Cooking Techniques These Low-Stress Recipes Have Just 8 Ingredients (or Fewer) From pastas and omelets to cookies for dessert, these recipes make for a shorter shopping list — and a faster trip to the grocery store. By Bridget Hallinan Bridget Hallinan As an Associate Food Editor, Bridget Hallinan primarily focuses on home cooking content for Food & Wine.com. She writes and edits recipe content, interviews chefs for helpful tips and tricks, and works on franchises such as our cookbook roundups and taste tests. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on December 18, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email We're all for cooking complex recipes, but sometimes, having a shorter grocery list is easier. (And, not to mention, usually less expensive, unless your list happens to be meat- or fish-heavy). So we've rounded up a series of dishes that call for just eight ingredients or fewer, ranging from cheesy omelets and fragrant scrambled eggs to pasta and congee. Some have short ingredient lists as-is, while others just squeak by if you don't count pantry staples like salt, pepper, and cooking oil. Read on to see the full spread. Boursin Omelet Victor Protasio If you have any Boursin (or other garlic-herb spreadable cheese) lingering in your fridge, this basic omelet from chef Michael Tusk is a great way to use it up. Serve it with a crusty baguette and a crisp salad. Get the Recipe: Boursin Omelet Ande Ki Bhurji (Scrambled Eggs with Cumin and Fragrant Herbs) Sarah Crowder This traditional Indian scrambled egg dish includes almost an equal amount of fresh yellow onion to eggs. Combined with toasted cumin seeds, cilantro, and fresh green chiles, it's incredibly fragrant. Get the Recipe: Ande Ki Bhurji (Scrambled Eggs with Cumin and Fragrant Herbs) Belgian Waffles Abby Hocking Chef Ludo Lefebvre's waffles are topped with strawberries and unsweetened whipped cream for extra indulgence. Get the Recipe: Belgian Waffles Pasta with Sausage, Basil, and Mustard © Greg DuPree This tasty pasta recipe, named one of our 40 best, combines grainy mustard, hot Italian sausage, dry white wine, heavy cream, and basil for a quick meal that's ready in 20 minutes. Get the Recipe: Pasta with Sausage, Basil, and Mustard Creamy Spaghetti Carbonara © TINA RUPP This classic Italian dish benefits from six full ounces of delicious pancetta, plus seven other basic ingredients. Get the Recipe: Creamy Spaghetti Carbonara Easy Polenta Sarah Crowder Unlike classic creamy polenta recipes, which require nearly an hour of stirring, our simplified version comes together off the stove — seriously, just put the lid on and walk away — and is practically effortless. It's a great blank canvas, too, since it's made with only broth, polenta, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, salt, and pepper. Add sautéed vegetables on top, roasted pork or chicken, or even a simple poached egg with chile crisp and scallions. Get the Recipe: Easy Polenta Basic Chinese Congee © Todd Porter & Diane Cu This basic congee recipe, made with white rice, stock, salt, ginger, sliced green onion, and either sesame seed oil or soy sauce, can be adapted with all sorts of add-ins — Chinese sausage and mushroom, kimchi, and sweet corn, too. Get the Recipe: Basic Chinese Congee Herbes de Provence–Crusted Branzino and Fingerlings Greg Dupree This low-fuss sheet-pan meal gets flavor from herbes de Provence (we like Williams Sonoma's blend), Dijon mustard, butter, olive oil, salt, and pepper. You'll have dinner ready in just four steps and 40 minutes. Get the Recipe: Herbes de Provence-Crusted Branzino and Fingerlings Sheet Pan Chicken and Mushrooms with Parsley Sauce © John Kernick Cookbook author Julia Turshen's sheet pan chicken gets extra flavor from roasted lemons and fresh parsley. The meal is ready in 45 minutes and yields four servings. Get the Recipe: Sheet Pan Chicken and Mushrooms with Parsley Sauce Roasted Side of Salmon Christopher Testani If you've got Dijon mustard, a side of salmon, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, and sea salt, you'll have everything you need for this recipe (plus, some cold water to brine the fish). Round out the meal with buttered steamed green beans. Get the Recipe: Roasted Side of Salmon Steak Au Poivre with Red Wine Pan Sauce Justin Walker This steak gets served with a tasty red wine pan sauce, a combination of fond (browned bits leftover in the pan after searing meat), broth, shallots, red wine, and butter. It's all ready in 20 minutes — just the right amount of time to make some garlic-rubbed toasts and wilted spinach to go alongside. Get the Recipe: Steak Au Poivre with Red Wine Pan Sauce Roasted Asparagus and Mushrooms Eva Kolenko Syrupy aged balsamic balances the earthy mushrooms (either hen-of-the-woods, oyster, or morels) and charred asparagus. Top with a couple fried eggs, and it's a perfect spring dinner. Get the Recipe: Roasted Asparagus and Mushrooms Supersimple Green Salad Ditte Isager Cookbook author Nadine Levy Redzepi's salad is another versatile blank canvas. It's prepared with red leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, and a mustard-vinegar dressing — feel free to add in a protein of your choice, like grilled chicken or chickpeas. Get the Recipe: Supersimple Green Salad Vegan Caesar Salad with Chicories and Walnuts John Kernick The dressing for this vegan take on Caesar salad includes miso, lemon juice and zest, extra-virgin olive oil, cumin, and maple syrup. Get the Recipe: Vegan Caesar Salad with Chicories and Walnuts Sopa de Ajo (Basque Garlic Soup) Greg DuPree Smoked Spanish paprika and thoroughly toasted baguette give this quick soup deep flavor. Get the Recipe: Sopa de Ajo (Basque Garlic Soup) Two-Bite Parmesan Biscuits Caitlin Bensel These biscuits are baked on a bed of grated cheese, resulting in a crispy crust on each. Get the Recipe: Two-Bite Parmesan Biscuits Vanilla Ice Cream © Caitlin Van Horn Our simple vanilla ice cream recipe calls for just four ingredients — half-and-half, egg yolks, sugar, and a vanilla bean. Get the Recipe: Vanilla Ice Cream Lee Lee’s Double Chocolate Chunk Brownies Greg DuPree This brownie recipe can be adapted according to what you have on hand — swap in light brown sugar if you don't have dark brown sugar and feel free to use chocolate chips, too. Get the Recipe: Lee Lee’s Double Chocolate Chunk Brownies Crunchy Peanut Butter Cookies © Tina Rupp These cookies are flourless and ultra simple, requiring just smooth peanut butter, sugar, baking soda, and an extra-large egg. The finely chopped peanuts and mini chocolate chips are optional — but highly recommended. Get the Recipe: Crunchy Peanut Butter Cookies Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit