Dinner Ideas • Recipes from 193 Countries

Dinner Ideas from 193 Countries — What to Cook Tonight

Stuck on what to cook for dinner? Dinner Ideas brings easy dinner recipes from 193 countries — signature dishes with ingredients, steps, nutrition and pairings.

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193

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4 Slots

Breakfast to Snack

Nutrition

100%

Recipes with Nutrition

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What’s for Dinner TonightFeatured Dinner Recipes from 193 Countries

Showing 1501–1512 of 2311 dinner recipes

A large golden German apple pancake on a white plate, with caramelised apple slices visible in the batter and a dusting of sugar on top.

Germany 35m

Breakfast •German Breakfast Classic

German Apple Pancakes

This german apple pancakes recipe makes thick Apfelpfannkuchen: a rich egg batter poured over sliced apples in a hot buttered pan, so the fruit softens and caramelises into the pancake as it fries. Each pancake is dusted with cinnamon sugar and served warm, soft in the middle with crisp golden edges. One serving is about 265 g, two pancakes.

Sweet & Comforting

Thick, golden pancakes with tender apple slices baked right into the batter, dusted with cinnamon sugar — a warm German breakfast that comes together in one bowl and one pan.

Pairs Well With
A mug of coffee or apple tea, with a spoonful of quark or whipped cream on the side.

Quick Prep (<30m)

A single golden travesseiro de Sintra, a long sugar-dusted puff-pastry pillow, in a plain cardboard tray on dark stone

Portugal 1h 5m

Snack & Tea •Sintra Pillow Pastry

Travesseiros de Sintra

This travesseiros de sintra recipe makes the pillow-shaped pastries Sintra is famous for: crisp, golden puff pastry wrapped around a sweet cream of ground almonds and egg yolks, finished with a dusting of sugar. The filling is rich and fragrant with vanilla, lemon and a pinch of cinnamon, while the pastry shatters as you bite into it. One serving is about 125 g (1 pastry).

Sweet Treat

Crisp, golden puff-pastry pillows filled with sweet almond and egg-yolk cream, dusted with sugar.

Pairs Well With
A small strong coffee (bica) and a glass of cold milk

A close-up of Moroccan rfissa: a golden chicken leg on shredded msemen flatbread covered in lentils and rich broth.

Morocco 1h 40m

Dinner •Moroccan Celebration Classic

Rfissa

This rfissa recipe braises chicken thighs with brown lentils, fenugreek seeds, onion, ginger and ras el hanout until the meat falls from the bone and the broth turns rich and golden. The stew is ladled over shredded msemen flatbread, which soaks up the broth, and finished with dates, hard-boiled egg and fresh coriander. One serving is about 435 g.

Festive & Hearty

Chicken braised with lentils, fenugreek and ras el hanout, ladled over shredded msemen flatbread so the bread drinks up the broth — the Moroccan dish of celebrations and new mothers.

Pairs Well With
Dates and hard-boiled egg on the side, with mint tea to finish.

High Protein

A bowl of white Egyptian sahlab topped with crushed green pistachios and a dusting of cinnamon, in a patterned bowl on a wooden table

Egypt 20m

Snack & Tea •Egyptian Winter Drink

Egyptian Sahlab

This egyptian sahlab recipe turns whole milk, cornstarch and sugar into a thick, silky hot drink, scented with rosewater and vanilla and finished with ground cinnamon and crushed pistachios. It is the drink Egypt reaches for on cold winter evenings and after fasting in Ramadan: sweet, warming and filling enough to count as a light snack on its own. One serving is about 307 g.

Comfort & Warmth

Hot thickened milk with cinnamon and rosewater, topped with crushed pistachios — Egypt's warming winter drink.

Pairs Well With
Serve hot in a cup or small bowl with a spoon, topped with crushed pistachios and a dusting of cinnamon.

A platter of Lebanese warak enab, glossy stuffed grape leaves arranged with stuffed zucchini, lemon slices and a tomato rose in the centre

Lebanon 1h 55m

Lunch •Lebanese Mezze Heritage

Lebanese Warak Enab

This lebanese warak enab recipe turns brined grape leaves, short-grain rice and a big handful of parsley and mint into neat little rolls that simmer in lemon water until tender, then chill into a bright, herby mezze. The Lebanese filling is vegetarian — no meat at all — just rice, tomato, onion, lemon juice and olive oil, so the lemon and herbs do all the talking. One serving is about 240 g, roughly six rolls with lemon wedges.

Cold Mezze & Sharing

Grape leaves rolled around lemony herbed rice, simmered gently in lemon water and served cold as a mezze.

