11 Best Summer Grilling Recipes for Backyard Cookouts
Fire up the grill with these tested recipes for steaks, skewers, burgers, and sides that make every cookout memorable.
There is something about cooking over an open flame that changes everything — the char, the smoke, the way fat drips onto coals and sends up a plume of flavor that no indoor kitchen can replicate. Summer grilling is not just a cooking method. It is a mood, a gathering, a reason to be outside with a cold drink and nowhere else to be.
This collection covers the full spread of a great cookout. You will find proteins that anchor the meal — a tri-tip with a mahogany bark, Korean short ribs glistening with sesame and garlic, skewers of shrimp that cook in minutes. But we also included the sides and smaller plates that elevate a backyard grill session from good to unforgettable: elote-style grilled corn, a charred peach and burrata salad, and a vegetable platter that proves grilling is not just for meat.
Every recipe includes specific grill temperatures and timing so you can cook with confidence, whether you are working with charcoal, gas, or a pellet smoker.
8 recipes in this roundup
Tri-tip is the backyard griller's secret weapon — less expensive than ribeye, more flavorful than sirloin, and nearly impossible to overcook if you follow our reverse-sear method. The Santa Maria-style rub is simple (salt, pepper, garlic) and lets the beef speak for itself.
BBQ Tri-Tip
BBQ Tri-Tip
Grilling peaches concentrates their sweetness and adds a smoky edge that pairs beautifully with creamy burrata, peppery arugula, and a drizzle of aged balsamic. This salad is the kind of dish that makes people rethink what grilling can be.
Italian
Grilled Peach & Burrata Salad
Grilled Peach & Burrata Salad
Thin-cut flanken-style short ribs marinated in a soy-pear-sesame mixture that caramelizes into a sweet, savory glaze over high heat. They cook in about three minutes per side, which means you can feed a crowd without spending the whole party at the grill.
Korean
