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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What’s for Dinner TonightFeatured Dinner Recipes from 193 Countries

Showing 1921–1932 of 2290 dinner recipes

A tray of espejitos, Uruguayan butter cookies with white icing and a glossy red jam centre on each one

Uruguay 40m

Snack & Tea •Uruguayan Bakery Favourite

Espejitos

This espejitos recipe makes 24 little Uruguayan jam mirror cookies: a tender butter-biscuit base, a ring of white icing and a glossy spoonful of strawberry jam in the middle — the shiny jam is what gives them their name, espejitos, little mirrors. One serving is about 59 g (2 cookies). They are the kind of cookie Uruguayan bakeries stack in neat rows behind the counter, and they keep beautifully in a tin for a week.

Sweet & Comforting

Buttery little biscuits with white icing and a glossy red jam centre — the Uruguayan bakery cookie that looks like a tiny mirror.

Pairs Well With
Black coffee, mate or a glass of cold milk

Two crisp tostadas topped with refried black beans, shredded lettuce and crumbled cheese, with three small bowls of salsa behind them

Honduras 25m

Snack & Tea •Honduran Market Snack

Tostadas Hondureñas

This tostadas hondurenas recipe fries corn tortillas until they shatter-crisp, then tops each one with warm refried beans, a drizzle of cream, shredded lettuce and crumbled queso fresco. One serving is about 143 g (1 tostada). It is the snack Honduran market stalls and home cooks reach for when something fast, crunchy and satisfying is needed — no meat, no egg, just beans, cheese and crunch.

Quick & Crunchy

A crisp fried corn tortilla piled with warm refried beans, cool cream, shredded lettuce and crumbled cheese — Honduras's favourite crunchy snack.

Pairs Well With
Salsa verde, pickled onions and a cold horchata

Quick Prep (<30m)

A golden roast chicken leg quarter with sliced tomato, green beans and corn kernels on a white plate

El Salvador 1h 20m

Dinner •Salvadoran Family Roast

Pollo Asado Salvadoreño

This pollo asado salvadoreno recipe marinates chicken leg quarters in lime juice, garlic and mustard, then grills them until the skin is golden and the meat is juicy, and serves them with sliced tomato, green beans and corn. One serving is about 315 g (1 leg quarter with vegetables). It is the chicken Salvadoran families grill for Sunday lunch and gatherings — simple, smoky and generous.

Hearty & High-Protein

Chicken leg quarters marinated in lime, garlic and mustard, grilled until golden and juicy, with tomato, green beans and corn on the side.

Pairs Well With
White rice, curtido and warm tortillas

High Protein

Caldillo de congrio in a black clay bowl, with chunks of conger eel, potato and carrot in a golden broth, scattered with fresh cilantro

Chile 1h 10m

Dinner •Chilean Heritage

Caldillo de Congrio

This caldillo de congrio recipe simmers firm conger eel with potato, tomato, carrot and onion in a white-wine broth, finished with lemon and fresh cilantro. The eel stays in generous chunks and the broth turns golden and savoury. One serving is about 600 g.

Comfort & Warmth

A light, fragrant fish soup of conger eel, potato and tomato, served steaming hot in a clay bowl.

Pairs Well With
Crusty bread, pebre salsa & white wine

Soups & Broths

A metal bowl of sancocho colombiano with beef, corn on the cob, yuca and fresh herbs in a clear golden broth

Colombia 3h 10m

Dinner •Colombian Heritage

Sancocho Colombiano

This sancocho colombiano recipe simmers beef, chicken and pork ribs with green plantain, yuca, potato and corn on the cob until the broth turns rich and golden. It is served in deep bowls with white rice and sliced avocado on the side. One serving is about 710 g.

Hearty & Filling

Colombia's national stew of three meats, plantain, yuca and corn, served with white rice and avocado.

Pairs Well With
White rice, ripe avocado & lime wedges

Soups & Broths • High Protein

A golden folded cachapa on a black plate, drizzled with white cream, filled with melted white cheese

Venezuela 40m

Breakfast •Venezuelan Heritage

Cachapa

This cachapa recipe blends fresh sweet corn with milk, sugar and butter into a thick batter, then cooks it on a hot griddle until golden and crisp at the edges. Each pancake is folded over soft queso de mano and finished with a drizzle of cream. One serving is about 240 g.

Sweet & Savory

A thick, golden pancake of fresh sweet corn, folded over soft white cheese and served hot.

Pairs Well With
Queso de mano, butter & coffee

Ecuadorian fritada of crisp fried pork with mote, fried plantain and tomato-onion salad on a white tray

Ecuador 2h

Lunch •Ecuadorian Heritage

Fritada

This fritada ecuatoriana recipe braises pork shoulder in orange juice, onion, garlic and cumin until tender, then fries it in its own fat until the edges turn crisp and golden. It is served with mote, boiled potatoes, fried ripe plantain and a tomato-onion curtido. One serving is about 480 g.

