These recipes will cut your cook time from hours to minutes! Southern candied yams in 5 minutes instead of 1 hour and 30 minutes! Black-eyed peas in 30 minutes instead of 3 hours – and there’s no soaking the beans!
But don’t take my word for it. Read my thousands of recipe reviews, starting with my signature recipes below, including my signature Southern turkey recipe and my famous recipe for Black folks’ sweet potato pie, shared over 50,000 times!
Holiday recipes in under 30 minutes
Finding moments to spend with your family and less time making the meals is the best way to outsmart the holidays and prepare your Thanksgiving menu and Christmas dinners. Quick holiday recipes have been my lifesaver, allowing me to churn out festive meals without spending the day in the kitchen.
With efficient cooking appliances like an air fryer and Instant Pot, you can enjoy flavorful Southern soul food, quick desserts, stellar side dishes, and mouth-watering main courses in less than 30 minutes without missing out on the holiday cheer!
It’s a revelation for both novice and well-seasoned cooks, knowing festive recipes need not consume hours to be memorable. With a few time-saving cooking techniques, you’ll see your holiday meal planning transform into a joyous, stress-free affair!
Easy holiday side dishes
I’ve found a way to whip up speedy side dishes that are both flavorful and delicious without compromising quality. These dishes promise to elevate any gathering, making the starring sides as delightful as they will be effortless. In every bite, guests will taste the festive spirit, setting the stage for an unforgettable holiday feast. By choosing these easy holiday side dish recipes, you’ll cut the cook time and ensure the supporting cast to your meal sparks joy!
Cut the cook time with one-pot quick and easy mac and cheese. Using an Instant Pot for this recipe has transformed this seasoned and flavorful soulful family favorite into a holiday dinner breeze!
A Black folks collard greens recipe is a holiday quintessential dish of any Southern soul food dinner. This recipe cuts the cooking time to only 15 minutes with the Instant Pot pressure cooker!
Candied yams, a traditional Southern African-American dish, can now be cooked to perfection in just 5 minutes with the Instant Pot with no compromise to the dish's iconic tender texture and soul food cinnamon-brown sugar glaze!
Cinnamon, brown sugar, nutmeg, and vanilla combine with fresh apples to create traditionally baked apple slices. They can now be easily prepared in the Instant Pot to the same flavorful perfection in under 10 minutes!
This homemade creamed corn recipe will surely be the hit of your next get-together. What's the best thing about this recipe besides the Southern soul food flavors? It's made easily from scratch in 15 minutes!
Impressive is the ease and speed of preparing Instant Pot cabbage. This method locks in the cabbage's nutrients and the flavor from the soul food seasonings, herbs, and spices, making it a healthier choice that cooks in only 4 minutes!
Deviled eggs are easy to make, especially with the help of an Instant Pot for precise cooking. It only takes 5 minutes to cook them, and the best part is that you don't have to stand around and watch the eggs boil!
This Southern creamed corn casserole has a sweet corn flavor with onion and garlic for a rich, savory soul food taste. Add sour cream for a creamy melt-in-your-mouth pudding and parmesan cheese for the cornbread crust. Easy for anyone to make using the Instant Pot to sauté the creamed corn quickly.
This cornbread dressing recipe is a Southern dish you shouldn't miss on the soul food Thanksgiving menu. It's easy for anyone to make, especially when using the Instant Pot for a quick sauté.
One Southern dish you shouldn't miss this holiday season is Black folks chicken and dressing. This recipe is flavorful and easy to make, using the Instant Pot to quickly sauté the vegetables, herbs, and seasonings.
Pro tip: Festive recipes for main courses need not simmer for hours to enchant! Speedy recipes, harnessing the power of air fryers, pressure cooking, or one-pot meals, revolutionize holiday cooking. These efficient cooking strategies preserve cherished holiday traditions while significantly cutting the cook time. Both seasoned chefs and novices will find these quick holiday meals a winner, ensuring more time is spent celebrating than cooking.
Crispy skin and moist, juicy, flavorful meat – that's what embodies a Black folks Southern turkey recipe! An exceptional addition to your soul food holiday menu made easier with a pressure cooker to cut the cooking time for the homemade turkey brine.
An apple cider turkey brine brings a new taste to savor and juiciness to your holiday bird. This flavorful brine is made with apple cider and notes of citrus, pomegranate, cinnamon, brown sugar, and cloves. A one-pot drop made easy with an Instant Pot.