Pairs Well With
Hummus, tabbouleh and warm flatbread, with lemon wedges

A pot of guiso de lentejas, Argentine lentil stew with chorizo, panceta and morcilla in a thick golden broth

Argentina 1h 30m

Dinner •Argentine Home Cooking

Guiso de Lentejas

Brown lentils simmer with fresh chorizo, panceta and morcilla, then pumpkin, potato and carrot melt into the broth until it turns thick and spoon-coating. This guiso de lentejas recipe is the Argentine home classic: smoky, earthy and built to feed a family on a cold night. One serving is about 480 g.

Hearty & Nourishing

Brown lentils slow-stewed with chorizo, panceta, morcilla and pumpkin — Argentina's classic one-pot winter dinner.

Pairs Well With
Crusty bread, green salad & red wine

Soups & Broths

A plate of olluquito con charqui — diced golden olluco stewed with shredded dried beef — served with a dome of white rice

Peru 1h 5m

Dinner •Andean Heritage

Olluquito con Charqui

Olluquito con charqui is an Andean stew from the highlands of Peru: golden olluco tubers, diced small, simmered with rehydrated dried beef, onion, garlic and aji amarillo until the tubers turn tender but keep their bite. It is served with a neat dome of white rice, as in the photo. One serving is about 438 g.

Hearty Andean Comfort

Golden olluco stewed with rehydrated dried beef, aji amarillo and herbs, served with white rice.

Pairs Well With
Serve with salsa criolla and a cold glass of chicha morada.

Two triangular pieces of kuih seri muka, green pandan custard over white glutinous rice, on a white plate

Malaysia 1h 55m

Snack & Tea •Nyonya Heritage

Kuih Seri Muka

A base of glutinous rice steamed in salted coconut milk turns chewy and fragrant, then a smooth pandan custard made with eggs, coconut milk and fresh pandan juice is poured over the top and steamed until just set. This kuih seri muka recipe is the classic Nyonya two-layer cake: salty-sweet, soft and gently green. One piece is about 115 g.

Sweet & Comforting

Chewy coconut sticky rice under a silky green pandan custard — Malaysia's classic Nyonya kuih, steamed, never baked.

Pairs Well With
Hot tea, kopi & fresh fruit

A bowl of sayur asem with sweetcorn, chayote, long beans and melinjo nuts in a light tamarind broth

Indonesia 55m

Lunch •Sundanese Home Cooking

Sayur Asem

This sayur asem recipe is the Sundanese tamarind vegetable soup of West Java: sweetcorn, chayote, long beans and peanuts simmered in a clear, tangy tamarind broth with shallots, garlic and a little palm sugar. It is light, sour and refreshing, and it is made for eating with a mound of steamed rice. One serving is about 500 g.

Light & Refreshing

A clear, sour tamarind broth full of vegetables, served hot with steamed rice.

Pairs Well With
Serve hot with steamed rice, fried fish or chicken, and a spoonful of sambal on the side.

Soups & Broths

A smoked Dutch rookworst sausage, partly sliced to show the pink pork filling, on a white plate

Netherlands 1h 40m

Dinner •Gelderland Smoked Sausage

Rookworst

This rookworst recipe makes the Dutch smoked sausage from scratch: ground pork shoulder and belly, seasoned with nutmeg, mace and pepper, stuffed into natural casings and smoked over oak and beechwood until juicy and fragrant. It is the sausage the Netherlands eats with kale stamppot and pea soup. One serving is one sausage, about 116 g.

Hearty & Smoky

Ground pork, seasoned and smoked over oak and beechwood, served hot with stamppot.

Pairs Well With
Serve hot with boerenkool stamppot or erwtensoep, and a spoonful of mustard.

A large couque de Dinant honey biscuit moulded with a view of Dinant, on a white plate

Belgium 40m

Snack & Tea •Dinant Honey Biscuit

Couque de Dinant

This couque de dinant recipe makes the famously hard honey biscuit of Dinant in Wallonia: equal weights of wheat flour and honey, pressed into a mould and baked hot until the honey caramelises. The result is a beautiful, rock-hard biscuit that you break into pieces and let melt in your mouth. One serving is one biscuit, about 95 g.

Sweet & Keepsake

A hard, moulded honey biscuit from Dinant, made with just flour and honey.

Pairs Well With
Break into pieces and eat with coffee, or let a piece melt slowly in your mouth.

