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 685–696 of 2301 dinner recipes

A bowl of Brazilian feijoada — black beans with rounds of sausage and pieces of pork

Brazil 3h 30m

Dinner •Brazilian National Dish

Brazilian Feijoada

This Brazilian feijoada recipe is the real Saturday lunch: black beans simmered for hours with pork shoulder, smoky linguiça, bacon and beef until the broth turns thick and dark, then served with white rice, garlicky collard greens, orange slices and farofa. It is a slow, generous pot built for sharing. One serving is about 450 g.

Rich & Hearty

Brazil's national dish — black beans slow-cooked with pork, sausage and beef, served with rice, greens and orange.

Pairs Well With
Serve with white rice, sautéed collard greens, orange slices and farofa.

Golden quesadilla wedges with melted cheese spilling out, on a white plate

Mexico 30m

Snack & Tea •Mexican Street Classic

Quesadillas

This quesadilla recipe griddles flour tortillas until golden and crisp, with melted Oaxaca-style cheese, mushrooms, peppers and onion inside. One serving is about 242 g.

Comfort & Warmth

A crisp, golden tortilla folded around melted cheese and vegetables.

Pairs Well With
Fresh salsa, sour cream and a cold lime agua fresca

Quick Prep (<30m)

A square of lasagna bolognese on a white plate, showing layers of pasta, ragù and béchamel

Italy 3h 30m

Dinner •Bologna Classic

Lasagna Bolognese

This lasagna bolognese recipe layers a slow-simmered beef and pork ragù, creamy béchamel and pasta sheets, then bakes them until golden and bubbling. One serving is about 275 g.

Comfort & Warmth

Slow ragù, silky béchamel and pasta, baked until golden.

Pairs Well With
A green salad and a glass of Sangiovese

Pasta & Noodles

A bowl of bouillabaisse, a saffron-orange fish stew with rouille and a slice of bread

France 1h 15m

Dinner •Marseille Harbour Classic

Bouillabaisse

This bouillabaisse recipe simmers cod, prawns and mussels in a saffron and tomato broth with fennel and orange, and serves it with rouille and toasted baguette. One serving is about 483 g.

Comfort & Warmth

A saffron-gold fish stew with rouille and crusty bread.

Pairs Well With
Toasted baguette with rouille and a glass of dry white wine

Soups & Broths

A plate of patatas bravas, crisp fried potato chunks coated in red brava sauce

Spain 45m

Snack & Tea •Madrid Bar Classic

Patatas Bravas

This patatas bravas recipe fries potato chunks until crisp and golden, then tops them with a smoky, spicy brava sauce and a spoonful of garlicky alioli. One serving is about 275 g.

Comfort & Warmth

Crisp fried potatoes under smoky brava sauce and alioli.

Pairs Well With
A cold beer and other tapas, such as olives and jamón

Glazed chicken teriyaki thighs with shredded cabbage and tomato wedges on a white plate

Japan 35m

Dinner •Japanese Home Classic

Chicken Teriyaki

This chicken teriyaki recipe pan-fries juicy chicken thighs until the skin is crisp, then glazes them in a soy, mirin and sake sauce that turns shiny and sticky in the pan. It is served sliced over steamed jasmine rice with broccoli, green onion and sesame. One serving is about 425 g — one chicken thigh with rice and broccoli.

Quick & Satisfying

Glossy, sweet-salty chicken thighs with steamed rice and broccoli — a Japanese home-cooking favourite that is on the table in about 35 minutes.

Pairs Well With
Steamed jasmine rice and broccoli

High Protein

A white bowl of thick reddish panang curry topped with fresh Thai basil leaves

Thailand 40m

Dinner •Central Thai Classic

Panang Curry

This panang curry recipe fries panang paste in thick coconut cream until the oil separates, then simmers chicken in it until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon. Peanut butter, palm sugar and fish sauce give it its nutty, sweet-salty balance, finished with makrut lime leaf, chili and Thai basil. One serving is about 455 g — curry with jasmine rice.

