Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (2024)

* We sometimes use affiliate links, so we may receive a commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Check our disclosure for more info.

Need a 20 minute meal that’s kid friendly? Here are 12, 20 minute meals that are Kid Friendly, and you can have READY IN 20 MINUTES OR LESS for busy weeknights or when dinner time simply sneaks up on you! Um. Like tonight. And maybe tomorrow tonight.

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (1)

Grab the FREE 18 Meal Ideas CHEAT SHEET Here!

I’m not gonna lie. 20 minute meals are more of a regular event at our home than not. I am a big fan of fast, delicious meals that are quick to pull together in under half an hour or less. Less is always better.

I know dinner time can be hard.

Coming back from work or after school activities often leave you with little time to prep and cook healthy dinners from scratch. Stopping at the local take out seems like the easier option. Thing is, it’s not good for your health, waistline or budget.

With a few easy, quick, kid friendly meal planning tips and fast meal ideas, you can get your family eating healthier and save money – in less time that it would take to get through drive through. Just a give it a go for one week.

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (2)

Healthy Family Dinners

But don’t worry – just because it’s a quick dinner, it doesn’t mean you miss out on flavour. Here are 12 of our families favourite 20 minute Dinner Recipes that will please even the fussiest palate. What’s special about these recipes? They’re full of kid-friendly flavor, no one likes a bland dinner but kids can sometime be…picky, shall we say, about the flavors they’ll eat.
These are perfect, and please the whole crowd. And that’s a good thing in my book!

Download myFREE Dinner Time Cheat Sheet below, it’s really handy and will give you a head start!

Grab the FREE 18 Meal Ideas CHEAT SHEET Here!

12 Super Fast Healthy Dinner Recipes

Here are 12 of our families favourite 20 minute Dinner Recipes that will please even the fussiest palate.

Chicken Pesto Fettuccine

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (3)

This super fast mid week Chicken Pesto Fettuccine is a winner with kids. The creamy Pesto sauce and tender chicken means clean pates all round! Pesto fettuccine recipe here!

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (4)

This beautifully colorful Thai inspired dish takes just 15 minutes to out on the table. Get the kids to help with chopping and make it even quicker! Thai Noodle recipe here!

Grab the FREE 18 Meal Ideas CHEAT SHEET Here!

Quick Soba Noodles

Try these 20 Minute, Hmmm MMMM delicious weeknight soba noodles. Tender strips of chicken, sautéed broccoli and a sweet and tangy noodle sauce. Soba Noodle recipe here!

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (5)

Crab Pasta {Especially For Kids}

This mild crab pasta dish is the perfect way to get some seafood in their diets. Its fresh, lemony and cheesy. Yum! Crab pasta recipe here.

Chicken Donburi Bowl

This Clean Eating Chicken Donburi Bowl recipe is insane!! It’s simple, versatile and can be prepped ahead for an easy lunch or light dinner.

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (7)


Chicken Donburi Bowl

Healthy Chinese Fried Rice

I could eat this healthy Chinese fried rice all over again. And I will. There is a small lunch box of leftovers still in the fridge. Just enough for me and whoever catches me heating it up :)

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (8)


Chinese Fried Rice

This easy mid-week (or quick weekend lunch) Ham and Mushroom pasta uses cream cheese as a sauce and is a great way to use up any ham you have in the fridge. It’s a simple recipe, and especially good for littler kids who prefer their food slightly plainer than bigger kids (and us) might like. Feel free to leave the garlic out if you’ve got garlic haters in your house, or add extra to give it a bigger kick!

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (9)

Ham and mushroom pasta

Clean Eating Lasagne

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (10)

So what’s the difference between Clean Eating lasagna and your regular homemade lasagna? Shhh don’t tell anyone, but the answer is … nothing. The whole point to Clean Eating is making food using whole food ingredients. It’s not complicated and it’s something everyone can do.
Lasagne recipe

Chicken Piccata

This is a real Summery recipe, Clean eating Chicken Piccata: It’s quick, easy, fresh and lemony. You can have this ready in 10 minutes or so, making it one of the fastest healthy chicken dinners I make. We have this fairly often. I use chicken thighs for this, they’re really juicy and full of flavor as well as being a bit cheaper than breast meat.

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (11)

Chicken Piccata recipe

Cauliflower Broccoli Casserole

This Healthy Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole is delicious, cheesy comfort food, super healthy and packed full of the good stuff. It’s a regular here, requested often and always eaten. I make this with mywhite bean cheese saucefor an extra protein hit and while it’s technically a ‘side’ dish, this is so good you’d be forgiven for eating it all alone and straight from the dish!

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (12)

Cauliflower broccoli cheese casserole

Grilled Fish Tacos

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (13)

Grilled fish Tacos

Fussy Eaters Fajitas

Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (14)

Recipe Link

Quick family dinners

So, there you have it!

12 new and a little exciting easy recipes for dinner to add to your weeknight meal plan.

The best thing is that you can whip these little beauties up super fast using ingredients you’ve actually heard of! The next time you’re wondering what to fix for dinner (which I think is the reason you are here) – all you have to do it pick one of these!

