Easy sheet pan recipes the whole family will love

June 8, 2022

If you’ve ever wondered what a sheet pan meal is or how to make sheet pan meals, this guide will help you and give you great ideas to try. You’ll see that there’s no need for a recipe as long as you keep in mind this simple guide.

A sheet pan meal is a full meal (protein and vegetable or vegetables) cooked together on a sheet pan in a hot oven, typically 425 Fahrenheit. The food combos are endless, but the recipes share a few attributes. They are fairly low fat, come together within an hour and dirty just one pan.

Image Credit: feelgoodfoodie.net.

What should i look for in a sheet pan?

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To achieve success with a dinner’s worth of ingredients at high heat, you need a large pan with a rolled edge.

Technically, sheet pans that fit into home ovens are called half-sheet pans. A true sheet pan (26″ x 18″) is made for the larger professional oven. Baking websites and restaurant supply stores will label what you want as “half sheet pans.”
Seek out heavy aluminum pans without nonstick coatings. Non-stick coatings will inhibit browning and not last very long when used in high heat
Make sure your pan has a rolled edge of about 1″ to keep ingredients and juices from spilling all over the oven. (This is one reason rimless cookie sheets do not work.)
Jelly roll pans (created specifically for rolled cakes) are slightly smaller (about 15″ x 10″) and also work but will not fit as many ingredients.

Image Credit: feelgoodfoodie.net.

Sheet pan meal formula

The basic formula is:

2 pounds of protein
2 -3 cups of chopped vegetables
1-2 tablespoons oil (usually olive oil)

Image Credit: feelgoodfoodie.net.

1. Start with protein

Use up to two pounds of protein per half sheet pan. At 425 Fahrenheit, most proteins cook in 30 minutes or faster. All times are approximate. Bone-in meats take the longest. Fish goes fastest. Shrimp takes less than 10 minutes. Know the doneness temps for your protein and check it often.

Shrimp: Depending on size, 3-10 minutes
Salmon and white fish: Depending on thickness 12-25 minutes
Tofu: 20 minutes
Lamb chops: 10- 20 minutes, depending on thickness
Chicken, bone-in or boneless: 20 -30 minutes
All types of whole sausages: about 25 minutes

Image Credit: feelgoodfoodie.net.

2. Add vegetables

Typically, about 2-3 cups of chopped veggies will fill out the pan. Remember, vegetables lose water and shrink when they roast. Same-size pieces make for even cooking. Times given are estimates for a temperature of 425 Fahrenheit and average-sized pieces.

Root vegetables, like carrots: 30 minutes
Potatoes: Small pieces and wedges, 25-30 minutes
Soft squashes, like zucchini: 15-20 minutes
Hard winter squashes: in pieces, 30 minutes
Broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts: 25-30 minutes
Cabbage: depending on the cut, 15-30 minutes
Leafy vegetables, like kale: 10-20 minutes
Cherry tomatoes: 20-25 minutes until bursting
Onions: cut into wedges or thick slices, about 15-20 minutes

And more! Almost anything can be added to a sheet pan: Try asparagus, eggplant or fennel. And mix companionable veggies, like onion wedges and bell peppers, together!

Image Credit: feelgoodfoodie.net.

3. Add oil and seasoning

Count on adding at least two tablespoons of oil (olive oil is the go-to) per sheet pan meal. Add more if your mixture seems dry. If you are starting with a protein, make sure it is well oiled. But remember, it is particularly important to toss and completely coat vegetables in oil.

Image Credit: Deposit Photos.

Tips for making sheet pan meal

Cook some sheet pan meals in stages. For instance, delicate morsels should be added once sturdier proteins are partially done. One example: When cooking chicken and mushrooms together, add the mushrooms when the chicken is halfway done.
Conversely, a quick-cooking protein like shrimp should be added after a dense vegetable like broccoli has been baking for 12 minutes or so.
Size matters, too. If cooking potatoes with a relatively quick-cooking fish, slice the potatoes very thin.
For the speediest cooking, consider preheating your sheet pan prior to adding ingredient. Just beware of hot splatters when food hits the pan.
Placement matters: Some foods cook better apart. For instance, for crispy roast potatoes with chicken, make sure the ingredients are spread out evenly on the pan with the chicken separated from the potatoes
But for softer potatoes drenched in chicken drippings, place thinly sliced potatoes underneath a piece of skin-on, bone-in chicken.
For the best roasty- toastiness, give each piece of food its own real estate on the pan. Food needs air circulation to brown, otherwise, it steams and gets soggy.
For even browning, flip food partway through cooking.
Food will have browner, more caramelized edges if it is in direct contact with the pan, but cleanup is definitely easier if you line with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Your choice.
Sauces containing sugar (think BBQ sauces, sweet and sour mixtures or anything with balsamic vinegar) can be added but only in the last few minutes of cooking; otherwise, they will burn.

Image Credit: OksanaKiian / iStock.

Serve with fresh toppings

Aioli
Sliced avocado
Chutney
Cucumber yogurt sauce
Herbs
Lebanese garlic sauce
Lemon squeeze
Tahini sauce

Image Credit: margouillatphotos / istockphoto.

Sheet pan meals to try

Sheet pan dinners are great for busy weeknights and beginning cooks. Get ideas from the recipes above and others, but feel free to freestyle. They are great fridge-clearers, too. You can start with some of the recipes below.

Image Credit: Angelika Heine / iStock.