Life

What to cook in July: Easy barbecue recipes and refreshing sides

Simple, flavour-packed dishes to fill your summer table.

Simple, flavour-packed dishes to fill your summer table

Left to right: A plate of mango corn salad, closeup on a plate of BBQ ribs, a glass of watermelon soda.
(Dhivya Subramanian, Michael Gozum)

The smell of grilled meat or vegetables triggers a deep, almost universal pleasure response — it smells like comfort and celebration. And July is prime time for getting together in parks, patios and backyards to relax together and cook over fire.

If you're hosting, transporting food in and out of the house can be a hassle — so we've made it easy. The barbecue recipes below are either super simple to cook in the moment, like Devan Rajkumar's Little India masala corn, or can be prepped ahead of time, like Sabrina Falone's smoky stone fruit and bourbon BBQ ribs, which you can marinate a day in advance and throw on the grill when ready. 

You'll also find refreshing, make-ahead sides, drinks and desserts — like a juicy stone fruit crumble to serve with ice cream — for the perfect mix of smoky, sweet, tangy and frosty to round out your summer menus.

Smoky stone fruit and bourbon BBQ ribs

overhead shot of a rack of ribs on a wooden cutting board on a wooden table. peaches, plums, a small bowl of BBQ sauce and a bottle of bourbon sit around the board.
(Photography by Michael Gozum)

Jerk chicken 

Closeup on a white plate of jerk chicken on a wooden cutting board. The plate contains jerk chicken on rice and beans, with a side of plantain and some coleslaw.
(Dwight Smith)

BBQ chimichurri chicken

Close up of chicken covered with chimichurri sauce cooking on a grill.
(Photo credit: Adrian Harris and Jeremy Inglett)

Lamb rib burger with pineapple salsa

Closeup on a lamb burger with pineapple salsa.
(Credit: David Loftus)

Chili-topped hotdog

Closeup on a hot dog with mustard and onions.
(Source: Instagram/@fancy_franks)

Arayes shrak 

Closeup on a platter of grilled pitas stuffed with kebabs. Green olives and assorted pickles sit next to them.
(Photography by Ashley Lima)

Little India masala corn

A plate of BBQ cobs of corn.
(Photography by Suech and Beck)

Grilled potato salad 

A platter of grilled lettuce, potatoes and sweet potatoes.
(CBC Life)

Charred whole romaine Caesar salad

2 heads of grilled romaine lettuce with salad dressing and crumbled egg.
(Photography by EE Berger)

Guacamole with grilled jalapenos

A bowl of guacamole on a wooden cutting board with tortilla chips on it. Grilled jalapeños, sliced lime and avocado sit next to it.
(Photo: David Bagosy, Styling: Melissa Direnzo)

Fried plantain chips and guacamole 

Closeup on a hand using a fried plantain to scoop guacamole from a grey bowl.
(Photography by Owais Rafique Marketing Inc.)

Mango, corn and peanut salad

Above shot of a large plate of Mango, corn and peanut salad being tossed.
(Photography by Dhivya Subramanian)

Crispy smashed potatoes with tomatoes, feta and mint 

Overhead of a serving platter with crispy smashed potatoes topped with tomatoes, feta and mint.
(Photography by Dhivya Subramanian)

Borani-yeh kadoo (summer squash yogurt dip) 

closeup on a yogurt dip topped with sauteed zucchini, tomatoes and fried onions. the dip is on a dark blue plate, with flatbread sitting next to it.
(Photography by Eric Wolfinger)

Rice and peas

Overhead shot of a plate of rice and peas with bowls of sliced limes and green onions next to it.
(Photography by Owais Rafique Marketing Inc.; styling by Matthew Chin)

Matira curry 

Closeup on a plate of red watermelon curry on a table next to plates of roti and pickles on a white tablecloth.
(Photography by Patricia Niven)

Strawberry lime dirty soda

A hand stirring a glass with strawberry sauce on the bottom and cream on the top. A mango version sits in the background.
(Photography by Dhivya Subramanian)

Lemon iced tea 

Closeup on 2 tall glasses of iced tea with lemon slices in them.
(Photography by Dhivya Subramanian)

Watermelon lime soda 

A glass with a pink drink in it, garnished with a slice of lime and a sprig of mint. Glasses of the drink and a pitcher of it are in the background.
(Photography by Dhivya Subramanian)

Pineapple-jalapeno margarita 

Pineapple-jalapeno margarita.
(Photography by Dhivya Subramanian)

Spiced coffee kulfi

overhead shot of 2 grey containers of coffee-flavoured kulfi, with a spoon in one of them, sitting on a black surface
(Photography by Nik Sharma)

Cardamom pistachio stone fruit crumble

Overhead shot of a white dish of stone fruit crumble topped with pistachios. The crumble has a few spoonfuls missing and a silver spoon sitting in the middle.
(Photography by Amina Al-Saigh)

Strawberry-cheesecake kataifi cups

3 glasses layered with strawberries, cream and shredded phyllo pastry
(Photography by Amina Al-Saigh)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jamey Ordolis is the senior producer of CBC Life.

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