20 Mediterranean Diet Dinners for Weight Loss (2024)

Whether you're looking for dinner ideas to help you lose weight or ones that are simply delicious, these low-calorie, high-fiber choices are packed with nutrition to help you meet your goals. With balanced ingredients like whole grains, legumes, lean protein and a variety of veggies, these dinners fit well into the Mediterranean diet, which consistently ranks as one of the best healthy eating patterns you can follow.

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Slow-Cooker Mediterranean Diet Stew

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With a focus on vegetables, fiber-rich legumes and healthy fats, this slow-cooker stew fits the bill for those following the Mediterranean diet. Swap out the chickpeas for white beans for a different twist, or try collards or spinach in place of the kale. A drizzle of olive oil to finish pulls together the flavors of this easy vegan crock-pot stew.

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Brown Rice Shrimp Bowl with Tomatoes & Avocado

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This quick and easy bowl pairs brown rice with cooked shrimp, tossed in a ginger-soy-sesame sauce, to create a flavorful dish in no time. Topping with tomatoes and avocado adds color and nutrients. Use leftover brown rice or pick up a package of pre-cooked brown rice from the grocery store to keep this meal no-cook.

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Chickpea & Potato Curry

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This fast Indian-style curry comes together with ingredients you most likely have on hand, like frozen peas, canned tomatoes and chickpeas. Plus, using these spices shows how simple it is to make a curry sauce for an easy vegetarian recipe. Serve with whole-wheat naan to sop it all up.

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Chicken & Kale Taco Salad with Jalapeño-Avocado Ranch

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This healthy, super-fast salad recipe swaps out romaine for kale, giving you more than 10 times the vitamin C. Easy flavor hacks like store-bought ranch and pickled jalapeños help make a creamy, tangy and spicy dressing you'll want to drizzle on everything from salad to sliced veggies and shredded poached chicken.

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Veggistrone

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This vegetable-packed minestrone recipe is inspired by a popular Weight Watchers vegetable soup recipe. It makes a big pot of soup, so keep some in the refrigerator for up to 5 days and freeze the rest in single-serve portions. That way you always have an easy, delicious vegetable soup to start your meal or to eat for lunch. Think of this vegetable minestrone recipe as a base for other healthy soup variations—toss in leftover chopped cooked chicken, whole-wheat pasta or brown rice to make it more satisfying.

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Chopped Chicken & Sweet Potato Salad

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This easy salad recipe allows for a wonderful use of leftover cooked chicken. If you don't have leftover chicken, you can use a rotisserie chicken instead. Look for escarole in the produce section near the leafy greens. If you can't find it, you can use romaine instead.

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Chicken & Vegetable Penne with Parsley-Walnut Pesto

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Homemade pesto may seem daunting, but in this quick pasta recipe, the simple sauce can be made in minutes while the pasta water comes to a boil. You can substitute frozen green beans and cauliflower for fresh if desired. In Step 4, cook the frozen vegetables according to package directions before tossing them with the pasta and pesto.

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Celeriac & Walnut Tacos

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Fake out your meat-loving family and friends with this fast plant-based taco dinner recipe. Ground toasted nuts and chopped sautéed celeriac yield a texture similar to ground beef, then classic taco seasoning does the rest. If you want a little heat, sprinkle these healthy vegetarian tacos with some minced jalapeño.

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Curried Chickpea Stew

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Who says a meatless meal isn't filling? Packed with fiber-rich vegetables and chickpeas, this fragrant stew satisfies. And, the combination of the fresh ginger's subtle earthy spice with the jalapeño's heat creates a flavor profile that will make this stew a favorite.

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Shrimp and Cauliflower Bake

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This quick and easy seafood casserole gets bright flavor from fresh dill and feta cheese. Using cauliflower instead of pasta reduces the carbs in this dish.

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Charred Vegetable & Bean Tostadas with Lime Crema

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Pile vegetables and black beans onto crisp tostadas and top them off with lime crema for a vegetarian dinner the whole family will love. Charring the vegetables under the broiler infuses them with a smoky flavor while cooking them quickly.

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Easy Pea & Spinach Carbonara

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Fresh pasta cooks up faster than dried, making it a must-have for fast weeknight dinners like this luscious yet healthy meal. Eggs are the base of the creamy sauce. They don't get fully cooked, so use pasteurized-in-the-shell eggs if you prefer.

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Chipotle Chicken Quinoa Burrito Bowl

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This flavorful burrito bowl features grilled chicken coated in a spicy chipotle glaze. Loading it with vegetables and using quinoa in place of rice adds nutrition—including plant-based complete protein—for a healthier dinner.

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Vegetarian Stuffed Cabbage

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Though traditional stuffed cabbage recipes are made with meat, here Savoy cabbage leaves are stuffed with a combination of rice, mushrooms, onions, garlic and herbs for a healthy vegetarian stuffed cabbage recipe. The stuffed cabbage leaves gently bake in a simple tomato sauce. This easy stuffed cabbage recipe can be made ahead of time and baked just before serving.

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Vegan Coconut Chickpea Curry

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To make this 20-minute vegan curry even faster, buy precut veggies from the salad bar at the grocery store. To make it a full, satisfying dinner, serve over cooked brown rice. When shopping for the simmer sauce, look for one with 400 mg of sodium or less and check the ingredient list for cream or fish sauce if you want to keep this vegan. If you like a spicy kick, add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce at the end.

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Roasted Vegetable & Black Bean Tacos

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These hearty vegan tacos are quick and easy to make, perfect for busy weeknights. The combination of black beans and sweet potatoes creates a meaty texture and is so tasty no one will miss the meat or dairy.

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Pistachio-Crusted Chicken with Warm Barley Salad

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Barley and pistachios give this healthy chicken recipe a double dose of nutty flavor. For an easy change-up, swap the barley for your favorite whole grain, such as brown rice, farro or quinoa.

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Chickpea Pasta with Mushrooms & Kale

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Sneak more legumes—and all their health benefits—onto your plate by using chickpea pasta. Loading your pasta up with vegetables like kale and mushrooms here is not only delicious, but it also makes the meal more satisfying.

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Stuffed Potatoes with Salsa & Beans

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Taco night meets baked potato night with this simple recipe for loaded baked potatoes with salsa, beans and avocado. This easy, healthy family dinner comes together with just 10 minutes of active time, so you can make it on even the busiest of weeknights. This recipe is just as delicious with sweet potatoes in place of russets.

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Vegetarian Butternut Squash Chili with Black Beans

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This butternut squash and black bean chili is a satisfying vegetarian meal. Load up bowls of the butternut squash chili and top with Greek yogurt, cilantro and minced red onion. Or skip the yogurt and keep this healthy dinner vegan.