8 Easy Dinner Themes for Busy Nights

Theme nights sound gimmicky, but they solve the hardest part of dinner: deciding. When Tuesday is always tacos, you are choosing between six taco ideas instead of every recipe on the internet.

Pick five themes for the weekdays and rotate the recipes within them.

The themes

1. Taco night — beef tacos, sheet pan chicken fajitas or black bean tacos, with taco sauces.
2. Pasta night — one-pot cheeseburger pasta, garlic butter noodles or baked ziti.
3. Bowl night — rice or grains, a protein, vegetables and a sauce. Great for Sunday prep.
4. Sheet pan night — one pan, minimal washing up. Try lemon herb chicken and vegetables.
5. Soup and sandwich night — a better grilled cheese with tomato soup.
6. Breakfast for dinner — pancakes, eggs, a frittata or egg quesadillas.
7. Pizza or flatbread night — homemade pizza dough or the 20-minute pesto flatbread.
8. Leftovers night — everything in the fridge comes out; everyone builds a plate.

Make it stick

Write the themes on the fridge, let the family vote on the recipe within each theme and keep a running list of the winners. Our weekly meal planner builds the grocery list for you.