We're reader-supported and only partner with brands we trust. When you buy through links on our site we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Learn More. Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date and time indicated and are subject to change.

Kick off the New Year with healthier meals that are easy to prep.

Kid-approved? Check. Five or fewer ingredients? Check.

Here’s more than a month’s worth of zero-fuss dinner ideas:

 

1. Turkey Pesto Lettuce Roll-Ups

Enlist your kids to help you prep dinner when these are on the menu, because there’s no cooking involved and they only need three ingredients.

Get recipe.

 

2. Red Lentil Sweet Potato Soup

If your kids won’t eat soup, try serving this one to them as a pasta sauce topping instead.

Get recipe.

 

3. Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken

After this is done cooking, strain the liquid from the Crock-Pot and use it as a sauce for the meal.

Get recipe.

 

4. Squash and Coconut Curry

This is a fast way to cook squash — you do the whole meal in a skillet — no oven required.

Get recipe.

 

 

5. Mini Turkey Meatloaves

Throw three ingredients into a mixing bowl, spoon mixture into baking cups, bake in the oven and voila! Dinner is served.

Get recipe.

 

6. Baked Eggs in Avocados

If you think your kids will have a problem with runny egg yolks, try whisking the eggs before you bake to create more of a scrambled-egg effect in the middle.

Get recipe.

 

7. Caribbean Chicken Stir Fry

Use tropical fruit snack cups instead of canned tropical fruit to make this dish if you’d like to avoid the added sugar.

Canned fruit tends to include a sugary syrup, and while snack cups are still sweet, they are often packed in fruit juice instead.

Get recipe.

 

RELATED: Easy Freezer Meal Recipes You Can Make Before Baby Comes

 

8. Orange Maple Salmon

If you don’t think it’s overwhelming to squeeze lemons and mince garlic (or spoon it out of a jar already minced), this recipe is for you.

Get recipe.

 

9. Lemony Broccoli Pasta

Use frozen broccoli and peas to cut down prep time on this crowd-pleaser.

Get recipe.

 

10. Slow Cooker Chicken Salsa

Two ingredients, folks. TWO.

Get recipe.

 

11. Shrimp Fried Rice

Cook your shrimp in olive oil instead of butter to cut out at least 3 grams of fat per serving!

Get recipe.

 

12. Pizza Pasta Bake

This dish had me at “don’t bother cooking the noodles first.” You know me, Pizza Pasta Bake.

Get recipe.

 

13. Asian Crock-Pot Pulled Pork with Apples

Cook up some stir-fry vegetables to serve on the side. This one is good enough to cook for company!

Get recipe.

 

14. Chicken Tortellini Toss

This one-pot meal will be ready in 20 minutes, start to finish.

Get recipe.

 

15. Blackened Salmon Fajitas

It’s nice to have variety when it comes to salmon. The flavor of this one is unique compared to other salmon dishes because it’s got some Tex-Mex flair.

Get recipe.

 

 

16. Potato Nachos with Pinto Beans and Spinach

The trick here is to cut or grate the veggies into super small pieces so you can sneak them in without your kids noticing. Think: spinach, zucchini, etc.

Get recipe.

 

17. 5-Ingredient White Chicken Chili

It’s a classic, true. But with sour cream as an optional topping instead of an actual ingredient like the classic version, this version sits solidly in the “healthy” category.

Get recipe.

 

18. Brown Rice Bowls

There are so many ways to dress up brown rice so your kids enjoy it. In fact, here are 10 ideas to get you started.

Get all 10 recipes.

 

19. Stuffed White Sweet Potatoes

White sweet potato = not a yam. The texture is creamier, which makes this dish even more of a comfort food!

Get recipe.

 

RELATED: Avocado Toast Recipes to Rock Your Breakfast World

 

20. Fajita Chicken Bake

I’ve been making this dish for years. I am obsessed with the fact that I can tear open a taco or fajita mix packet and that’s the only seasoning required.

Get recipe.

 

21. 3-Ingredient Black Bean Soup

Do your kids hate spicy food? Then this is your soup.

But the best part is that you can also increase the heat by using diced tomatoes with green chilis instead of plain diced tomatoes.

Get recipe.

 

22. Sloppy Tacos

Also known as “non-fancy tacos” or “tacos from the ’80s.” This recipe (and its easier counterpart, which uses a taco seasoning packet) were the only tacos my mom made us growing up.

Get recipe.

 

23. 5-Ingredient Vegetable Fried Brown Rice

Oh hi, Meatless Monday.

Use this recipe as an excuse to clear out your fridge of all the almost-bad vegetables. It might take you just past five ingredients, but it’ll be worth it.

Get recipe.

 

24. Grilled Lemon-Dill Shrimp

Even though you’re going to put the shrimp on skewers to grill them, this meal will still only take you 30 minutes from start to finish. (Nobody will tell if you just cook them in a pan to save on time, though.)

Get recipe.

 

25. 5-Ingredient Skillet Pesto Chicken and Asparagus

Opt for pesto in a jar in order to cut prep time and ingredients.

Get recipe.

 

 

26. Zucchini Egg Bake

I swear, if I shred or grate my zucchini, it’s invisible to my kids. You should always do that if your kids dislike zucchini!

Get recipe.

 

27. Smoky Slider Skewers

These will taste better if you let them refrigerate overnight. But 20-30 minutes of sitting in the fridge is good enough around my house.

Get recipe.

 

28. Maple-Roasted Chicken and Acorn Squash

It probably goes without saying, but use real maple syrup here, not the stuff you put on your pancakes at IHOP.

Get recipe.

 

29. Squash and Sausage Pasta

Omit sugar and consider using olive oil instead of butter to increase the healthiness of this one.

Get recipe.

 

30. Oven-Fried Pork Chops

Here’s my treasure trove of advice about baking pork chops: buy thin ones unless you want to double your baking time. You’re welcome.

Get recipe.

 

31. Easy 6-Ingredient Crock-Pot Sesame Chicken

OK, this one has six ingredients, not five. But you get to use the Crock-Pot, so. . .

Get recipe.

 

32. 15-Minute Pasta Salad

As long as this has strawberries, my kids don’t care what else I put in it. I can even skip the vinaigrette and they don’t notice.

Get recipe.

 

33. Chicken Enchilada-Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

If you’re trying to go low-carb, squash is a great substitute for taco shells.

Get recipe.

 

UP NEXT: Make-Ahead Keto/Paleo Breakfast Recipes That Won’t Break the Budget

33 Easy-to-Make, Healthy, Kid-Approved Meals