The 35 BEST Valentine Recipes

If you guys are anything like us, then food is definitely a key part of your love language! But how about you let us take the stress out of the planning with 35 of the best Valentine recipes out there.

Whether you want something big on flavor but low on time or something a little more involved, we’re sure you’ll find something in here to tantalize your taste-buds.

Valentine’s Day Recipes:

1. Marry Me Chicken

We are starting this romantic eats list with one of our most popular recipe of 2023.  “Marry Me Chicken” – a dish so captivating, it could make even a commitment-phobe say, “I do!”Tender, juicy chicken dressed in the creamiest, dreamiest sauce you’ve ever seen. This creamy, dreamy recipe is the perfect dish for romantic occasions, or any time you crave something delicious!

Get the Recipe: Marry Me Chicken

2. Cajun Shrimp Pasta

Creamy, spicy, and utterly DELICIOUS… Cajun Shrimp Pasta!! This is the Cajun cuisine at its best, perfect for seafood and spice lovers alike, featuring juicy, perfectly cooked shrimp paired with a homemade, vibrant Cajun sauce.

Get the Recipe: Cajun Shrimp Pasta

3. Maple Pecan Salmon

Sweet, salty, buttery, crunchy and just a tad bit spicy. This maple pecan salmon is a great for a quick and easy Valentine dinner, and sure way to impress your sweetheart.

Get the Recipe: Maple Pecan Salmon

4. Easy Baked Brie with Nuts and Honey

What a sight it will be! When you take this gorgeous bubbling brie out of your oven jewelled with a few nuts… a few herbs..you are all set for one romantic evening.

Who doesn’t love some nice creamy brie? Take your favorite soft cheese to a new level with this fancy yet easy appetizer. You are in for a cheesy spectacle!

Get the Recipe: Baked Brie with Nuts and Honey

5. Shrimp and Polenta

This easy Shrimp and Polenta recipe is comfort food at it’s finest! 

I mean, how can you beat plump, succulent shrimp sautéed in a Mediterranean inspired sauce all atop creamy parmesan polenta? It’s too good!

Get the Recipe: Shrimp and Polenta

6. Salmon Tacos

If you are big fan of tacos, these are the ones to cook on special days. These easy Salmon Tacos feature perfectly blackened salmon and a refreshing mango avocado salsa. It’s a match made in heaven!

Get the Recipe: Salmon Tacos

7. Jambalaya

Our Creole Jambalaya Recipe is just too good! Fully loaded with sausage, chicken, shrimp, veggies and a whole world of big flavors, this one pot rice dish is the perfect for big satisfying valentine meal.

Get the Recipe: Jambalaya

8. Chicken Chasseur

Chicken Chasseur is a rich and flavorful French stew, where chicken braises slowly until it is juicy and fall off the bone tender. 

Rustic in its nature, this Hunter’s Chicken is the ultimate addition to your list of favorite chicken dishes.

Get the Recipe: Chicken Chasseur

9. Baked Sockeye Salmon

This easy Baked Sockeye Salmon recipe is perfect for a quick and easy valentine dinner. It’s brushed with a honey mustard glaze that perfectly compliments the natural flavor of the fish, then baked in foil to keep the flesh moist, and for easy cleanup. 

Get the Recipe: Baked Sockeye Salmon

10. Fig and Prosciutto Flatbread

Flatbreads are Fantastic… Fancy… and Fun meals!! And this Fig and Prosciutto Flatbread is absolutely gorgeous, and would be a WOW-worthy center piece for your Valentine get together.

Plus, is its super quick and easy too. Make this sweet and savory gourmet flatbread today, and get amazed with the simple, yet elegant flavors.

Get the Recipe: Fig and Prosciutto Flatbread

11. Moqueca (Brazilian Seafood Stew)

Now, this one is special… Moqueca is a marvelously tasty Brazilian seafood stew, with a decadent coconut milk base.

Simple ingredients like tomatoes, peppers and pantry staple seasonings, along with a squeeze of lime at the end, all come together to create magic.

Get the Recipe: Moqueca

12. Coq au Vin

This Coq au Vin recipe, based off of the dish made famous by Julia Child, is a flavorful stew of chicken and veggies braised in red wine. This one’s a keeper!

