For big groups and simple weeknight dinners, the sheet pan is a great hack. You can roast a lot at once without a lot of cleanup and get a good diversity of proteins, carbs, and veggies, and here are 20 ways that you can utilize the sheet pan to its full potential.
One-Pan Roast Chicken
Recipe and video by Corinna S.
The best part is that the potatoes and carrots cook right alongside the chicken and soak up all of those delicious juices while everything roasts. By the time it's done, the chicken is golden, the vegetables are tender, and dinner is ready all in one pan. Nothing fancy, just a really good family dinner.
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Ingredients
Method
- Start with a whole fresh chicken and season it with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
- Peel and chop the carrots.
- Chop the white potatoes – no need to peel since the skins are thin.
- Surround the chicken with the carrots and potatoes in the pan.
- Put it into a 425°F oven and walk away while it roasts – the potatoes and carrots cook alongside the chicken and soak up the juices.
- Roast about 70 minutes until the thickest part of the thigh reaches 165°F and the vegetables are tender, then dinner is ready all in one pan.
Notes
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
The chicken fajita is made for the griddle, so the sheet pan is a logical place for it. As with all sheet pan recipes, spacing is key, as air circulation is a must to get that nice roasted texture.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed metal sheet. Mix 1 tablespoon oil, orange juice, cumin, ancho chile, oregano, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; coat whole thighs.
- Toss peppers and onion with remaining oil and salt on one side. Arrange chicken in one layer on other side without covering vegetables.
- Roast 15 minutes; turn vegetables and roast 10 to 15 minutes more until chicken reaches 165°F and pepper edges brown.
- Transfer chicken to clean board; rest 5 minutes. Meanwhile, foil-wrap tortillas and warm on cleared pan corner, leaving vegetables in oven.
- Slice thighs across grain; toss with peppers and lime juice. Divide among 8 tortillas; serve 2 fajitas per portion.
Sheet Pan Sausage and Veggies
Sausage and veggies are great for the grill, but for colder weather, the sheet pan does just fine. This recipe uses chicken-apple sausage, but I'd probably use a pork sausage here.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F. Toss cauliflower, carrots, and onion with oil, salt, pepper, and thyme on 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet.
- Spread in one layer, flat sides down; roast 12 minutes.
- Turn vegetables; add sausage in open spaces. Roast 15 minutes more.
- Mix Dijon and vinegar; drizzle over tray and gently toss. Roast 3 to 5 minutes until carrots tender and sausage hot throughout.
- Divide evenly among 4 plates; scrape browned bits without adding liquid.
Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs and Potatoes
Smashed potatoes are a fun technique: roast first, then smash directly into the pan. Marinated chicken thighs cook while the smashed potatoes get their second cooking.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F. Toss whole potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt on 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Roast 35 to 40 minutes until centers easily pierced.
- Mix mustard, vinegar, garlic, pepper, rosemary, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Coat thighs; refrigerate while potatoes finish first roast.
- Press hot potatoes with sturdy mug bottom to about 1/2 inch thick. Drizzle with remaining oil; add remaining salt.
- Space thighs between potatoes; roast 25 to 30 minutes until chicken reaches 165°F and potato edges crisp.
- Rest 5 minutes; serve each thigh with one-quarter potatoes.
Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil
You don't need to boil anything for a shrimp boil, and in fact, I think the oven might do the job better. The sausage and veggies get plenty of time in the oven, with shrimp joining for the final stretch.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Toss potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil and fine salt; spread cut-side down. Roast 20 minutes.
- Mix paprika, garlic powder, celery salt, cayenne, and pepper. Toss corn and andouille with remaining oil and half spice mixture.
- Turn potatoes; add corn and sausage in one layer. Roast 12 minutes.
- Pat shrimp dry; toss with remaining spices. Add to pan; dot everything with butter. Roast 7 to 9 minutes until shrimp opaque and 145°F and potatoes tender.
- Drizzle with lemon juice; gently turn in pan juices. Divide potatoes, corn, sausage, and shrimp among 4 plates.
Sheet Pan Salmon and Asparagus
As much as I'd love to do salmon and asparagus on the grill, I don't think condo management would take too kindly to me risking a building fire by barbecuing on the patio. The sheet pan solves the issue. One change I would make to the recipe, though, I think it's probably best to add the beans in the last five minutes, just enough to give them a little heat.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet with parchment rated for temperature. Toss asparagus and beans with 1 tablespoon oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper; spread around edges.
- Pat salmon dry; arrange skin-side down in center. Add remaining salt; thinly spread Dijon over each.
- Mix panko, zest, and remaining oil; lightly press onto mustard-coated salmon.
- Roast 12 to 16 minutes until salmon reaches 145°F, asparagus tender, and crumbs golden. Check thin fillets early.
