Cooking with 5 Ingredients or Less

Epicurious.com

Delicious recipes that are easy to make for your family

Five or fewer ingredients is all it takes to make a really delicious dish. It's true! That's good news for anyone who has to cook for a group of hungry people and doesn't want to spend a lot of time-or money-doing it. Whether it's a weekday family dinner or a Sunday brunch with friends, simplicity is key and these recipes will help streamline the cooking process for you.

The beauty of working with five or fewer ingredients is that you probably already have some of them in your kitchen, such as olive oil, butter, and maybe even phyllo dough. Rest assured that you will not have to stock up on rarely used ingredients, nor will you have to slave away in the kitchen. Instead, sit back and savor the food and the company.

Recipe tips:

  • Prepared Foods Are Your Best Friends

Make the grocery store work for you. Purchasing foods that are already prepped at the supermarket helps reduce the amount of work required later on. Reach for the bakery's freshly made baguettes or get a head start with store-bought cookie, phyllo, and pizza doughs.
recipes to try:
Petits Pains au Chocolat
Truffled Taleggio and Mushroom Pizza

  • Get a Fresh Start

When you're working with a very limited number of ingredients, quality really matters. When possible, buy the freshest in-season fruits and vegetables that you can find. Consider using goods that are artisanal quality and organically grown, many of which you can buy at the farmers' market. The subtleties in flavor that might have once been masked by other ingredients will now shine through.
recipes to try:
Fresh Figs with Goat Cheese and Peppered Honey
Watermelon and Feta Salad

  • Cool it down

There are days when you just don't feel like cooking anything, so always keep a bunch of no-cook recipes on hand. Some of the tastiest-and easiest-foods to prepare are no-cook and can be eaten as is,or with the help of the "cooking" acids in citrus juice, as in ceviches. These dishes are perfect when it's just too hot to turn on the oven.
recipes to try:
Scandinavian Ceviche
Orange Fools

Five-Ingredient Recipes

Four-Ingredient Recipes

Three-Ingredient Recipes

Two-Ingredient Recipes


Four Ingredient Recipe: Blue Cheese Crusted Tomatoes

Bon Appétit | July 2008

by Judith Fertig

Yield: Makes 6 servings

The flavors of two classic steakhouse menu items-blue cheese dressing and stewed tomatoes-are combined in one incredible, simple-to prepare grilled dish.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup fine dry breadcrumbs

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

  • 12 medium tomatoes

  • 3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese (about 3 ounces)

Preparation

Prepare barbecue (high heat), leaving opposite side unlit if gas grill or without coals if charcoal grill. Mix breadcrumbs and olive oil in small bowl, mashing to coat. Cut top 1/4 from each tomato. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and pepper. Top each with 1 tablespoon blue cheese. Sprinkle with breadcrumb mixture.

Arrange tomatoes (topping side up) on unlit side of grill. Cover grill and cook tomatoes until slightly soft and cheese melts, about 13 minutes. Serve immediately.

See More Epicurious Family-friendly Recipes and Tips:

by Esther Sung