Welcome Summer With These 31 Memorial Day Recipes
As soon as the weather creeps past the mid-60s, we’re diving headfirst into summer recipes. Memorial Day signifies the start of summer (unofficially), and we’re celebrating accordingly: with fresh herbs, juicy berries, and all cooking happening on the grill. In this warm-weather recipe lineup, you’ll find all the requisite cookout foods: pasta salad, grilled corn, and classic BBQ baked beans. But the party doesn’t end there. Whether you’re looking for easy, breezy appetizers, mains that aren’t just burgers, or simple, no-bake desserts, these Memorial Day recipes will carry you through every phase of the cookout—and probably the rest of the summer too. To go along with these summer-ready recipes, we’ve got plenty of refreshing cocktails (these frozen watermelon margaritas are calling to us).
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton1/31Easy Pasta Salad
We could fill an entire Memorial Day recipe roster with different types of salad: potato salad, pasta salad, fruit salad…shall we go on? Pick a few summer salad recipes to round out your spread and keep on repeat this season.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Michelle Gatton2/31Raspberry and Pistachio Ice Cream Icebox Cake
Looking for a fun dessert to cap off the first cookout of the summer? With layers of Biscoff cookies, raspberry-jam-infused whipped cream, and store-bought pistachio ice cream, this icebox cake is surprisingly easy to assemble. It’s proof that the best Memorial Day desserts are also the simplest.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Nathaniel James, Food Styling by Frances Boswell3/31Foolproof Grilled Chicken
You don’t need to be a grillmaster to perfect this grilled chicken. A streamlined technique (plus a flavorful vinaigrette) yields charred, juicy, anything-but-bland meat every time. Once you’ve got the recipe down, move on to another staple chicken recipe: crispy, crunchy homemade fried chicken.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell5/31Grilled Beet Salad With Burrata and Cherries
Around Memorial Day, fresh cherries will be just starting to pop up around the country. If you’re lucky enough to get some, toss them into this salad that’s equally at home as a side or as the star of a vegetarian grilling feast.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson6/31Grilled Corn on the Cob With Salt-and-Pepper Butter
No Memorial Day barbecue is complete without grilled corn on the cob. Take it to the next level by slathering the ears with a flavor-packed compound butter. We love this simple salt-and-pepper combo, but you could add any herbs or spices you’d like.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks7/31Easy Guacamole
So you brought all the grilling accoutrements but forgot entirely about the appetizers. No problem: Dump tortilla chips into a bowl, mash some avocados with lime and cilantro, and feed a crowd of hungry beach bums.
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boystova8/31Easy Grilled Salmon in Foil With Lemon-Garlic-Herb Butter
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Simon Andrews9/31Ginger-Grilled Chicken and Radishes with Miso-Scallion Dressing
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich10/31German Potato Salad With Dill
If you’re already making creamy mac and cheese and coleslaw, this mayo-free oil-and-vinegar-dressed potato salad is the perfect companion.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Haubert12/31Negima (Grilled Chicken Skewers With Green Onion)
These Japanese chicken skewers are a classic yakitori dish. Use the white parts of the scallion here, which hold up to the heat of the grill. Use the green tops to garnish any number of summer sides, or make a bowl of creamy scallion-avocado dip as an appetizer.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Christopher Barsch14/31Grilled Zucchini and Bulgur Salad With Feta and Preserved-Lemon Dressing
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson15/31Crispy Fish Sandwich
You can cook this battered-and-fried fish indoors or out (just move your cast-iron pan to wherever you want to be). Piled onto seeded buns, plain white bread, or a crusty loaf—you can’t go wrong.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks17/31Spicy Black Bean and Corn Tacos
Why not start your Memorial Day celebration with a large platter of tacos? Have your black beans two ways: mashed into a spread for the base of the taco and paired with corn salsa as a filling. Don’t forget the margaritas.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Haubert18/31Creamy Coleslaw
Dressed in mayonnaise and sour cream, this classic, creamy coleslaw pairs well with any BBQ main. Pile it atop pulled pork, turkey burgers, or fried fish sandwiches. One reviewer recommends adding finely-minced jalapeño to the mix, which sounds like a great idea to us.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Haubert19/31Vanilla No-Bake Cheesecake With a Chocolate Cookie Crust
Stay cool this summer with this no-bake, make-ahead cookies-and-cream-inspired cheesecake. Want to switch up the flavors? Use graham crackers instead of chocolate cookies in the crust, then pile the cheesecake high with fresh fruit.
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boystova21/31Greek-Style Lemon Potatoes With Garlic and Oregano (Patates Riganates)
Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell22/31Summer Corn, Tomato, and Salmon Salad With Za’atar Dressing
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart23/31Fresh Strawberry Cake
Summer is the time to celebrate all the freshest, ripest fruit. But even less-than-stellar supermarket berries will shine in this fresh strawberry cake thanks to the finishing gloss of strawberry jam. Serve with freshly-whipped cream if you’d like.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson24/313-Ingredient Charred Green Beans With Ricotta and Lemon
Photo by Paul Petrowsky25/31Classic BBQ Baked Beans
Our summer dreamscape includes a tray of saucy, glistening baked beans, swimming in a sauce made from all the BBQ condiments you already have on hand (ketchup, yellow mustard, hot sauce). There’s plenty of brown sugar in there, too, plus a boost of acid from apple cider vinegar. It’s arguably the most underrated Memorial Day side.
Photo by Eric Medsker26/31Cynar-Berry Spritz
The Aperol spritz gets all the attention, but Cynar (a bitter Italian aperitif made from artichokes among other plants and herbs) makes a deeper, more dynamic spritz.
Photo and Food Styling by Joseph De Leo27/31Grilled Pizza
This grilled pizza recipe takes a choose-your-own-adventure approach to toppings: Have your pick between lemony Swiss chard, burst cherry tomatoes, and tomato passata (a concentrated tomato purée that’s thicker than most marinara sauces). Or get creative with your own mix-and-match topping spread.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Michelle Gatton29/31Chicken Boti Kebabs
In Pakistan, chicken boti kebabs are traditionally served with naan. Here, Epi contributor Shayma O. Saadat serves them in buttery brioche hot dog buns. These skewers are make-ahead-friendly: The marinated raw chicken freezes for up to a month.
Photo by Michael Graydon & Nikole Herriott30/31Smoky Carrot Dip
Roast sliced carrots until tender and caramelized, then blitz them in a food processor with smoked paprika, almonds, lemon juice, and chickpeas (or any white bean) for a dip that’s as great swiped on a cracker as it is spread under barbecue chicken. If you score spring carrots with green tops, skip the parsley and use those greens to garnish instead.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson31/313-Ingredient Grilled Watermelon, Feta, and Tomato Salad
