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3 easy and delicious BBQ side dishes for summer..

Oh, I do love a BBQ!

Huddled over our gas barbecue while Mrs E does all the good work preparing tasty, healthy BBQ side dishes to balance the grilled meats, fish and chorizo. There’s definitely a place for coleslaw and salad leaves, but these three easy summer BBQ side dishes, honed to perfection by my smashing wife, make what could be a pretty dull dinner into something of a feast. 

You’re welcome! 

Looking for easy BBQ side dishes? Try these three delicious summer recipes: lemon and herb potato salad, roasted Mediterranean vegetables with halloumi, and watermelon, feta and mint salad. 

Lemon, herb and yoghurt potato salad for a BBQ

This one is a lighter alternative to a mayonnaise-heavy potato salad, which can feel a bit greasy on the tongue, but is still creamy and full of flavour.

Serves 6

You’ll need:

  • 750g baby new potatoes
  • 150g Greek yoghurt
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • Zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 small garlic clove, crushed (when we have time, we often roast a few heads of garlic in advance, then squeeze the resulting soft, gooey, sweet garlic out of a couple of cloves and stir this through. Roasted garlic keeps in the fridge for a few days and is brilliant squashed onto or into pretty much anything we cook)
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
  • 3 spring onions, finely sliced
  • Salt and plenty of black pepper

Method:

  1. Boil the potatoes until tender, around 12-15 minutes. Drain and allow them to steam dry for a few minutes.
  2. While they’re still warm, halve any larger potatoes and toss with the lemon juice and olive oil.
  3. Mix the yoghurt with the lemon zest, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper.
  4. Stir the yoghurt dressing through the potatoes and scatter over the spring onions.
  5. Chill until needed, or serve slightly warm.

Why it works: I have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t like this, even fussy children! The lemon and herbs make it fresh rather than heavy, and it goes brilliantly with sausages, burgers, chicken and steak. If you have a child who won’t try it because of the green bits, simply set aside a small portion of the potato, yoghurt and lemon mix before you stir in the herbs and onion.

Roasted Mediterranean vegetables with halloumi

This one is ridiculously easy and can be served warm or at room temperature, though fresh from the oven is always a delight, as the halloumi is soft and pliable when warm.

Serves 6

You’ll need:

  • 3 courgettes
  • 3 red peppers
  • 2 red onions
  • 500g cherry tomatoes
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 lemon
  • 2 blocks halloumi
  • A handful of fresh basil or parsley
  • Salt and black pepper

Method:

  1. Heat the oven to 200°C fan.
  2. Roughly chop the courgettes, peppers and red onion and put them in a large roasting tin with the tomatoes.
  3. Toss with the olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper.
  4. Roast for around 25 minutes, turning once, until softened and slightly charred.
  5. Slice the halloumi into 1cm thick pieces, place on top of the roasted veg and pop under a grill for a few minutes, until the cheese begins to turn golden brown
  6. Squeeze over the juice of half a lemon and finish with fresh basil or parsley

Why it works: we used to grill halloumi on the BBQ, but unless you catch it at precisely the right moment it just turns to salty, squeaky leather. This approach ensures soft and delicious halloumi alongside sweet and super healthy roasted veg. The creamy white and gold of the cheese on top of the vivid red of the roasted veg is a joy to behold, and taste.

Watermelon, cucumber and feta salad

You’ll need:

(This one we tend to be a bit fast and loose with in terms of volume of ingredients, but as long as you get a decent balance of each, you’ll be fine)

  • One medium watermelon
  • One cucumber
  • One pack Greek feta cheese, chopped into small pieces
  • Large handful of mint leaves, shredded
  • Olive oil 
  • Balsamic glaze
  • Toasted pine nuts or toasted pumpkin seeds (optional)

Method:

Chop the red flesh of the watermelon and the cucumber into bite size chunks and mix together. Add the shredded mint and mix again. Tip the mix onto a large serving platter and scatter the feta cheese on top. At the point of serving, drizzle with olive oil and balsamic glaze, then scatter the pine nuts or pumpkins seeds if using.

Why it works: fresh, sweet, salty, colourful, and delicious. End of.

My BBQ Sunday trio

These three easy BBQ side dishes give you a good balance of flavours and textures: creamy lemon and herb potato salad, sweet and savoury roasted Mediterranean vegetables with halloumi, and a fresh watermelon, cucumber and feta salad. They work particularly well with burgers, sausages, chicken and other grilled meats and can largely be prepared ahead of time. 

And the best bit?

None of them needs to compete for oven space at the last minute, which is exactly what you want when the BBQ is taking centre stage.

Eddie – Friday 7th August 2026.