These succulent turkey wings are smothered in an apple cider brine, flavor-infused, air-fried to crisp perfection, and served with a seasoned soul food side. Your taste buds will gobble-gobble with joy!
The holidays are about creating memorable moments with family and friends with delicious, home-cooked meals. Still, there's no reason to let that holiday dinner become a week-long project! The solution is simple and tastes like your favorite state-fair meat: a Southern air fryer turkey leg recipe!
Holiday dinners don't have to be complicated or expensive. This Black folks' Instant Pot turkey legs recipe is an easy alternative to a whole turkey. A welcome addition to your Southern soul food Thanksgiving menu!
Do air fryers work for fried chicken? Yes, and you won't believe how good and crispy chicken is when it's air fryer Southern fried chicken! A soul foodSouthern fried chicken recipe is a unique, flavorful dish that Black folks created and perfected—and here's how to cook it in an air fryer!
To make Southern fried chicken in an Instant Pot, first pressure cook the chicken in a buttermilk brine to tenderize the meat. Pressure cooking the chicken before frying will shorten the marinating process from 24 hours to only 20 minutes!
A juicy, tender, and flavorful turkey breast is a timeless holiday tradition. Prepare this Southern turkey breast recipe easily without flipping or basting the whole bird!
A beautiful and delicious rack of lamb is never been easier to make! In the air fryer, seasoned with rosemary, and slathered with olive oil to quickly cook to soul food perfection!
Black folks are famous for our sweet ham glaze recipes, especially with pineapple and brown sugar. So you may know this soul food recipe by other names like pineapple ham, pineapple baked ham, or pineapple and brown sugar ham. However, this one cooks easier in the Instant Pot in under 30 minutes!
The secret ingredient in my Black folks' shrimp and grits recipe is the Southern Creole sauce. However, the dish's star is the shorter cooking time. The fluffy grits, tender, juicy shrimp, and special sauce are all made quick and easy in the Instant Pot!
The holiday season calls for sweet treats that dazzle yet don’t detain us in the kitchen for hours. In my quest for festive recipes, I’ve embraced both bake and no-bake options. Quick holiday meals, after all, should extend to desserts and sweet treats, turning holiday baking into a less daunting task.
Made with the same soulful flavor profile as my signature Black folks' sweet potato pie™, this Instant Pot sweet potato pie recipe is modern in simplicity and delicious in taste. It is a favorite among both beginner and seasoned cooks!
A darling dessert favorite in the South, this recipe is loaded with fresh, juicy peaches and a delicious warm cinnamon sugar crust, made with quick self-rising for ease in the oven!
Because of its layers, at first glance, banana pudding may not seem so easy to make. But it’s pretty simple to prepare once you know what ingredients are needed. Starting with a Southern banana pudding recipe made with instant pudding.
Classic holiday drink recipes that cut the cook time
While embracing these quick holiday recipes that cut the cook time and reduce long hours in the kitchen, let’s not sidestep the beverage list! Soulful holiday traditions like eggnog, coco, and apple cider hot toddies ignite precious moments for family and joy. Let these easy beverage recipes further steer you away from daunting holiday cooking marathons!
This creamy and sweet classic African American recipe features cinnamon, coconut, and rum flavors. While it may appear complicated, it can be easily prepared using a double boiler or one-pot appliance.
A creamy, exotic, and delectable drink awaits you! Step up your cocktail game with this beverage, which boasts a smooth texture and a rich flavor profile. It's a stylish drink shaken, stirred, and crafted in seconds. Perfect for impressing your guests!
Copycat Starbucks white hot chocolate is certainly easy to order—and even easier to make at home in the Instant Pot! Why spend your hard-earned bucks on one little cup of deliciousness when you can make it a family-sized affair at home for less?
Black people like sweet recipes, so it's no wonder we've embraced this Spanish-style fruity cocktail, combined with a delightful, sparkling Italian wine, to create our own unique quick pour: moscato sangria!
The Instant Pot is an all-in-one solution for making iced tea. With its timer and the ability to add all ingredients at once, it's a more efficient and resourceful method than using a tea kettle on the stovetop.
What is soul food? Soul food recipes are African-American recipes full of flavor! A legacy of Southern cooking the Black way. Check out this collection of the best soul food recipes!
