49 Dishes To Make Your Memorial Day Memorable

Memorial Day marks the start of the summer party season in the U.S., and nothing announces summer better than a cookout-style banquet. The shift into warm weather dishes means a return to the flavorful festive fare of summer. With the right recipes on hand, you can turn a basic BBQ into a feast for the ages, one your friends and family are sure to remember for years — and meals — to come.

To spruce up the occasion, we've gathered our favorite mains, sides, and desserts for a recipe round-up that's fun and filling. Did burgers, beans, and corn on the cob make the list? Of course, they did! They're classics that have permanent seats at the table wherever warm-weather banquets occur. But there are also unexpected delights like glazed tri-tip and chicken shawarma sandwiches, mocktails and cocktails, sliders and sides, and international dishes that bring a blast of bold flavor to the menu.

BBQ shrimp cooked up à la Louisiana is perfect for combining savory seafood with a sweet and smoky sauce that's sure to spice up your get-together. Generous helpings of Tabasco and Cajun seasoning add a kick to the soaring summer heat. Balance out the flavors with a batch of white rice to cool things down, or go for Instant Pot dirty rice to take the New Orleans flavor to the extreme. 

Recipe: New Orleans Style Southern BBQ Shrimp

A light and refreshing beverage is in order for an outdoor Memorial Day celebration, and this citrus-sweetened sun tea is a perfect choice. Sliced oranges and lemons join black teabags and water for a sunbath, steeping all the sensational flavors together in a honey-colored brew that leaves the sugar in the bowl. Garnish glasses with fresh mint leaves for a pretty touch and offer an extra splash of orange juice for extra flavor if necessary. Your guests will be eager to take the plunge.

Recipe: Citrus Sun Tea

Whip up a sweet sip for the non-drinkers in the crowd with a juicy margarita mocktail. Of course, you can add tequila to the recipe and make a batch for your traditionalists, too. This refreshing slush uses honey for sweetness with lime cordial, orange extract, and grapefruit juice for a maximum citrus kick. Throw it all in a blender or shaker with ice, and in five minutes, you'll be tasting the tingly zing of margarita magic without a trace of the usual buzz.

Recipe: Margarita Mocktail

Even if you can't enjoy your summer kick-off seaside, you can bring fabulous fresh fish to your menu with an easy take on grilled swordfish. Tender, flaky steaks flavored with lemon, parsley, and a bit of butter may be one of the healthiest protein offerings on your table. Cooking them over an open flame will add delicious searing that seafood lovers will be raving about. Looking to be a little extra with the dish? Toss together a fresh chimichurri sauce to serve as a flavorful herb-based topping.

Recipe: Simple Grilled Swordfish

Creamy, cheesy peppers with a crispy top coat can be a sizzling superstar on your party table with this jalapeño popper recipe. A dash of sriracha in the filling makes sure there's fire a-plenty, even if the peppers fumble when bringing in the heat. A word to the wise, these mischievous veggies can play havoc with your fingers during preparation, so consider wearing food handler's gloves to minimize the pain when removing seeds and stripping the pithy interior.

Recipe: Jalapeño Poppers

Give your diners something delicious to dress up their chips with. This creamy corn dip is ready-made for both spooning and scooping. From the bright zing of apple cider vinegar to the freshness of scallions and cilantro to the creamy combo of mayonnaise, sour cream, and grated cheddar cheese, this ambitious dish goes for broke where flavor is concerned. Serve with tortilla chips or pita bread, and you have the perfect snack for all ages.

Recipe: Creamy Corn Dip

A sandwich spread, a chip dip, and a taco topping all in one ... is there anything a great bean dip can't do? This perky version adds cream cheese and taco seasoning to refried beans for a balanced blend of smooth and spicy, with a blanket of gooey melted Mexican cheese on top for good measure. Try making a few batches of homemade tortilla chips from scratch and show your guests how festive Memorial Day can be.

Recipe: Bean Dip

Your backyard banquet can only be made better with a basket of homemade onion rings on the table. There's no air fryer needed for this one, just old-fashioned oil frying for that familiar crispy shell embracing the sweet sting of tender onions. Panko bread crumbs serve as a coating on the batter to take the crunch factor up a notch or two. With six servings per batch, you may want to double-up to make sure everyone gets a ring or two to enjoy.

Recipe: Crispy Fried Onion Rings

If you're feeding a large group and in search of recipes you can create by the batch, these baked chicken wings have got you covered. Six simple ingredients come together in an oven-ready recipe that serves a slew of hungry guests. Getting the chicken cooked before crisping it up takes a bit of kitchen trickery, so be prepared for an hour of cook time. Whip up an order of homemade BBQ sauce to serve with it while you're waiting for the timer to ring.

Recipe: Baked Chicken Wings

Guacamole can be a tasty spread to add to your Memorial Day buffet table. There may only be six ingredients on the recipe list, but the enchantment they create when mixed together is the stuff of culinary legends. Move beyond the expected purposes and use it to top burgers, spread on sandwiches, or transform pasta into an Italian-Mexican original. A super-fast five-minute prep time means you can make a few batches, just in case your guests can't get enough.

Recipe: Quick and Easy Guacamole

Add a cool Caribbean breeze to the easygoing Memorial Day vibe with a bona fide rum punch on your beverage menu. Pineapple and orange juice throw a party in the pitcher with grenadine and bitters joining in the fun. Of course, the sweet warmth of rum brings in tropical notes that will have your guests singing Calypso tunes as the afternoon rolls on. To get the kids and teetotalers in on the island fun, make a crisp, alcohol-free batch that replaces the rum with 7-Up.

