Every week, Executive Food Editor Keith Dresser pairs each main dish with a side to give you a complete, satisfying dinner without the guesswork. Look for the game plan section to learn tips on how to streamline your kitchen work so dinner comes together quicker.
Weeknight Cooking
Dinner This Week: Quick Chicken Tacos
This week’s menus feature Shredded Chicken Tacos, Spanish Tortilla, and Swedish Meatballs for dinner in an hour or less.
By Published Mar. 15, 2019.
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Dinner 1: Shredded Chicken Tacos with Quinoa Salad
Game Plan: Start by toasting and simmering the quinoa (step 1). As the quinoa cooks, make the sauce for the tacos and brown the chicken. While the chicken simmers, cool the quinoa, make the dressing, and assemble the salad.
For Shredded Chicken Tacos (Tinga de Pollo) with deep flavor, we cook boneless, skinless thighs in a tomato-and-chipotle-based sauce. Fire-roasted tomatoes increase smokiness, and a little brown sugar and lime juice and zest contribute sweet and sour notes. Before serving, we simmer the shredded chicken in the sauce for a full 10 minutes so the flavorful liquid can work its way into every crevice of the meat. For our Quinoa Salad with Red Bell Pepper and Cilantro, we start by toasting the quinoa to bring out its nutty taste. Spreading the cooked quinoa onto a baking sheet to cool produces the fluffiest grains and creates a salad with a light texture.
Printable Shopping Lists: Shredded Chicken Tacos with Quinoa Salad
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Dinner 2: Spanish Tortilla with Bibb and Arugula Salad
Game Plan: Prep the tortilla ingredients and start cooking the potatoes (step 1). As the potatoes cook, prep the salad ingredients and make the dressing. Once the fully cooked tortilla has cooled for 15 minutes, toss the salad and serve.
We created a melt-in-your-mouth Spanish Tortilla that wasn’t too greasy by reducing the oil to a mere 6 tablespoons (some recipes call for twice this amount). We also use modereately waxy Yukon Gold potatoes instead of starchy russets, which tended to fall apart in the pan. To flip the tortilla, we slide it out of the pan and onto a plate, then place another plate on top of the tortilla before inverting it and sliding it back into the skillet to cook the second side. Our Bibb and Arugula Salad with Pear and Goat Cheese uses a combination of peppery arugula and soft, buttery bibb lettuce. Thin slices of subtly sweet pear incorporate easily with the greens. Pepitas add crunch, while soft, pungent goat cheese contributes richness. We use lemon juice as the base of the dressing because it pairs well with the sweetness of the fruit.
Printable Shopping Lists: Spanish Tortilla with Bibb and Arugula Salad
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Dinner 3: Swedish Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes
Game Plan: Start by cooking potatoes. As the potatoes simmer, prepare the meatballs through step 2. Once the potatoes have been mashed, cover them to keep warm, and finish cooking the meatballs (steps 3 and 4).
Our Swedish Meatballs boast a sausagelike springiness and satisfying snap. To achieve the right texture, we mix beef, pork, bread, cream together in a stand mixer along with a little baking powder, which keeps the meatballs delicate and juicy. For a light, creamy sauce, we add a bit of cream to chicken broth and brighten it up with a splash of lemon juice. Our Mashed Potatoes start with a high-starch russets. We cook the potatoes until they are just tender, but not falling apart (a paring knife can be slipped in and out of the potatoes with very little resistance). Finally, for a silky smooth texture, we use a food mill or potato ricer fitted with the finest disk to process the potatoes.
Printable Shopping Lists: Swedish Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes
To view more quick weeknight dinner ideas, check out the rest of the Dinner This Week series.
