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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Breakfast to Snack

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What’s for Dinner TonightFeatured Dinner Recipes from 193 Countries

Showing 1777–1788 of 2290 dinner recipes

Golden sugar-dusted sfenj ring doughnuts piled on a white plate

Morocco 1h 40m

Breakfast •Moroccan Street Breakfast

Moroccan Sfenj

This sfenj recipe makes Morocco's street-corner ring doughnuts: a very wet, sticky, eggless yeasted dough, shaped into rings by hand and deep-fried until deep golden and crisp outside, airy and spongy inside, then tossed in sugar while still warm. They are eaten hot, usually with a glass of mint tea. One serving is two rings, about 158 g, and the recipe makes 12 rings.

Sweet Breakfast

Eggless yeasted wheat rings, deep-fried until crisp outside and airy inside, then tossed in sugar — Morocco's street-corner breakfast.

Pairs Well With
Mint tea, honey & orange slices

Creamy white beans tossed with chopped parsley and garlic in a white bowl with a blue rim

Lebanon 20m

Lunch •Levantine Mezze Classic

Lebanese White Bean Salad

This Lebanese white bean salad recipe tosses creamy cannellini beans with ripe tomato, red onion, parsley and a sharp lemon-garlic dressing. One serving is about 229 g, with plenty of fibre and plant protein and no cooking at all. It is the kind of mezze salad that tastes better after a short rest, when the beans drink in the dressing.

Fresh & Filling

Creamy white beans with lemon, garlic, parsley and olive oil — a bright, protein-rich mezze salad.

Pairs Well With
Warm pita bread and a bowl of hummus

Eight golden round loaves of Argentine country bread cooling on a metal tray

Argentina 2h 35m

Lunch •Argentine Country Kitchen

Argentine Country Bread

This Argentine country bread recipe makes one golden pan casero: eight soft, slightly sweet rolls with a crisp crust and a tender crumb, baked in a home oven. One serving is about 97 g — one warm roll — and the bread is best the day it is baked, torn open and eaten warm with butter or dulce de leche.

Warm & Rustic

A soft, golden country loaf with a crisp crust and an open, tender crumb — the everyday bread of Argentine homes.

Pairs Well With
Salted butter and dulce de leche

Mashed green plantain tacacho with grilled cecina and chorizo on a white plate

Peru 1h

Dinner •Peruvian Amazon Classic

Tacacho con Cecina

This tacacho con cecina recipe fries green plantains until golden, mashes them with pork lard and garlic, and serves the warm balls with grilled cecina — salted, smoked pork — and a sharp red-onion salsa. One serving is about 313 g, with two plantain balls, a generous slice of cecina and salsa on the side. It is a hearty Amazonian dinner, best eaten hot from the pan.

Hearty & Smoky

Golden mashed-plantain balls with smoky cured pork and sharp onion salsa — the jungle plate of the Peruvian Amazon.

Pairs Well With
Salsa criolla and a cold beer or chicha

Golden turmeric prawn fritters topped with whole prawns

Malaysia 50m

Snack & Tea •Malay Teatime Kuih

Cucur Udang

This cucur udang recipe makes Malaysia's golden prawn fritters: a turmeric batter folded with bean sprouts, chives and chilli, crowned with a whole prawn and deep-fried until crisp. One serving is about 208 g — three fritters — best eaten hot from the fryer with chilli sauce. It is a classic Malay teatime kuih, and a night-market favourite.

Golden & Crispy

Turmeric-yellow batter fritters studded with bean sprouts and chives, each crowned with a whole prawn and fried until crisp.

Pairs Well With
Sweet chilli sauce and hot teh tarik

Slices of empal gepuk fried beef topped with crisp fried shallots on a white plate

Indonesia 2h 5m

Lunch •Sundanese Heritage

Empal Gepuk

This empal gepuk recipe follows the Sundanese way: beef is boiled, sliced and pounded flat, then simmered in a spiced coconut-milk braise with palm sugar and tamarind until the liquid is nearly gone, and fried until dark golden at the edges. One serving is about 168 g and carries 576 calories. Serve it with steamed rice, sambal and cucumber, the way West Java does.

High-Protein Comfort

Pounded beef braised in spiced coconut milk with palm sugar, then fried until the edges caramelise — tender, sweet-savoury and deeply satisfying.

Pairs Well With
Steamed rice, sambal terasi and fresh cucumber

High Protein

A bowl of creamy mosterdsoep mustard soup with spring onion and a side bowl of croutons

Netherlands 42m

Lunch •Groningen Classic

Mosterdsoep

This mosterdsoep recipe makes the creamy mustard soup of Groningen: leeks and onion soften in butter, a flour roux thickens vegetable stock, and coarse wholegrain mustard and cream go in at the end so the tang stays bright. One serving is about 388 g and carries 361 calories. Serve it hot with crisp croutons and spring onion, the way the northern Dutch do.

Comfort & Warmth

A velvety Groningen mustard soup: butter, leek, wholegrain mustard and cream, finished with crisp croutons.

