Summer Meal Plan #2
Four easy weeknight dinners (plus a make-ahead breakfast) that taste like summer and always make the rotation
This week we’ve got some easy wins and some punchy flavors. Our week is full of flavors that somehow always end up in the regular rotation no matter how many new recipes we try. We've got a burger that started as a "use it up" experiment and became a household favorite, a noodle dish with a little kick but crowd pleasing enough to win over the toughest critics (5-year-olds included), and a taco night that feels like summer even on a busy weeknight. Round it out with wraps that make plain chicken exciting and a baked oatmeal bright enough to make it not feel boring, and you've got a week that's as low-effort as it is high-reward. Let's make dinner!
DINNER #1: Chicken Teriyaki Burgers | Total time: 25 minutes | Serves: 4
If you’ve been around here for long, you know we love a reinvented burger and we are always recommending this to friends and family! What started as “what do we do with this turkey we didn’t use?” has become one of our most recommended meals! They are rich in flavor and unusual and flexible and you cook them inside–a win on all fronts! We’ll use half the cabbage (slaw mix or a whole head) here and half for the shrimp tacos later in the week!
Notes:
Swap: Both turkey and chicken work well in this, just use whichever you can find! We’ve made it with true teriyaki sauce, but we also have made it with Bachan’s Japanese BBQ sauce and they are both delicious!
Add: Sometimes we add an egg to the burger mix, especially if using really lean chicken, but it works great without. If you like stronger flavors, add 1 tsp of sriracha and ½ tsp of ground ginger to the burger mix. You can also add cilantro to the slaw if you have it. Just gives it a little extra punch of flavor.
Short Cut: Coleslaw mix works great if you don’t want to shred cabbage!
Prep Ahead: If you prep these ahead you can store them raw in the fridge for a few days or the freezer for longer and they cook perfectly. If you are cooking from frozen you may want to add a lid to your skillet while you cook them to help them thaw.
