25 Best Summer Cookout Recipes

Welcome summer, and welcome to summer cookouts! Today we are sharing 25 of our best summer cookout recipes! If you’re looking for something new and different to make for your next cookout, check out this list of amazing food.

All of these recipes are great for a weekend of grilling and entertaining. The recipes on our list cover everything from appetizers, grilled meat, side dishes, desserts, and even some vegetarian recipes for your vegetarian friends and family or when a holiday falls on Meatless Monday.

Let’s check out the best summer cookout recipes, shall we?

APPETIZERS

1. PESTO

Pesto is a always a crowd pleaser and goes with just about anything. You could even put some on a burger. The best part is that pesto doesn’t spoil outside because it’s best at room temperature anyway. The possibilities are endless with pesto!

2. SPIVEY’S SPICY SMOKED SNACK MIX

Our smoked snack mix combines Crispix cereal Cheez-Its, pretzels, and peanuts. The snack mix is tossed in spicy butter sauce and kissed with applewood smoke. This snack mix is a surefire crowd-pleaser (pun intended).

3. BACON-WRAPPED CAJUN STUFFED SHRIMP

Taste the flavors of the Louisiana Bayou with fresh wild-caught shrimp marinated in Cajun seasoning stuffed with smoky grilled andouille sausage. The stuffed shrimp are then wrapped in applewood smoked bacon and grilled until crispy and finger-licking good!

4. ZESTY CHEESE STUFFED MINI PEPPERS

The filling for these zesty cheese stuffed mini peppers is made with two kinds of cheese, lime zest, cumin, and garlic powder. It’s zesty, cheesy goodness!

GRILL & SMOKER

5. BRISKET

You don’t need a fancy smoker to smoke a beef brisket. David has perfected his technique on a charcoal grill and we want to share his recipe with you. We’ve focused this recipe around smoking a brisket on a charcoal grill. Learn David’s 10 steps to smoking incredible beef brisket on a charcoal grill!

6. BACON-WRAPPED BBQ CHICKEN TENDERS

This recipe is an easy inexpensive way to feed a crowd. The chicken tenders are wrapped in bacon sprinkled with an aromatic blend of spices, then grilled to perfection and basted with your favorite BBQ sauce. They’re a tender, juicy, smoky, sticky-sweet mouth full of flavor with every bite!

7. SMOKED BBQ PORK PICNIC SHOULDER

Juicy pork with hours of slow smoke, this smoked BBQ pork picnic shoulder is a hell of a time investment but well worth the wait. Learn David’s 10 Steps to Succulent Smoked BBQ Pork Picnic Shoulder!

8. SMOKED SALMON WITH HONEY GLAZE

The goal of a perfectly smoked salmon is moist flaky meat that has the perfect balance of salt and sweetness to complement the rich fillet. For this recipe, we finish off the salmon with a glaze of pure rich honey instead of maple syrup like most recipes call for. When the salmon has cooled, the honey forms a candy-like coating on the salmon that is to die for!

9. SMOKED BEEF TENDERLOIN – REVERSE SEAR

Fire up the grill and celebrate summer with this amazing smoked beef tenderloin or if you really want to get all fancy about it, call it “filet mignon”. Read our step-by-step guide about how we smoked beef tenderloin with a reverse sear so that you can do it at home on your grill too.

10. GRILLED COUNTRY-STYLE PORK RIBS

Country-style pork ribs rubbed with a dry rub, grilled over a two-zone fire, and finished in BBQ sauce. They are not smoked so they grill up fairly quickly. They are the perfect reason to fire up the grill any day of the week also!

11. GRILLED TERIYAKI CHICKEN KABOBS

Grilled teriyaki chicken kabobs is a fun and flavorful recipe for the grill, made with tender juicy chicken, mushrooms, pineapple, peppers, and red onion.

SIDE DISHES

12. EASY COLESLAW

This easy coleslaw is the perfect dish to make for any BBQ. It’s sweet and tangy with the best crunchy texture! It’s the perfect recipe to have in your arsenal for backyard barbecues. Everyone will enjoy it mounded high on their favorite sandwich or served as a side dish to accompany just about anything!

