Quick, vibrant and full of flavour: 5 easy recipes - from fragrant butternut curry to lemony prawns

If you like to plan your dinners for the week ahead, this line-up makes it easy. Think of it as a five-day menu. A colourful salad or grilled halloumi bowl is perfect for a Sunday reset: midweek, go for something quick like lemony prawn tagliatelle, and by Friday, a fragrant butternut curry or sticky chicken traybake feels like a well-earned treat.

Each dish has been inspired by ingredients from the Waitrose Foundation. Launched in 2025, the Foundation has generated over £24.5m to invest in workers in its supply chains, and delivered nearly 2,300 community-led projects. Shopping and cooking with these ingredients is an easy way we can help support these efforts, while enjoying delicious home-cooked meals that friends and family will love.

Whether you shop on a Sunday night or pick up ingredients as you go, these quick, vibrant recipes are designed to make the week taste a little brighter.

1. Grilled halloumi and fruity bulgar salad

Sweet and spicy with a hit of chilli for good measure, this vibrant dive-in dish combines grilled halloumi with a fruity cous cous. Garnished with fresh herbs for colour and flavour, it makes a hearty main course or sharing platter as part of a larger spread.

• Serves 4
• Prep 10 mins | Cook 15 mins
• Per serving: 739 cals, 40g fat, 22g sat fat, 61g carbs

Ingredients

• 120g bulgar wheat
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 2tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2tbsp Waitrose No. 1 Chilli Jam
• 3tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 fat garlic clove, crushed
• ½tsp ground cumin
• ¼tsp sumac
• 1 mango, cheeks finely sliced, the rest chopped off the stone
• 2 x 250g packs of Cypriot Halloumi, each cut into 8
• Juice 1 lime
• 4 sticks of celery, sliced
• ½ pack Waitrose Candy Seedless Grapes, halved
• 25g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Flat Leaf Parsley
• ½ x 25g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Mint

Method

• 1 Cook the bulgar in a pan with 600ml cold water. Bring to the boil; simmer for 15 mins. Drain; rinse. Heat the grill to medium-hot.
• 2 Put the red onion in a glass bowl with 1tbsp vinegar and a pinch of salt. In a mixing bowl, combine the chilli jam, 2tbsp oil, 1tbsp vinegar, the garlic, cumin and sumac with black pepper. Spoon 1tbsp into a small processor/blender with the chopped mango, remaining 1tbsp oil and the lime juice. Season to taste.
• 3 Lay the halloumi on a lined grill and brush on both sides with the chilli jam mixture (use it all; keep the bowl to hand). Grill for 6-8 mins, turning halfway through.
• 4 Meanwhile, toss the cooked bulgar in the bowl you mixed the dressing in, then add the celery, grapes and herbs. Divide between plates or put on a platter, top with the mango slices and grilled halloumi, then drizzle with the dressing and serve.

2. Lemony prawn tagliatelle

A simple pasta dish that uses zingy foundation lemons and juicy prawns. We’ve used a fruity white wine in the sauce, along with a bit of pasta cooking water, and the result is super silky and smooth. It’s ready in around 30 mins or so, but it's smart enough if you’ve got friends round for supper.

• Serves 2
• Prep 10 mins | Cook 20 mins
• Per serving: 653 cals, 21g fat, 8g sat fat, 52g carbs

Ingredients

• 250g frozen raw king prawns, defrosted
• 1tbsp plain flour
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 25g unsalted butter
• 1 shallot, sliced
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2tbsp capers, roughly chopped
• 100ml Waitrose No. 1 Cederberg Chenin Blanc
• 100ml fresh chicken stock
• 150g fresh tagliatelle
• 190g pack Waitrose Tenderstem Broccoli & Fine Beans
• 20g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Tarragon, chopped
• 1 Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Unwaxed Lemon, zested and sliced

Method

• 1 Toss the prawns in the flour and season with salt. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the prawns and cook for a few minutes on each side, until pink. Remove from the pan and set aside.
• 2 Melt the butter in the same pan, add the shallot and cook for 2 mins. Add the garlic and capers, and cook for a further 2 mins.
• 3 Add the wine and stock, season and cook for 5 mins, until slightly thickened.
• 4 Meanwhile, cook the pasta and greens according to the packs’ instructions, drain and reserve a splash of pasta water.
• 5 Return the prawns to the sauce, cook for a few minutes, then add most of the tarragon and all the lemon slices. Toss the pasta and greens in the sauce to coat, adding a splash of reserved pasta water if needed. Divide between plates, and scatter over the lemon zest and remaining tarragon

3. Sticky chicken and pineapple tray bake

A dish bursting with flavour. The juicy, sticky pineapple and chicken combo is great cooked as a tray bake, but if you’re hosting alfresco, you could finish it off on the barbecue to lightly char the skin. Served with the slaw, you’ll be transported to sunnier climes.

• Serves 4
• Prep 15 mins | Cook 50 mins
• Per serving: 644 cals, 34g fat, 8g sat fat, 33g carbs

Ingredients

• 1 Supersweet large pineapple, peeled, cut into wedges
• 1tbsp each sriracha, dark brown sugar and groundnut oil
• ½tsp allspice
• 8 free-range/organic bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• For the slaw:
• 1tbsp each Dijon mustard and apple cider vinegar
• 1tsp sriracha
• ½tbsp dark brown sugar
• 25ml groundnut oil
• 190g Waitrose Baby Corn & Sugar Snap Peas, thinly sliced
• 25g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Mint, leaves chopped
• 1 Waitrose Braeburn apple, cut into matchsticks
• 3 spring onions, thinly sliced, plus a few extra to garnish
• ½ small white cabbage, shredded

Method

• 1 Heat the oven to 180C Fan. Put 250g of the pineapple in a food processor with the sriracha, sugar,oil, allspice and a big pinch of salt. Whizz until smooth, then toss together with the chicken and remaining pineapple on a large baking tray, turning to coat everything in the marinade.
• 2 Bake skin-side up for 40 mins, until the chicken is cooked through, basting several times with the marinade. Then transfer to the grill (or barbecue) and cook for a few more minutes, until the chicken and pineapple are a little charred.
• 3 For the slaw, whisk the mustard, vinegar, sriracha, sugar and oil in a large bowl with a pinch of salt. Add the remaining slaw ingredients and toss to coat. Serve with the chicken and pineapple, garnished with extra chopped spring onions, and any pan juices spooned over.

4. Grilled pork and grains

A bowl of good-for-you grains, topped with a spoonful of houmous and super tender and juicy pork fillet. We’ve dressed this with sumac, hazelnuts, and orange flavours so it feels light enough for summer dining, but won’t leave you feeling hungry.

• Serves 4
• Prep 15 mins | Cook 20 mins
• Per serving: 645 cals, 25g fat, 5.5g sat fat, 61g carbs

Ingredients

• 1tbsp Cook’s Ingredients Lebanese 7-Spice-Style Blend or Baharat Seasoning
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1tsp dried oregano
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 1tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 Waitrose blush oranges, zested, then peeled, and the flesh sliced
• 420g pork fillet
• 190g Waitrose Baby Corn & Sugar Snap Peas
• 3tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ¼tsp sumac
• 50g hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
• 1tbsp pomegranate molasses
• 25g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Mint
• 2 x 300g packs Waitrose Wheatberries, Lentils & Green Vegetables
• Avocado, hummus and crispy fried onions, to serve

Method

• 1 In a glass/ceramic bowl, mix together the spice mix, garlic, oregano, olive oil, vinegar and orange zest with salt and pepper. Add the pork, turning, to coat in the marinade. Set aside.
• 2 Slice the corn then cook in a pan of boiling water with the sugar snaps for 2-3mins until tender. Drain and refresh under cold running water.
• 3 Heat the grill to medium-high. Put the pork on a lined grill pan and cook for 10 mins, turn then cook for 8-10 mins more (or until 63C on a digital probe). Set aside to rest, then slice.
• 4 Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, mix the extra virgin oil with the sumac and seasoning. Toss in the veg, then add the orange segments, toasted hazelnuts, pomegranate molasses and mint.
• 5 Heat the grain pouches according to the pack instructions. Serve in bowls with the veg, orange segments, avocado, houmous, pork and crispy fried onions. Drizzle over any dressing left in the bowl.

5. Fragrant butternut curry

This vegan and gluten-free curry is more than the sum of its parts thanks to a rich Sri-Lankan curry paste and minty coconut chutney. It can be made ahead and reheated to serve, allowing the spices time to mingle and mellow. Try it instead of a take-out, you’ll be rewarded!

• Serves 4
• Prep 20 mins | Cook 25 mins
• Per serving: 598 cals, 43g fat, 24g sat fat, 36g carbs

Ingredients

• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 sprig fresh curry leaves, or about 8 dried
• 3cm piece fresh ginger, grated
• 190g jar Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Sri Lankan Style Curry Paste
• 700g mixed squash, peeled and chopped
• 400g tin coconut milk
• 160g extra fine green beans, or sliced runner beans
• Basmati rice, to serve
• For the coconut sambal:
• 25g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Mint, leaves picked, a few reserved
• 25g pack Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Coriander, chopped, a few sprigs reserved
• 80g Waitrose Good To Go Fresh Coconut Chunks
• 1 green chilli, chopped
• 1 small shallot, peeled, chopped
• Juice 1 lime

Method

• 1 Heat the oil in a large lidded frying pan or sauté pan. Add the onion and curry leaves, then fry for 15 mins, until the onions are softened and starting to brown.
• 2 Add the ginger and cook for 1 min, then add the curry paste and fry for 2-3mins. Stir in the squash to coat in the sauce, then add a jar of water and the coconut milk. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook over a low heat for 20 mins, until the squash is just tender.
• 3 For the sambal, whizz the mint, coriander, coconut chunks, chilli, shallot and lime juice in a small food processor until finely chopped. Season with salt and set aside.
• 4 Stir the beans into the curry and cook, covered, for 5 mins, or until just tender.
• 5 Heat the rice according to the pack instructions and serve with the curry, topped with some coconut sambal and the reserved herbs.

The Waitrose Foundation

Launched in South Africa in 2005, the programme now supports 10 regions across Africa, Latin America, and beyond. And, Waitrose now sells over 200 Foundation-labelled products in-store, including berries, citrus fruit, grapes, stone fruit, apples, pears, exotic fruit, vegetables, flowers, and wine.

Waitrose Group Food Director Jen Bedloe travelled to Foundation projects in Kenya and South Africa, meeting women whose lives have been directly transformed. From farming training to health clinics, she shares the powerful stories behind the food we eat. Read Jen’s full account here

Real impact in real communities:

• In Costa Rica, Foundation funding helped deliver eye tests and glasses to 53 workers and family members, many of whom had never had one before.
• In Kenya, thousands have benefited from access to clean water and energy-efficient cookstoves – helping reduce wood consumption and improving health.
• In every location, the Foundation listens to what communities need most – whether that’s new schools, medical care or vital childcare support.