10 Easy Summer Dinner Ideas that are perfect for hot summer days. Quick dinner recipes with shortcuts that we know the whole family will love!
Summer always seems to be mad busy in our house and I want dinners that use cheats and can be ready fast.
I don’t want to be in the kitchen any longer than I need to be, especially if the weather is nice and there’s loads of outdoorsy stuff to be doing…. like sitting in the sun relaxing…
So here’s my favourite quick and easy summer dinner ideas that are full of cheats, ready fast and perfect for feeding a family.
Easy Summer Dinner Ideas
Peri Peri Chicken Pittas and Dirty Wedges
- Pick up a roast in the bag chicken – peri peri flavour, these cook in around 1 hour 45 minutes.
- And you need to do nothing with them other than put it in the oven. Shred the chicken and serve stuffed into pittas with a pile of salad.
- For the dirty wedges, just a minute or two before they’re cooked, throw over a handful of grated cheese.
- Then once they’re cooked drizzle over sour cream and chive dip and tomato salsa.
Shopping list for peri peri chicken pittas and dirty wedges
- Roast in the bag Peri Peri Chicken
- Pack of pittas
- Bag of crunchy salad
- Cucumber
- Frozen wedges
- Cheddar cheese
- Sour cream dip
- Tomato salsa
Chicken Chargrills with Veggie Rice
- Grab a couple of packs of Bird’s Eye Chargrill Chicken it’s quick to cook and something the kids will ALWAYS eat.
- Grab a couple of packs of flavoured microwave rice, we love this, 2 minutes, ping and done.
- Cook up some frozen peas and sweetcorn, and stir fry a few sliced mushrooms in olive oil.
- Stir them all together and serve with the chargrills sliced on top of the rice. Add coleslaw or salad alongside too if you fancy.
Shopping list for chicken chargrills with veggie rice
- Bird’s Eye Chicken Chargrills
- 2 packs of microwave rice
- Frozen peas and corn
- Punnet of mushrooms
Loaded Veggie Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries
- Grab a pack of veggie burgers, grill them and slide them into brioche burger rolls.
- Load them up with salad, tomato, cheese, mushrooms and avocado. Serve with sweet potato fries and a pot of bbq baked beans.
Shopping list for loaded veggie burger with sweet potato fries
- Veggie burgers
- Brioche rolls
- Salad bag
- Vine tomatoes
- Cheese slices
- Mushrooms
- Avocado
- Frozen sweet potato fries
- BBQ baked beans
Healthy Summer Dinner Idea – Quick Spanish Rice
- Stir fry chicken breast strips, king prawns, red and yellow peppers and onion. Add a squeeze of lazy garlic and heaped tablespoonful of smoked paprika.
- Stir into a couple of packs of cooked sun dried tomato microwave rice. Add a salad alongside.
Shopping list for quick Spanish Rice
- Chicken breast strips
- King prawns
- Red pepper
- Yellow pepper
- Red onion
- Lazy garlic
- Smoked paprika
- Sun dried tomato microwave rice
Summer Dinner Recipes – Easy Sausage and New Potato Salad
- Grill 6 thick sausages, boil a panful of baby new potatoes.
- Let everything cool. Toss the sausages and potatoes together with a sliced red pepper, half a red onion sliced, half a cucumber sliced into strips and a couple of handfuls of crunchy salad leaves.
- Make up a quick dressing – couple of spoonfuls of Greek yogurt seasoned and mixed with a teaspoon of wholegrain mustard.
- Toss everything together. Serve with garlic bread.
Shopping list for easy sausage and new potato salad
- 6 sausages
- 1kg baby new potatoes
- Red pepper
- Red onion
- Cucumber
- Salad bag
- Greek yogurt
- Wholegrain mustard
Get loads more easy dinner recipes here
Hot Summer Day Dinner Idea – Picnic Ploughman’s
- Put together a plate of pork pies, ham, cheese, crusty bread, pickles, tomatoes, chutney, salad and add some apple wedges and posh crisps.
- Serve with apple juice…. (or cider if you fancy)
Shopping List for Picnic Ploughman’s Lunch
- Mini pork pies
- Ham slices
- Cheddar cheese
- Crusty bread rolls
- Pickles
- Tomatoes
- Chutney
- Salad bag
- Apples
- Posh crisps
You might also like our Healthy Summer Chicken Recipes
Healthy Summer Dinner Idea – Canned Tuna Pasta
- Gather your tins together this is one straight out of the store cupboard.
- You’ll need a tin of tuna, tin of anchovies, tin of black olives, 2 tins of chopped tomatoes – the ones with herbs and garlic.
- Throw them into a saucepan with a tsp of lazy chilli. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 10 minutes whilst you cook the pasta.
- Serve with a side salad if you like.
Shopping list for canned tuna pasta
- Tin tuna
- Tin anchovies
- Tin sliced black olives
- 2 tins chopped tomatoes with garlic and herbs
- Lazy chilli
- Pasta
- Salad
Quick Summer Dinner Ideas for Family – French Bread Pizzas
- Get yourself some part baked french baguettes, slice them open, load on the toppings you fancy.
- We like smoked sausage, bbq sauce, chargrilled peppers and mozzarella.
- Then bake them in the oven for around 10 minutes. Serve alongside different salads – green salad, coleslaw, bean salad, whatever you fancy.
Shopping list for French Bread Pizzas
- Part baked french baguettes (enough for one half of a baguette each)
- Cooked smoked sausage
- BBQ sauce
- Jar chargrilled peppers
- Bag grated mozzarella
- Salads to serve
Get lots more delicious, healthy kid friendly recipes here
Summer Dinner Idea – Easy Fish with Chunky Chips and Pea Dip
- Get yourself a few packets of fish – I love the Bird’s Eye Inspiration panko fish fingers, these are great for a lazy dinner.
- Chuck them in the oven with some chunky chips and mix up a pea dip (recipe here) for dunking them in. Serve alongside a bistro salad and some tomato wedges.
Shopping list for easy fish and chips
- Fish fingers or goujons
- Chunky oven chips
- Frozen peas
- Cream cheese
- Pesto
- Bistro salad
- Tomatoes
Get more quick and easy meals here
Summertime Dinner Idea – Meatball Melt
- Get a pack of meatballs – fresh ready to cook beef ones or go Swedish style.
- Cook them and then add a couple of jars of chunky vegetable tomato pasta sauce, toss in some extra veggies – sautéed mushrooms and peppers.
- Stir the whole lot into freshly cooked pasta – tip into a shallow casserole dish, scatter over torn mozzarella and and handful of cheddar and melt under the grill until golden and bubbling.
- Serve with loads of salad and garlic bread slices.
Shopping list for meatball melt
- Pack of 20 meatballs
- 2 jars chunky veg pasta sauce
- small punnet of mushrooms
- Red pepper
- Ball of mozzarella
- Cheddar cheese
- Pasta
- Garlic bread slices
- Salad
Need Some Family Meal Ideas?
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