13. SUMMER VEGETABLE COUSCOUS SALAD

This Summer Vegetable Couscous Salad is a quick, hearty, and versatile way to prepare couscous with summer vegetables as a meal or a side dish to accompany any summer meal. 

14. ADULT MAC AND CHEESE

This creamy adult mac and cheese is the ultimate comfort food for adults, with Gruyère, extra-sharp white cheddar and blue cheese. With breadcrumbs and extra cheese on top, this recipe is a surefire crowd-pleaser! Top it with fresh basil for a flavor combination that is out of this world!

15. STEAKHOUSE BAKED POTATOES

Steakhouse baked potatoes have a salted crispy, golden skin with a light with a warm fluffy center. Learn how to make perfect baked potatoes at home!

16. ROASTED TOMATO CHEESE TART

This roasted tomato cheese tart is easy to make, using frozen puff pastry dough as the soft warm pillowy bed for the vine-ripened tomatoes to rest, with Dijon mustard and smoked Gruyère cheese, simply seasoned with fresh thyme, salt, and pepper; garnished with fresh basil.

17. GRILLED BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH BACON & BBQ SAUCE

The brussels sprouts are grilled in a cast iron pan with rendered bacon fat, onions, garlic, and a BBQ spice blend until tender. Once tender, BBQ sauce and crispy bacon are added to the brussels sprouts making them impossible to resist.

18. TUSCAN TORTELLINI PASTA SALAD WITH BALSAMIC DRESSING

This delicious pasta salad is perfect for year-round potlucks, and summer picnics and cookouts. Best of all, you don’t have to worry about the temperature outside spoiling the whole salad. 

19. GRILLED CORN AND BLACK BEAN SALAD

Fresh ears of corn are plentiful this time of year! Simple ingredients with tons of flavor, Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salad is a fiesta in a bowl, with corn, beans, tomatoes, avocado, and lime dressing.

20. MAMA ROSA’S POTATO SALAD

The recipe comes from David’s mama, Rosa. He got the recipe from her many years ago and has made large batches of this potato salad to take to company potlucks. He always comes home with an empty bowl. People eat it up!

DESSERTS

21. HOMEMADE CHERRY PIE

Have that scoop of vanilla ice cream ready! Easy homemade cherry pie made with fresh cherries bubbling in a thick rich filling inside a flaky buttery crust. A delicious summer all-American dessert!

22. STRAWBERRY BUNDT CAKE WITH STRAWBERRY GLAZE

This bundt cake packs a double-whammy of strawberry flavor that any strawberry lover craves. Strawberries are not only nestled throughout the dense pound cake but they are also the crowning jewels drizzled over the humps of this bundt cake in a strawberry glaze.

23. GRILLED PEACHES WITH CINNAMON RICOTTA CRÈME

Grilled Peaches With Cinnamon Ricotta Crème a deliciously healthy way to lighten up dessert and celebrate summer nights while watching fireflies light up the night. 

The peaches are halved and lightly kissed by the flames of the grill. Then each grilled peach is topped with a dollop of cinnamon ricotta crème sprinkled with pecans and drizzled with honey. 

24. LODER’S ZUCCHINI BREAD

The Loder’s Zucchini bread is easy to make, perfectly spiced with the perfect balance of sweetness and spice. Enjoy a slice for breakfast, as a snack, dessert or any time you want a slice. You won’t be able to stop eating it!

25. DAVID’S CINNAMON PEACH CRISP WITH FRESH PEACHES

David’s peach crisp is made of ripe juicy peaches tossed in sugar and cinnamon with a comforting topping of crunchy rolled oats, brown sugar, pecans, and butter with the warmth of more cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.

We hope that at least on of these best summer cookout recipes makes it to your next summer barbecue or picnic. If you try one, don’t forget to comment on the recipe and let us know all about it. We love hearing from you!

Enjoy your summer!