99 Summer Recipes for Everything We’re Craving Right Now
As the weather warms up, we find ourselves craving simple summer recipes, the kind of dishes that spotlight this season's fresh produce without asking us to spend half the day over a hot stove. You too? You're in the right place.
Here we've rounded up some of our favorite refreshing drinks, crisp veggie sides, smoky grilled entrees, an appetizer or two, easy salad recipes, and everything else you'll want to eat on hot summer days.
Don't forget that the best summer meals end with a frozen dessert. If you have time to go all out, plan ahead and prep a homemade treat for your next relaxed gathering. Perhaps the frozen mini s'mores pies or these oatmeal ice cream sandwiches? Or just grab some ice cream from the grocery store and call it good.
Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Susie Theodorou2/99Spicy and Creamy Slaw
This super-flexible, all-purpose salad might just be the perfect summer side dish. Pair it with one of these grilling recipes or these delicious fish tacos for a simple, tasty weeknight dinner.
Photo and Food Styling by Anna Stockwell3/99Grilled Coconut Shrimp With Shishito Peppers
Shrimp take on the flavors of a marinade in mere moments and they cook even quicker—making these grilled coconut shrimp an effortlessly delicious summer recipe. This is one of those dinner recipes that's better eaten with your hands, discarding shells and pepper stems as you go. Garnish with fresh basil and more coconut.
Photo and Food Styling by Joseph De Leo4/99Grilled Pizza
This recipe suggests a bunch of toppings then sets you loose: It's a true mix-and-match situation, and you can choose among lemony chard, burst cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, rosemary agrodolce, and more. Or go your own way entirely: This grilled pizza dough would be the perfect canvas, for instance, for the classic sauce + mozzarella + basil combo.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton5/99Thai Muslim–Style Grilled Chicken
In this recipe, Epi contributor Leela Punyaratabandhu teaches us how to use either a grill or conventional oven to mimic a tandoor-like oven. Use this two-stage cooking method to make a juicy, fragrant grilled chicken at your next BBQ. And don't miss the tangy-spicy pineapple sauce that's served on the side. It's like storebought sweet chile sauce, but way better.
Photo & Food Styling by Joseph De Leo6/99Aguas Frescas (Mexican Fruit Coolers)
Aguas frescas, says cookbook author Gonzalo Goût, are “the perfect drink for when you want something light and refreshing, but plain water or iced tea seems too light, and a fruit juice or smoothie seems too dense.” In other words, the perfect drink for warm weather. Here's how to make them with watermelon, cantaloupe, oranges, peaches, mangos—or any combination of the above, or any other fruit of your choosing.
Photo and Styling by Joseph De Leo8/99Plátanos Horneados con Crema y Queso (Baked Banana With Crema and Cheese)
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Liza Jernow10/99Iced Chai
The secret to really flavorful iced chai is grinding the spices a little finer to intensify their flavor extraction, and simmering the spices and tea in milk to fully hydrate them. Once sweetened just a bit, you'll chill the mix by pouring the hot chai concentrate over just the right amount of ice, which dissolves to contribute the proper ratio of water to the drink.
Photo by Alex Lau13/99Butterflied Chicken With Herbs and Cracked Olives
The success of chicken recipes is often in the details: a spatchcocked bird for crisper skin and even cooking, and a simple, lemony salad of torn olives and herbs for textual contrast. Add a pasta salad, and your easy summer dinner is ready.
Photo & Food Styling by Joseph De Leo14/99Ginger and Tamarind Refresher
You'll need to remove the seeds from the tamarind pulp for this tasty summer drink, which is a bit of a hassle, but we promise it's worth it. If you can't find tamarind pulp at your market, don't use concentrate. The taste just isn't the same! Hold off until you can track down the real deal and try this jalapeño citrus refresher in the meantime.