Get the Recipe: Coq au Vin

13. Baked Feta

Introducing: Heavenly Baked Feta Medley – cheese like you’ve never known before! Get ready for a game-changer appetizer for your Valentines party!

Have you ever wondered what pure joy tastes like? Look no further than this sensationally creamy, astonishingly flavorful, Baked Feta!

Get the Recipe: Baked Feta

14. Chicken Tagine

Want to cook something exotic for the love of your life? This Chicken Tagine is a wonderful Moroccan stew, uniquely flavored with a variety of spices, dried fruits and olives.

Get the Recipe: Chicken Tagine

15. Baja Shrimp Tacos

These Baja Shrimp Tacos are just too good, loaded with beer battered shrimp, crisp coleslaw, smoky chipotle mayo and creamy avocado.

Get the Recipe: Baja Shrimp Tacos

16. Ratatouille

For yoru vegetarian sweetheart, we have got just the right French vegetarian recipe for you on Valentines.

Ratatouille sounds fancy, but at its core it’s just a simple, hearty and rustic dish out of the South of France. This classic Provencal dish is a medley of summer vegetables accentuating all the Mediterranean flavors.

Get the Recipe: Ratatouille

17. New Orleans BBQ Shrimp

BBQ without the sauce? You bet! New Orleans BBQ Shrimp is one of the best recipes you’ll ever cook. Don’t be fooled by the name, these shrimp have nothing to do with barbecue sauce. 

Delicious, plump gulf shrimp are cooked in a rich, buttery sauce spiked with plenty of flavor enhancers. Think of it like scampi, but with a Big Time flavor boost.

Get the Recipe: New Orleans BBQ Shrimp

18. Albondigas (Spanish Meatballs)

My most sought after, favorite tapas out of Spain is hands down these delicious, plump Albondigas!! 

These Spanish Meatballs, known locally as Albondigas, are beautifully seasoned and smothered in the tastiest tomato sauce you can ever cook. End result? Meatballs with just enough tomato sauce that you can mop up with fresh, crusty bread, drizzled amply with some great extra virgin olive oil.

Get the Recipe: Albondigas

19. Mediterranean Braised Chicken with Apricots

This gorgeous Mediterranean braised chicken is your coq au vin taken to the next level! So many layers of flavor, yet so easy. Impress your guests or save it for yourself, the choice is yours!

Get the Recipe: Mediterranean Braised Chicken with Apricots

20. Pasta Primavera with Shrimp

This Pasta Primavera recipe is packed full of fresh veggies, and has a light creamy sauce. Easy yet stunning looking Valentine dinner idea!

Get the Recipe: Pasta Primavera with Shrimp

21. Lowcountry Shrimp and Grits

Lowcountry Shrimp and Grits is an amazing comfort food. Plump shrimp and smoky sausage are smothered in a savory gravy and served over creamy, cheesy grits. This is restaurant quality Valentine treat for your loved ones.

Get the Recipe: Shrimp and Grits

22. Lamb Ragu

Lamb Ragu is an incredibly flavorful and comforting Italian sauce. Tender ground lamb is simmered low and slow in a well seasoned tomato sauce.

It’s made with simple ingredients, and is easy to make. It just requires a bit of patience, because these amazing flavors take time to develop.

Get the Recipe: Lamb Ragu

23. Clam Linguine (Linguine alle Vongole)

Clam Linguine, or Linguine alle Vongole, is an elegant restaurant quality dish. But don’t be intimidated, it’s super easy to make.

It’s a gorgeous, yet light, pasta in a lemony, garlicky wine sauce. This is one of those dishes that is easy yet impressive enough for special occasion.

Get the Recipe: Clam Linguine 

24. Loaded Layered Hummus Dip

Dress up your hummus like never before… Get that scooping going with this beautiful, bright and colorful Layered Hummus Dip. This luscious loaded hummus appetizer for your valentine soiree.

Get the Recipe: Layered Hummus Dip

25. Pasta alla Norma

Here is another cracker vegetarian dish!! Pasta alla Norma is a famous Sicilian dish with a chunky, herb infused eggplant and tomato sauce. And it’s just too good!

