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    Home • Recipes • Meals

    Main Dish

    Collection of healthy French recipes for dinner. Most typically served as the main dish/course, known as 'Plat Principal' in France (not to be confused with entrée, which is instead our starter/appetizer). Many are traditional family lunches/dinners or for entertaining. For lighter dinners, see recipes under light lunches.

    Looking for something specific? Browse the recipe index to refine your search.

    • French tian, a classic French dish of thinly sliced baked summer vegetables
      French Tian de Légumes (Provençal Vegetable Bake)
    • Lemon chicken thighs baked with garlic, herbs and fresh lemon in a rustic French baking dish
      Lemon Chicken Thighs with Garlic & Herbs
    • whole sea bream fish in a baking dish topped with tomato sauce, roast garlic cloves, lemon slices and potatoes
      Sea Bream Fish Baked Provençal Style (Dorade à la Provençale)
    • pan of cooked spaghetti, tossed with a creamy lemon pasta sauce with parmesan and poppy seeds
      Creamy Lemon Pasta Sauce
    • small individual asparagus clafoutis with parmesan sauce basil top
      Asparagus Clafoutis - Easy French Spring Recipe
    • stack of thin buckwheat crepes showing typical hole texture and dark colour of flour
      Buckwheat Crepes (Galettes de sarrasin)
    • Slice of stuffed cabbage with pork in a poached liquid with carrot and turnip served in a big bowl, a rustic French dish
      Stuffed Cabbage (Chou Farci)
    • Blanquette de veau, a creamy French veal stew, bubbling in a pot with carrots, mushrooms, pearl onions and topped with parsley
      French's Favourite Veal Stew (Blanquette de Veau Recipe)
    • large crock pot with French beef stew in red wine, known as Boeuf Bourguignon
      Le Boeuf Bourguignon: How to Make Burgundy Beef Stew like the French
    • oval dish with chicken in red wine and vegetables with a French baguette
      Traditional Coq au Vin (Chicken Casserole in Red Wine)
    • vibrant red tomato bubbling sauce with veal and vegetables in a crock pot
      Corsican Veal Stew with Red Peppers (Vitellu incu pivaroni)
    • a slice out of a golden leek pie to see inside the crust
      French Leek Pie (Flamiche) - A Classic Vegetarian Recipe
    • side dish of fragrant long grain rice with a hint of cloves
      How to Cook Basmati Rice on the Stove
    • slices of toasted bread with cheese, nuts, lettuce and bacon
      Warm Goat Cheese Salad (salade de chèvre chaud)
    • plate of sliced tender pork roast in a glossy cidre sauce cooked with potatoes and served with braised red cabbage
      Easy Pork Roast Recipe with Cider, Rosemary and Potatoes
    • black pot with bubbling tomato and fish stew topped with chopped parsley
      French Monkfish Stew (Lotte à L'Américaine)
    • soft scalloped potatoes in a gratin dish topped with crispy cheese
      Potato Gratin Savoyard (Without Cream)
    • dipping skewers of bread and cauliflower into a pot of cheese fondue
      French Cheese Fondue Savoyarde - and How to Serve it
    • large round tart with pumpkin, mushrooms and topped with walnuts
      Savoury Pumpkin Tart with Mushrooms
    • baked sea bass fish on one baking sheet with potatoes, cherry tomatoes, lemon and herbs
      Whole Baked Sea Bass Recipe - Dinner on a Tray
    • chicken tagine with prunes, toasted almonds and cone of semolina in background
      Chicken Tagine with Prunes
    • cutting into fluffy smoked haddock fishcakes
      Smoked Haddock Fishcakes Recipe
    • slices of pork in honey sauce with pommes noisette crispy potatoes
      Pork Tenderloin with Honey Sauce
    • butternut squash gratin dish with leeks, bacon and walnuts topped with melted cheese and sage
      Butternut Gratin with Walnuts
    • pan of fresh pasta noodles with goat cheese sauce, parsley and walnuts
      Goat Cheese Pasta Sauce with Walnuts
    • layers of lasagna with cheese, spinach, tomato and mint
      Corsican Cheese Lasagna (A Lazy Cannelloni au Brocciu Recipe)
    • pouring cheese sauce over a whole roasted cauliflower topped with crispy cheese and walnuts
      Crispy Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Cheese Sauce
    • bright orange mini pumpkins baked and stuffed
      Stuffed Mini Pumpkins - The Most Versatile, Easy Recipe
    • stuffed courgettes with cheese
      Mediterranean Stuffed Zucchini (Courgettes farcies)
    • cheese and ham hot sandwich, sliced in half to see the soft insides and toasted texture on top
      Easy Croque Monsieur Recipe -The Hot French Ham and Cheese Sandwich
    • pasta bowl of egg noodles tossed in olive oil, butter, garlic, herbs and garlic
      Fresh Alsatian Egg Noodles (Pâtes d'Alsace)
    • French onion tartlet tatin with salad
      Onion Tarte Tatin - With or Without Cheese
    • plates of herb crusted salmon with potatoes, asparagus and a butter sauce
      Parmesan Herb Crusted Salmon (Saumon à la Viennoise)
    • mint omelette
      Corsican Mint Omelette (Omelette à la Menthe)
    • plate composed of a classic French salad Nicoise with many ingredients next to a basil plant and French baguette
      Classic Niçoise Salad - With the Authentic Ingredients
    • juicy chicken drumsticks being baked and brushed with a tomato BBQ sauce
      Baked BBQ Chicken Drumsticks (with a homemade sauce)
    • creamy risotto topped with seared scallops and chorizo sauce and an edible flower
      Creamy Chorizo Risotto with Seared Scallops
    • pan-fried John Dory fish filet topped with buttery sauce, parsley and served with carrots and potatoes
      John Dory Fish - Easy Pan-Fried Recipe
    • beetroot salad with apple, leaves, nuts, seeds, orange and smoked mackerel
      Roast Beetroot Salad with Apple and Smoked Mackerel
    • 2 fillets of pan-fried mackerel topped with mustard
      Pan-Fried Mackerel with French Mustard
    • pasta noodles tossed in green nettle sauce and topped with fried nettles
      Nettle Pesto (Pesto d'Orties)
    • two rows of whole sardine fish stuffed together in a roasting dish with fresh parsley
      Roasted Fresh Sardines (Sardines Farcies)

