Food and Recipes No-Cook Recipes 24 No-Cook Side Dishes For Summer By Jenna Sims Jenna Sims Jenna is a Digital Editor for Southern Living and joined the team in 2014. She writes, produces, and assigns content with a focus on email growth and commerce content. She covers a range of topics in the lifestyle space from holiday gift guides to new product launches to tips for cooking with your air fryer. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on May 14, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely With these no-cook side dish recipes, there's no need to add extra heat to the kitchen from the stovetop or oven. Plus, since there's no cooking involved, the recipes come together quickly and easily. Whether you need to throw together a quick side dish to take to a cookout or need to use your oven space to cook the main dish, these no-cook sides will save your summertime menu.From a variety of slaws to marinated produce to plenty of salads and more, these are our best no-cook sides to serve all summer long. 01 of 24 Strawberry-Spinach Salad Greg Dupree; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall You can pull this restaurant-quality salad together in just 15 minutes, which includes the times it takes to make the flavorful homemade dressing. 02 of 24 Creamy Broccoli Slaw Will Dickey; Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless; Food Stylist: Ali Ramee We use a bagged slaw mix as the base for this no-cook side dish so you won't even have to spend any time chopping ingredients. Simply toss, chill, and serve. 03 of 24 Carrot Raisin Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox Once you use a vegetable peeler to make carrot ribbons, all that's left to do to create this pretty salad is stir the ingredients together. 04 of 24 Cherry Fluff Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox You'll need just five ingredients to pull this retro side dish together. 05 of 24 Corn-And-Tomato Salad Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely Not only is this salad just as pretty as it is delicious, but it comes together in just 15 minutes. We're sure it'll be on repeat all summer long since it makes the most of in-season corn and fresh cherry tomatoes. 06 of 24 Pineapple-Pepper Slaw Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Missie Neville Crawford; Food Styling: Torie Cox Pineapple adds tropical flair to this refreshing slaw recipe while a little bit of jalapeño gives it just the right amount of heat. 07 of 24 Quick-Pickle Cucumbers And Onions Fred Hardy; Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey; Prop Stylist: Hannah Greenwood This summer staple can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week after they're made, so you can pull them out anytime you need a quick side dish for lunch or dinner. 08 of 24 Pear Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox A little bit of layering is all that's required to serve up this nostalgic dish. 09 of 24 Smashed-Cucumber Salad Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely The act of smashing cucumbers allows each piece to soak up the flavors of the marinade. 10 of 24 Heirloom-Tomato Salad Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely A homemade shallot dressing adds an extra layer of flavor to fresh heirloom tomatoes. 11 of 24 Apple-Cranberry Coleslaw Convenience items like pre-shredded green cabbage and a bottle of coleslaw dressing help this recipe come together easily with just six ingredients. 12 of 24 Whipped-Cream Corn Salad Southern Living Turn fresh corn into a fluffy side dish with just the addition of heavy cream, salt, and pepper. 13 of 24 Buttermilk Coleslaw Photo: Will Dickey We recommend allowing at least 2 hours for the slaw to marinate before serving. 14 of 24 Chilled Cucumber Soup Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis This chilled cucumber soup is the perfect accompaniment for summertime mains. 15 of 24 Marinated Cucumber, Tomato, and Onion Salad Hannah Zimmerman/Southern Living Since this salad should marinate for at least 24 hours, it's a great make-ahead option. 16 of 24 Creamy Cucumber Salad Hannah Zimmerman/Southern Living Slices of cucumber and Vidalia onion are transformed into a refreshing side dish with the addition of a creamy salad dressing and plenty of dill. 17 of 24 Tomato, Peach, and Corn Salad Photo: Greg DuPree; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Cat Steele A trio of fresh summer produce comes together to create a showstopping side dish in just 15 minutes. 18 of 24 Spicy Pepper Jelly Coleslaw PHOTO: ANTONIS ACHILLEOS; PROP STYLING: AUDREY DAVIS; FOOD STYLING: EMILY NABORS HALL If you're looking to swap up your traditional coleslaw recipe for something new, we recommend this colorful version that uses pepper jelly and olive oil which is a little lighter than mayo-based recipes. 19 of 24 Marinated Tomato-and-Herb Salad Greg Dupree; Food Styling: Anna Hampton; Prop Styling: Ginny Branch Make the most of the fresh herbs in your garden by tossing them with marinated tomatoes to create a colorful and delicious summer salad. 20 of 24 Street Corn Salad Hector Manuel Sanchez While we recommend Cotija cheese for this corn salad, you can also use feta cheese if you prefer or already have it on hand. 21 of 24 Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Lydia Pursell; Food Styling: Toni Brogan This salad should be served at room temperature so the cheese will be soft and the tomatoes will be juicy. 22 of 24 Fresh Fruit Salad Jen Causey Although it requires minimal effort, this colorful fruit salad will be a welcome addition to any summertime potluck. 23 of 24 Carrot-and-Cabbage Slaw with Sunflower Seeds Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis In addition to the red cabbage, matchstick carrots and sunflower seeds add deeper color and more texture to this flavor-packed slaw recipe. 24 of 24 Marinated Watermelon Tomato Salad Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Torie Cox We combined two summer favorites. watermelon and tomatoes, into one salad that's finished off with a homemade tangy lime-ginger-mint vinaigrette. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit