Salads & Side Dishes

Salads & Side Dishes help fill out the menu. But how they are served is open to interpretation. For some, side dishes go with the meal, but for others, they might precede the main course. Some folks like a salad course first, then the main course and side dishes. But others like a salad served after the main course, believing it is best for digestion that way. 

Whatever way you like to serve salads and side dishes, I have tons of great recipes to choose from.

Ideas for side dishes and salad courses

I break things down a few ways when it comes to the sides and salads on the site. 

 

• Salads - From fruit salads to vegetable salads and everything in between. 
• Dressings and Marinades - Dressings for salads, marinades for meats, here are recipes to help you bring out the best in everything.
• Potatoes - Let’s face it, potatoes deserve their own category just because you can do so many different things with potato side dishes.
• Vegetables - Vegetable sides can also easily become entrees if you like, but here are a bunch of great, easy, and fun vegetable side dishes. (Hopefully appealing even to the ones who claim not to like veggies)
• Rice - Rice is like potatoes, there are so many ways to serve it. Hopefully, there are enough ideas here that you won’t ever get bored with another rice dish ever again!
• Stuffing - Whether we are talking stuffing, or referring to dressing, there are plenty of ways to approach these side dishes. Just don’t think they are only handy for the holiday meals!
• Fruits - We all need to eat more fruit right? So why not have ways to get creative with fruit so it isn’t just the same old thing?  That’s what I say anyway. 

What salad goes with

Depending on the type of salad you serve, the salad might come first, or with the main course, or after the main dish. Salad can work as a palate cleanser or function as a digestif. A salad can even be a dessert course like this Cranberry Fluff or Pineapple Pretzel Fluff. 

There are winter salads like Persimmon Salad, and those work well with hearty winter stews. Whereas a summer salad full of Summer Fruit  or ripe garden tomatoes is perfect for cooling on a warm summer’s day.

Which side goes best with the main course?

We all know steak and potatoes is a thing. But there are so many options to choose from? Opening up the creative potential with sides really expands horizons. Because that steak will be a steak, but those potatoes could be Potato Salad, or Totchos, or a casserole, well, you get the picture...