Quick-Fix Entrées for Entertaining

By Southern Living

Your guests will never guess how quick and easy these dishes are to prepare.

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Cilantro Flank Steak

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Cilantro Flank Steak

Fresh cilantro gives great flavor to this flank steak. You won't need much else besides cilantro, garlic, and seasoning making this an easy but delicious weeknight meal.

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Turkey Piccata

Recipe: Turkey Piccata

For a savory, citrus-fresh meal, cook flour-dredged turkey cutlets in a hot skillet and top with a simple lemon-white wine sauce and salty capers. Garnish with fresh parsley.

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Almond-Crusted Tilapia

Photo: Ralph Anderson

Recipe: Almond-Crusted Tilapia

If you don't have a skillet large enough to hold all the fillets without overlapping, we recommend cooking them in batches. You can substitute catfish, flounder, or orange roughy for tilapia.

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Shrimp Scampi

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Shrimp Scampi

Lemon and garlic combine with delicate angel hair pasta and mild-flavored shrimp for a refreshing and quick pasta supper. Buy peeled and deveined shrimp at the grocery store to cut prep time.

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Tuscan Pork Chops

Recipe: Tuscan Pork Chops

These seared pork chops are topped with fresh homemade tomato sauce. Serve with roasted potatoes.

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Creamy Shrimp Piccata

Photo: Alison Miksch

Recipe: Creamy Shrimp Piccata

Save on prep time by buying shrimp peeled and deveined.

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Pronto-Stuffed Pasta Shells

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Pronto-Stuffed Pasta Shells

Spinach, chopped chicken, and Parmesan and cottage cheeses combine to form the filling for these rich, Alfredo-topped pasta shells. Use a store-bought rotisserie chicken to speed up the prep time.

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Chili-Rubbed Salmon

Recipe: Chili-Rubbed Salmon

Total Time: 16 minutes Cook salmon filets to flaky perfection in just six minutes. Chili powder, dill weed, and lemon pepper add just the right amount of seasoning to the fish. Garnish with fresh dill sprig and lemon.

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Beef Fajitas With Pico de Gallo

Recipe: Beef Fajitas With Pico de Gallo

Ready in 20 Minutes
Bottled Italian dressing provides a simple, flavorful marinade for these grilled flank steak-filled fajitas. Use store-bought pico de gallo or make your own ahead of time.

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Vanessa's Make-Ahead Beefy Lasagna

Photo: Beth Dreiling Hontzas; Styling: Missie Neville Crawford

Recipe: Vanessa's Make-Ahead Beefy Lasagna

A container of refrigerated pesto adds distinctive flavor to this basic beef-and-cheese lasagna, and the unbaked lasagna can be frozen for up to three months. 

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Shrimp and Grits

Photo: Beth Dreiling Hontzas

Recipe: Shrimp and Grits

The original recipe for this hearty shrimp and grits dish is from Bill Smith, executive chef at Crook's Corner, the landmark Southern restaurant in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

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Supper Ideas from the Pros

Serve up a dinner for guests in no time with more easy entertaining ideas from Test Kitchen Professional Norman King. Watch. 

Send Us Your Recipe!
Do you have a great simple grilling recipe? If so, we'd love to try it.
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