10 Favorite Quick and Easy Side Dishes That Go with Any Meal

With the effort that goes into making a main dish, you want something easy to make yet delicious for a side dish accompaniment. Three 3-ingredient recipes are the solution to making every meal complete. The best part is you can make them in a snap and they’re delicious to boot.

1. Green Beans with Garlic Recipe

With a recipe that is both easy to use and gives you a full serving of veggies, you can’t go wrong with this quick and easy 3-ingredient recipe. It’s a healthy alternative side dish.

Ingredients are simple. You’ll need green beans, garlic cloves, olive oil and salt/pepper.

Just cook the beans until tender and drain them. Second, cook part of the garlic in hot olive oil. Then add half the beans and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Cook for about 3 minutes and put them in a serving dish. Do the same thing with the remaining uncooked beans. You’ll find the full recipe here.

2. From-Scratch Oven Fries Recipe

Everyone loves scratch oven fries. They’re perfect with any meal, but go particularly well with burgers or anything barbeque related. You can even sprinkle the potatoes with various seasonings for a unique flavor.

All you need is baking potatoes, vegetable oil and kosher or table salt. Ketchup is optional as is ranch dressing or other yummy dips.

Preheat your oven (450 degrees. Rinse the potatoes and pat dry. Mix the potatoes, oil and salt. Then place the potatoes in a single layer on a wire rack over a large pan. Bake them for 40-45 minutes until the potatoes are browned. Serve these hot potatoes quickly and add ketchup or ranch for flavorful dipping. A full and easy version of the recipe is here.

3. Browned-Butter Farro Recipe

You can change out your overused rice recipes with this healthy grain. What is farro anyway? It’s a whole-grain wheat that is high in protein and fiber. It’s comparable to barley, though it’s a larger grain.

The recipe calls for several cups of farro, kosher salt, butter and black pepper. You’ll want to think about fresh chives for garnishing.

Simply bring water to a boil, add the farro and stir it for 25 minutes or until tender. Drain it and add it in a single layer to an oil coated pan and allow it to cool.

Next, you want to melt the butter in a skillet and continually whisk it over medium heat. Add the farro to the skillet, cook it and stir continuously for about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add salt and pepper to taste. You’ll find the full recipe on this site.

4. Sautéed Brussels Sprouts and Red Cabbage

Brussels sprouts and cabbage together make for a great side dish for any main meal and this side is healthful and delicious.

The recipe calls for Brussels sprouts, unsalted butter, small head of red cabbage or 1/2 of a large cabbage sliced finely. You’ll want coarse salt and ground black pepper for seasoning.

Prepare the sprouts by cutting them in halves or quarters. Place them in a large saucepan and cover them with cold water. Add salt to the mix. Bring them to a boil and immediately drain them. Put them in a bowl of ice water and drain them again. Next, over medium heat, add the butter and melt it. Add the Brussels sprouts to the butter. Cook for about a minute and add the sliced cabbage. Cook the cabbage until it is soft and the sprouts are warm. Season the combination with salt and pepper and serve them warm with your protein meal. The recipe is available here.

5. Whipped-Cream Corn Salad

What a dish to surprise your family or guests. It’s perfect as a side for a cookout. It’s a lot easier than putting a casserole together.

You’ll need fresh corn kernels, kosher salt, ground black pepper and heavy cream.

Put the fresh corn kernels in a blender or food processor until the texture is creamy. Mix the blended corn, additional fresh corn kernels and ground pepper. Add kosher salt as well.

Next, you’ll beat the cream until peaks form and fold it into the corn mixture. Allow it to stand for 15 minutes. Gently stir the mixture and serve it immediately. You can also let it stand for 2 hours. You can also make the recipe ahead of time and allow it to chill for 24 hours. A full version of the recipe can be viewed at the following recipe site.

6. Glazed Baby Carrots

If you’re looking for a super fast and zesty side dish, this recipe is for you. This side dish comes together quickly.

Ingredients include fresh or canned whole (baby) carrots, water, butter, and brown sugar.

Cook the carrots in water until they are tender. Drain them. Combine the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan. Allow the sugar to dissolve. Add the carrots to the saucepan and coat them in the sugar and butter mixture. Heat them through before serving. You’ll find this simple recipe on this site.

7. Sweet Tea Rice

Here’s a different and easy way to make rice to accompany your main dish. It only takes a few minutes of your time to make this recipe.

The ingredient include sweetened tea, uncooked long-grain rice and a small amount of salt.

Boil the tea in a saucepan over medium to high heat. Then stir in the rice and salt. Cover the pan and reduce to a lower heat. Simmer for at least 20 minutes or until the rice is moist and tender. This short but sweet recipe is found at the recipe site that follows.

8. Parmesan Crusted Zucchini

Most gourmet lovers like parmesan cheese on just about anything but parmesan coated zucchini is the best, plus it makes for a healthy side dish with any meal. Zucchini spears crusted over with parmesan make for a quick and tasty side that few can resist. The recipe is simple and quick.

All you need to do is preheat your oven to 350, cut the zucchini squash into quarters and then cut them length-wise. Set them aside and line a cooking sheet with aluminum foil and spray.

Now place the zucchinis on the baking pan and drizzle them with olive oil. If you don’t have olive oil, use a spray butter product. Sprinkle on the Parmesan cheese and any other spices that you like. Add any other spices to the seasonings, such as garlic, salt, pepper and dried parsley. Bake the zucchini for 12-14 minutes. Then, for the last few minutes, broil the spears until the cheese bakes into the spears. You’ll find the full recipe here.

9. Avocado Deviled Eggs

A recipe like this is so tasty and beats the traditional deviled eggs you’re probably tired of making. You can make this recipe ahead of time, too. You’ll love the texture and the crunchiness of the added bacon bits.

The key ingredients are bacon, hard-boiled eggs, avocado and a host of seasonings that included lemon juice and lemon zest, cilantro, kosher salt, ground black pepper, chives and cayenne pepper.

Simply cook the bacon, drain it and set it aside. Boil the eggs for about a minute and allow them to remain covered for 8-10 minutes. Drain the eggs and cool them before you peel and cut the eggs in half. Set the yolks aside.

Get a bowl and mix the egg yolks and avocado together. Add cilantro, the lemon juice and zest. Season the mixture with salt and pepper. You can use a pastry bag or a zip-lock bag with a corner cut to fill the cooked egg. Top the avocado eggs with the bacon bits and garnish the finished product with chives and cayenne pepper. A full recipe is located here.

10. Cheese Grits

Maybe you have a Southern favorite main dish. You don’t know what to add to it for a side. Well, a simple answer is cheese grits. They’re creamy and tasty and could just be an excellent replacement for mac and cheese. Give this alternative a try. You’ll like what you taste.

As far as ingredients go, you’ll need some shredded cheddar cheese, butter and, of course, the grits.

Making them is easy. Just go by cooking directions on the box or bag. Boil some water and mix in the grits and simmer them. Stir in the cheddar cheese, butter and some milk until the cheese melts and has a creamy texture to it. You can even use other cheeses, though sharp cheddar gives grits a wonderful taste.

Serve them with a main meal of grilled shrimp, baked chicken or even pulled pork. You can think of all kinds of ideas with grits. Hey, they’re great as a side dish with breakfast. Just add butter, syrup, brown sugar or eat them plain along with bacon, eggs, biscuits, gravy or whatever you fancy. This easy recipe is here.

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