50 Quick And Easy To Make Side Dishes

Do you sometimes need a little change in your nightly meals to include some new side dishes? I know I sure do! We all have our favorites we tend to lean on, but I want some new ideas! So I scoped out Pinterest and got a few ideas. From those my mind started cranking out easy side dishes I’d made in the past and my mouth started salivating and these are the ones I had to share with you.

I wrote this post back in 2018, thanks to JayJay, I was made aware it had some issues with some links. I appreciate it when someone lets me know a post has some problems. I have written over 2000 posts in the last 12 years and I’m slowly fixing the old ones. I have also deleted almost 500 posts and rewritten several.

This post is one of the classics since it has so many great ideas for easy sides. As you go through the list and try some new side dish recipes at home, you’ll have to decide which ones qualify as a perfect side dish for your family. There could be some that you’d actually make as a main dish, based on the ingredients and the size of the final product. We’ve been trying to cut back on meats, so we’re making more vegetable side dishes these days.

Thanks to all of you I have made many friends throughout the years without meeting you in person. A few I have met for lunch and I cherish these friendships. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my articles and sharing them with others. Life is good!

Kitchen Tools You May Need

• Mixing Bowls
• Chopping/Cutting Boards
• Good Knives (Costco sells these cheaper when they have a roadshow)
• Vegetable Peeler
• Can Opener
• Deviled Egg Tray

I want to break it down into groups so you can pick and choose the ones you like. I’m adding instructions or links to some to help you prepare meals your family can enjoy. Some side dishes have canned, frozen, or freshly picked vegetables. As you read through this list, consider which ones would be handy when you need a potluck item, you’re invited over for a neighborhood BBQ, or your family has plans for a cookout or picnics at the park. You’ll keep your oven busy with many of these!

Plain And Simple Side Dishes

1. Baked potato with all the trimmings (butter, sour cream, bacon bits, and chives)
2. Baked potato with butter, salt, and pepper
3. Sweet Potato with all the trimmings (butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon)
4. Sweet Potato plain or with butter, salt, and pepper
5. Baked potato wedges (place the sliced potatoes in a bag with one tablespoon of oil and 1 cup of water) Drain the water and oil. Sprinkle with Lawry’s Season Salt. Bake at 400 degrees for about 40-50 minutes or until golden brown. Updated Recipe: Baked Potato Wedges with Fry Sauce
6. Baked potato chunk pieces (place the chunks of potatoes in a bag with one tablespoon of oil and 1 cup of water) Drain the water and oil. Sprinkle lightly with chili powder. Bake at 400 degrees for about 40-50 minutes or until golden brown
7. Green beans with butter, salt, and pepper
8. Green beans with butter, and bacon bits
9. Green beans with butter and slivered almonds
10. Corn with butter, salt, and pepper
11. Corn with butter and chopped red bell pepper
12. Baked beans with bacon
13. Fresh peas (I think about Ray picking his fresh peas in AZ.)
14. Fresh asparagus, baked or steamed
15. Sliced tomatoes with fresh basil and Mozzarella cheese
16. Fresh sliced tomatoes (one of my favorite veggies)
17. Cabbage Coleslaw The Very Best Coleslaw Recipe
18. Raw vegetable salad Broccoli Cashew Salad
19. The Best Green Bean Casserole
20. Chicken and Rice Casserole
21. Vegetable Medley (frozen typically with broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots)
22. Broccoli, steamed or raw
23. Cauliflower, steamed or raw
24. Carrot sticks
25. Glazed carrots with butter and brown sugar
26. Steamed carrots with butter, salt, and pepper
27. Mashed potatoes with butter and cream or gravy
28. Deviled eggs, I boil the eggs and remove the shells. Stir some mayo with salt and pepper and combine with the egg yolks and then scoop it into the white of the eggs and sprinkle with Paprika
29. Tossed salad, with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and salad dressing
30. Grape tomatoes cut in half with sliced cucumbers, drizzle Balsamic oil and olive oil over them
31. Spinach Strawberry Salad, fresh strawberries, cashews, bacon, red onions, drizzle with Homemade Salad Dressing
32. White rice with butter, salt, and pepper
33. Garlic rice (combine rice and water then add some fresh garlic cloves for added flavor, and butter then cook it)
34. Jello salad, my husband grew up eating Jello every night. Add some peaches, apples, or other fruit to make them special.
35. Hashbrowns, fried or baked with butter
36. Strawberry Pretzel Salad

Almost A Meal Side Dishes

1. Creamed corn casserole by my daughter, Allison, I just added this recipe to my Easy Thanksgiving Recipes
2. Cheesy Potatoes, in Utah they’re called Funeral Potatoes
3. Seven Layer Salad 
4. Potato Salad, I boil potatoes, then peel them. I make a sauce with mayo, a little milk, a bit of mustard, and pickle juice with salt and pepper and combine it with the warm potatoes
5. For Macaroni Salad, I boil some pasta and add red bell pepper, chopped hard-boiled eggs, and some mayo with salt and pepper. Don’t you just love pasta salads?
6. Chef Salad (lettuce, bacon, hard-boiled eggs, cheese, ham, and tomatoes)
7. 15 Ways To Use Cheap Potatoes
8. Taco Salad Recipe
9. 3 Salad Recipes We All Grew Up Eating
10. Chicken Salad Recipe

Spicy Side Dishes

1. How To Make Egg Salad Sandwiches (not spicy)
2. Refried Beans made from scratch, or from a can
3. Spanish Rice (my family makes it with Rotel tomatoes)
4. Pinto or black beans with salsa

Make sure you keep your side dishes in the fridge if you’re not going to eat them right away. Side dishes often make fun and delicious leftovers too, so refrigerate or freeze them after your meal.

Final Word

This is so fun to list so many side dishes we can all make and eat our meals at home with the family. If you have some ideas, let me know so I can share them with my readers. Stay well, be safe, and keep on prepping. May God bless this world.

One of my most popular posts is Low Budget Meals