17 One-Pot Winter Dinners to Help You Lose Weight
Reviewed by Dietitian Jessica Ball, M.S., RD
These cozy dinners are perfect for the winter months and require just one pot to make—perfect for busy weeknights. Each of these healthy dishes has at least 6 grams of fiber and no more than 575 calories per serving—a combination that can help support weight loss if that is your goal. Plus, they're packed with vegetables, whole grains, legumes and protein—all nutrients that support your health and weight loss efforts.
Ready to give these one-pot dinners a try? From our White Bean-Sage Cauliflower Gnocchi to our Chicken & Spinach Soup with Fresh Pesto, these dinners are comforting, flavorful and easy to make any night of the week.
White Bean-Sage Cauliflower Gnocchi
Turn lower-carb cauliflower gnocchi into a complete and satisfying meal with this riff on classic brown butter and sage gnocchi. We added beans to amp up the fiber and protein for a fast and healthy dinner.
Chicken & Spinach Soup with Fresh Pesto
This fragrant, Italian-flavored soup takes advantage of quick-cooking ingredients—boneless, skinless chicken breast, bagged baby spinach and canned beans. It features a simple homemade basil pesto swirled in at the end to add a fresh herb flavor. If you are very pressed for time, you can substitute 3 to 4 tablespoons of a store-bought basil pesto.
Sweet Potato & Black Bean Chili
Make a double batch of this quick vegetarian chili, full of black beans and sweet potatoes, and eat it for lunch the next day or freeze the extras for another night. We love the smoky heat from the ground chipotle, but omit it if you prefer a milder chili. Serve with tortilla chips or cornbread and coleslaw.
Chickpea & Potato Curry
This fast Indian-style curry comes together with ingredients you most likely have on hand, like frozen peas and canned tomatoes and chickpeas. Plus, using these spices shows how simple it is to make a curry sauce for an easy vegetarian recipe. Serve with whole-wheat naan to sop it all up.
Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl
This black bean and quinoa bowl has many of the usual hallmarks of a taco salad, minus the fried bowl. We've loaded it up with pico de gallo, fresh cilantro and avocado plus an easy hummus dressing to drizzle on top.
Skillet Green Chile-Chicken Enchilada Casserole
This 45-minute enchilada recipe is bursting with chicken, tomatoes, tomatillos, chile peppers, and cheese. And because it's a one-skillet casserole, cleanup is a breeze.
Chhole (Chickpea Curry)
Made with convenient canned beans, this quick and healthy Indian recipe is an authentic chickpea curry that you can make in minutes. If you want an additional vegetable, stir in some roasted cauliflower florets. Serve with brown basmati rice or warm naan.
One-Pot Spinach, Chicken Sausage & Feta Pasta
A little bit of Sunday meal prep goes a long way in this one-dish pasta recipe. The pasta is cooked ahead of time and stored in the fridge to use for meals all week, but any leftover cooked pasta you have on hand will do. Chicken sausage with feta is especially good in this recipe.
Hearty Chickpea & Spinach Stew
This satisfying stew comes together in a snap. Mashed chickpeas add body to the broth, and tomato paste adds a savory note without adding too much sodium in this healthy recipe for weight loss.
Skillet Chili Mac
Poblanos add a kick of heat to this chili mac recipe. If that's not your thing, swap in green bell peppers to tone down the heat in this easy pasta dish, which mashes up mac and cheese and chili into a seriously satisfying skillet dinner.
Spinach-Artichoke-Sausage Cauliflower Gnocchi
Hearty and piquant, this quick cauliflower gnocchi dinner incorporates several healthy convenience ingredients, including turkey sausage and tender artichoke hearts, so dinner is on your table fast.
Black Bean Fajita Skillet
You can often find presliced and ready-to-cook fresh vegetables in your grocer's produce section. Use these to your advantage to cut down on dinnertime prep. Here, presliced fajita vegetables are sautéed with canned black beans and Southwest seasoning for a quick and easy Tex Mex-inspired meal. Plus, this recipe requires just three ingredients, not including basics like salt, pepper and oil. You can easily take your bowl up a notch by adding some cheese, sour cream or another tasty topping.
White Bean, Kale & Kielbasa Soup
This quick soup recipe is done in under 20 minutes thanks to convenience products like frozen chopped onion and precooked kielbasa. You'll have a warming winter soup on the table in no time!
Easy Vegetarian Chili
Canned beans and tomatoes make this quick vegetarian chili recipe ready to go in just 30 minutes. Serve over rice or couscous, or with tortilla chips for added crunch, and add extra toppings as you see fit—sliced scallions, chopped fresh cilantro, diced avocado and sliced jalapeños are all tasty choices.
3-Ingredient Sweet Potato & Brussels Sprout Hash with Chicken Sausage
Apple-flavored chicken sausage adds flavor and protein in this quick dinner hash that uses a bag of shaved Brussels sprouts as its hearty, high-fiber base. Steaming the cubed sweet potatoes in the microwave cuts way down on total cook time.
Potato Enchiladas
Frozen potatoes, often labeled diced hash brown potatoes, make these healthy enchiladas come together quickly. Feel free to sub in sweet potatoes for an added boost of vitamin A, if desired.
Curried Chickpea Stew
Who says a meatless meal isn't filling? Packed with fiber-rich vegetables and chickpeas, this spicy, fragrant stew satisfies—especially on a cold winter evening.
Read the original article on Eating Well.
