Top 7 Cold Summer Sides
These traditional cold side dishes can be made ahead, chilled until serving time, and paired with everything from backyard burgers and hot dogs to slow-smoked barbecue. Fresh, flavorful, and easy to prepare, they’re the go-to for a cool complement to any smokin’ hot summer cookout.
1. Dill Pickle Deviled Eggs
Southerners love a dill pickle, and these finely minced pickles add a tangy crunch to rich ‘n creamy deviled eggs, creating a perfect bite.
2. Traditional Pasta Salad
This classic salad is a tasty combination of crunchy vegetables, macaroni noodles and light, creamy dressing that travels well to picnics, potlucks and poolside. Make it ahead and chill it in the fridge until time to go.
3. Traditional Coleslaw
This well balanced slaw is based on an old Southern family recipe. Add shredded carrots, purple cabbage, chopped green onions or chopped herbs, too. It’s the perfect topping for barbecue, burgers or slaw-topped dogs.
4. Hot & Spicy Slaw
Here’s a lighter, more delicate version of slaw using Napa cabbage and Lacinato kale. Balance the creamy, spicy flavor with red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard and Blue Plate Hot & Spicy Mayo.
5. Old Fashioned Potato Salad
Coarse-grain mustard, boiled egg, dill and red onion are the traditional potato salad ingredients that make this simple recipe a classic.
6. Grilled Corn and Bacon Salad
BBQ pit master Malcom Reed of HowtoBBQRight.com created this smoky side salad. Toss the unshucked corn on the grill (indoor oven grill or outdoor grill) and let them steam inside their green husks for perfectly cooked, juicy corn.
7. Crab Boil Potato Salad
It tastes just like the potato salad that Maw-maw makes with potatoes from a springtime seafood boil – spicy, zesty and full of classic Louisiana flavor.
