Holy Sheet Pan! No-Fuss Dinner in 30 Minutes

Looking for a way to make your life easier? How about a meal that’s easy, nutritious, and takes less than an hour from start to finish? Look no further than a sheet pan. I suspect that you might already have one or more of these recipes in your pocket. Sheet pan recipes have been a “thing” in recent years thanks to sites such as Instagram, where the single pan provides a great setting to maximize the mixed colors of many dishes.

The closest to “one pot” meals in my youth was the ubiquitous casserole, which combined meat, vegetables, and a can of condense soup, all topped with some crunch from crumbled crackers, potato chips, or even cornflakes. Not very photogenic. Yet they filled the tables at the social club, church, and 4-H Club potlucks and smorgasbords we attended in the 1950s.

Blessedly simple

What I like about this latest trend in one-pot cooking is that sheet pan meals prepared in a hot oven are fast, efficient, and allow a good degree of flexibility to modify a recipe to your own flavor desires – as well as what’s available in the fridge or fresh and inviting at the local farmer’s market. At this time of year, this sheet pan technique also favors seasonal vegetables.

One of my recent meals, Sheet Pan Pork Tenderloin with Broccoli and Butternut Squash, is a good example. Just brown the pork on both sides. Meanwhile, prepare a sheet pan by spreading aluminum foil on the bottom (makes for no-fuss cleaning). While the pork is browning, cut the broccoli into florets and the squash into bite-size pieces. Cut a red onion into eight wedges and place all the vegetables in a bowl. Sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over the vegetables, toss, and spread them out on the baking sheet. Place the browned pork on one side, slice a lemon in half, and place that on the baking sheet. Sprinkle all with salt, pepper, and your favored herb or spice. (The recipe called for thyme, and that’s what I used, but next time I want to try the North African spice blend berbere.) Place the sheet pan in a 450-degree oven and roast for 20 to 25 minutes. While the pork is resting, squeeze the baked lemons over the vegetables. Slice the pork and serve. That’s it. A delicious meal in less than an hour.

Divinely delicious

These sheet pan meals cover all variety of combinations of protein, starch, and vegetables seasoned to your liking. Here are a couple of tips to make sure that you’re successful. First, make sure you chop your vegetables into pieces of the same size so that they’ll cook evenly. If you top your vegetables with oil and seasoning in a mixing bowl before spreading them on the baking sheet, you’ll make sure that all are evenly coated. Roasting at 400 to 450 degrees is a good range because the vegetables will cook quickly without burning. And don’t forget the foil as it makes cleanup easy.

Sheet pan dinners allow a range of vegetables, meats, and seasonings. Some examples: salmon and zucchini, pork chops and apples, and sheet pan sausage supper. If you’re new to sheet pan cooking, the New York Times’ Melissa Clark has a good tutorial article on the technique. And here’s some tips from the Taste of Home web site.

How about you? Are you a regular sheet pan cook? If so, what advice would you offer? Please comment below.

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