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    Portrait of Jill Colonna, French cookbook author in Paris
    Welcome

    Bonjour - I'm Jill

    Here you'll find easy French recipes worth coming back to.
    After 30+ years cooking for my French family in Paris, I share reliable recipes made with everyday ingredients - from family meals to classic French desserts with less sugar and more flavour.

    -> Plus discover France like a local.

    More About Jill

    Latest Summer Recipes

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      Strawberries Romanoff (Fraises Romanoff)
    • Lemon chicken thighs baked with garlic, herbs and fresh lemon in a rustic French baking dish
      Lemon Chicken Thighs with Garlic & Herbs

    More Everyday Inspiration

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      What to Do in Fontainebleau: Food Guide to France's Most Underrated Royal Town
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      Saint-Germain-en-Laye Chocolate and Pastry Self-Guided Tour

    Popular

    • plate with eiffel tower and circle of caramel sauce around a shiny creme caramel
      French Crème Caramel (flan aux oeufs au caramel)
    • glass dish of chocolate mousse with cherries
      French Dark Chocolate Mousse (Mousse au Chocolat)
    • Blanquette de veau, a creamy French veal stew, bubbling in a pot with carrots, mushrooms, pearl onions and topped with parsley
      French's Favourite Veal Stew (Blanquette de Veau Recipe)
    • bowl of creamy chickpea spread with extra garlic the French way, served with raw vegetables
      Poichichade: Provençal Garlic Chickpea Spread

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