13 Grilling Side Dishes

Smashed Cucumber Salad with Butter Beans and Tarragon

Gently crushing the cucumbers for this salad releases their aroma and creates nooks and crannies for soaking up the dressing.

Creamy Cucumber and Grilled Potato Salad

"When I was a kid, my mom would marinate cucumbers, red onions and canned potatoes in jarred creamy Italian dressing," says Jamie Bissonnette. "I'm not saying she was a great cook, but creamy Italian dressing is still my favorite. I make a version of it for this salad."

Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanuts

In this refreshing salad, crisp cucumbers and aromatic cilantro are tossed with a tangy dressing made with lime juice, fish sauce and fiery Thai chiles.

• Summer Grilling Guide

Grilled Broccoli with Chipotle-Lime Butter and Queso Fresco

If you've never tried grilling broccoli, you are definitely missing out: The vegetable becomes tender and deliciously charred. Tossing the broccoli with a butter flavored with lime zest, honey and smoky chipotle Tabasco makes it luscious.

• Video: Grilling Tips from Star Chefs

Charro Beans

"Most people prefer margaritas either frozen or on the rocks. In Texas, it's the same with refried beans versus charro," says Tim Love. Refried beans are made with mashed pintos; for charro—a Tex-Mex take on pork and beans—the beans are served whole in a spicy broth.

• Summer Grilling Guide

Charred Corn Salad with Mint, Parsley and Cilantro

Yotam Ottolenghi loves mixing unorthodox ingredients, like lime juice, jalapeño and maple syrup, into his Middle Eastern food.

• Outdoor Party Ideas

Watermelon Salad with Feta and Mint

Although Jacques Pépin cuts a small, seedless watermelon into rounds with a melon baller (adding the trimmings to the salad, too, so as not to waste them), you can also chop the watermelon into cubes.

• Summer Produce Guide

Grilled Fava Bean Pods with Chile and Lemon

Chef Nate Appleman quickly grills whole fava beans, tosses them with a crushed red pepper dressing and serves them hot. They can be eaten whole—the tender pods develop a lovely charred flavor on the grill—but it's also easy to eat them in the traditional way by popping the beans out of their pods and outer skins.

• Grilling Tips from Star Chefs

Grilled Corn on the Cob with Roasted Garlic and Herbs

"Butter is not the villain it once was," says Michel Nischan, who adds a little bit to roasted garlic to create a rich, creamy spread for corn on the cob.

• How to Shuck Corn

Smoky Glazed Asparagus

Chef Nate Appleman swears by coating vegetables with a mayonnaise-based marinade; it creates a beautifully blistered crust when grilled. Here he offers a marinade for asparagus that is also fabulous on broccoli and fennel.

• Summer Party Recipes

Grill-Baked Potatoes with Chive Butter

These supereasy, indulgent potatoes are based on a recipe Brooklyn butcher Tom Mylan found in a South Dakota centennial cookbook. They're layered with pats of chive and sour cream butter, then wrapped in foil and grilled until soft and delicious.

• F&W's Summer Grilling Guide

Corn on the Cob with Curry Mayonnaise and Chile Salt

For his Asian take on elote, the grilled corn on the cob sold on the streets of Mexico, Bill Kim seasons mayonnaise with a spicy and tangy mix of lime juice, curry powder and chile paste. In place of the cheese that's commonly sprinkled on top, he dusts the corn with a mix of lime zest, lemon zest, chile and salt.

• Grilled Corn

Peach-and-Fennel Slaw

This sweet and crunchy salad with lots of immune-boosting vitamin C is delicious with grilled pork or in a pulled-pork sandwich. To wilt the fennel slightly, Michel Nischan briefly marinates it in vinegar and salt before tossing it with firm, ripe peaches.

• Make-Ahead Salads