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Easy Summer BBQ & Grilling Recipes Your Family will Love
When it comes to favorite foods, barbecue seems to be the answer to a variety of dinner menu dilemmas. Needing a quick dinner? BBQ! Hankerin’ for comfort foods? BBQ! Feeding a crowd without breaking the budget? BBQ! Perfect meal for a grill or even the slow cooker that won’t heat up the kitchen? BBQ! You get the idea! Not only is it the answer to #AllTheQuestions, there are as many recipes for BBQ as there are occasions to enjoy it. And that’s precisely why I’ve gathered up the quintessential list of BBQ & Grilling recipes that your family is sure to love!
BBQ & Grilling Recipes for the Perfect Backyard Gatherings
For the Surf Lovers…
- Grilled Fish Sandwiches with homemade tartar sauce? Yes, please!
- Asian Salmon on the Grill, because grilled salmon is always a good idea!
- Carribean Citrus Grilled Fish with a side of Caribbean slaw makes for a healthy and classic grilled dinner!
And the Turf Lovers…
- When it comes to grilling it’s not even considered rude to lick your chops or gnaw the bone with these Lick Your Chops, Gnaw the Bone BBQ Ribs!
- Grilled New York Strip Steaks are both tender and full of flavor, and a great option for pan-frying when a random summer storm interrupts your grilling plans.
- Three ingredients, a few minutes of hands-on time and you’ve got Grilled Round Steaks to satisfy any appetite.
- There’s no need to be intimidated by charcoal grilling with this Steak on a charcoal grill recipe!
- When you have the best meatloaf recipe ever, why not make an adjustment or two and create the 50s Prime Time Burgers?! Yum!
- Now you can grill up the World’s Best Burger in your very own backyard.
And we can’t forget Chicken …
- Kabobs are always such a fun way to grill and these Sweet and Sour Chicken Kabobs have a wonderful little fruit twist to bring out the sweet and sour. Try them. You’ll love them!
- Hawaiian Grilled Chicken! Because if you’re going to grill, why not make it taste like you’re on the big island?!
- Grilled Chicken with Summer veggies are even tastier when you grill the chicken and the veggies and have less dishes to clean up!
- This Easy Soy Marinade Grilled Chicken is quick, simple and has a classic grilled flavor.
- A few years ago, Kim shared this recipe for Chicken and Veggies Foil Packets on the Grill. Simple, tasty and virtually no cleanup!
- For those of you who prefer a little kick, this BBQ Pepper Jack Chicken uses Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce, our family favorite, and pepper jack for a quick 4-ingredient grilled dinner.
- These BBQ Chicken Fajitas start with a great idea like Chicken Fajitas and take it up a few notches with grilling and BBQ. Yum!
- If you’re looking for the secret to the perfect grilled chicken legs, you’ll find it in my BBQ Chicken Legs recipe. Shhh!
And then there’s Pork … and Pizza …
- Move over chicken, there’s a new meat in town … Honey Mustard Pork Chops
- Ginger-Peach Pork Tenderloin! Grilled ginger and peaches and pork, Oh My!
- If you’ve never been to a panini party, then might I suggest you throw your own with a few ideas for Grilled Sandwiches. It’s a fun way for everyone to get the exact sandwich they want!
- The flavor of this Easy Grilled Pizza is hard to beat, and it’s a perfect assemble-yourself dinner for each family member or guest while enjoying some together time outdoors.
No Grill? No problem! How about some awesome BBQ flavors in your slow cooker or instant pot?
- For all you coffee lovers, these Red Eye BBQ Ribs will absolutely make your day!
- My Chili Sauce Chicken Legs are a wonderful blend of sweet and spicy.
- Zingy BBQ Chicken packs a powerful flavor punch by combining two classic marinades in one recipe. Check it out!
- Peach Pulled Pork Sliders are a delicious combination of pulled pork, peach salsa and Hawaiian rolls, and it includes a perfect side recipe of Apple Cole Slaw.I’m not really sure why I decided to combine the ingredients I did for these
- I’m not really sure why I decided to combine the ingredients I did for these Teriyaki BBQ Chicken Legs , but I sure am glad I did. And the family agreed!
- Slow Cooker Beer Brats that you can start in the morning and they’re ready and waiting the moment you walk in the door
- Don’t forget to check out these other recipes for Traditional Summer Barbecue that you can make in the slow cooker.