- Drizzle lemon juice over beans and asparagus. Serve 1 fillet with one-quarter vegetables and beans per portion.
Sheet Pan Pork Chops and Veggies
Pork chops do just as well on the sheet pan as in the skillet. This recipe adds roasted chickpeas as well, which work better than you'd think.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Toss carrots, chickpeas, and onion with 1 tablespoon oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt; roast 18 minutes.
- Pat chops dry; rub with remaining oil, coriander, cumin, garlic powder, pepper, and remaining salt.
- Turn vegetables; make 4 spaces for chops directly against foil.
- Roast 15 to 20 minutes until thickest chop reaches 145°F and carrots tender, turning chops after 10 minutes.
- Rest pork at least 3 minutes. Drizzle lemon juice over vegetables; serve 1 chop with one-quarter carrots and chickpeas per portion.
Sheet Pan Steak and Potatoes
Steak demands a quick grill, so obviously the vegetables have some time to roast before the steak goes in. A little time under the broiler cooks the steak and also adds some nice char to the veggies.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 450°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed metal sheet. Toss potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil, rosemary, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; roast 20 minutes.
- Pat steak dry; rub with Worcestershire, garlic powder, pepper, 1 teaspoon oil, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Toss beans with remaining oil and salt.
- Turn potatoes; add beans and roast 7 minutes more. Move vegetables to edges; lay steak flat in center.
- Switch to broil, pan about 6 inches from element. Broil steak 4 to 6 minutes per side to 145°F, watching vegetables and turning dark pieces inward.
- Transfer steak to clean board; rest at least 3 minutes, preferably 5. Thinly slice across grain; serve with potatoes and beans.
Sheet Pan Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs
Glazes work great in a sheet pan, but they also require a little care, or else they wind up turning into carbon. So start the chicken and veggies with just some salt, pepper, and oil, and finish with that honey-garlic glaze.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Toss chicken with 1 tablespoon neutral oil, salt, and pepper. Spread over half pan; roast 10 minutes.
- Toss broccolini and pepper with remaining neutral oil. Add to open half; turn chicken.
- Roast 10 minutes more. Mix honey, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and sesame oil in clean bowl.
- Spoon glaze over chicken and vegetables; turn to lightly coat. Roast 5 to 7 minutes until chicken reaches 165°F, stems tender, and glaze tacky, not scorched.
- Divide among 4 plates; spoon over small amount of cooked pan sauce.
Sheet Pan Nachos
If you're making nachos for a big group, the sheet pan is definitely the way to go. Feel free to scale this up for a game-day gathering.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Toss poblano, onion, and corn with oil, cumin, and salt. Roast 15 minutes, stirring once.
- Transfer vegetables to bowl; fold in beans. Reduce oven to 400°F.
- Layer half chips, half bean mixture, and half cheese on same pan. Repeat remaining ingredients in loose shallow layer.
- Bake 8 to 10 minutes until cheese melted and beans hot throughout, watching exposed chips for darkening.
- Spoon small amounts salsa and sour cream over tray; serve immediately in 4 portions.
Sheet Pan Pancakes
These sheet pan pancakes have the fluffy texture of normal pancakes in half the time, and there's no flipping required! It's the perfect way to serve pancakes to a crowd quickly!
Angela Latimer, Bake It With Love
I'm not sure you can call these "pancakes," even if they do basically use pancake batter. However, for a Saturday morning when you don't want to stand in front of the griddle, this is the perfect hack.
Sheet Pan Gnocchi
Those little ridges on gnocchi pick up browning as well as they pick up sauce. The fresh mozz goes on late, and the basil goes on at the very end. Be sure to tear rather than cut the basil for color.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet with parchment rated for temperature. Toss gnocchi, tomatoes, and zucchini with oil, garlic, salt, and pepper on pan.
- Spread in one layer with some gaps; roast 15 minutes.
- Turn gnocchi and vegetables; roast 10 to 12 minutes more until edges brown and tomatoes split.
- Scatter small mozzarella pieces; bake 2 to 3 minutes until just softened.
- Drizzle vinegar; fold in basil. Divide among 4 bowls while gnocchi edges retain chew.
Sheet Pan Kielbasa and Pierogies
The Pittsburgh-style potato and cheddar pierogi is considered an abomination in Poland, but I actually prefer it to the traditional potato and farmer cheese. If at all possible, I strongly recommend making the pierogi yourself — they're both relatively easy and freeze very well for later use.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F. Brush 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet with 1 tablespoon oil. Arrange frozen pierogies in one layer; drizzle measured water around them. Tightly foil-cover.
- Bake 15 minutes; carefully uncover, avoiding steam. Turn pierogies; oven-evaporate pooled water 2 minutes.
- Toss kielbasa, beans, and onion with remaining oil, salt, and pepper. Add around pierogies in one layer.
