I’m sharing 25 of my best side dishes including appetizers, bread, salads, vegetables, and potatoes. No matter what you serve as the main dish, these sides will be terrific accompaniments. Choose a few and chow down!
Appetizers & Snacks
My family likes to snack all day long, especially on holidays. You can just put out a bowl of chips for guests, but I like to serve foods that are a little special. Don’t you?
1. Refrigerator dill pickles
No Cook Refrigerator Dill Pickles are a hit anytime you serve them. They make an excellent appetizer or side for most meals. We try to keep a jar of them in the refrigerator year round. But people like them so much, sometimes that’s hard. Good thing they can be made any time of the year. Making these tangy, crunchy delights is quick and easy, but you will need to make them at least five days before you want to serve them!
2. Mexican layered dip
Mexican Layered Dip, no cooking, and super good. Quick to make. Seven layers of tastiness served with chips or as a dip for vegetables. The hardest part of this recipe is taking the seed out of the avocado to make the guacamole.
3. Spinach stuffed mushrooms
Spinach Stuffed Mushrooms, a South Beach Diet-inspired recipe, has only six ingredients. Vegetarian and gluten-free, they are really good and easy to make.
Bread
In my humble opinion, bread is always one of the best side dishes served at a meal. Instead of spongy dinner rolls, how about some homemade bread or cornbread? Here are some of my favorites—two wheat bread recipes and two that are gluten free.
4. French rolls
Crusty French Rolls, or as we call them in Milwaukee, Hard Rolls. Hard on the outside, soft on the inside. So good!
5. Dill bread
Have you ever eaten Dill Bread (Dillie Bread)? It's packed with flavor. It’s one of the best homemade bread recipes in our recipe box. The recipe makes two loaves, so make one for dinner and put the other one in the freezer for another time.
6. GF DF white bread
Gluten Free Dairy Free White Bread is the BEST recipe I have found for gluten free bread that actually tastes like bread. This single-rise bread is excellent and easy. Mix it with your electric mixer.
7. Flourless cornbread
Cornbread Flourless (Gluten Free). This flourless cornbread is super easy to make. Turn on the oven. Heat the cast iron pan with some canola oil coating it in the oven. Using two mixing bowls, one for dry ingredients and one for wet, mix the dry ingredients in the bigger bowl. Mix the wet ingredients in the smaller bowl. Melt the butter and add it to the wet ingredients. Whisk. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry. Pour it into the hot skillet and bake for 20 minutes. Not much more to it than that. Delicious!
Salads
Salads can be a stunning addition to the table, especially the first one on this list. You can have a lettuce salad any day of the week. But for holidays, family gatherings, or any time of the year, go for beauty and deliciousness with one of these:
8. Festive Salad
This is a lovely salad of fruits, vegetables, and nuts. This salad looks and tastes amazing. It makes a beautiful addition to any meal and can serve as your centerpiece. And it’s a great way to get your family to eat their fruits and veggies. Maybe they won’t even notice the beets.
9. Green beans and tomato salad
Green Bean Tomato Salad is one of my favorite salads. It is very flavorful and eye-catching. It's best made with fresh green beans, but you can substitute cooked and cooled frozen green beans.
We are so lucky in the United States. Fresh vegetables are available year-round. The recipe uses little red cherry tomatoes, but you can substitute grape tomatoes instead. Dressed with a lemon garlic vinaigrette, it is simple to make.
10. Red pepper and tomato salad
Tomato Red Pepper Salad is so easy that you will wonder why you haven't made it yet. Roast the red peppers. Roasting enhances the flavor. The recipe calls for homegrown fresh tomatoes, but this salad can be made any time of the year using grape tomatoes. I used heirloom tomatoes, regular tomatoes, roasted red pepper, and diced (uncooked) red pepper. Yummy!
11. Spinach salad
Crunchy Sweet Spinach Salad has only four ingredients and takes a few minutes to assemble. The lovely, deep green spinach provides lots of Vitamin K (good for preventing heart disease, clotting your blood, and building strong bones) and essential minerals.
Oranges add vitamins, folate, potassium, and sweetness, while cucumbers and celery provide crunch. What better way to eat healthfully? We love Brianna's (vegan) Poppyseed Dressing on this salad.
12. Barley, apple, and walnuts salad
Barley Apple Walnut Salad is a beautiful and unique salad you will want to eat. The recipe requires a little planning because it calls for overnight soaking of the barley and walnuts.
However, if you prefer, you can cook the barley without soaking it, but it takes longer (about 30-45 minutes total), and you will need about three cups of water. Soaking walnuts makes them more digestible and enhances the natural enzymes, making them more beneficial, so don’t skip this soaking.
Vegetables
If you serve savory vegetables, everyone will be happy. It's not that vegetables are less than tasty; sometimes cooks don't season them properly. It's all about the seasoning.
13. Roasted broccoli
Roasted Lemon Garlic Broccoli is one of our granddaughter Madeline’s favorite recipes. It takes just 25 minutes to make and it's abundantly flavorful whether it is hot or served at room temperature.