And a little more Grilling and Barbecue goodness
Did you know that you can make these EASY Freezer Marinades, pour them over frozen meat and pop them back in the freezer until you’re ready to pull them out and toss them on the grill? It’s true. Simple. Tasty. Everybody wins!
- And while your meat is marinating and grilling, here are a few perfect Barbeque sides to add to the table.
- Before you shut the grill down, toss some pineapple slices on for this wonderfully sweet and light Grilled Pineapple Dessert.
Granted, June is designated as National Barbecue Month and that’s a good enough reason to bust out your favorite barbecue sauce and try some of the recipes above. But let’s be honest, BBQ & grilling isn’t just for June or even summer for that matter. Is there a better way to brighten up a cold winter day than a slow cooker barbecue dinner? Let’s hear it for menus that are tasty problem-solvers all year round!
Happy grilling!
Eat at Home Habit #3 – Stock Your Freezer
We’re in the midst of a series on 7 Habits of Eating at Home. The first week we talked about working your meal plan around your calendar instead of the other way around. And last week we shared some quick and simple grocery shopping tips.
Today is all about how to stock your freezer, with links to our recent series and all kinds of recipes and ideas to simplify life. And when the dinner hour is simplified so that there’s less stress involved in getting dinner ready, then family time can really be enjoyed around the table!
Habit #3 – Stock Your Freezer
We talk a lot about stocking the freezer here on the blog because it’s such a great way to ensure you’ve got dinner covered, even if your day doesn’t go as planned. It really puts my mind at ease to know I have options, and I can’t tell you how many times having a freezer meal or protein I can grab and go.
If you are brand new to the idea of freezer cooking, don’t let that stop you! It’s a great way to maximize your time and effort and it is so rewarding–and simple, too! This post covers all the basics and will get you started on the right track. Last month we talked about
Last month we talked about cooking meats for your freezer using the Instant Pot. If you have a pressure cooker, using it to cook up batches of meat to freeze is a GREAT way to get a head start on dinnertime. You can also prep and bulk cook meats in your slow cooker!
Here’s one of my favorite things, though. Every month as part of the Slow Cooker plan, Eat at Home Meal Plan members get recipes for 6 meals that can be assembled in an hour, then frozen to use in the slow cooker later. I absolutely love having these recipes and a plan made out for me. My freezer is almost always stocked with something now, and I love having options! The freezer meals have saved dinner more times than I can count.
If you are curious about what the freezer plans are like, I cooked through the May Slow Cooker Freezer plan on Facebook Live. You can watch the video here and see what I made and what a freezer cooking day looks like.
This post about making 7 Slow Cooker meals in 1 hour and this older one of 6 slow cooker recipes in an hour are always favorite resource of mine and of many of you on the blog. These recipes are delicious, and some of our family favorites so it’s no wonder these posts are so popular!
Ready to get started on your own freezer cooking adventure? Enjoy it and the peace of mind it brings when it comes to making dinner time easy!
Here are some other posts on freezer cooking that you may find helpful.
Make Dinner with 5 Ingredients or Less!
Ever feel overwhelmed by complicated recipes and long grocery lists? I think a lot of us do at one point or another. Several years ago, I wrote a couple of blog posts featuring some of my favorite recipes that call for 5 ingredients or less. It was a big hit! I often turn to recipes with just a few ingredients when I’m busy or haven’t been able to shop for a while…or sometimes just because I don’t feel like doing anything more complicated than I have to! I enjoy creating things in the kitchen, but I’m of the mind that cooking on weeknights shouldn’t be overwhelming. Cooking is fun, but it doesn’t have to include mile-long ingredient lists, either.
Since I wrote that Main Dishes that use five ingredients or less post, I’ve come up with quite a few more recipes that need just a few ingredients to make. In fact, when I updated the post I found at least 60 of them on here! I have to say, I still use these recipes regularly and my family always loves them.
So if you are looking for a fast, easy dinner option that doesn’t take many ingredients, check out the post and see what you think! I’d love to hear which ones are your favorites and if you have any go-to recipes that are simple like these that I could try out myself in the future!
Click here to see the 5 ingredient or less main dishes post!
21 Tex-Mex Slow Cooker Recipes for Summer
If you have been around my blog for long, you know how much I love Tex-Mex. I love the flavors, the spice and how many easy options there are for Mexican style food in the slow cooker. Needless to say, Tex-Mex slow cooker recipes make a frequent appearance on our dinner table.
