One of the most frequent cooking questions I answer is regarding safe meat cooking temperatures. Over the past ten years, the recommendation for pork cooking temp has changed and there’s been a bit of confusion. So, this is a great time to review – and to share one of our favorite pork roast recipes once more!

Pork Internal Temp

145°F with a 3-minute rest provides the optimal eating experience and is the minimum safe internal pork cooking temperature provided by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.

I can not encourage you enough to take the time to learn how to use a meat thermometer. (This is an easy-to-use digital thermometer at a great price.) Once you’ve tried cooking pork to medium-rare or medium, the difference in taste, texture, and flavor just might blow your mind.

Pork Cook Temp

The recommended cooking temperature for pork used to be 160°F; for every cut, for every single type of pork. Now, thanks to all of the biosecurity measures and the animal health issues that are of so much importance in the pork industry, we have healthier and safer pork to eat at lower temperatures.

This means that we can safely eat pork cooked to a juicy and never dried out 145°F. And THAT, my friends, is delicious pork.

Per The National Pork Board, the recommendation for cooking pork chops, pork roasts, and tenderloin is an internal pork temp of 145° F, followed by a three-minute rest.

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Bite-size pieces of chicken are tossed in a mixture of oil and spices before being quickly cooked in a hot skillet to create these flavorful and juicy Indian Chicken Bites. Served with Cilantro Lime Rice or Mushroom and Pepper Rice Pilaf this is a meal that my whole family loves.

Chicken Bites

Incredibly flavorful and juicy Chicken Bites are a terrific dinner for the busiest of weeknights! This has become one of my favorite fast dinners over the past 12 years.

I originally stumbled across a recipe for Indian Chicken Bits and as soon as I saw the ingredient list and the simplicity of it all, I knew we’d be trying it soon. I saved the recipe in my “want to try this” folder.

Later that month, while we had a houseful of sick kids, Sean was able to toss these Chicken Bits together for a simple dinner over the weekend. There is not a distinct Indian flavor to this dish. However, the chicken is loaded with great flavor and just a hint of spicy heat. We all enjoyed it very much.

This is a very easy meal, maybe 30 minutes from start to finish and that includes letting the chicken rest for a while.

We’ve made this countless times over the past six years. As an appetizer or a main dish, this chicken is fantastic.

I’ve this chicken with the rice dishes I mentioned above, or on its own with Homemade Ranch Dip. I often serve the chicken along with a whole lot of fresh vegetables for dipping with the ranch dip.

Chicken bite recipes have become a popular dinner option in my house and we now make Southwest Chicken Bites, Honey Sriracha Chicken Bites, Huli, Huli Chicken Bites, Chipotle Ranch Chicken Bites, Honey Spice Broiled C

Ground Beef Stroganoff puts a new spin on the classic dish. Easy and fast enough for any weeknight, this stroganoff tastes every bit as good as the original–maybe even better! 

This recipe has all the ingredients that we love from classic beef stroganoff combined in a quick and easy weeknight-friendly meal. Use ground beef to make this stroganoff for a fast dinner that still has an abundance of flavor.

Fall is finally on its way here in Ohio and the cooler weather has me craving our favorite comfort foods. We’ve been warming ourselves up with Lasagna Soup and White Chicken Chili and all other kinds of soups and stews. The other day I had a very specific craving for Beef Stroganoff. I wanted those creamy noodles and tender pieces of beef served with savory mushrooms.

Easy Ground Beef Stroganoff

When I checked the freezer, however, I realized I didn’t have the chuck roast that I use in my Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff recipe. Now that I had Stroganoff on the brain I was not about to be deterred, so I looked through the meat drawer to see what else I might be able to substitute.

When I saw the ground beef, I knew I was in business. I’ve seen people making their stroganoff with ground beef before but I’d never tried it myself. Since ground beef cooks quickly, I skipped the slow cooker for this recipe and made it all on the stovetop.

Not only is ground beef stroganoff every bit as tasty as traditional beef stroganoff, it comes together in hardly any time at all! 

With just about 5 minutes of prep time to slice the mushrooms and onions, and 20 minutes on the stove, you can have a delicious homemade stick-to-your-ribs meal in less than 30 minutes.

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Try a fun seafood twist on classic chicken piccata with this Shrimp Piccata. It’s a bright, savory dish full of zesty flavors in a buttery lemon wine sauce!

Oh, my friends. I have a new recipe for you and it’s a solid gold keeper. Straight out of Holly Nilsson’s fantastic cookbook, Everyday Comfort, this Weeknight Shrimp Piccata called my name as soon as I laid eyes on the recipe.

It’s rare for a recipe to jump the line these days. I typically plan out what I’ll be sharing with you weeks and even months in advance, but every so often there’s a delicious reason why something gets pushed forward. This shrimp piccata turned out to be a line-skipping 5-star favorite for my whole family.

Chicken piccata is a long-time favorite of Sean’s. He orders it just about every time we are at an Italian restaurant and I make a few different versions of it. This chicken piccata recipe has been in our dinner rotation for over ten years now. It’s a little different from more traditional piccata recipes and we love it.

I strongly suspect that pretty much every dish in Holly’s cookbook is going to be a hit. These are easy and approachable recipes and I don’t know when I’ve seen a book where so many foods made my mouth water!

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Find out how easy it is to make delicious, crisp-skinned chicken in the oven with Italian Baked Chicken. Oven baked chicken with Italian seasoning has a crispy skin and juicy interior that makes it one of my all time favorite chicken recipes.

Italian Baked Chicken

Juicy chicken thighs with a crisp and flavorful skin are possible with less than 5 minutes worth of effort! This crispy chicken is made in the oven without any breading at all; the only ingredients you need are the chicken, a drizzle of oil, and a sprinkling of spices.

I’ve been making different variations of our crispy pan-fried chicken and crispy oven-baked chicken for the past few years and it just doesn’t get old. From Crispy Oven Baked Ranch Chicken to Crunchy Baked Chicken, I especially love this method for baking chicken in the oven.

If you think you can only get your chicken thighs crispy by frying them on the stove, you’ll be surprised by this recipe. There’s no standing over a stove frying each chicken thigh one at a time. Best of all, you don’t have to worry about any splashing oil!

Baked Italian chicken is juicy, tender and full of flavor from the Italian herbs, while the skin is just as crispy as your favorite pan fried chicken.

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