Hearty & Filling

Crisp-edged pork, slow-cooked in orange juice and its own fat, served with mote, potato and plantain.

Pairs Well With
Mote, fried plantain & curtido

High Protein

A white bowl of chairo paceno, a golden Bolivian beef and vegetable soup, topped with chopped fresh herbs and a crisp golden garnish

Bolivia 2h 30m

Lunch •La Paz Heritage

Chairo Paceño

This chairo paceno recipe is the unofficial soup of La Paz: beef simmered with chuno (freeze-dried potato), potatoes, white corn, wheat, fava beans and peas until the broth turns thick and golden, finished with fresh mint and parsley. One serving is about 517 g. It is a filling one-bowl lunch that tastes of the Andean highlands — earthy, herby and deeply savoury.

Comfort & Warmth

A thick, hearty soup of beef, freeze-dried potato and grains from La Paz, built to warm you up at high altitude.

Pairs Well With
Crusty bread and a spoonful of llajwa (spicy tomato sauce) on the side

Soups & Broths

A large pot of Uruguayan puchero, beef and vegetables simmered in broth with corn, carrots and peppers, with a ladle resting in the pot

Uruguay 2h 55m

Dinner •Uruguay Heritage

Uruguayan Puchero

This uruguayan puchero recipe is the boiled dinner Uruguay cooks on Sundays: beef simmered slowly with potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, corn, carrots, leek and cabbage, then served in two parts — the hot broth first, and the tender meat and vegetables after. One serving is about 750 g. It is simple, generous and made for a long table of family.

Comfort & Warmth

Beef and garden vegetables boiled together in one pot, served as broth first and meat and vegetables after — Uruguay's Sunday dinner.

Pairs Well With
Crusty bread, coarse salt and a glass of red wine

Soups & Broths

A glass pitcher of ice-cold terere with lime and mint beside a white guampa filled with ice and a metal bombilla straw

Paraguay 15m

Snack & Tea •Paraguay's National Drink

Terere

This terere recipe is Paraguay's national drink: yerba mate steeped in ice-cold water with fresh mint and burrito, served in a guampa and sipped through a bombilla. One serving is one guampa, about 250 g. It is not hot mate cooled down — the cold water, the ice and the herbs make a completely different drink: green, grassy, minty and deeply refreshing.

Cool & Refreshing

Yerba mate drunk ice-cold with fresh herbs from a guampa — Paraguay's answer to a 40-degree afternoon.

Pairs Well With
Chipa (Paraguayan cheese bread) and a plate of fresh fruit

Cuban black beans spooned over white rice on a plate, with cornbread on the side

Cuba 1h 45m

Lunch •Cuba Heritage

Cuban Black Beans

This cuban black beans recipe is the frijoles negros every Cuban kitchen cooks: dried black beans simmered until tender, then finished with a sofrito of onion, green pepper and garlic, cumin, oregano and a splash of vinegar, with a few beans mashed in to thicken the pot. One serving is about 250 g. Spooned over white rice, it is the everyday side that anchors the Cuban plate.

Comfort & Warmth

Dried black beans simmered with a sofrito of onion, green pepper and garlic until thick and velvety — the everyday side that anchors the Cuban plate.

Pairs Well With
White rice, fried plantains and roast pork

A clay bowl of beef and yuca soup with lime wedges and a grilled corn cake on a plate

El Salvador 3h 10m

Dinner •Salvadoran Heritage

Sopa de Res

This sopa de res recipe is the Salvadoran Sunday soup: bone-in beef shank simmered gently for two hours until it falls off the bone, then yuca, corn, chayote, carrots, potatoes and cabbage added in rounds so every vegetable stays whole and tender. A handful of cilantro and yerba buena mint goes in at the end, and each bowl is served with white rice, warm tortillas and lime. One serving is about 636 g.

Comfort & Warmth

Bone-in beef shank simmered for two hours with yuca, corn, chayote and cabbage, served with rice, tortillas and lime.

Pairs Well With
White rice, warm corn tortillas, lime wedges and a little chopped onion and chile, the classic Salvadoran table for this soup.

Soups & Broths

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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Andorra

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Argentina

Armenia

Australia

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Azerbaijan

Bahamas

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Chile

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Democratic Republic of the Congo

Republic of the Congo

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Nigeria

North Korea

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Portugal

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Romania

Russia

Rwanda

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Samoa

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Saudi Arabia

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Sweden

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Togo

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Trinidad and Tobago

Tunisia

Turkey

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Uganda

Ukraine

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

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Uruguay

Uzbekistan

Vanuatu

Venezuela

Vietnam

Yemen

Zambia

Zimbabwe Browse all 193 countries →

Dinner Ideas by Category

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

Dinner Ideas by Meal

Breakfast Lunch Dinner Snack & Tea

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The Dinner GazetteFresh Dinner Ideas from the Journal

All news →

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