Weekly Meal Plan: Finger-Licking Grilled Chicken, Slow Cooker Pork, and Fresh Corn Quiche

The kids will be back in school this week if they're not already, and we’ve put together five nights of easy meals to help smooth the transition. Things kick off on Labor Day with grilled chicken in a sweet-and-sticky barbecue sauce—and you’ll make enough to nextover into 22-minute enchiladas another night.

On Tuesday you’ll pop a spice-rubbed pork shoulder into the slow cooker before heading out, and come home to the foundation for two very different dinners. One is tender pork with a zesty basil sauce; the other is down-home pulled-pork sandwiches.

In between? Quiche—whose fresh-corn filling lets you pretend summer isn’t really ending.

All the details are below. But first, the grocery list:

Pantry

• Paprika
• Smoked paprika
• Ground coriander
• Ground cumin
• Cayenne
• Crushed red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Olive oil
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Vegetable oil
• Red wine vinegar
• 16 oz. unsweetened pomegranate juice
• 12 oz. apricot jam
• Molasses
• Light brown sugar
• Sugar
• Vanilla extract, optional
• All-purpose flour
• Whole-grain mustard
• 2 (16-oz.) jars tomatillo salsa
• Barbecue sauce
• Dill pickle chips
• Seasoned rice vinegar

Produce

• 2 heads garlic
• 1 (2") piece ginger
• 1 large shallot
• 2 small onions
• 1 small red onion
• 1 large bunch flat-leaf parsley
• 1 bunch mint
• 1 bunch dill
• 1 bunch chives
• 1 bunch oregano
• 1 bunch basil
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 1 lb. baby red potatoes
• 1 lb. green beans
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1 firm avocado
• 2 ears corn
• 1 head romaine lettuce
• 1 head red cabbage
• 4 lemons
• 1 lime
• 1 lb. any berries, optional

Dairy

• 8 oz. heavy cream, optional
• 12 oz. half-and-half
• Shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• Sour cream
• Eggs
• Butter

Butcher’s Counter

• 2 whole chickens (about 3 1/2 lb. each; ask butcher to cut each into 10 pieces)
• 1 skinless, boneless pork shoulder roast, tied (Boston butt; about 6 lb.)

Bakery

• Corn tortillas
• 4 brioche buns

Freezer Case

• 1 deep-dish frozen pie crust

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Prop Styling by Megan Hedgpeth, Food Styling by Simon Andrews

LABOR DAY: Sticky Grilled Chicken with Late Summer Tomatoes with Fresh Herbs

Sweet-and-sticky barbecued chicken is the kid-friendliest barbecued chicken, no? This recipe has you grilling two birds, so you’ll have plenty to nextover. In early September, tomatoes need little more than a hit of acid and a handful of herbs to make a spectacular side—toss that together while the chicken is grilling. Pull the meat from the bones before refrigerating the extra chicken. And before you go to bed tonight, coat tomorrow’s pork in its spice rub.

Looking for an easy Labor Day dessert? You can’t beat Mix-and-Match Fools, little more than whipped cream and macerated berries. We’ve included the ingredients in the shopping list, in case you want to close out summer with something sweet.

Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Dawn Perry

TUESDAY: Slow Cooker Pork Shoulder with Zesty Basil Sauce with baby red potatoes and green beans

Before you head out for the day, pop the pork into the slow cooker. When you come home, boil first the baby red potatoes, then the green beans, in salted water; toss each with butter. While the vegetables are cooking, make the basil sauce from the pork recipe—you can save yourself some knife time by simply rough-chopping the shallot, basil, and oregano, then giving everything a final blitz in the food processor. The recipe serves eight, so you should have plenty of pork and sauce left over. Shred the pork with two forks (or your hands) before refrigerating everything separately.

Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Rhoda Boone

WEDNESDAY: Skillet Chicken and Zucchini Enchiladas

With this quick preparation—which uses Monday's chicken—enchiladas are on the table in 22 minutes. Get to know the recipe once, and you’ll soon be enchilada-ing all kinds of leftovers on the regular.

Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Ali Nardi

THURSDAY: Fresh Corn Quiche with a green salad

Here’s another technique you can steal to use with other ingredients. Whip up the quiche custard in the blender, and then just stir in the vegetables—in this case, fresh corn kernels. Before you turn on the oven, remove the pie crust from the freezer and leave it on the counter to thaw. Serve the quiche with a crisp romaine salad, using Tuesday’s leftover Zesty Basil Sauce as dressing.

Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell

FRIDAY: Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Salt-and-Squeeze Slaw

Nextovering Tuesday’s pork into sandwiches takes almost no effort, so you’ve got plenty of time to make a simple slaw to accompany it. Reheat the pork with some of the barbecue sauce you bought, and pile it on toasted buns along with pickle chips.