I have lived in the South my whole life, and I can tell you that a proper cookout is never really about the burgers and the BBQ. It’s about what fills the rest of the plate. Creamy potato salad, tangy slaw, a pan of squash casserole, a bowl of okra and tomatoes from the garden.
These 26 sides are the ones that show up year after year, summer after summer, at most backyard gatherings, church picnics, and Fourth of July spreads I have ever been to.
⭢ The Essentials
These are the cookout must-haves. If you only have time to make a few sides, start with these. Every one of them earns its spot on the table, and most feed a hungry crowd without much fuss.
Easy Potato Salad
Grandma’s 5-ingredient potato salad with a creamy, tangy dressing and just the right crunch. It’s the first to go at every cookout I’ve ever brought it to.
More potato salads:
Southern Macaroni Salad
Old-fashioned mac salad with a creamy, slightly sweet dressing, crisp veggies, and hard-boiled eggs. The kind that’s been at Southern potlucks for generations.
Homemade Coleslaw
Classic creamy coleslaw with shredded cabbage and a sweet, tangy dressing. It pairs with pulled pork, ribs, fried chicken, and just about everything in between.
Shrimp Pasta Salad
Tiny shrimp, sweet peas, and shell pasta tossed in a creamy dressing. A reader favorite, and the recipe that always gets requested at family gatherings.
Jiffy Corn Casserole
Sweet, custardy corn casserole made with a box of Jiffy mix, creamed corn, and sour cream. It comes together in one bowl and feeds a crowd with little fuss.
Southern Squash Casserole
Tender yellow squash baked with cheese and a buttery cracker topping. The recipe that turns garden-overflow squash into the dish everyone asks me to bring.
Okra and Tomatoes
A true Southern classic with tender okra, ripe summer tomatoes, onion, and bacon all simmered together. Tastes like a Sunday afternoon at my grandmother’s.
Homemade Baked Beans
Slow-baked from scratch with bacon, brown sugar, and a tangy sauce that caramelizes around the edges. Sweet, smoky, and worth the wait every time.
More baked beans:
⭢ Other Cold Sides
These are the make-ahead salads, garden-fresh sides, and snackable spreads that fill out the rest of the cold table.
Most can be assembled the day before, which is exactly what you want when you’re feeding a crowd.
Cornbread Salad
Layers of crumbled cornbread, crispy bacon, cheddar, tomatoes, and a creamy dressing. A true Southern showstopper that looks as good as it tastes.
Cucumber Tomato Onion Salad
Garden cucumbers, ripe tomatoes, and sweet onion in a simple vinegar dressing. This is the salad that lives on Southern tables all summer for good reason.
Marinated Cucumbers
Crisp cucumber slices soaked in a sweet-and-tangy vinegar marinade. Light, refreshing, and the kind of side that balances out a heavier plate of cookout food.
English Pea Salad
Sweet peas, sharp cheddar, and crispy bacon tossed in a creamy dressing. An old-fashioned Southern staple as simple as it is satisfying.
Three Bean Salad
A tangy classic with green beans, kidney beans, and golden wax beans in a sweet vinegar dressing. Make it a day ahead and the flavors only get better.
Southern Deviled Eggs
The classic version made with mayo, yellow mustard, and a touch of sweet pickle relish. Creamy, tangy, and always the first thing to disappear from the cookout.
Honey Lemon Fruit Salad Dressing
Fresh summer fruit tossed in a bright honey-lemon dressing that doesn’t weigh anything down. Beautiful on the table and a refreshing balance to richer sides.
If you want something a little more retro and creamy, my Fruit Salad with Vanilla Pudding is the church-potluck version everyone remembers from childhood.
Homemade Pimento Cheese
Sharp cheddar, mayo, and diced pimentos blended into a creamy Southern spread. Set it out with crackers and watch it disappear before the burgers are done.
⭢ Other Hot Sides
Here you’ll find the hot vegetable sides, the pan of cornbread, and the bowl of black-eyed peas. Most of these lean Southern through and through, and a few are the kind of recipes your grandmother probably made without ever writing them down.
Roasted Yellow Squash
Yellow squash rounds roasted with olive oil and Parmesan until they’re crispy on top and tender in the middle. Just three ingredients and almost no prep time.
Southern Tomato Pie
A buttery crust layered with sweet summer tomatoes, Vidalia onions, melted cheese, and fresh herbs. It turns peak-season produce into something special.
Collard Greens with Bacon
Slow-simmered collards with smoky bacon, a touch of brown sugar, and a little kick of heat. It’s the pot of greens that makes cornbread absolutely mandatory.
For the plain, classic version without the heat or sugar, my Southern Collard Greens is the slow-simmered original.
Slow Cooker Southern Green Beans
Green beans simmered low and slow with bacon and onion until they’re rich, savory, and falling-apart tender. Set it and forget it while you handle everything else.
Black Eyed Peas (with Bacon)
Tender black-eyed peas slow-simmered with smoky bacon, onion, and garlic. A Southern classic that earns its place on the cookout table any time of year.
Southern Fried Okra
Fresh okra dredged in cornmeal and fried until golden and crispy. Folks tend to snack on these before they ever make it to the table!
Succotash
A classic Southern garden side of corn, lima beans, and tomatoes simmered together with a little butter and bacon. Tastes like the whole summer in one bite.
Southern Cornbread
Crisp golden edges, tender crumb, and no sugar in sight. The savory, baked cornbread you want alongside collards, beans, and just about every cookout main.
More cornbreads and quick breads:
Hush Puppies
Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and made the way they’ve been made at Southern fish fries for generations.
Homemade Mac and Cheese
A decadent baked mac and cheese made with Duke’s mayo for that unmistakable Southern tang. It holds its own next to ribs, pulled pork, or anything off the grill.
More mac and cheese recipes:
Whether you’re hosting a Memorial Day cookout, packing a Fourth of July picnic basket, or just feeding a hungry porch full of family on a Sunday afternoon, these sides have you covered.
Bookmark this collection so you can pull it up the next time the invitations start going out, and leave a comment below to let me know which one you’re trying first.
FAQs
What sides are best at a Southern cookout?
The classics tend to win every time: potato salad, coleslaw, macaroni salad, baked beans, squash casserole, and a basket of cornbread or hush puppies.
Add at least one cold salad (pasta or pea salad work well) and a fresh vegetable side like okra and tomatoes or marinated cucumbers, and the table is covered.
How many sides should I serve at a cookout?
For a backyard gathering of 8 to 12 people, three or four sides is plenty: one starchy (potato salad or mac salad), one slaw or vegetable salad, one hot side (baked beans or a casserole), and bread.
What should I serve with pulled pork at a Southern cookout?
Coleslaw is the traditional pairing (especially vinegar-based slaw), along with baked beans, cornbread, and a creamy mac and cheese or mac salad. Add a fresh vegetable side like cucumber tomato onion salad or okra and tomatoes to balance the richness.
⭢ Related Collections
If you’re planning a full menu, these collections pair well with this one:
- Best Southern Salads (the creamy, no-lettuce kind)
- Best Pasta Salad Recipes
- 25+ Buttermilk Recipes
- Dutch Oven Dinner Ideas
- Southern Biscuit Recipes
