When it comes to family-friendly versatility, it’s hard to beat chicken thighs and meatballs—and it's especially hard to beat a slow cooker. In June's last weekly meal plan, you’re working with all of the above. On Sunday you’ll slow-cook a big batch of chicken in broth and aromatics; 10 minutes of effort (and six hours of slow cooking) will put you on the road to barbecue chicken sandwiches one night and spring-into-summer fried rice another. And on Tuesday, a double recipe of baked meatballs with spicy-sweet seasoning leaves you plenty to nextover into easy, fresh pita pockets on Friday night.
That just leaves one remaining meal. Go meatless on Thursday with a light, lemony fettuccine that features a notoriously bountiful summer vegetable—zucchini—and comes together in less than half an hour.
All the details are below. But first, the grocery list:
Pantry
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- Bay leaves
- Celery salt
- Berbere or garam masala
- 1 quart low-sodium chicken broth
- Prepared barbecue sauce
- Dill pickle slices
- Dijon mustard
- Mayonnaise
- Sugar
- White miso
- Panko
- Dried currants
- White rice
- Olive oil and/or extra-virgin olive oil
- Vegetable oil
- Low-sodium soy sauce or tamari
- Chili or sesame oil (optional)
- 1 lb. fettuccine
Produce
- 2 medium onions
- 1 small red onion
- 2 heads garlic
- 1 head red cabbage
- 1 bunch carrots
- 2 bunches Tuscan kale
- 1 bunch radishes
- 1 bunch scallions
- Small piece fresh ginger
- 1 bunch broccolini (about 6 oz.)
- 1 cup snow peas
- 2 medium-large or 4 small zucchini
- 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
- 1 bunch mint
- 1 cucumber
- 3 lemons
- 1 orange
Dairy
- Eggs
- Whole milk
- 1 1/2 oz. Pecorino
- 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
- 1 cup plain yogurt (not Greek)
Butcher’s Counter
- 4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 2 lb. ground beef
Bakery
- 4 hamburger buns
- 4 pieces of pita bread
Freezer Case
- Edamame or green peas
SUNDAY: Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken
Spend 10 minutes today to set yourself up for two effortless dinners this week. After cooking, shred all but four of the thighs; chop those instead, for Wednesday. Refrigerate the shredded and chopped chicken separately.
MONDAY: Pulled Chicken Sandwiches with Freestyle Slaw
That premade chicken means you’re simply tossing together a quick slaw and tonight’s meal is ready. Follow the instructions here, using the red cabbage, a carrot or two, and the dressing for “simple, tart-and-creamy classic slaw.” Stir a few glugs of prepared barbecue sauce into some of yesterday’s shredded chicken before reheating it gently. Toast the burger buns. Pile chicken, pickle slices, and slaw onto each bun and serve, with extra slaw and pickles on the side.
TUESDAY: Oven-Baked Beef Meatballs
Ethiopian spices and dried currants make these easy meatballs anything but ordinary, and a double batch gives you the makings of Friday’s meal. This recipe calls for lemon juice; before you juice, though, zest the lemon, then store the zest in the freezer to use for dinner on Thursday. Cook a double batch of rice, too. Refrigerate the extra meatballs and rice separately.
WEDNESDAY: Easy Fried Rice with Chicken and Broccolini
Yesterday’s rice and Sunday’s chopped chicken thighs combine in a kid-friendly winner. Since the chicken’s already cooked, add it to the pan when you add the snow peas and edamame. As with any stir-fry, do all your prep work before you fire up the stove—it goes quickly!
THURSDAY: Fettuccine with Shredded Zucchini, Fresh Ricotta, and Lemon Zest
A light, summery dinner that’s ready in the time it takes to cook pasta? Yes, please. Pull out that lemon zest from the freezer before you start, and make sure to use a large skillet—shredded zucchini tends to release a lot of liquid, so you want it to have room to evaporate.
FRIDAY: Meatball Pita Pockets with Lemony Yogurt Sauce
Those Ethiopian-ish meatballs return tonight, reheated and nextovered into sandwiches. While they’re reheating, make a zingy, lemony yogurt sauce to tie everything together—use finely chopped scallion greens instead of the recipe’s chives. Warm the pita pockets and stuff each one with two or three meatballs, topping with thinly sliced cucumber and red onion, mint leaves, and a drizzle of sauce.
