After weeks of festive holiday meals, you may be craving a return to comforting routines in the kitchen (and more vegetables). Cooking for yourself, with a little care and an eye to some lighter fare, can be the best way to treat yourself. We asked our Food staff to share some of their favorite dishes to make in the new year. These recipes will help you recover, recharge and start fresh in 2026.
Credit…David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
After having made it through to the new year, I may be resolution-ready in my head, yet not necessarily in reality. To bridge that gap, I make nourishing meals that are hearty but not heavy, like this warming dish from Kay Chun that comes together in 25 minutes. It’s a chicken soup filled with mushrooms and cabbage, with a kick of ginger and the bracing spice of yuzu kosho to help chase away any lingering holiday sniffles. CATHY LO
Recipe: Chicken and Vegetable Donabe
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Soups and stews are still on endless rotation, but an occasional cold and crunchy dinner feels necessary — with a rotisserie chicken, this no-cook number from Zainab Shah comes together in minutes to brighten up dinner. BECKY HUGHES
Recipe: Smashed Cucumber and Chicken Salad
Credit…Tara Donne for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Liza Jernow.
I’ve been making Martha Rose Shulman’s slow-baked beans with kale for at least 12 years. I use those big white gigante beans, which become satisfyingly creamy and soul-warming after four hours simmering in the tomato and herbes de Provence base. Her recipe scratches that braising itch I get every bitterly cold January, while being a nice break from all of the meaty holiday roasts and stews I’ve been enjoying all season long. MARGAUX LASKEY
Recipe: Slow-Baked Beans With Kale
Credit…Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Love one vegetable with all your heart and eat it every which way. I choose broccoli. Roast it, then gloss it in Dijon, vinegar and a little butter. Thinly slice the whole head, let a vinaigrette soften it into a slaw and then toss it with the loud ingredients of an Italian sub or chopped salad. Toss florets into a soup in the last few minutes of simmering. And more! ALI SLAGLE
Recipes: Italian Broccoli Salad | Roasted Broccoli With Vinegar-Mustard Glaze | Mini Meatball Soup With Broccoli and Orecchiette
Credit…James Ransom for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
This stew hits all the check marks for what I want and need in January. It’s warming, spicy, brothy, good-for-me (hello, leafy greens), inexpensive to make and exciting to eat. I eat this with white rice cooked with millet and a scoop of Greek yogurt or labneh if I don’t have sour cream. MIA LEIMKUHLER
Recipe: Gochujang Potato Stew
Credit…Ben Russell for The New York Times
More flavor bombs in 2026. I’m going to commit to a little more cooking forethought, helping my future self eat more deliciously. This secret-weapon stir-fry sauce from Amanda Cohen, the chef of Dirt Candy, is a frozen cube designed to amp up the flavors of weeknight stir-fries. If cilantro isn’t your thing, leave it out, and do as Cooking users do and tweak the recipe by adding lemongrass, habanero and lime juice. SARA BONISTEEL
Recipe: Amanda Cohen’s Secret-Weapon Stir-Fry Sauce
Credit…Michael Kraus for The New York Times
Lentils are nutrient-dense, filling and easy to cook. Eating them to start the new year is also an Italian tradition; the abundance of coin-shaped pulses is meant to symbolize wealth and good fortune in the new year. My Italian American family didn’t partake in this particular ritual while I was growing up, but I’ve slowly adopted it as my own as an adult. I love to cook up a huge pot of Nigella Lawson’s lentils on New Year’s Day to sprinkle atop salads and grain bowls that whole first week of January. LAUREN SAVOIE
Recipe: French Lentils With Garlic and Thyme
Credit…Emma Fishman for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich. Prop stylist: Sophia Eleni Pappas.
I must confess: I don’t love frittata, or cooking on New Year’s Day — especially after a night out. But this kuku sabzi recipe from Andy Baraghani is the exception. It’s bright, fragrant and is a hopeful, savory way to start the year. WILSON WONG
Recipe: Kuku Sabzi (Herb and Scallion Frittata)
Credit…Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Are you tired, cold and hungry? I know I am this time of year. When I’m feeling like a shell of a human, I turn to ramen. Is this even a recipe? That’s debatable. But if you do follow it, you won’t be disappointed. My only amendment is that I cook my noodles for about half the time because I prefer them very al dente. ROSS LAING
Recipe: Perfect Instant Ramen
Credit…Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini
After all the holiday festivities, I want to reset with something healthy and hearty. Yewande Komolafe’s masala chickpeas with tofu and blistered tomatoes makes for a comforting weeknight dinner. KIM GOUGENHEIM
Recipe: Masala Chickpeas With Tofu and Blistered Tomatoes
Credit…Joel Goldberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff.
Nothing is more therapeutic to me than simmering a big pot of soup, and this tangy Lebanese lentil soup is one of my favorites. It calls for two bunches of Swiss chard and plenty of brown lentils to start the new year off on a hearty note, and it’s bright from lemon juice and a flavorful garlic-cilantro oil poured on top. ALLISON JIANG
Recipe: Shorbat Adas bil Hamod (Lentil Soup With Greens)
Credit…Mark Weinberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Naz Deravian’s salad is a staple when I’m craving something quick, easy and budget-friendly that still feels fresh. The crunchy cucumber, juicy pops of pomegranate seeds, mint, red onion and lime juice really come together for the most refreshing bite, with a bright burst of tang. It’s light, won’t weigh you down and is the perfect way to enjoy fresh pomegranate while it’s in season. JAEVON WILLIAMS
Recipe: Cucumber Pomegranate Salad
Credit…Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
New Year, same fave. And for good reason! Melissa Clark’s recipe meets all my cold weather needs: It’s hearty, it comes together in one pot in half an hour and it makes use of the canned chickpeas I have in spades. I like to top it with Greek yogurt, fresh cilantro and mint leaves and a generous squeeze of lime. SHARON ATTIA
Recipe: Coconut Curry Chickpeas With Pumpkin and Lime
Credit…Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth.
Nisha Vora’s recipe introduced me to a new way to cook tofu — in wide thin strips for a tasty mix of crispy and chewy textures. The crunch of the sumac onions, the freshness of sliced cucumbers and tomatoes and the lemony tahini sauce all come together to make this a refreshing and light dish. It’s a perfectly bright way to start the new year! ALLISON CHIN
Recipe: Crispy Tofu Shawarma
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