Our 25 Most Popular Recipes of 2026 So Far

Here are a few things that I’m finding hard to believe: 2026 is more than half over. I have a high schooler. And The New York Times Cooking’s mighty recipes team has published over 400 recipes since Jan. 1. Time, as they say, is a thief, but at least we have so many wonderful recipes to show for it (even if my high schooler still thinks I’m unbearably, impossibly lame).

Below are the 25 recipes that have been viewed the most. (You can see the top 50 over here.) With the exception of two “project” recipes, they’re all easy, affordable and healthy meals that you return to again and again, which thrills us to pieces. We love knowing that we are helping you feed yourselves and your loved ones, day after day, delicious bite after delicious bite.

“5+ stars!! LOVED this!!”

If you think making chicken cutlets is not for you, Sue Li is here to show you how it’s done. First, cut the breasts into cutlets. Then, pound them until thin. (This increases the surface area, which creates more real estate for crispy breading and helps the breasts cook more evenly.) Next, gently shake the pan while it fries to puff up the breading. And finally, add salt right after it’s cooked. The chicken is served with a fresh, herby cucumber salad that cuts through the richness.

Recipe: Chicken Schnitzel With Cucumber Salad

“This was one of the most flavorful meals I’ve ever made.”

Delightfully sticky-sweet marmalade is the magic maker of this sheet-pan dinner from Melissa Clark. The bittersweet preserve — orange, lemon or grapefruit or a combination will work here — is mixed with fish sauce, soy sauce, garlic and crushed red pepper, and then slathered all over chicken and sweet potatoes. Roasted in a hot oven, the chicken and sweet potatoes develop a beautiful caramelized exterior.

Recipe: Spicy Marmalade Chicken and Sweet Potatoes

“Completely elevated the bland frozen dumplings we had at home. I can’t wait to make this again!”

Ali Slagle has a knack for turning something simple into something special. Here, frozen dumplings — you choose the kind — are seared in a skillet. Kale is sautéed with ginger and garlic, and then dumplings are plopped on top to steam with the greens until everything is cooked through. A simple finish of vinegar and soy sauce brightens it all up.

Recipe: One-Pan Dumplings With Greens

“We made this (following the recipe to a ‘T’) for Valentine’s Day dinner, served with salmon and salad on the side. It was delicious and filled our home with a wonderful aroma. Worth every bit of work!”

“French onion” is bound to pique a home cook’s interest no matter the recipe, but this Toni Chapman dish is more than just talk. Slow-caramelized onions, pasta starch and melted Gruyère come together to create a rich, glossy sauce, no flour required.

Recipe: One-Pot French Onion Rigatoni

“This is, indeed, very good.”

If you like a creamy chicken salad but could do without the mayo, Andy Baraghani has this recipe for you. Cashew butter stands in for the mayo, while soy sauce, fresh lemon juice and a little honey enliven everything. Full of cooked chicken, cabbage, cucumbers and roasted cashews, this salad makes a great potluck addition or very happy desk lunch.

Recipe: Spicy and Creamy Cashew Chicken Salad

“This was one of the most surprisingly delicious NYT recipes I’ve ever made.”

Toasted rice is cooked in coconut milk for a rich, fragrant base to this gorgeous, textured salad from Kayla Hoang. The rice, seared ponzu-marinated tofu, cabbage, scallions, cilantro and a drinkable dressing of honey, Sriracha, garlic, ginger, coconut milk and ponzu are combined to make this a meal worthy of the label “dinner.”

Recipe: Toasted Coconut Rice Salad

“This recipe received a ringing endorsement from my 7yo who said the recipe should be named ‘lights’ because ‘it’s lit.’ Made some meatballs separately and served it with a side salad… will be making ‘lights’ again!”

If you’ve ever enjoyed a bowl of boxed mac and cheese with a little squiggle of ketchup stirred in, you’re going to love this elevated Cheddar tomato mac from Ali Slagle. Tomato paste, garlic and paprika are sizzled in butter, and then pasta and water are added. The pasta’s starches thicken the liquid, which gets a big handful of grated Cheddar, creating a glossy, savory sauce.

Recipe: One-Pot Cheddar Tomato Mac

“Made this recipe as is with no changes or additions. FANTASTIC. My 10 yo, 13yo, wife and I all agree it’s a phenomenal recipe.”

When Pete Wells, the former Times restaurant critic, wrote about changing his eating habits, he offered this recipe. Boiling sweet potatoes instead of roasting them slows the rate at which their sugars are absorbed into the bloodstream, as does eating them in their jackets, which contain fiber. Topping them with an herby chermoula and protein-packed roasted chickpeas makes it a full, satisfying meal.

Recipe: Seared Sweet Potatoes With Chermoula

“This truly saved me.”

Dan Pelosi knows how to make the most of a jar of pesto. Here, he combines it with boneless chicken thighs, garlic, rice, herbs and peas for a one-pot dinner that you’re going to want to add to the rotation.

Recipe: Chicken and Pesto Rice With Peas

“I have only made recipes with a significant amount of reviews in the past. I decided to give this one a shot, even though there hasn’t been a single review written yet. I’m happy to say that my whole family loved this. It is a keeper, and we will make it again and again.”

Peanut butter — or almond, cashew or sunflower butter — do the hard work in this weeknight recipe from Hetty Lui McKinnon. It adds a toasty richness and creamy texture to this cozy dish that doesn’t feel the least bit heavy or nap-inducing.

Recipe: Tofu and Sweet Potato Peanut Butter Curry

“I made it the way they suggested it (WHAT!?!), and it’s delicious!!! Love the tanginess and body that the sour cream adds.”

Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal came to the NYT Cooking studio to make the banana bread that their mom, Naomi Foner, used to bake for them when they were kids. It’s a classic iteration, and everyone loves it.

