Sides

Side dishes for a crowd should feel special without being complicated. Browse easy side dish ideas for holidays, cookouts, brunches, and gatherings, from potatoes and pasta salads to vegetable sides and seasonal favorites.

Planning summer hosting? Start here.

From potato salads and pasta salads to crowd-pleasing vegetable sides, these are the side dishes I’d use for cookouts, Memorial Day, and summer gatherings.

Loaded Baked Potato Salad

Coming soon!

Street Corn Pasta Salad

Coming soon!

Lemon Dill Potato Salad

seed oil free pasta salad with rotini mozzerella, black olives, tomatoes, peppers in a bowl

Browse By Type

recipe for pasta salad cold

lettuce with layers of red, yellow, and deep red tomatoes, with cherry tomatoes cut in half and basil leaves with burrata cheese

Salads & Veggies

cheesy mashed potatoes in an orange fall crock with a wooden spoon in them and on an orange table cloth.

thai peanut noodle salad in a blue bowl with the peanut sauce being poured on it

How I choose side dishes that make the table feel full

The best side dishes add color, variety, and something everyone wants seconds of. I usually like one hearty side, one fresh side, and one seasonal favorite that makes the table feel a little more special.

grilled lemon potato salad in a white bowl on a red checkered table cloth

One Hearty Side

cobb salad with chicken, tomatoes, eggs, cucumbers, topped with cotija cheese

cucumber salad in a white bowl on a window sil green cucumbers, avocado, feta cheese, with fresh basil leaves on top and slices of lime

One Seasonal Favorite

Side dishes to start with

Lemon Dill Potato Salad

deviled egg pasta salad in a blue bowl topped with sprinkled paprika and green scallions on a pink table cloth

Deviled Egg Pasta Salad

3 bean salad recipe in a blue bowl on a red and white checkered table cloth

Make Ahead 3 Bean Salad

lettuce with layers of red, yellow, and deep red tomatoes, with cherry tomatoes cut in half and basil leaves with burrata cheese

Tomato Burrata Caprese

oven baked butternut squash and brussels sprouts in a white bowl with a spoon on a red table cloth

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Squash

Maple Roasted Carrots

5 ingredient slow cooker mac and cheese in slow cooker with a spoon

5 Ingredient Crock Pot Mac n Cheese

cheesy mashed potatoes in an orange fall crock with a wooden spoon in them and on an orange table cloth.

Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

Planning the full menu?

Build a menu that feels special without overdoing it

Browse appetizers, brunch, desserts, and holiday hosting ideas to figure out what to make next.

See Holiday Hosting