Comfort & Warmth

Thick, creamy coconut curry with chicken, peanuts and makrut lime — milder and richer than Thai green or red curry, and one of the most approachable Thai curries.

Pairs Well With
Steamed jasmine rice

Two bowls of bun cha with grilled pork in broth, plates of rice vermicelli, herbs and spring rolls on a red table

Vietnam 50m

Lunch •Hanoi Lunch Classic

Bun Cha

This bun cha recipe grills pork patties and slices of pork belly over high heat until smoky and charred at the edges, then rests them in a warm broth of fish sauce, sugar, vinegar and lime with pickled green papaya and carrot. Cold rice vermicelli, lettuce and herbs are served on the side, and each bite is dipped into the broth. One serving is about 455 g.

Quick & Satisfying

Charcoal-grilled pork patties and belly in a warm, sweet-sour fish sauce broth, eaten with cold rice vermicelli and a pile of fresh herbs — the lunch Hanoi is famous for.

Pairs Well With
Cold rice vermicelli, herbs and pickled papaya

High Protein

A bowl of dan dan noodles in red chili broth with minced pork, peanuts, greens and cilantro

China 40m

Lunch •Chengdu Street Classic

Dan Dan Noodles

This dan dan noodles recipe builds the classic Sichuan bowl: wheat noodles in a hot chili-sesame broth, topped with minced pork fried with Sichuan pepper, crushed peanuts, pickled mustard greens and bok choy. The sauce is mala — spicy and numbing at once. One serving is about 450 g.

Comfort & Warmth

Wheat noodles in a spicy, numbing chili-sesame broth with crisp minced pork, peanuts and bok choy — Sichuan street food in a bowl.

Pairs Well With
Pickled vegetables and cold cucumber

Pasta & Noodles

Bulgogi beef grilling on a round tabletop grill surrounded by small bowls of kimchi and banchan

South Korea 52m

Dinner •Korean BBQ Heritage

Bulgogi

This bulgogi recipe marinates paper-thin beef sirloin in soy sauce, grated Asian pear, garlic and sesame, then sears it in a ripping-hot pan so the sugary marinade caramelises at the edges. It cooks in minutes and lands on the table glossy, smoky and deeply savoury. One serving is about 240 g.

Sweet, Smoky & Charred

Thin-sliced beef in a sweet soy, pear and sesame marinade, seared fast until the edges char — the centrepiece of a Korean barbecue table.

Pairs Well With
Serve with steamed rice, kimchi and lettuce leaves for wrapping.

High Protein

Three pieces of golden baklava on a white plate with wine glasses and the Bodrum bay behind

Turkey 1h 30m

Snack & Tea •Gaziantep Pistachio Heritage

Baklava

This baklava recipe layers paper-thin filo with ground pistachios and melted butter, bakes it until deep golden and shattering, then pours over a lemon and honey syrup that soaks into every layer. It is rich, sticky and unmistakably Turkish. One serving is about 110 g (two pieces).

Crisp, Golden & Honeyed

Forty layers of butter-brushed filo around ground pistachios, baked crisp and drowned in lemon syrup — the famous sweet of Gaziantep.

Pairs Well With
Serve with strong Turkish coffee or tea and a few extra pistachios.

A bowl of youvarlakia — Greek beef and rice meatballs in a creamy pale lemon-egg broth, with a spoon

Greece 1h 15m

Dinner •Greek Home-Cooking Classic

Youvarlakia

This youvarlakia recipe rolls lean beef, rice and fresh herbs into small meatballs, simmers them until plump and tender, then finishes the broth with avgolemono — the classic Greek egg and lemon sauce that turns the cooking liquid velvety and bright. One serving is about 385 g.

Comfort & Warmth

Tender beef and rice meatballs simmered in a light, silky lemon-egg broth.

Pairs Well With
Crusty bread, a simple Greek salad and lemon wedges

Soups & Broths • High Protein

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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Russia

Rwanda

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

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Vietnam

Yemen

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

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