Recipe: Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Banana Bread

“This soup was INCREDIBLE!! Flavorful and balanced. My whole family devoured it…even my two picky eaters. 10/10!”

This special soup from Toni Chapman is inspired by the flavors of white lasagna: browned Italian sausage, sautéed mushrooms, a touch of cream and a hit of lemon.

Recipe: Creamy Lasagna Soup

“I have been cooking NYT recipes for years and never had commented until now. Because this recipe is so good that it deserves a comment singing praises.”

Inspired by spaghetti al limone, Hetty Lui McKinnon serves up a new and exciting way to eat chickpeas. The beans braise in their own liquid, called aquafaba, which helps the lemon juice and oil emulsify into a silky sauce. Burrata is added for creaminess and heft.

Recipe: Chickpeas al Limone With Burrata

“Oh my, this is insanely good.”

Kristina Felix delivers a mash-up of panzanella and Caesar salad in this clever recipe of roasted broccoli, white beans and chewy-crisp croutons. Not only are there beans in the salad, but some of them are also smashed into the creamy, garlicky dressing.

Recipe: Broccoli and White Bean Caesar

“This was incredible. The rice is something magical.”

Melissa Clark’s brain is a national treasure. Here, she tosses cooked rice with sesame oil, scallions and a little salt onto a sheet pan and lets it crisp in the oven. Then, she tops it with shrimp that’s been marinated in garlic, ginger, sesame oil and fish sauce and slides it back into the oven to cook through. So brilliant, so easy.

Recipe: Sheet-Pan Scallion Shrimp With Crispy Rice

Cottage cheese is more than just a vehicle for fruit. Ali Slagle whizzes it with fresh spinach, basil and Parmesan to make a gorgeous green pasta sauce that tastes like a perfect medley of pesto and Alfredo. Be sure to use freshly grated Parmesan. The preground stuff will cause your sauce to clump.

Recipe: Creamy Cottage Cheese Basil Pasta

“I ADORE this recipe AND have made it with veggie bouillon for my vegan friends. EVERYONE I have served this to raves about it.”

Pete Wells adapted this hearty, fiber-rich soup, which hails from Friuli, a region in northeastern Italy where barley is a favorite grain, from Marcella Hazan. She used cauliflower, but this version calls for broccoli, which adds a little color.

Recipe: Broccoli, Barley and Cannellini Bean Soup

“Made this tonight to watch the Oscars. Absolutely delicious with a simple Little Gems salad on the side, simply dressed with red wine vinegar, very fine evo and salt.”

In this recipe, which Wolfgang Puck, the celebrity chef, makes for the Oscars after-party, chunks of tender chicken are bathed in a creamy, sherry-touched base that is infused with thyme and bay leaf. Instead of making double-crust pies, for ease he tops the pies with a single golden round of store-bought puff pastry.

Recipe: Wolfgang Puck’s Chicken Potpie

“This was fantastic. Melissa Clark is the GOAT.”

Not your run of the mill pasta, this dish from Melissa Clark combines sautéed silky cabbage and leeks, Gruyère, crème fraîche, smoked paprika and fresh dill for a fiber-rich, cost-effective vegetarian pasta that’ll give you the warm fuzzies.

Recipe: One-Pot Cheesy Orecchiette With Cabbage and Paprika

“This is so easy to prepare, delicious, and good with so many different vegetable and crackers that it doesn’t last three hours in my house.”

Genevieve Ko adapted this multipurpose dressing from the chefs Travis Lett and Ian Robinson, who run RVR in Los Angeles. Silken tofu, miso, rice vinegar, white sesame paste, honey and garlic are blended until smooth to be used as a dressing or a dip for almost anything.

Recipe: Silken Tofu-Miso Dressing

“This was so delicious that my normally reserved father-in-law drank the leftover sauce and went looking for more.”

If marry me chicken and chicken Florentine had a baby, this creamy one-pot chicken dish from Dan Pelosi would be it. Browned boneless chicken breasts swim in a rich sauce made with heavy cream and cream cheese, tomatoes, onion, Parmesan and wilted spinach.

Recipe: Creamy Tuscan Chicken

“This is really really REALLY good.”

Published last month, Melissa Clark’s superhero noodles have already rocketed to the near-top of the list. A slurry of crunchy peanut butter, sesame oil, chile crisp and lime juice dresses noodles and cucumbers, but the real secret is the addition of crystallized ginger, which gives it all chewy pops of spicy sweetness.

Recipe: Cold Peanut Ginger Noodles

“This is a beautiful recipe! I was surprised how good it was because it’s so simple and easy. The sage is lovely. Low effort, very high payoff!”

Ali Slagle’s hearty, wholesome stew, published in early January, hit the spot for readers looking to reset after a long holiday season or to ward off that winter cold. Add a big squeeze of lemon juice, a shower of Parmesan and a hunk of crusty bread if you’re in the mood.

Recipe: Chicken and White Bean Stew

“This was a hit with the whole family. Yummy, easy, and seems like it could easily be adjusted with different veggies, proteins, sides, etc.”

Ground beef makes this flavorful curry from Amelia Rampe affordable and perfect for a weeknight. The recipe calls for store-bought curry bricks, but you can make your own if you’re feeling ambitious.

Recipe: Japanese Ground Beef Curry

“While I’m tending to a family member in the hospital, my daughter made a batch of these for me. Excellent! And so easy to heat slightly in the microwave.”

Readers fell in love with Eric Kim’s high-protein nibbles, which are fluffy and packed with cottage cheese, frozen spinach and scallions. They freeze beautifully, making them a meal prepper’s dream.

Recipe: Spinach Egg Bites

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