To see the other posts in this 10 of the Best Meal Prepping Series series, check out the following:

  • 10 Recipes You Can Make with a Pound of Ground Beef
  • 10 Recipes you can make with a Jar of Pasta Sauce
  • 10 Healthy Sheet Pan Dinners
Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (15)
Kid Friendly 20 Minute Meals {Healthy Family Recipes } (2024)

FAQs

What's for dinner kid friendly? ›

Top kids' dinner ideas
  • 1) Chicken nuggets.
  • 2) Easy salmon curry.
  • 3) Swedish meatball burgers.
  • 4) Healthy beef stew with veggie mash.
  • 5) Chicken pasta bake.
  • 6) Homemade fish fingers.
  • 7) Air-fryer jacket potatoes.
  • 8) Creamy chicken stew.
Mar 19, 2024

What should I eat for family meals? ›

27 Quick And Easy Dinners Your Whole Family Will Love
  • One-Pot Cheeseburger Pasta. tasty.co. ...
  • Garlic Broccoli Shrimp Stir-Fry. tasty.co. ...
  • 3-Ingredient Teriyaki Chicken. tasty.co. ...
  • Grilled Salmon with Avocado Salsa. ...
  • Taco Soup. ...
  • One-Pot Chicken and Mushroom Pasta. ...
  • One-Pan Garlic Butter Salmon. ...
  • 20-Minute Beef and Broccoli Noodle Stir-Fry.
Oct 25, 2023

What can I cook for my kids today? ›

Kids' cooking recipes
  • Pizza with homemade sauce. A star rating of 4.5 out of 5. ...
  • Lemon & yogurt chicken flatbreads. A star rating of 4.5 out of 5. ...
  • Rice paper rolls. ...
  • Family breakfast station. ...
  • Salmon & spaghetti supper in a parcel. ...
  • Sloppy joes with brussels sprout slaw. ...
  • Salted caramel crispy Rudolphs. ...
  • Easy kids' omelette.

What is a family style meal? ›

“Family-style” is a method of dining where servers place all components of a meal on the table and allow everyone to serve themselves. They place large serving dishes in the middle of the table. In this way, everyone can reach the offerings and choose what they want.

What is a healthy daily meal plan? ›

A healthy eating plan: Emphasizes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat dairy products. Includes lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts. Limits saturated and trans fats, sodium, and added sugars.

What foods do low income families eat? ›

Lower-income households purchase more cereals, pasta, potatoes, legumes, and fatty meats. Their vegetables and fruits are often limited to iceberg lettuce, potatoes, canned corn, bananas, and frozen orange juice.

How do you feed a busy family? ›

Get your kids involved in coming up with meal ideas and writing out the meal plan. When they are old enough, get them to make one meal a week, or contribute to baking. Once a week, at the dinner table, bring a pen and paper and get everyone to vote for meals and snacks they would like.

How do I get my child to eat real food? ›

What can I do to help my child eat well?
  1. Sit and eat with your child. You are your child's best role model. ...
  2. Offer new foods often. ...
  3. Offer the same food in different ways. ...
  4. Let your child feed themselves. ...
  5. Reduce distractions at mealtimes. ...
  6. Be aware of pressure. ...
  7. Involve your child in preparing food.
Nov 1, 2022

Why should children eat meals with their families? ›

Kids and teens who eat family meals may earn higher grades in school, experience fewer symptoms of depression, and are less likely to engage in high-risk behaviors, like drug use. For kids in early childhood, family meals help develop language and social skills.

What's for family dinner tonight? ›

So next time you're wondering: “what's a good idea for dinner tonight?”, just pick one of these easy dinner recipes.
  • 1Easy cheesy 2-minute noodles. ...
  • 2Slow cooker chicken chow mein. ...
  • 3Chilli prawn spaghetti for two. ...
  • 415-minute chicken and corn noodle soup. ...
  • 5Cheat's chickpea korma curry. ...
  • 610-minute tuna mornay rice bake.

What is a kiddie meal? ›

The kids' meal or children's meal is a fast food combination meal tailored to and marketed to children. Most kids' meals come in colorful bags or cardboard boxes with depictions of activities/games on the bag or box and a toy inside.

What should a 4 year old boy eat? ›

Healthy options include fresh vegetables and fruits, low-fat dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheeses) or dairy substitutes, lean proteins (beans, chicken, turkey, fish, lean hamburger, tofu, eggs), and whole-grain cereals and bread.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Duane Harber

Last Updated:

Views: 5456

Rating: 4 / 5 (51 voted)

Reviews: 90% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Duane Harber

Birthday: 1999-10-17

Address: Apt. 404 9899 Magnolia Roads, Port Royceville, ID 78186

Phone: +186911129794335

Job: Human Hospitality Planner

Hobby: Listening to music, Orienteering, Knapping, Dance, Mountain biking, Fishing, Pottery

Introduction: My name is Duane Harber, I am a modern, clever, handsome, fair, agreeable, inexpensive, beautiful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.