r/onepotmeals • u/Equivalent_Soft_6665 • Jul 24 '25
What’s your go-to one pot meal that tastes way fancier than it actually is?
Looking for those cozy, flavorful dishes that are secretly lazy. Bonus points if they impress guests but take like 20 minutes.
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u/thunderfbolt Jul 25 '25
Pot roast.
Get a good hunk beef or mutton or pork. Sear it in oil till brown and take it out.
Get some onions and fry till translucent. Add some garlic and tomato paste. Fry and deglaze with red wine or any stock.
In goes your vegetables. Whatever you like that can stew. Mushrooms and carrots and celery and potatoes and corn and whatever. Add more stock till just barely covering everything.
I can do all above in about 20 minutes in my cast iron pot.
Then slap it in the oven on about 180C and leave it for 2-3 hours. Take it out. Add the non-stewing veggies (I add kale or spinach sometimes), if any, and serve with bread. Or rice. Or just by itself.
My go-to lazy meal prep and tastes wonderful.
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u/ApneaHunter 26d ago
Do you cover it while in the oven?
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u/thunderfbolt 26d ago
Cover from start and check it at half time. Too much water —> remaining time uncovered.
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u/KelHell Jul 25 '25
Creamy orzo with chicken and fresh parsley
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u/cgrewal18 Jul 25 '25
Recipe
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u/KelHell Jul 25 '25
Here’s two to pick from
This one technically is soup but I just add extra orzo and it absorbs the broth so it’s not soupy at all but this one is not creamy (still my current fav)
https://www.saltandlavender.com/lemon-chicken-orzo-soup/
This recipe is creamy but doesn’t include chicken in recipe, I just cook the chicken in the pot I’m cooking orzo in first and add it all together at the end
https://www.thereciperebel.com/garlic-parmesan-orzo-pasta/
First one is still my fav plus it is THE BEST leftovers
If you have questions about cooking chicken I’m happy to help
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u/BlueSky659 Jul 25 '25 edited Jul 25 '25
Pasta Alfredo the classic Italian way.
- 1lb dry Spaghetti or fettuccini pasta
- 1 Pot of boiling water, well salted
- 8oz of good quality parmesan, grated
- 4oz of softened butter
Boil pasta till al dente, reserve 1-2 cups of pasta water for the sauce. It's best to do this next part on a large serving tray/bowl or it can be done in the pot you boiled your noodles in if desired, though it's absolutely imperative to cool the pot down before starting the sauce.
Mix the butter and the noodles together till they are well coated, then add the cheese and a good amount of pasta water to the noodles. Mix vigorously to emulsify the sauce. Add pasta water until the sauce is just a bit looser than desired as it will tighten up as the pasta cools.
Serve with a protein and some veg for a nice balanced meal or all on its own if you just need a quick plate of smooth, cheesy goodness.
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u/Dheorl Jul 25 '25 edited Jul 25 '25
Pasta with smoked salmon and vodka:
Boil water, cook pasta, drain pasta.
Add a knob of butter and a splash of vodka. Let it melt/reduce just a touch.
Add crème fraîche, smoked salmon and gently heat/stir til it’s saucy.
Add dill, lemon juice and season.
One of the quickest meals to make, but smoked salmon and alcohol just make anything fancy.
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u/Octane2100 Jul 25 '25
Thai Chicken Curry
Dice and Onion and rough chop a pound of boneless skinless chicken thighs. Add oil to dutch oven and cook chicken and onions until chicken is cooked through, adding salt to taste. Add a can of coconut milk, shredded carrots, thai red curry paste and mix well. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until sauce has thickened. Add spinach and cook in until wilted. A pinch of brown sugar and juice from a lime and give it a stir. Serve over rice.
The beauty of this is that you can add as much or as little thai curry as you want to control the spice level. I like my mouth on fire, so I use 3-4tbsp at a time.
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u/g8rfreek88 Jul 25 '25
Mississippi pot roast with rice or mashed potatoes as Your base. To die for and it’s a crock pot set and forget. Technically rice is not one pot but if you cut up potatoes and put them in with the roast, you can “mash” them after you scoop them out with everything when you go to eat. Sooooo so good. The amount of ingredients and work vs your ROI for flavor is unmatched.
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u/ComplexWildcat Jul 25 '25
If you haven’t tried “khichidi”. It’s part of the Indian cuisine dishes you are missing out. Khichidi is a warm hug to your soul packed with nutrients
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u/Munakchree Jul 24 '25
Not sure if it counts as one pot but spaghetti with fennel is my answer. You melt butter in a pot and put sliced fennel in it, after about 10 min you mix it with boiled and salted spaghetti. It takes like 15 minutes and is so ultra delicious.