One of the most popular recipes on the site is the slow cooker fajitas. They require minimal prep time, so you can get them into the slow cooker quickly. And the slow cooking melds the flavors beautifully. Plus, making them in the slow cooker means it’s an easy choice when feeding a crowd!
I love that both beef and chicken are so freezer friendly. That means you can prep them in batches and easily grab one for the slow cooker in the morning! As far as freezer friendly foods go, shredded taco beef is a huge time-saver for me. I make up a big batch, and freeze the leftovers for later. Super easy, and there are so many meals you can make using taco meat as a base.
And speaking of tacos! My kids love tacos because they can build their own. While there are hundreds of recipes out there for delicious Tex-Mex food in the slow cooker, here are 12 of the go-to family favorites at our house. Enjoy!
21 Tex-Mex Slow Cooker Recipes
- Salsa Verde Steak is a delicious and easy recipe adapted from The Ungourmet
- These Beef Fajitas look pretty all prepped in the crockpot and they taste even better after cooking all day.
- Smoky Chipotle Chicken Tacos – when every word in the name of a recipe makes your mouth water, then you know dinner’s going to be good!
- Black Bean and Salsa Chicken and Cornbread combines all the yumminess of Tex-Mex in one slow cooker. Easy prep, easy cleanup, perfect dinner!
- Creamy Jalapeno Chicken Tacos are a creamy twist on the classic taco with a little kick.
- Sloppy Chicken Tacos is another Tex-Mex Chicken recipe served the way a taco should always be … slightly sloppy!
- Easy Crockpot Chicken Fajitas are a quick and tasty weeknight dinner to toss in the slow cooker before you start your day and they’re ready for dinner whenever you are!
- The picture and short ingredient list don’t really require an explanation for these tasty Pork Carnitas
- Beans are so easy to make ahead and pull out on those crazy nights when you need a quick dinner at home. You’ll find all the details for cooking them ahead and freezing for later in this post.
From other Bloggers
These pictures are from the original blogs and, be warned, you may feel more than slightly hungry after perusing the delightful slow cooker Tex-Mex ideas below …
- Layer upon layer of tortillas and enchilada fixin’s make these Slow Cooker Enchiladas from Pocket Change Gourmet a wonderful dinner to come home to at the end of the day!
- Tamales, in a casserole, in the crock pot? Brilliant! Thanks to Lynn at Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures for sharing her Tamale Casserole recipe!
- Kalyn over at Kalyn’s Kitchen has shared this recipe for her uber-healthy and scrumptious Green Chili Shredded Beef Bowls.
- Cumin Pork Roast and Beans are the foundation of this delightful slow cooker creation from $5 Dinners and tastes wonderful rolled up in a tortilla or served over a bed of lettuce.
- These Carnitas and Paleo Nachos from Annie at Worthy Pause are tasty, paleo and made in a slow cooker. It’s pretty much the trifecta of healthy dinners!
- If you’ve never had a taco stuffed with pulled pork and Mexican slaw, then you’ll want to try this Pulled Pork and Mexican Slaw recipe from Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures.
- Shredded Pork Tostadas are like a shredded pork taco all dressed up and ready to impress. This recipe from the sisters over at Favorite Family Recipes is perfect for the slow cooker.
- This Cowboy Casserole from Family Fresh Meals combines everyone’s favorites – potatoes, beef, beans, corn and cheese into one “so-good-it-won’t-last-long” easy prep, easy clean-up meal.
- If you’ve never tasted Brazilian Feijoada Pork and Black Beans, then let me suggest that you add this dinner from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe to this week’s menu and shopping list. Fejoida has an amazing flavor profile that you’ll want to come back to time and again!
- Cilantro Lime Fish Tacos in the crockpot? Yes please! Thank you to Katie from Fun Home Things for sharing this one on her blog!
- Vegetarian Fajitas from Jessica at The Pieper Life are a wonderful option for an easy meatless meal, and it freezes well so you can eat half tonight and save the other half for another day. Yay!
- Vegetarian Taco Dip from Pocket Change Gourmet is scrumptious with tortilla chips, or on a bed of lettuce for a fresh salad.
- Deborah over at Taste and Tell Blog has answered the question of how to bundle the goodness of a tamale into a meatball in these Tamale Balls. And the answer is delicious!
Ever wonder what you can serve with Tex-Mex?
Check out this post filled with ideas for some of my favorite sides!