Recipe: Sweet Rum Punch

For chefs and guests with a taste for summery herb flavors, rosemary lamb chops cooked over an open flame make a distinguished party dish. Instead of making a marinade, this recipe has you brush the chops with an herb brush made of rosemary and thyme. Butter, salt, and pepper keep the remaining flavors traditional, while a sprinkling of extra herbs for garnish reiterates the grassy green notes for good measure. Serve with roasted potatoes, and you have the makings of a Memorial Day to remember.

Recipe: Rosemary Grilled Lamb Chops

It would be bad form to start the summer without s'mores somewhere on the menu, and this sticky pie is an ideal format for your Memorial Day shindig. Picture it: a layer of marshmallow cream topped with a layer of chocolate pudding, sprinkled with marshmallows and chocolate bits, all nestled in a crunchy graham cracker crust. It's everything you need in a dessert, and you don't even have to build a campfire to enjoy it.

Recipe: Ooey Gooey S'mores Pie

These crispy slices of sweet potato are a healthy alternative to a bag of brand-name chips. They cook up in your air fryer, making it easy to offer your friends and family a more mindful side to pile onto their plates. A mandolin helps you get slices thin enough to turn into wafer-like crisps that add a familiar crunch to the unique sweet potato flavor. Oregano in the mix makes a tasty herbaceous touch for a side no one will refuse.

Recipe: Air Fryer Sweet Potato Chips

Salsa that goes sweet is a surprising treat, especially when fresh mango is in the mixture. This tropical fruit is a favorite in salsa, lending its creamy texture and mellow flavor to create a unique profile. With oversized chunks of avocado and tomato sharing the bowl, this recipe gives the impression of a salad as much as a dip. Spruce things up with cilantro, red onion, and lime juice to show your Memorial Day merrymakers that you know what they're hungry for.

Recipe: Fresh Mango Salsa

No matter the occasion, every celebration is made better when you include Toll House chocolate chip cookies on the dessert table. With the OG recipe set out among your sweet treats, you'll have a familiar favorite that draws even the most disciplined diners in the direction of the goodie tray. Because it's the start of summer, these cookies make perfect ice cream sandwiches as well as serving as an indulgent base for deluxe s'mores around the fire pit.

Recipe: Deluxe Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies

Perfect for filling tortillas for burritos or as a topping for nachos, sofrito blends onions, peppers, and tomato paste with paprika and garlic. While generally used as a starter for recipes like soups and stews, this flavorful mix offers all the tastes you love in traditional Spanish dishes in a spread-like concoction willing to share its spicy secrets with whatever you have on the table. Double the recipe and set a dish of sofrito among your other dips and spreads to give guests a saucy surprise.

Recipe: Spanish-Style Sofrito

This flavor-packed take on baked beans includes ground beef, bacon, and jalapeños to enrich the recipe. The result feels more like a hearty chili and can serve as a centerpiece on your cookout table or join the celebration as a thoughtful side dish. With a variety of beans like pinto and kidney added to the pot, you'll have a multi-textural masterpiece tasty enough to wow your guests into wrangling up a second serving.

Recipe: Slow Cooker Cowboy Beans

Kick up the flavor of your zucchini with a garlicky punch that will have your friends and family not thinking twice about eating their vegetables. Fresh garlic makes sure this humble fruit gets a blast of flavor, while pine nuts and basil leaves turn on the Italian charm. Cook it all on a grill pan as easily as on an outdoor grill, and you have an aromatic and healthy plant-based side dish that can top a burger or make magical things happen on top of a salad, too.

Recipe: Garlicky Grilled Zucchini

Whether part of your hamburger topping relish tray or a festive charcuterie board, bread and butter pickles will be a welcome addition to your early summer spread. Make a batch of your own by brining cucumbers in a concoction of vinegar, sugar, salt, and savory spices. Though prep time is less than 20 minutes, you'll want to prepare these the night before so they have a full 24 hours in the fridge to soak up as much flavor as possible.

Recipe: Bread and Butter Pickles

Add an international flair to your Memorial Day selection with these grilled chicken sandwiches seasoned with warm shawarma spices. A host of heavenly spices like cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne create a quintessential flavor that fans of Mediterranean food will swoon for. You can complete everything you need to assemble four sandwiches in less than 30 minutes. Need something distinctive to top it? Try homemade tzatziki sauce to lend a layer of cool between the chicken and the brioche bun.

Recipe: Shawarma-Spiced Grilled Chicken Sandwich

One taste of this old-fashioned strawberry pie and you'll be spirited back to your sweetest summers past. This classic creation dresses slice strawberries in a tangy glaze, all captured in a premade pie crust to make assembly even easier. Looking for a fresh topping to add a special dash of summer magic? Make no-churn vanilla ice cream the night before your feast and show off your kitchen skills to your unsuspecting guests. They'll be blown away by this delicious double treat, and only you will know how easy it was to create!

Recipe: Easy Strawberry Pie

Lighten things up a little with a primo pasta salad tossed with the zing of a classic sauce that rarely makes the picnic line-up. Fusilli is the key to creating pasta with the ultimate surface for holding authentic pesto made from scratch. Mozzarella orbs and cherry tomatoes sliced in half add color, texture, and flavor to an herbal base that sings with Italian heritage. This is one variation on summer pasta salad that's sure to add a dash of green to your Memorial Day layout.

Recipe: Summer Pesto Pasta Salad

Old-fashioned summertime sweets like blueberry cobbler are not only a throwback to simpler times and tastes. They're also a great way to make use of fresh summer produce bursting with flavor. The pre-work is quick, but the bake time on this beauty is an hour, something to factor into the rest of your kitchen prep to have it ready by dessert time. For an added dollop of homemade goodness, make a batch of homemade whipped cream to top your cobbler. It's a 10-minute task that takes an already delicious dish to an even higher level.

Recipe: Blueberry Cobbler