute vegan curry even faster, buy precut veggies from the salad bar at the grocery store. To make it a full, satisfying dinner, serve over cooked brown rice. When shopping for simmer sauce, look for one with 400 mg of sodium or less and check the ingredient list for cream or fish sauce if you want to keep this vegan. If you like a spicy kick, add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce at the end.

One-Pot Spinach, Chicken Sausage & Feta Pasta

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A little bit of Sunday meal prep goes a long way in this one-dish Mediterranean-inspired pasta recipe. The pasta is cooked ahead of time and stored in the fridge to use for meals all week, but any leftover cooked pasta you have on hand will do. Chicken sausage with feta is especially good in this recipe.

Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes

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Two of our favorite comfort-food sandwiches join forces in these family-friendly dinner sandwiches. We found that softer buns make this easier to eat, and it's all the better when wrapped takeout-style in a sheet of foil.

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Source: https://www.eatingwell.com/gallery/13723/20-healthy-meals-you-can-make-in-20-minutes/