Pairs Well With
Dark rye bread with aged Gouda, and a crisp green salad

Soups & Broths

A single glossy deep-golden mastellen ring roll with a thumb-pressed hole in the centre, on a plain white background

Belgium 2h 5m

Snack & Tea •Antwerp Bakery Classic

Mastellen

This mastellen recipe makes soft Antwerp ring-shaped cinnamon rolls: an enriched yeast dough with cinnamon kneaded right in, shaped into rings with a thumb-pressed hole and brushed with egg wash so they bake glossy and deep golden. They are not boiled like bagels and not fried like doughnuts — they are baked, and the cinnamon is inside the dough, not sprinkled on top. Unlike suikerbrood, which is a sliced sugar loaf, and rozijnenbrood, which is a raisin loaf, a mastel is one single ring roll, made to be eaten in the hand. One serving is about 111 g.

Comfort & Warmth

A soft, enriched yeast ring roll with cinnamon kneaded into the dough and a glossy egg-washed top, baked golden — a Flemish bakery snack for coffee or tea.

Pairs Well With
Black coffee, butter & brown sugar, hot chocolate

A golden round Gâteau du Vully cake with a diamond-scored cream topping on a white plate

Switzerland 1h 57m

Snack & Tea •Vully Heritage

Gâteau du Vully

This gateau du vully recipe bakes the Swiss salée au sucre: a soft yeasted dough pressed into a round tin, dimpled with little wells, and topped with a cream-and-yolk wash, butter flakes and crushed sugar that caramelise in a very hot oven. One serving is about 98 g and carries 326 calories. Serve it warm with coffee, the way the Vully does.

Comfort & Warmth

A soft yeasted cake from the Vully, topped with double cream, egg yolk, butter and crushed sugar.

Pairs Well With
Black coffee or unsweetened tea, and a glass of Fribourg white wine

Two golden-brown pan-fried slices of Saumagen with sauerkraut and parsley on a white plate

Germany 4h 25m

Dinner •Palatinate Classic

Saumagen

Saumagen is the Palatinate's most famous dish: a cleaned pork stomach stuffed with diced pork shoulder, minced pork, boiled potatoes, onion and marjoram, simmered gently for three hours, then sliced and pan-fried until the edges turn crisp and golden. This saumagen recipe follows the traditional method published from Hannelore Kohl's kitchen, served the classic way with sauerkraut. One serving is about 488 g — two thick fried slices.

Hearty & Filling

A slow-simmered Palatinate pork stomach stuffed with pork, potatoes and marjoram, sliced and pan-fried until crisp.

Pairs Well With
Braised sauerkraut, mashed potatoes & a glass of dry Riesling

High Protein

Five golden sugar-dusted malassadas in a white bakery box

Portugal 2h

Snack & Tea •Madeira Carnival Classic

Malassadas

This malassadas recipe makes 12 soft, golden doughnuts from an egg-rich yeasted dough, fried until crisp outside and pillowy inside, then rolled in granulated sugar while still warm. They are the plain, unfilled doughnuts of Madeira and the Azores, made for Carnival and Shrove Tuesday — quite different from the jam-filled German Berliner, which is filled by definition. One serving is about 175 g.

Carnival Sugar Doughnuts

Egg-rich yeast doughnuts fried golden and rolled in granulated sugar, served plain with no filling.

Pairs Well With
A mug of strong black coffee or milky galao

Diced cooked beets with beet stems and fresh herbs in a white bowl

Morocco 1h

Lunch •Moroccan Cooked Salad

Moroccan Beet Salad

This moroccan beet salad recipe starts with beets boiled whole until sweet and tender, then diced and tossed with their own tender stems in a light cumin-lemon vinaigrette with olive oil and parsley. One serving is about 182 g and carries 120 calories. Let it marinate briefly so the dressing soaks in, then serve it cool with warm bread.

Bright & Earthy

Diced boiled beets and their tender stems in a cumin-lemon vinaigrette — a bright, ruby-red salad that wakes up the whole Moroccan table.

Pairs Well With
Warm khobz bread, green olives and grilled fish or chicken.

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

Albania

Algeria

Andorra

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Argentina

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Botswana

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Canada

Central African Republic

Chad

Chile

China

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Comoros

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Republic of the Congo

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Gambia

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Iceland

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Ireland

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Italy

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Laos

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Niger

Nigeria

North Korea

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Oman

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Panama

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Peru

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Portugal

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Romania

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Rwanda

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

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Zambia

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.

Dinner Ideas from 193 Countries — What to Cook Tonight

What’s for Dinner TonightFeatured Dinner Recipes from 193 Countries

Find Dinner Ideas by Country

Dinner Ideas by Category

Dinner Ideas by Meal

Dinner Ideas by Region

The Dinner GazetteFresh Dinner Ideas from the Journal

What to Eat With What

Iron & Collagen Dynamics

Carotenoid Unlocking

Never wonder what’s for dinner again