“Literally the quickest dinner ever”

13 of our favorite fast (and fancy!) shrimp recipes, including ginger-garlic shrimp with coconut milk.

View in browser|nytimes.com October 14, 2024 Yasmin Fahr's ginger-garlic shrimp with coconut milk. Chris Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Frances Boswell. Frozen shrimp, very fast and a little fancy By Melissa Clark Of all the frozen proteins you could thaw for an easy weeknight dinner, shrimp are about the speediest and most elegant. Just pour the icy crustaceans into a bowl of cool tap water and let them soften on the counter while you prep the rest of your ingredients. By the time the garlic has been chopped and the spices are lined up on your counter, all the shrimp need is a friendly pat dry with a clean kitchen towel and they're ready to go. They have a squillion uses, as our own Krysten Chambrot details in this very helpful article. Climbing to the top of my must-try list is this heady ginger-garlic shrimp with coconut milk from Yasmin Fahr, which glows golden with turmeric. Be generous with the lime juice here; sweet, plump shrimp like a lot of acid. 13 Fast (And Fancy!) Shrimp Recipes We Love View Recipes → Shrimp cook pretty fast, but what if you want to save time on chopping, too? I'd reach for Colu Henry's 15-minute broiled salmon with chile and orange, in which chopping a handful of fresh mint is the only knife work required. Or just tear the tender leaves directly into the pan for a more rustic dish — you won't even have to wash the cutting board. Chop-chop! There's a bit more chopping, along with slicing and shredding, involved in Ham El-Waylly's deeply flavored vegetable tortilla soup, but the savory, brick-red broth pays back your efforts. Ham uses tortilla chips here in two ways — pulverized to add body to the soup, then sprinkled on top for a crunchy contrast. Full of caramelized sweetness from some seared red cabbage, it's just the thing to usher in these cool autumn evenings. Kay Chun has a quick meatless option for you that's hearty, too: pasta with salsa di noci. This traditional Ligurian sauce is a pesto variant with no fresh basil, using instead a creamy mix of walnuts, milk, bread, garlic, cheese and oil, all puréed while the pasta boils. A sprinkling of marjoram or parsley right at the end gives a fresh, woodsy note to balance the richness. Alternatively, Dan Pelosi's balsamic chicken thighs with burst cherry tomatoes brings a crisp-skinned allure and dash of cheerful color to your dinner table, made with a sweet and savory balsamic glaze brightened with mustard and garlic. It's perfect with some focaccia to soak up the schmaltzy pan sauce, making for a sustaining meal suffused with complex flavors. Onward to dessert! High-quality vanilla extract and good salted butter elevate Samantha Seneviratne's easy sugar cookies to next-level deliciousness. I like to nibble these soft and chewy beauties with a hot mug of peppermint tea, though perhaps a glass of milk would be better for the classic dunking move. As always, you'll need to subscribe to get the recipes (and we thank you if you already do). Note that if you bump into any technical problems, you can send an email to cookingcare@nytimes.com for help. And I'm at hellomelissa@nytimes.com if you want to say hi. I may not be able to answer all of the emails I receive, but I read every one. That's all for now. I'll see you on Wednesday. IN THIS NEWSLETTER Linda Xiao for The New York Times Broiled Salmon With Chile, Orange and Mint By Colu Henry 15 minutes Makes 4 servings Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Mariana Velásquez. Vegetable Tortilla Soup By Ham El-Waylly 40 minutes Makes 4 to 6 servings  Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Samantha Seneviratne. Salsa di Noci (Walnut Sauce Pasta) By Kay Chun 25 minutes Makes 4 servings David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Balsamic Chicken Thighs With Burst Tomatoes By Dan Pelosi 40 minutes Makes 4 servings Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Samantha Seneviratne. Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies  By Samantha Seneviratne 35 minutes Makes About 18 cookies Sign up for the Five Weeknight Dishes newsletter Fresh dinner ideas for busy people who want something great to eat, with NYT Cooking recipes sent to you weekly. Get it in your inbox Sign up for The Veggie newsletter Tanya Sichynsky shares the most delicious vegetarian recipes for weeknight cooking, packed lunches and dinner parties. Get it in your inbox Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Cooking from The New York Times. To stop receiving Cooking, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. Subscribe to NYT CookingGet the NYT Cooking app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018