It’s a light, meatless pasta meal, yet the firm, buttery eggplant gives it a heartiness that will keep your appetite satisfied.

Get the Recipe: Pasta alla Norma

26. Steak Pizzaiola

Seasoned, Seared, Simmered and Smothered… That is Steak Pizzaiola!! Try your steak the old school Italian way. It’s absolutely delicious, and every bite you will make a nod or two to heavenly skies.

Get the Recipe: Steak Pizzaiola

27. Spanish Clams with Chorizo

These Spanish Clams are simmered with cannellini beans, chorizo sausage and great flavor enhancers. This is one of those dishes where just a few ingredients combine to form something unbelievably delicious. All you need is some warm, crusty bread and good wine.

Get the Recipe: Spanish Clams with Chorizo

28. Smoked Salmon Flatbread

This smoked salmon flatbread is going to be one of the fastest dishes you’ve ever made. Quickly bake your flatbread for about five minutes, then assemble. That’s it!

It has a great combination of flavors: cold smoked salmon, dill infused cream cheese, capers, fresh tomatoes, arugula and a nice squeeze of lemon juice. It’s like your bagels and lox taken to the next level!

Get the Recipe: Smoked Salmon Flatbread

29. Portuguese Mussels (Moules à la Portugaise)

Now tell me, won’t you fall in love all over again with that love of your life when he brings this to table? This is as fancy as it gets. A big bowl of mussels drenched in one amazing, out of this world sauce.

It doesn’t have to happen in a fancy restaurant. All you need is a desire to cook something nice for that special someone in your life. The best part? You’re not even slaving the whole day in the kitchen…

Get the Recipe: Portuguese Mussels

30. Gambas al Ajillo (Spanish Garlic Shrimp)

How does a sizzling platter of garlicky, seafoody goodness sound? Grab some crusty bread for sopping and whip up this famous Spanish tapa, Gambas al Ajillo in your very own kitchen!

Get the Recipe: Gambas al Ajillo

31. Chicken Provençal (Poulet à la Provençal)

Take a peek into my pot. Beautiful golden brown chicken braised in white wine, nestled between eye catching olives, plump cherry tomatoes, oh-so French shallots, tangy capers and plenty of garlic and herbs. Life can’t be more beautiful!

Get the Recipe: Chicken Provençal

32. Shrimp Creole with Sausage

This Shrimp Creole with Andouille Sausage is a flavor bomb! Plump shrimp and hearty sausage in a great Creole seasoned tomato sauce. If you’re a fan of New Orleans style food like us, wow him or her with this easy shrimp recipe.

Get the Recipe: Shrimp Creole with Sausage

33. Garlic Butter Steak Bites

Take your beef to a new level with these tasty pan seared garlic butter steak bites. Perfectly cooked bite sized morsels of tender steak drenched in garlicky butter. No slaving over the stove for these, they’re ready in under 15 minutes.

Get the Recipe: Garlic Butter Steak Bites

34. Shrimp Saganaki (Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes & Feta)

Shrimp Saganaki – Now we are talking some serious flavors in this Greek favorite. Some incredible flavor combo happens when you cook plump shrimp in a garlicky savory tomato sauce and finish it off with salty feta. Saganaki is something you will see in every little Greek taverna, and it brings joy to everyone’s faces when it comes to the table.

Now you can do the same in your very own home. People are going to be amazed when you take this sizzling skillet right to the table.

Get the Recipe: Shrimp Saganaki

35. Mediterranean Fish with Tomato and Olive Tapenade

Your favorite fish, in a Mediterranean avatar! Imagine a nice chunk of white fish, pan seared and top up with the goodness of this bright delicious tapenade. This looks and tastes like a gourmet entree, straight from some fine restaurant. But you will be amazed how quick it all comes together and how little effort it demands.

Get the Recipe: Mediterranean Fish

Welcome to GypsyPlate! I'm Alpana, former wordwide tour manager and professional caterer, now full time blogger. I love exploring cuisines from around the world, and my recipes have been featured on sites such as MSN, Parade, Brit + Co, CNET and AOL. You can explore my entire collection of sortable recipes in my Recipe Index or learn more about me here.