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u/Isayfyoujobu Jul 27 '25
Ditch the licorice, add lots of fresh cracked pepper and shredded pecorino.
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u/ahof8191 Jul 25 '25
any sort of creamy beans skillet. my latest favorite has been a lemon pepper butter beans served over arugula. I guess it’s cheating in terms of number of pots, but we eat it with sourdough fried in EVOO. Toast would do about the same job
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u/IFKhan Jul 25 '25
Aloo palak! (Patato and spinach)
Basic ingredients: Potatoes 2/3 Frozen spinach 1 Whole dried red chilli 2/3 (can be substituted with red pepper corns. 1/2 teaspoon ) Salt Chilli powder 1/4 teaspoon
Peel washand quarter the potatoes In a pan add some oil, add red chillies followed by the potatoes . Stir for a minute or so. When the potatoes start to brown very slightly add the frozen spinach, salt& chilli powder. Stir and cover Cook on low heat for 20-25 min or until the potatoes soften. The water from the spinach should boil the potatoes. Now stir fry until water is evaporated from the pan and the spinach is glazy
Done! Eat it as a meal with bread or rice or pair with meat or fish.
Optional varieties: Add fenugreek leaves at the end and close the lid for another 5 min.
Add mustard seed when you start.
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u/ObsessiveAboutCats Jul 25 '25
Butter chicken. Bonus points for using homegrown tomatoes - they make the delicious dish substantially better.
A really good chili. I have made it with ground turkey thighs (really need dark meat here), with a mix of ground beef and ground pork, and with leftover brisket. All are fantastic.
Shakshuka. Love that stuff.
Homemade pizza in a cast iron skillet.
Pork ribs (spare or baby back) braised in salsa (roja or verde) make damn fine taco fillings.
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u/Bonesgal 27d ago
ooooh would you mind sharing the butter chicken and shakshuka recipes?!
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u/ObsessiveAboutCats 27d ago
My shakshuka recipe is very similar to this except I start with ground beef and or pork and cook it until browned, then add the onion. I do not include mushrooms but did once toss in some squash and that came out very good. Shakshuka is pretty friendly for throwing in anything.
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u/spearbunny Jul 26 '25
One-pot lazy penne alla vodka. Put 12 oz penne, 24-ish oz jar of good-quality marinara (I use Rao's), and a jar full of water in a pot. If necessary, add more water, just enough to cover the pasta. Stir and bring to a light boil (do not cover), stirring occasionally. While it's heating up, tear up a 6-8 oz packet of prosciutto into bite-size pieces and add to the pot. After 10 minutes, add 1/4 cup vodka. When the pasta is nearly done, add 2/3 cup heavy cream. Cook for an additional 5-7 minutes. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and/or cayenne.
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u/micheal_pices Jul 25 '25
Green chili Chicken Pozole, use a rotisserie chicken to cut down on cooking time.
https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/green-chile-chicken-pozole/
I'll garnish with Crema Salvadorena, avocado and cilantro to make it look fancier.
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u/Buzzy_SquareWave Jul 26 '25
Spanakorizo, Greek spinach pilav cooked with mint and dill and served with lemon juice and feta.
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u/laxstar255 Jul 25 '25
Peanut butter ramen!!!
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u/wrenchbenderornot Jul 25 '25
Wu- what?
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u/thegirlwthemjolnir Jul 26 '25
you are missing out if you havent, as long as it isnt sweet peanut butter it works great
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u/wrenchbenderornot Jul 26 '25
Hu- how?
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u/thegirlwthemjolnir Jul 26 '25
Like this. It's kind of Thai-inspired lol
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u/laxstar255 Jul 26 '25
I respectfully submit the recipe I follow. 3 ingredients, and one is a bowl. 🤣
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u/thegirlwthemjolnir Jul 26 '25
Oh, yeah. I also just drop some PB on the plate, but I wanted wrenchbenderornot to understand the potential lmao.
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u/laxstar255 Jul 26 '25
Thats the greatest power of Ramen, it's potential is unlimited!!!! I always thought it was funny, all the places super famous pasta dishes come from. All side eye anything east of Italy like: "ewwww....those guys use nooodles..." like it's any less amazing and literally the same thing. 🤣🤣🤣
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u/o0-o0- Jul 25 '25
Plov
Thai curry
Kalbi-tang/Kimchi-jigae/Soondubu
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u/married_to_a_reddito Jul 25 '25
I second your Korean recipes!!! Super easy, chip, and extremely delicious!
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u/schoolpsych2005 Jul 27 '25
I made chicken shawarma rice in the instant pot last night. So good. chicken shawarma rice
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u/Angelsinger74 29d ago
Ina Garten’s Rigatoni with Sausage and Fennel. It’s my husband’s absolute favorite. Recipe Here
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