Send in the carbs.
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
By The New York Times
Published Nov. 3, 2020Updated Nov. 5, 2024
As the days grow shorter and holiday season approaches, it may be time to replenish your Rolodex of crowd-pleasing recipes that warm hearts and fill bellies. Consider these the edible equivalent of a weighted blanket or a warm hug.
Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Ali Slagle’s stuffed shells can be assembled ahead of time, then baked from the refrigerator an hour before it’s time to eat.
Recipe: Stuffed Shells
Christopher Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Puntas al albañil, or bricklayer-style beef, is a taco filling popular in Mexico made with beef, bacon and sometimes chorizo in a roasted tomato salsa. In this recipe from Pati Jinich, it tops a tray of tortilla chips for a phenomenal and filling pile of nachos.
Recipe: Bricklayer-Style Nachos
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
With over 23,000(!) ratings, Molly O’Neill’s beef stew is one of our most popular recipes year after year. Rain or shine, summer or winter, readers love the simplicity, adaptability and comfort that it brings to every table.
Recipe: Old-Fashioned Beef Stew
4. Panang Curry
Christopher Testani for The New York Times
With rave reviews in the comment section, this 35-minute dinner is comfort in a bowl. “I thought it was just right and added a few drops of Sriracha sauce on the plate,” one commenter said. “Yum!”
Recipe: Panang Curry
5. French Onion Macaroni and Cheese
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
This recipe fuses French onion soup with macaroni and cheese — two comfort foods in one. Added bonus: Caramelizing two pounds of onions can be therapeutic.
Recipe: French Onion Macaroni and Cheese
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
“All six of our household, ages 14 to 93, liked them,” one reader wrote, and we like those numbers. Tex-Mex chimichangas are typically deep-fried, but in this weeknight recipe, they are pan-fried or baked in the oven, which means much less mess with equally crisp and tasty results.
Recipe: Easy Chimichangas
7. Tomato Rice With Crispy Cheddar
Romulo Yanes for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui.
Priya Krishna calls this easy dish, a mash-up of South Indian tomato rice and Spanish rice, “pizza in rice form.” We’ll take it.
Recipe: Tomato Rice With Crispy Cheddar
Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Genevieve Ko, a deputy editor for NYT Cooking, calls dishes that require a lot of finger-pinching work like dumplings and empanadas “a fidget spinner for anxiety with dough.” These gyoza, which Kiera Wright-Ruiz adapted from the chef Ivan Orkin, are a perfect project.
Recipe: Pan-Seared Gyoza
Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
This Korean American dish from Darun Kwak is made with canned corn, mayonnaise and mild shredded cheese, and can be a very easy side dish or appetizer.
Recipe: Korean Corn Cheese
10. Angel Hair Pasta
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
When the craving for carbs strikes, whip up this superfast and simple pasta from Dan Pelosi. Angel hair pasta, the quickest cooking pasta, is tossed with olive oil, butter, garlic, herbs and burst cherry tomatoes for a bright and light dinner.
Recipe: Angel Hair Pasta
11. Potato Soup
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Rough day? Bury your troubles in a big bowl of this soup from Lidey Heuck. Yukon Golds give it a natural creaminess and a happy yellow color, bacon and smoked paprika lend flavor and a touch of heat, while heavy cream smooths it all out. Top it as you would a baked potato — that is, with gleeful abandon.
Recipe: Potato Soup
12. Sticky Coconut Chicken and Rice
Sang An for The New York Times. Food Stylist; Simon Andrews.
Everything cooks together in one blessed vessel in this recipe from Kay Chun. Boneless chicken thighs are browned in the empty pot, then finished off in a heady mix of rice, scallions, garlic, coconut milk, bell pepper, cashews and scallions. It all comes together so effortlessly and easily that you’ll feel very smart indeed.
Recipe: Sticky Coconut Chicken and Rice
13. Pizza Margherita
Melina Hammer for The New York Times
With five stars and more than 3,000 ratings, Sam Sifton’s classic pizza recipe can’t be beat. This is “a home-cooked pizza to beat the band,” he writes, “exactly the sort of recipe to start a career in home pizza-making, and to return to again and again.”
Recipe: Pizza Margherita
14. Cheesy Green Chile Bean Bake
Kerri Brewer for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
This easy skillet dinner from Ali Slagle comes together in 25 minutes with charred green chiles, pinto beans and store-bought or homemade salsa verde. Serve with tortillas, tortilla chips, rice, a baked sweet potato or fried eggs.
Recipe: Cheesy Green Chile Bean Bake
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.
Mindfully shaping the meatballs for this classic Southern Italian soup from Lidey Heuck is especially relaxing. If it’s been that kind of day, substitute frozen meatballs for homemade. No one will know.
Recipe: Italian Wedding Soup
James Ransom for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Plush — what a great word — baby potatoes, kale and white beans mingle in a spicy gochujang broth for an excellent vegetarian stew from Eric Kim that’ll make your lips tingle and your belly warm.
Recipe: Gochujang Potato Stew
Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Sam Sifton scored this recipe for tater tot casserole, known as “hot dish” in some parts, from Molly Yeh. She makes her own creamed soup, but you can use canned cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup in its place if you’d like.
Recipe: Tater Tot Casserole
18. Vegan Tantanmen With Pan-Fried Tofu
Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
A steaming bowl of noodle soup is a no-brainer when it comes to comfort. In this recipe from Hetty Lui McKinnon, dried kombu, shiitake mushrooms and vegetable stock combine with sesame paste to create a deeply flavorful vegan broth.
Recipe: Vegan Tantanmen With Pan-Fried Tofu
19. Sopa de Fideo
David Malosh for The New York Times
This Mexican home-cooking staple is best enjoyed loaded with toppings like avocado, lime, queso fresco or whatever you happen to have on hand. The possibilities are endless — so use whatever evokes the feeling of having a loved one serve you a meal at the end of a long day.
Recipe: Sopa de Fideo
20. Butternut Squash Congee With Chile Oil
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
This particular version of congee from Hetty Lui McKinnon is not traditional to any region or cuisine, but is a seasonal interpretation, incorporating butternut squash for a warming, naturally sweet, earthy glow. To make it extra easy, you can use precut cubes of butternut squash from the grocery store.
Recipe: Butternut Squash Congee With Chile Oil
21. Chicken Parmesan
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
When you need a hearty meal, a slab of Melissa Clark’s chicken Parmesan is the answer. This recipe calls for boneless chicken breasts, but boneless chicken thighs, pork or turkey cutlets would work beautifully, too.
Recipe: Chicken Parmesan
Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
“There is something deeply comforting about this khichdi,” one commenter said. “It’s easy and comes out perfectly every time I’ve made it.” The recipe’s author, Samantha Seneviratne, says to bulk it up, you could add some grated carrot or zucchini with the onion, or wilt baby spinach in at the end. But topped with a drizzle of ghee, some plain yogurt and fresh cilantro, it’s a warming, homey meal just as it is.
Recipe: Instant Pot Khichdi
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
With a pleasingly crisp exterior and a sticky-sweet glaze, yangnyeom dak, or Korean fried chicken, is the ideal comfort food. This version, which was adapted from “Quick & Easy Korean Cooking” by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee, can be made with boneless chicken thighs or bone-in wings. “Absolutely delicious!” one reader said. “Six stars would not be enough.”
Recipe: Korean Fried Chicken