Golden egg-dipped toast slices with a pat of melting butter on a clean white plate

Switzerland 22m

Breakfast •Swiss Classic

Swiss Fotzelschnitten

This swiss fotzelschnitten recipe is Switzerland's answer to French toast: thick slices of day-old Zopf, the Swiss braided egg loaf, dipped in a plain egg and milk custard and fried in butter until the edges turn crisp and golden and the middle stays soft. It is the thrifty breakfast Swiss grandmothers made from bread nobody wanted to throw away, served hot with cinnamon sugar, jam or applesauce. One serving is about 175 g (two slices).

Golden & Comforting

Day-old Zopf soaked in a plain egg and milk custard, fried golden in butter and dusted with cinnamon sugar.

Pairs Well With
Cinnamon sugar, applesauce or jam, and a hot coffee

Quick Prep (<30m)

Find Dinner Ideas by Country

Every one of the world's 193 countries has a signature dish — browse the full directory to find tonight's dinner, or jump straight to a cuisine with recipes.

Afghanistan

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Antigua and Barbuda

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North Korea

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Zimbabwe Browse all 193 countries →

Dinner Ideas by Category

Soups & Broths Pasta & Noodles High Protein Fermented / Gut Health Quick Prep (<30m)

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The Dinner GazetteFresh Dinner Ideas from the Journal

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A bowl of tagliatelle with rich ragù sauce

Ingredient Guides

The Pantry Staples Every World Kitchen Shares

From a market in Bangkok to a farmhouse in Tuscany, cooks reach for the same handful of staples: rice, dried beans, good oil, salt, garlic, chillies and something sour. Stock these, and dinner in any cuisine is suddenly within reach.

November 5, 2026 • 725 words

A hearty autumn stew served in a rustic bowl

Seasonal Cooking

Autumn’s Best: Cooking with Squash and Root Vegetables

When the air turns cool, the garden answers with squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips and beets. Roasted low and slow, these autumn vegetables turn sweet, caramelised and deeply satisfying — here is how to cook them well.

November 5, 2026 • 597 words

Fresh herbs rolled into Vietnamese spring rolls

Kitchen Techniques

How to Store Fresh Herbs So They Last Two Weeks

Fresh herbs wilt in days when they are tossed loose into the fridge. The jar method — a little water, a loose bag, and the right shelf — keeps parsley, cilantro, mint and dill bright and fragrant for up to two weeks.

November 5, 2026 • 658 words

Food Pairing Guide

What to Eat With What

Some foods taste better — and do you more good — together. Here is what to serve with each dish, and what to skip, with the science in plain words.

Tested in the Dinner Ideas kitchen

Phở Bò (Vietnamese Beef Broth)

Iron & Collagen Dynamics

EAT TOGETHER: Fresh Lime & Sawtooth Coriander

The ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) in freshly squeezed lime converts the non-heme and heme iron from thinly shaved beef into its bioavailable ferrous form (Fe²⁺), escalating iron assimilation by up to 300%. Fresh culantro supplies carotenes that ignite digestive bile acids.

AVOID IMMEDIATELY AFTER: Condensed Milk Iced Coffee

Drinking condensed milk coffee (Cà Phê Sữa Đá) directly following Phở binds active polyphenolic chlorogenic acids and milk casein directly to the beef iron molecules, forming unabsorbable insoluble complexes that severely stunt nutrient uptake. Wait at least 90 minutes.

Metabolic window: Breakfast (07:00 – 09:30) • Optimal Gut Transition: 3.5 Hours

Tomatoes & Wild Summer Greens

Carotenoid Unlocking

EAT TOGETHER: Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Aged Feta

Lycopene is an intrinsically lipophilic (fat-soluble) antioxidant compound bound tight inside tomato skin cells. Pairing ripe heirloom tomatoes with the monounsaturated fats of raw cold-pressed olive oil boosts vascular lycopene absorption by nearly 4.4-fold.

AVOID TOGETHER: Fat-Free Industrial Dressings

Consuming vine tomatoes with zero-fat or high-sugar artificial vinaigrettes prevents the body from emulsifying fat-soluble Vitamins A, E, and K, passing essential restorative nutrients unabsorbed through the gastrointestinal tract.

Metabolic window: Lunch or Aperitivo • Lycopene Uptake: +440%

Turmeric + Black Pepper

Piperine in coarse crushed pepper amplifies active curcumin bioavailability by 2000%.

Green Tea + Lemon Twist

Citric acid preserves delicate EGCG catechins through acidic stomach transit intact.

Calcium Rich + Iron Stews

Heavy dairy cheese interferes with non-heme iron absorption channels if consumed simultaneously.