Here Are All 53 Recipes You'll Need For The Ultimate Summer Cookout Menu (2024)

During the summer, we can’t get enough of simple, refreshing salads that put fresh fruit at the forefront. Two of our favorites? The classic caprese, and our watermelon feta salad. We loved these two summer sides so much, we decided to combine them into one refreshing recipe. The result is a simple, sweet-salty snack ready in 15 minutes (and isn’t that what summer is all about?).

Get the Watermelon Caprese recipe.

Skip the chicken skewers or basic hot dogs in a bun—and turn to these hot dog skewers. In this recipe, we layer cut up hot dogs, bell peppers, pineapple, and onions on skewers before basting with a homemade sweet-tangy BBQ sauce and grill until charred and caramelized. The result is a slightly sweet, summer-worthy skewer made to be served at any BBQ, camping trip, or casual summer dinner.

Get the Campfire Hot Dog Skewers recipe.

Why grill your stuffed peppers? Because it’s summer and we want to be outside! Don’t stay indoors and turn on the hot oven. Instead, step outside to the grill and take advantage of the great weather and the nice smoky charred flavor grilling brings to this classic comfort dish.

Get the Grilled Stuffed Peppers recipe.

These grilled shrimp piccata skewers are the perfect combination of juicy, charred shrimp, bright lemon zest, briny capers, and white wine butter sauce that will make your friends beg you for the recipe. Since it only takes 45 minutes from start to finish, it’s ideal for everything from a backyard bash to a quick weeknight dinner.

Get the Grilled Shrimp Piccata Skewers recipe.

While pasta salad can get creaminess from mayo, sour cream, or yogurt, we want to make a case for ricotta. Already beloved in hot pasta dishes like our lemon-ricotta pasta, ricotta is a natural for pasta salads too. Mixed with fresh lemon juice and zest, plenty of grated Parmesan, and pasta water, the ricotta melts into a creamy, bright sauce without any additional oil. The fresh dairy flavor feels a little unexpected and totally elegant all at once, making this salad a perfect side dish to your spring and summer gatherings.

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Butterflying the chicken leg gives the grill a chance to evenly cook the outside of the drumstick while also allowing more surface area for seasoning and smokey grill flavor. These get rubbed with a Creole seasoning-inspired blend, charred over high heat, then moved to indirect heat to finish cooking until they’re tender and juicy. Served with a tangy creamy Alabama white sauce, these grilled drumsticks are the perfect blend of spicy, smokey, and sweet.

Get the Butterflied Grilled Chicken Drumsticks recipe.

Looking for a vegetarian centerpiece for your summer grill-out? Make these teriyaki cauliflower steaks. Slathered in a brown sugar and soy glaze and showered with scallions and toasted sesame seeds, these saucy cauliflower steaks might just upstage the ribs.

Get the Grilled Teriyaki Cauliflower Steaks recipe.

Nothing screams summer quite like rainbow veggie kebabs dotted with cubes of marinated steak, charred to perfection over the grill. We complete this dish by resting the kebabs over a bed of crunchy spinach and cucumber salad tossed in a garlicky tahini dressing, plus a pile of herby orzo, which is toasted until golden before being gently simmered in savory chicken stock. More tahini dressing is drizzled over the whole bowl, tying everything together in a vibrant array of colors, flavors, textures, and temperatures.

Get the Steak Kebab Bowls recipe.