18 Easy Make-Ahead Meals Perfect for Busy Weeknights

Tender chunks of beef and hearty bites of carrots and potatoes make this slow cooker stew the ultimate make-ahead dinner.

Inspired by the iconic flavors of French onion soup, this beef stew is even more flavorful the day after it is prepared. Be sure to serve it with mashed potatoes or a hunk of crusty bread so that you can savor every drop of the rich and savory gravy.

Alfredo fans, this one's for you. This pasta bake comes together with just 15 minutes of prep and tastes extra-creamy and cheesy, plus it makes pretty delicious leftovers. No wonder its our readers' #1 pasta recipe.

Mechado is a slow-cooked beef stew with potatoes and carrots simmered in a tomato-based sauce. Make a big batch and curl up with a bowl of this hearty stew all week long.

Smoky green sauce, crispy bacon, tender beef, and creamy beans come together in this classic Mexican stew. It's a labor of love but the flavors deepen over time, making leftovers even more delicious.

A classic comfort food, this gooey and cheesy dish is a great make-ahead meal and a crowd peaser that everyone's sure to enjoy.

Mixed with ground beef, beans, tomatoes, and warm spices, this classic beef chili is a dinner staple. Serve with classic chili side dishes, like baked potatoes or sweet cornbread.

Inspired by Tuscan Chicken, one of our most popular dinner recipes of all time, this baked pasta has a creamy sun-dried tomato sauce you’ll want to make again and again.

Our favorite way to make pot roast is to take all the flavors from beef bourguignon and turn it into this French-inspired pot roast. The rich red wine sauce is flavored with bacon, thyme, and beef broth, and the baby potatoes, mushrooms, and carrots or parsnips (or both!) are cooked right in the sauce to make this a meat and vegetable dish all in one.

This retro chicken and broccoli casserole is ultra-comforting.

This classic Southern stew represents the marriage of cultures, subtleties of tradition, local ingredients, and, above all, community. Serve it with a scoop of white rice, scallion garnish, filé powder, and a few spurts of Tabasco hot sauce.

Marinara and cheese set this recipe apart from traditional meatloaf. Serve with your favorite meatloaf side dishes, like classic mashed potatoes and green beans.

Tender braised beef in a rich, spiced sauce. We love serving it spooned over egg noodles, fluffy couscous, rice, or creamy polenta to round out the meal.

Layer buttery mashed potatoes over French-inspired chicken pot pie filling for the ultimate comfort food.

This beefy dish is the best thing that ever happened to egg noodles, creamy polenta, or mashed potatoes.

It doesn’t get more comforting than buttery mashed potatoes baked over a savory, veggie-packed filling.

This version skips the packets and starts with basic pantry ingredients (it’s so flavorful!). It's got tender shredded beef and a rich gravy that you’ll want to spoon over mashed potatoes.

This one-pot weeknight dinner will remind you of Panera’s broccoli cheddar soup, and it’s so much better.

Baked in creamy salsa verde sauce and topped with gooey Oaxaca cheese, these chicken enchiladas are unbelievably delicious.

This cozy soup celebrates the flavors of roasted tomatoes for the ultimate comfort food. Make it a meal with easy soup side dishes, like garlic bread or grilled cheese sandwiches.

Unlike lasagnas made with marinara, you won’t find a drop of red sauce in sight. Here you get layers of hearty pasta, ricotta, mozzarella, Italian sausage crumbles, and an entire pound of fresh spinach. But what makes white lasagna so special and totally irresistible is the impossibly creamy white sauce that’s blanketed throughout the casserole.

This saucy shredded chicken is loaded with smoky, sweet, and spicy flavor. It's delicious served alongside corn tortillas or crunchy tostadas, refried beans, arroz rojo, and salad.

The beef brisket that makes the whole house smell like a cozy day perfect for snuggling on the couch.

A step-by-step guide to making a simple beef and cheese lasagna. Since this recipe starts with a jar of marinara for ease, make sure it’s one that tastes great.

This ultra-comforting casserole is packed with lots of melty cheddar and topped with a crispy layer of tater tots.

Guess what - baked ziti freezes like a charm! So eat half now, and freeze the rest for another week.

A pork shoulder, slow-cooked and pulled into succulent little shreds, can become a thousand different meals. Mix in some barbecue sauce and make pulled pork sandwiches, scatter it on top of tortilla chips for pulled pork nachos, or use it as a filling for pulled pork lettuce wraps.

Greek pastitsio features layers of pasta, homemade meat sauce, and the most delicious topping of creamy bechamel.

With a smoky flavor and subtle heat, this cozy chili will make you think it has the richness of meat even though (spoiler) it's totally vegan. Inspired by white chicken chili and creamy white bean and kale soup, this comforting one-pot dinner is packed with protein.

Similar to lasagna in construction, this Puerto Rican casserole is made with layers of sweet plantain, meat sauce, and shredded cheese.