Using foil or parchment paper on the pan is easy to clean up, too. This is a recipe you will want to make again and again. It's easy, packed with vitamins and protein, and so tasty.
14. Carrots vermouth
Carrots Vermouth is a beautiful, simple side dish and one of my all-time favorite holiday recipes. Your family will love it when you serve these brilliant carrots at your holiday table (or anytime). It takes 45 minutes to make. You will need carrots, butter, salt, honey, and vermouth.
Are you worried about the alcohol in the vermouth? The alcohol burns off and leaves its delectable flavor behind. If you don't eat dairy, you can use coconut oil.
15. Green beans
Green Beans Almandine is a favorite recipe in most homes. Quick, easy and so tasty. Crisp and buttery. This is a recipe that works any time of the year because green beans are readily available all year round. And this recipe is delicious whether you are using fresh or frozen green beans. It's simple and only takes a few minutes even if you have to "snap" the fresh beans.
16. Roasted root vegetables
Smoky Maple Root Veggies will put a smile on your face. Roasting vegetables makes them more scrumptious. Adding maple syrup makes them amazing. The hardest part is the cleaning and cutting of the vegetables. Then you pop them in the oven for 40 minutes. Serve them hot or at room temperature. Everyone who eats them says, "Mmmmmmm!"
17. Caramelized onions and toasted almonds with zucchini
Zucchini Caramelized Onions & Toasted Almonds, a deliciously simple 25-minute recipe. And only four ingredients! I love onions that are sautéed until brown. That makes them what chefs call "caramelized." Caramelized onions add a delicious flavor to vegetables and meats; tangy and a little bit sweet, they are just plain yummy. Sauté everything and enjoy.
Potatoes, Rice & Starches
You can always have mashed potatoes, but would they really qualify as your best side dish at dinner? How about a side that looks and tastes amazing?
18. Hasselback baked potatoes
Hasselback Potatoes are a simple alternative to baked potatoes. Large baking potatoes are sliced into thin strips about ¾ of the way through the potato, coated with oil and salt, and baked until the potatoes fan out a bit and get crispy. The end result is quite pretty.
19. Twice-baked potatoes
These Twice Baked Potatoes look difficult to make, but they really aren't that hard. There's a trick to it, though. Make sure to completely bake them until they are soft and begin the whipping process within about 10 minutes of taking them out of the oven. Otherwise, they will be lumpy.
If you rice the baked potatoes with a ricer before mashing, there will be fewer lumps. And the secret to great twice-baked potatoes is smooth and creamy potatoes!
20. Herbed scalloped potatoes
Scalloped Potatoes with Ground Thyme. Oh, such an improvement on plain old potatoes. So delicious! Some folks like their scalloped potatoes a bit soupy; I like the sauce thickened.
Some recipes call for a little flour or cornstarch to thicken the sauce, but the sauce will thicken naturally if you use really waxy potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or red potatoes. The thyme expands the flavor for a savory delight.
21. Caramelized scalloped potatoes
Caramelized Scalloped Potatoes are the creamiest, most flavorful version of scalloped potatoes. They take a little bit longer to make, but they are worth it.
Who knew that adding caramelized onions to scalloped potatoes would be so amazing? Because cow's milk hurts my joints, I have to be careful to eat only nondairy milk or goat's milk and cheese products. So I make this with one of the good dairy substitutes, like coconut, almond, or pea milk. Of course, you can use cow’s milk if you like. No matter which you use, these potatoes will be a lovely addition to your meal.
22. Lemon rice
Lemon Rice is a delicately flavored rice dish that is an excellent accompaniment for just about any main dish. Rice, butter, and lemon. Who wouldn't love it?
23. Quinoa and roasted eggplant salad
Roasted Eggplant Quinoa Salad is delicious. Roasted eggplant, quinoa, corn, tomatoes, onions, and a wonderful vinaigrette makes the salad super tasty. You can offer this as a vegan main dish option, too!
The simple vinaigrette of olive oil, lemon, garlic, salt, and pepper is scrumptious. It takes about 30 minutes, and it's excellent at room temperature, cold, or hot. It has lots of good protein from the quinoa and the corn. It's also low-calorie, filling, and so good.
24. Sweet potato salad with pine nuts
Sweet Potato Pine Nut Salad with peas in a vinaigrette. What a delightful salad, especially for the holidays. Such a festive way to eat your veggies. The vinaigrette is sweetened with honey and made savory with shallots.
25. Baked rice
Baked Rice, is the easiest way to make rice. You're gonna love me for this one. Baking rice works well for white or brown rice. It's a cinch. No stirring. No boiling over. This recipe (and 29 others) is included in my cookbook, It Ain’t Just The Diet COOKBOOK: How I Beat Food Allergies One Bite At A Time .
There you have it…25 of our best side dishes. Enjoy!
Kathy acquired the blog, Recipe Idea Shop in 2024. She was raised on a farm in Arkansas where having a big garden and good food to eat was the norm. She shares recipes for homemade comfort food and new trending dishes.
Kathy began her blogging journey in 2011 when she founded PetticoatJunktion.com, a home décor blog focused on repurposing and upcycling furniture, and thrift store finds.