- Roast uncovered 15 to 18 minutes, turning once, until pierogies tender with hot filling and golden surfaces and beans tender. Follow any higher package minimum internal temperature.
- Mix sour cream and Dijon. Serve 3 pierogies per person with one-quarter sausage and vegetables and spoonful cold sauce.
Sheet Pan Chicken Parmesan
This chicken parm is a perfect test case for the oven-fry technique. Instead of getting grease all over your kitchen, just stick it in the oven (and even better if you have convection).
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Toss beans with 1 tablespoon oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt; spread along edges.
- Put flour in shallow dish, egg beaten with measured water in another, and panko mixed with Parmesan, oregano, and remaining oil in a third.
- Season chicken with remaining salt and pepper. Lightly flour, dip in egg, and press into crumbs; arrange in open pan spaces.
- Roast 15 minutes; top each cutlet with 2 tablespoons marinara and evenly divided mozzarella.
- Roast 4 to 6 minutes more until chicken reaches 165°F, cheese melted, and beans tender. Serve 1 cutlet with one-quarter beans per portion.
Sheet Pan Chicken Quesadillas
The quesadilla is every dad's favorite emergency dish for the kids while mom works late, and the sheet pan makes it even easier. This recipe uses leftover shredded cooked chicken, but really, a quesadilla is for whatever you've got.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; brush 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet with 1 tablespoon oil. Mix chicken, corn, dry spinach, cheese, jalapeños, cumin, garlic powder, and salt.
- Overlap 6 tortillas around edges, half hanging over rim, to cover sides. Put 1 tortilla in center to cover bottom gap.
- Spread filling evenly. Put last tortilla over center; fold overhanging halves inward to enclose.
- Brush top with remaining oil; foil-cover. Set second clean sheet directly on top as light weight; bake 20 minutes.
- Remove top pan and foil; bake 8 to 10 minutes more until golden and center reaches 165°F.
- Rest 5 minutes; cut 12 rectangles. Serve 2 per portion with 2 tablespoons salsa.
Sheet Pan Meatballs and Veggies
Nowadays, I actually do meatballs in the oven far more often than I do them on the skillet. Ricotta helps keep things nice and moist.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet with parchment rated for temperature. Toss squash and onion with 1 tablespoon oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt; roast 18 minutes.
- Gently mix turkey, ricotta, breadcrumbs, egg, Parmesan, herbs, garlic, pepper, and remaining salt. Form 16 equal meatballs with lightly damp hands.
- Turn vegetables; move to edges. Arrange meatballs in open spaces; lightly brush with remaining oil.
- Roast 18 to 22 minutes until meatball centers reach 165°F and squash tender with browned corners.
- Drizzle vinegar over vegetables; gently turn. Serve 4 meatballs with one-quarter squash and onion per portion.
Sheet Pan BBQ Chicken
Anything that works on the grill probably does alright on a sheet pan, and barbecue chicken is a perfect example. Just like on the grill, make sure not to burn the sauce.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Pat drumsticks dry; coat with 1 tablespoon oil, paprika, garlic powder, pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- Toss potatoes with remaining oil and salt. Arrange chicken and potatoes separately in one layer.
- Roast 25 minutes; turn chicken and potatoes. Roast 10 minutes more; transfer fully tender potatoes to clean plate.
- Brush chicken with barbecue sauce. Roast 8 to 12 minutes until tacky and chicken at least 165°F, preferably 175 to 185°F for tenderness.
- Rest 5 minutes. If needed, warm reserved potatoes in clean open pan section during last 2 minutes of cooking. Serve 2 drumsticks with one-quarter potatoes per portion.
Sheet Pan Lemon Chicken
Chicken breasts don't have to be a boring diet food — with an oven bake and the right sauce, they can be delicious while also being healthy. Lemon sauce, fennel, and white beans add a bit of an Italian touch here.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; foil-line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet. Toss fennel with 1/2 tablespoon oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt; spread across center.
- Pat chicken dry; rub with remaining oil, zest, garlic, thyme, pepper, and remaining salt. Set skin-side up with fennel around pieces.
- Roast 25 minutes. Mix beans with 1 tablespoon lemon juice and measured water; spoon around chicken. Turn exposed fennel.
- Roast 15 to 20 minutes more until thickest breast reaches 165°F and fennel tender. Check away from bone.
- Rest chicken 5 minutes. Drizzle remaining lemon juice over beans and fennel; serve 1 breast half with half vegetables and beans per portion.
Sheet Pan BBQ Tofu
Tofu is more familiar in a stir-fry, but it works great baked too. One thing: I personally have never had any luck pressing tofu, so I think it's unnecessary, but experiment and see what works for you.
Ingredients
Method
- Towel-wrap tofu; press under moderately heavy plate 25 minutes. Heat oven to 425°F; line 18-by-13-inch rimmed sheet with parchment rated for temperature.
