10 Easy Autumn Traybake Dinners for When You Can’t Be Bothered Cooking

Wednesday 26th Aug 2026 |

10 Easy Autumn Traybake Dinners for When You Cannot Be Arsed Cooking

I love cooking.

Or at least, I love cooking in summer.

Give me a sunny Saturday morning, Saturday Kitchen on the television and absolutely nowhere I need to be and I’m delighted. I’ve been to the gym, it’s light at both ends of the day, my summer dress fits and suddenly I’m the sort of woman who thinks nothing of spending half the afternoon making something that requires three different pans and an unnecessary amount of fresh herbs.

Autumn me is a different woman.

The minute the nights start drawing in, I cannot be arsed.

I want the curtains shut. I want a candle lit. I want something decent on television and dinner to require as little interaction from me as humanly possible.

To be fair, I’ve wanted to hibernate for most of the summer too. I’m just a good liar when the sun is shining.

But once autumn arrives, I no longer feel the need to pretend.

Unfortunately, we still have to eat.

This is where the traybake comes in.

I’m not talking about the depressing sort of ‘easy dinner’ that involves opening three tins and calling it rustic. I still want proper food. Crispy potatoes. Sticky chicken. Sausages with caramelised edges. Melted cheese. Garlic. Herbs. Things that actually taste like somebody has made an effort.

I just don’t particularly want that somebody to be me.

So these are ten easy autumn traybake dinners for the evenings when you want something genuinely good for dinner, but your contribution to proceedings needs to end shortly after putting a tray in the oven.

Most serve two generously, with leftovers depending on how hungry you are.

1. Sticky Honey, Mustard & Garlic Sausage Traybake

Sausages are practically designed for nights when you can’t be bothered. There’s no chopping involved, they’re difficult to ruin and they get infinitely better when surrounded by crispy potatoes and sticky onions.

You’ll need

  • 6 good-quality pork sausages
  • 500g baby potatoes, halved
  • 1 red onion, cut into wedges
  • 1 eating apple, cut into wedges
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • A few sprigs of thyme
  • Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Toss the potatoes and onion with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast for 20 minutes.

Mix the mustard, honey and garlic together.

Add the sausages and apple to the tray, spoon over the honey-mustard mixture and scatter with thyme.

Roast for another 25–30 minutes, turning the sausages once, until everything is sticky, browned and cooked through.

Serve with: peas, greens or absolutely nothing else because there’s already plenty going on.

2. Greek Chicken, Feta & Crispy Potato Traybake

Lemon, garlic, oregano and feta make chicken and potatoes taste significantly more interesting without requiring significantly more work.

You’ll need

  • 4 boneless chicken thighs
  • 500g baby potatoes, halved
  • 1 red pepper, roughly chopped
  • 1 red onion, cut into wedges
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 100g feta
  • A handful of olives
  • Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Put the potatoes, pepper and onion onto a large tray. Add the chicken and garlic.

Drizzle everything with olive oil and the juice of half the lemon. Season generously and sprinkle over the oregano.

Roast for 35–40 minutes, turning the potatoes halfway through.

Crumble over the feta, add the olives and return to the oven for another 5 minutes.

Finish with the remaining lemon.

Serve with: warm flatbreads and tzatziki if you can muster the energy to open the packet.

3. Cheesy Meatball & Garlic Bread Traybake

This is somewhere between meatballs, pizza and garlic bread, which is frankly enough justification for making it.

You’ll need

  • 12 beef meatballs
  • 500g tomato passata
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 125g mozzarella
  • 1 small garlic baguette
  • Parmesan
  • Fresh basil, optional

Method

Heat the oven to 190°C fan.

Put the meatballs into a roasting dish and bake for 15 minutes.

Pour over the passata, stir through the garlic and oregano and return to the oven for 15 minutes.

Slice the garlic bread into chunky pieces and arrange them around the meatballs.

Tear over the mozzarella, grate over some Parmesan and bake everything together for another 10–15 minutes until bubbling and golden.

Serve with: a green salad if you feel the need to demonstrate that you’re an adult.

4. Smoky Paprika Chicken, Chorizo & Potato Traybake

Chorizo does most of the work here. As it cooks, all that smoky paprika-spiked oil coats the chicken and potatoes for you.

You’ll need

  • 4 chicken thighs
  • 500g baby potatoes, halved
  • 100g cooking chorizo, sliced
  • 1 red pepper, chopped
  • 1 onion, cut into wedges
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • Salt and black pepper
  • Fresh parsley, optional

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Put everything except the parsley onto a large roasting tray.

Season, sprinkle over the paprika and drizzle with a little olive oil.

Give the vegetables a toss, keeping the chicken skin-side up if you’re using skin-on thighs.

Roast for 40–45 minutes until the potatoes are golden, the chorizo is crisp around the edges and the chicken is cooked through.

Scatter with parsley if there’s some lurking in the fridge.

Serve with: crusty bread for mopping up the chorizo oil.

5. Sausage, Leek & Cheesy Potato Bake

This is edging dangerously close to requiring actual cooking, but the reward is essentially sausage and leek pie without having to make a pie.

You’ll need

  • 6 pork sausages
  • 500g baby potatoes, thinly sliced
  • 2 leeks, sliced
  • 150ml double cream
  • 100ml chicken stock
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 100g mature Cheddar, grated
  • Black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 190°C fan.

Brown the sausages in a frying pan for a few minutes if you can be bothered. If you can’t, don’t.

Put the leeks into a baking dish and arrange the sausages on top.

Mix the cream, stock and mustard and pour it over.

