Midweek dinners need to do two things well: taste good and not take forever to make.
Chicken is perfect for quick meals because it cooks relatively quickly and works with almost any flavour.
The problem is deciding what to do with it.
If you keep reaching for the same salt, pepper and jar of sauce, here are some easy chicken seasoning ideas that can make midweek dinners much more interesting.
Peri-peri chicken and rice
Peri-peri chicken is an easy way to bring plenty of flavour to a simple plate of chicken and rice.
Season your chicken with a peri-peri blend, cook until completely cooked through and serve with rice and vegetables.
You can also slice the chicken and add it to a rice bowl with salad and your favourite sauce.
Jerk chicken with rice and vegetables
Jerk-style seasoning gives chicken a deeper combination of spice, herbs and heat.
Chicken thighs work particularly well because they remain juicy and have plenty of flavour themselves.
Serve with rice, corn, peppers or salad.
Lemon and herb chicken with potatoes
Lemon and herb chicken is one of the easiest family-friendly options.
The flavour is lighter than chilli-based seasonings and works brilliantly with baby potatoes and vegetables.
You can cook everything together as a traybake to keep washing up to a minimum.
Garlic and paprika chicken wraps
Chicken wraps are ideal when you want dinner quickly.
Season strips of chicken with garlic, paprika, salt and black pepper before cooking them in a frying pan.
Add the cooked chicken to wraps with lettuce, tomato and whatever sauces you like.
Cajun chicken pasta
Cajun-style chicken and pasta are a brilliant combination.
Season chicken strips with Cajun spices and cook them before adding to pasta.
Depending on the meal you want, you can add tomato sauce, a creamy sauce or simply vegetables and a little pasta water.
BBQ chicken loaded wedges
Cook seasoned BBQ chicken and serve it over potato wedges.
Add salad, vegetables or your favourite toppings.
It feels like comfort food but requires very little preparation.
Mediterranean chicken traybake
Add chicken to a roasting tray with peppers, onions, tomatoes and courgette.
Season with garlic, oregano and other Mediterranean herbs.
Then roast everything together until the chicken is completely cooked.
It is one of those dinners that looks like you have made much more effort than you actually have.
Spicy chicken salad
Salad becomes far more interesting when the chicken has plenty of flavour.
Season chicken with peri-peri, Cajun spices or another chilli-based blend.
Slice the cooked chicken and add it to lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, peppers and your favourite dressing.
Chicken wraps for lunch
Cook a couple of extra pieces of seasoned chicken at dinner and you can use the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Lemon and herb chicken works well in cold wraps and salads, while peri-peri chicken is great in a spicy chicken wrap.
Always cool, refrigerate and store cooked chicken safely.
The easiest chicken seasoning shortcut
If even measuring seasoning feels like unnecessary work after a long day, Flavour Sheets can make the process quicker.
Each sheet already contains the seasoning.
Place the chicken onto the sheet, wrap it around the chicken and cook according to the instructions.
The seasoning transfers onto the chicken while it cooks.
No measuring spices.
No mixing marinade.
No messy preparation.
That makes them particularly useful for midweek meals.
What seasoning is good for chicken?
Chicken works with an enormous range of flavours.
Peri-peri, jerk, lemon and herb, BBQ, Cajun, garlic, paprika and Mediterranean herbs are all excellent choices.
The best option depends on what you are serving with it.
Rice dishes can handle stronger flavours such as peri-peri and jerk, while lighter lemon and herb chicken works particularly well with potatoes, vegetables and salads.
How can I quickly add flavour to chicken?
You do not need to marinate chicken overnight to give it flavour.
A good dry seasoning can be applied immediately before cooking.
Alternatively, a seasoning transfer sheet applies the seasoning directly while the chicken cooks.
Both approaches are much quicker than preparing a traditional marinade.
Make midweek chicken less boring
The easiest way to keep chicken interesting is to rotate your flavours.
Peri-peri one night.
Lemon and herb another.
Jerk at the weekend.
The meal itself can stay incredibly simple.
Chicken, rice and vegetables tastes completely different when you change the seasoning.
That means you can keep the convenience of cooking chicken without feeling like you are eating the same dinner every night.