- Cut tofu into 1-inch cubes; pat dry. Toss with 1 tablespoon oil, cornstarch, paprika, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Spread over half pan.
- Roast tofu 15 minutes. Toss broccoli and onion with remaining oil and salt and pepper; add to other half. Turn tofu.
- Roast 15 minutes more until tofu corners firm and broccoli edges browned. Mix barbecue sauce and vinegar.
- Lightly sauce tofu; roast 5 to 7 minutes more until tacky. Divide tofu and vegetables among 3 plates.
Sheet Pan Pizza
You'll never get that real pizzeria-style crust with a normal oven, but homemade pizza can still be pretty good. Keep toppings light, and consider investing in a pizza steel (basically a specialized sheet pan) if it's a regular item in your house.
Ingredients
Method
- Stand dough covered at room temperature 30 minutes. Heat oven to 450°F, rack in lower third. Brush 18-by-13-inch rimmed metal sheet with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil.
- Lightly dust hands with measured flour; stretch dough across pan. Rest 5 minutes if springing back, then gently press toward corners into even thin layer.
- Fork-prick center several times; bake bare crust 7 minutes. Meanwhile, toss mushrooms with remaining oil.
- Spread sauce over par-baked crust, leaving narrow border. Add mozzarella, pepperoni, mushrooms, and oregano in light even layer.
- Bake 12 to 16 minutes until bottom browned and cheese bubbling. Add Parmesan; rest 3 minutes. Cut 12 rectangles; serve 2 per portion.
Sheet Pan Breakfast
I love the aesthetic of the diner breakfast, and if you've got a big group, you can prepare a real variety of breakfast goodies on the sheet pan. Little wells in the roasted potatoes hold the "fried" eggs in place for maximum visual impact.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F; brush 18-by-13-inch rimmed metal sheet with some measured oil. Toss potatoes, bell pepper, and onion with remaining oil, paprika, black pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- Spread in one layer; roast 20 minutes. Turn; add cooked sausage.
- Roast 10 minutes more until potatoes tender. Make 4 shallow wells exposing lightly oiled pan.
- Crack 1 egg per well; add remaining salt. Scatter cheddar over potatoes, not yolks. Bake 7 to 10 minutes until whites and yolks set and eggs reach 160°F.
- Lift each egg with potatoes using thin spatula; plate with 2 sausage links per portion.
Staggering ingredients so nothing is raw or burnt
Sort the ingredients by how long they need before you sort them by where they look nice on the pan. Dense potatoes, carrots and squash usually go first. Chicken, pork or sausage follows according to its cut and whether it is raw or already cooked. Shrimp, eggs, fresh mozzarella and glazes come later. The shrimp-boil tray makes this clear: the potatoes roast before the corn and sausage, and the shrimp don’t arrive until the other pieces are nearly ready.
Cut vegetables to match their jobs. Thin carrot coins can finish beside a pork chop, but a thick carrot chunk may still be hard when the pork is done. Small florets roast faster than a large broccoli crown. Keep meat pieces similar in thickness and check the thickest part with a thermometer, avoiding bone. A clock tells you when to start checking; it can’t account for a particularly large drumstick or a thin salmon fillet.
Use separate areas of the same pan when one ingredient may finish early. Lift tender potatoes or vegetables onto a clean plate while the meat completes its cooking, then warm them briefly on a clean part of the pan if needed. Don’t put cooked food back on a plate that held raw chicken. Add honey, barbecue sauce and delicate cheese late, and stop the roast when the food is ready rather than waiting for every piece to become equally dark.
Foil, parchment or bare pan
Foil makes sticky chicken glazes and saucy nachos easier to lift from the pan, but it doesn’t automatically prevent sticking. Use the oil specified in the recipe and press the foil into the corners so liquid can’t run underneath a loose flap. Choose heavy-duty foil or overlap sheets securely when the pan needs a full lining. Don’t line the oven floor with it; the lining belongs on the cooking pan.
Parchment is useful for crumbly meatballs, gnocchi and tofu, where a delicate surface can tear against bare metal. Check the package temperature rating and keep the paper inside the pan’s rim. Never use parchment under the broiler. The steak recipe uses foil because its last stage moves close to the broiler element, where exposed paper is the wrong material even if it survived an earlier roasting temperature.
Bare, lightly oiled metal helps pizza crusts, potatoes and baked eggs make direct contact with a hot surface. It may need a soak afterward, but it can give the bottom better color than a soft insulating layer. Use a rimmed metal sheet rather than a glass baking dish for these temperatures and methods. The quesadilla’s second sheet pan acts as a temporary weight over foil and stays clear of the filling; it comes off before the final browning. Let a hot pan cool before adding wash water so it doesn’t warp from a sudden temperature change.