Layer the sliced potatoes across the top, season with black pepper and cover tightly with foil.

Bake for 35 minutes.

Remove the foil, scatter over the Cheddar and bake for another 20–25 minutes until bubbling and golden.

Serve with: something green to counteract the enormous quantity of cheese.

6. Harissa Chicken, Peppers & Feta Traybake

Spicy harissa, sweet roasted peppers and salty feta make this taste considerably more sophisticated than the effort involved suggests.

You’ll need

  • 4 boneless chicken thighs
  • 2 peppers, roughly chopped
  • 1 red onion, cut into wedges
  • 400g baby potatoes, halved
  • 2 tbsp harissa paste
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 100g feta
  • ½ lemon
  • Fresh coriander or parsley

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Mix the chicken with the harissa and olive oil.

Put the potatoes, peppers and onion onto a tray, season and add the chicken.

Roast for 35–40 minutes until everything has started catching and caramelising around the edges.

Crumble over the feta and return to the oven for 5 minutes.

Finish with lemon juice and herbs.

Serve with: Greek yoghurt and flatbreads.

7. Steak, Mushroom & Garlic Butter Potato Traybake

Steak doesn’t immediately scream traybake, but the trick is simply not putting it in at the beginning and cremating it for 45 minutes.

You’ll need

  • 400g baby potatoes, halved
  • 250–300g steak, cut into large pieces
  • 200g mushrooms, halved
  • 2 tbsp butter, softened
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp chopped rosemary
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and plenty of black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 210°C fan.

Toss the potatoes with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast for 30 minutes.

Mix the butter with the garlic and rosemary.

Turn the potatoes, add the mushrooms and roast for another 10 minutes.

Turn the oven up as high as it will comfortably go.

Add the steak, dot the garlic butter around the tray and cook for approximately 5–8 minutes, depending on the size of your steak pieces and how you like them cooked.

Rest for a few minutes before eating.

Serve with: rocket and Parmesan, or green beans.

8. Lazy Chicken Parm Traybake

Chicken Parm without standing over a frying pan breading and frying individual pieces of chicken. That’s the sort of compromise I’m prepared to make.

You’ll need

  • 2 large chicken breasts
  • 50g breadcrumbs
  • 30g Parmesan, grated
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 400g baby potatoes
  • 300g tomato passata
  • 125g mozzarella
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Halve the chicken breasts horizontally to make four thinner pieces.

Mix the breadcrumbs with the Parmesan.

Dip the chicken into beaten egg and then breadcrumbs.

Put the potatoes onto a large tray, drizzle with oil and roast for 15 minutes.

Add the chicken and roast everything for another 15 minutes.

Spoon passata over each piece of chicken, sprinkle with oregano and top with mozzarella.

Bake for another 10–15 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and the chicken is cooked through.

Serve with: salad, garlic bread or both if the day has been particularly trying.

9. Loaded Sausage & Cheese Potato Traybake

Think loaded potato skins without having to individually scoop out potatoes like you’ve suddenly got nothing better to do.

You’ll need

  • 6 sausages
  • 600g baby potatoes, halved
  • 1 red onion, sliced
  • 100g mature Cheddar, grated
  • 3 spring onions, sliced
  • 2 tbsp sour cream
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Toss the potatoes and onion with olive oil, paprika, salt and pepper.

Add the sausages and roast for 35–40 minutes, turning everything halfway through.

Squash some of the potatoes lightly with a fork to expose the fluffy middles.

Scatter over the Cheddar and return to the oven for 5 minutes until melted.

Finish with spring onions and spoonfuls of sour cream.

Serve with: hot sauce, jalapeños or crispy onions if you want to fully commit to the loaded-fries spirit of the thing.

10. Creamy Garlic Chicken & Mushroom Potato Traybake

This is the one for the first genuinely miserable evening of autumn. It’s dark, it’s raining and dinner needs to involve cream.

You’ll need

  • 4 chicken thighs
  • 500g baby potatoes, halved
  • 250g mushrooms, halved
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 150ml double cream
  • 100ml chicken stock
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • A few sprigs of thyme
  • Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C fan.

Put the chicken and potatoes onto a roasting tray, season and roast for 25 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and garlic.

Mix the cream, stock and mustard together and pour around – rather than directly over – the chicken so it can continue browning.

Scatter over the thyme.

Return to the oven for another 20–25 minutes until the chicken is cooked, the potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.

Serve with: peas, broccoli or a large piece of bread to drag through the sauce.

The Traybake Is Basically Autumn’s Best Life Hack

There will still be weekends when I decide I’m going to cook properly.

I’ll buy the ingredients. I’ll put Saturday Kitchen on. I’ll convince myself that spending three hours making dinner is exactly what I fancy doing.

And occasionally, it will even be true.

But autumn also brings those evenings when it’s somehow dark before you’ve properly finished the working day and any enthusiasm you had for chopping, frying and washing up has disappeared with the daylight.

Those are traybake nights.

Put everything on one tray. Add garlic. Add cheese where appropriate. Put it in the oven.

Then draw the curtains, light the candle and get back to the important business of hibernating until spring.


Joanne Brook-Smith is a lifestyle writer and editor with over 20 years’ experience in regional publishing. Her work spans travel, interiors, wellbeing, food, and everyday living—always delivered with warmth, clarity and a keen editorial eye. Joanne has a particular talent for capturing the character of places and people, drawing on years of experience telling local stories that resonate more widely. Whether she’s profiling a new independent business or exploring the rhythms of rural life, her writing remains rooted in real-world relevance and charm.