Easy and Impressive Meals for Kids to Make

35 Easy and Quick Dinner Recipes for Kids

These will squash your kids' urges to feed their dinners to the dog.

Kathryn Wirsing

Cooking for kids can be a… conundrum. They love what they love, and sometimes that can make cooking for them, to put it mildly, a challenge. These recipes aren't all variations on mac and cheese or pizza, but don't worry, we've got some favorites in there too. We've found if you're lucky, you can shake kids up by introducing something new (but familiar!) into their meals. Avoid the headache and check out our list of 35 fun and easy dinner ideas for kids and maybe even pick up the Delish Kids (Super-Awesome, Crazy-Fun, Best-Ever) Cookbook?!

Kids and parents both will love all our handheld options, like our taco cups or cheeseburger cups— because who doesn't love food in miniature? We know, we know, kids sometimes don't like green food, like our zucchini tots or falafel bites. But have them help you roll the balls, and they'll quickly get on board! When all else fails, don't fight it, and give the kids what they want. If yours are anything like ours, that means lots of grilled cheese, buttered noodles, and hot dogs.

To make things easier on parents, a number of these recipes can be prepped ahead of time or in your slow cooker or Instant Pot. (Don't have an Instant Pot yet? Do your future self a favor and check out our guide for how to choose the best Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker for your kitchen.)

Less time stressing over what your kids will or won't eat in the kitchen means more time to enjoy, well, kids being kids. Get even more ideas with our easy dessert recipes for kids, too!

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Waffle Iron Grilled Cheese

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Mini Meatball & Marinara Soup

The genius shortcut in this grown-up take on Spaghetti-Os? A jar of marinara. This recipe is super flexible, too. Anelletti is the preferred pasta cut here for the ultimate nostalgia factor, but any small cut—like elbows or bowties—will do.

Get the Mini Meatball & Marinara Soup recipe.

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Easy Frittata

There is no limit to what you can add to a frittata! We love making a kid-friendly pizza-flavored frittata, with some sautéed cherry tomatoes, pepperoni, grated Parmesan, and basil.

Get the Easy Frittata recipe.

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Ravioli Lasagna

Italian night is just so better when your two favorite pasta dishes are combined. In this case, we layer meat sauce, store-bought ravioli, and tons of melty mozzarella with ricotta.

Get the Ravioli Lasagna recipe.

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Cheeseburger Cups

We love using muffin tins for genius hacks like this. The "cups" are pieces of white bread that get molded and then filled with a ground beef mixture that tastes just like a cheeseburger. Don't forget to drizzle with your favorite condiments and top with a pickle chip.

Get the Cheeseburger Cups recipe.

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Baked Falafel Bites with Spicy Tahini Dip

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Sheet Pan Honey Mustard–Pretzel Chicken

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TikTok Ramen

Have fun customizing these ramen noodles with your favorite veggies and toppings. Try using frozen peas or halved snow peas in place of the bell pepper and carrot. Skip the egg and top with seared chicken or tofu and try the whole thing topped with a smattering of everything bagel seasoning.

Get the TikTok Ramen recipe.

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Crockpot Spaghetti and Meatballs

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Best Grilled Cheese

Choose your favorite hearty bread, butter it up, and shred your favorite cheddar for the best grilled cheese ever: crispy-crunchy on the outside, melty, cheddar middle, and the world's most impressive cheese pull.

Get the Best Grilled Cheese recipe.

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Baked Popcorn Chicken

Skip the freezer aisle selection and make your own popcorn chicken right at home! This easy recipe comes complete with a honey mustard dipping sauce that makes the whole thing addictive and downright irresistible.

Get the Baked Popcorn Chicken recipe.

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Flatbread Pizzas

Homemade pizza is super-delicious, but it takes a bit of time and special attention. These flatbread pizzas come together MUCH faster, they're fun to customize with the kids, and they're just as cheesy and flavorful as the classic version.

Get the Flatbread Pizzas recipe.

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Chicken Quesadillas

For our chicken quesadillas, we use a combination of Monterey jack and cheddar, but you can substitute any melty cheese you prefer. Our biggest piece of advice: Don't worry about cheese spilling onto the pan. Those crispy, verging on burnt bits (aka frico) add an unparalleled salty, fatty crunch.

Get the Chicken Quesadillas recipe.

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Sloppy Joe Grilled Cheese

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Perfect Buttered Noodles

Buttered noodles is the perfectly simple and always comforting dish of our childhood that we never grew out of. You can really use whatever cheese you'd like, too. If using softer cheeses like mozzarella or cheddar, add them right when the noodles are piping hot so they can melt smooth right away.

Get the Perfect Buttered Noodles recipe.

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Tuna Noodle Casserole

If you're a 90's kid, it's likely that cheesy tuna casserole was your grade-school jam, and now it's time to bring it to the next generation! We remember this dinner-table favorite fondly—we instantly get visions of a just-out-of-the-oven, breadcrumb-encrusted, melty tuna casserole just thinking about it.

Get the Tuna Noodle Casserole recipe.

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Pizzadilla

This isn't just a quesadilla filled with mozz and pepperoni. It's topped with the works and looks just like an actual pizza. Plus, it's so easy to make at home.

Get the Pizzadillas recipe.

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Goulash

We love that everything in this recipe cooks in one pan—even the macaroni! Once you cook pasta this way, you'll never go back to boiling water again. (For another recipe that uses this hack, check out our Italian mac 'n' cheese—it's one of our all-time favorites!)

Get the Goulash recipe.

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Taco Cups

Taco Tuesday has never been so fun with these bite-sized taco cups. This is one of our all-time favorite ways to use a muffin tin!

Get the Taco Cups recipe.

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Chicken Parm-asaurus

This is a prehistoric recipe with a fun twist! We took classic Dino-shaped chicken nuggets and upgraded them by turning them into a kid-friendly version of chicken parm.

Get the Chicken Parm-asaurus recipe.

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Slow-Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs

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Chicken Flautas

Made with shredded chicken wrapped in flour tortillas and then pan-fried, flautas are somewhere between taquitos and chimichangas. They're also super versatile — you can use rotisserie chicken, cheddar, and queso blanco like we have here, or change it up with what you prefer or have at home.

Get the Chicken Flautas recipe.

Mackenzie Filson Mackenzie Filson is a food writer and contributing digital food producer at Delish.

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Source: https://www.delish.com/cooking/g1372/quick-kids-dinner-recipes/

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