Dinner on the table in an hour? Hands off, sheet pan meals are easy to make because all the elements are cooked together, leaving just one pan to clean afterward. While there are no rules, we have some basic tips – and 5 recipes – that will help make your sheet pan meals successful.

Sheet Pan Dinner Basics

• Choose your meat well. Avoid the big cuts that require braising or long roasting times. Bone-in chicken legs or breasts are good bets, as are pork chops, loins, tenderloins, flank steak, rack of lamb or lamb chops, and of course, fish (whole or filleted). We like small birds like quail, poussin, and charcuterie such as duck or chicken confit, sausage, or ham, in sheet pan dinners.
• Use plenty of oil or duck fat. Don’t let your sheet pan meal dry out. Toss vegetables with fat in a bowl before laying on the pan, so they are evenly coated.
• Cut vegetables into uniform sizes. Be sure to cut everything into similar sizes so they cook evenly.
• Think strategically. While it is simple, a sheet pan meal requires staging, as most ingredients will cook at different rates. Stagger them, starting with root vegetables, like potatoes, carrots or even squash. Add more delicate vegetables like broccoli, mushrooms, spinach, or asparagus, later in the process. Take care not to overcook – or under-cook – the meat. This will require taking the pan in and out of the oven to add ingredients, but remember the payoff: a lovely, roasted meal and only one sheet pan to clean. Add herbs or nuts last, and cook for only a few minutes.
• Finish under the broiler at the end. Just a few minutes under the blazing broiler will give everything a golden, crispy finish.

Here are 5 sheet pan recipes that are sure to satisfy your craving for real, home-cooked food, and the need for convenience and simplicity.

Sheet Pan Duck Confit with Roasted Green Beans & Fingerlings

YIELD: SERVES 4 | COOK TIME: ABOUT 45 MINUTES

Our best-selling ready-to-heat duck confit is a natural for sheet-pan cooking. Paired with lemony, roasted green beans (topped with almonds) and crispy duck fat potatoes, it makes an embarrassingly easy dinner. Throw it all on a sheet pan, and dinner is ready in 45 minutes.

Sheet Pan Lamb Chops & Ratatouille

YIELD: SERVES 2-4 | COOK TIME: 50 MINUTES

Perfect to elevate a weeknight meal, these sheet pan lamb chops with ratatouille come together quickly and easily, with minimal cleanup.

Sheet Pan Pork Tenderloin with Apples, Onions, & Spiced Sweet Potatoes

YIELD: SERVES 3-4 | COOK TIME: ABOUT 1 HOUR

Here’s an easy recipe for juicy pork tenderloin with roasted apples, sweet onions, and fluffy yams with spiced butter. It takes less than an hour to prepare, making it a great weeknight dinner, with a satisfying mix of flavors and colors.

Sheet Pan Roast Poussin with Mushrooms & Miso Butter

YIELD: SERVES 2 | COOK TIME: ABOUT 1 HOUR

Umami-rich miso butter flavors our whole poussin and creates a light, tasty sauce for exotic mushrooms and roasted baby bok choy in this simple recipe that’s perfect for weeknight dinners. The small poussin roast faster than a whole chicken, and make ideal single portions. Feeding four or more? It’s simple to add petite poussin to the sheet pan.

Sheet Pan Roast Sausage with Garlic, Potatoes, & Broccolini

 YIELD: SERVES 4 | COOK TIME: ABOUT 1 HOUR

This hearty sheet pan dinner couldn’t be easier to make. Flavorful wild boar sausage accents roasted red potatoes, sweet broccolini, and a handful of garlic. Olive oil and a touch of spice bring it all together. You could use your favorite sausage here, but keep in mind that if it’s already cooked, it will need less time in the oven.

Tell us if you try a sheet pan dinner, and what you find works best with this cooking method. Find us on social media – just tag @dartagnanfoods on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. We love to talk about food!

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