20+ Healthy Summer Dinner Recipes

A quick-cooking whole grain, bulgur is perfect for time-crunched weeknight cooking. If you can’t find it on the grains aisle, you can substitute quinoa or whole-wheat couscous.

This hearty supper salad is a lean-protein powerhouse thanks to chicken, chickpeas, and edamame; the parsley pesto delivers bone-boosting vitamin K. Pick up frozen shelled edamame to make this meal extra speedy.

Our shortcut version of Spain’s beloved romesco sauce boasts all the smoky flavor of the original with a fraction of the prep time.

Use ground beef or bison here. Available in most grocery stores, bison is eco-friendly and has fewer calories and less sat fat than beef. Try these meatballs with spaghetti, or pile them on a whole-wheat hoagie for a wholesome take on the classic meatball sub.

Our taste testers loved this pizza’s crunchy crust and zingy zucchini salad, but the real hero was the halloumi—a dry, salty cheese similar to feta.

Call on your grill and farmers market bounty to make summer dinners simple. Keep this relish recipe handy for adding fresh flavor to grilled fish or pasta salad.

Light and lemony, this pasta provides nearly a third of your daily fiber goal. Thanks to prepeeled shrimp and frozen peas, it’s the epitome of weeknight-fast. Dress it up with a glass of crisp white wine.

Yes! You can make chicken and rice in 20 minutes. When a craving for comfort food hits and you need it in a hurry, this fast take on chicken and rice hits the spot. Stirring chopped baby spinach into warm brown rice is a smart way to get more vegetables and jazz up an otherwise plain starchy side.

Our pro tips for speedy cooking: Cut chicken into bite-size pieces so it cooks in just a few minutes, use precooked rice and heat it in the microwave, then use the hot rice to wilt the spinach for you while you finish the chicken. Fresh thyme, chopped basil, or parsley are all good stand-ins for the rosemary. Round out the meal with a glass of sauvignon blanc.

Precooked potatoes make these wraps quick and easy to whip up; eggs and whole-wheat tortillas deliver protein and fiber to keep you full all morning.

Look for salty crumbly fresh Mexican cheese—queso fresco—near other fresh cheeses. Swap crumbled feta or shredded Jack cheese in a pinch. Look for crunchy premade tostada shells near the taco shells. Use up the extra shells as a base for a batch of after-school nachos, or break them into pieces and use in place of tortilla chips. For even more veggie goodness and an extra punch of flavor, try adding a few slices of creamy avocado and a sprinkle of charred corn kernels.

Hawaii’s traditional Kalua pork requires a beach pit, a whole hog, and a day’s worth of smoking. Our weeknight version delivers all the flavor with a fraction of the effort—no shovel required. Pineapple pulls double duty in this recipe—caramelized rings add smoky sweetness, while the just-tangy-enough pineapple juice makes the slaw a tasty stand-alone side dish. Save time by picking up a peeled and cored pineapple in the produce section—the flavor is far superior to canned rings.

Your favorite appetizer just got upgraded to the dinner menu. These reinvented tacos check every craving box with less than a third of the sodium and half the fat of traditional Buffalo wings.

Congratulations—You just found your new go-to pasta salad! This veggie-packed beauty is nice and filling, thanks to meaty eggplant. If you can’t find burrata, simply tear 6 ounces of fresh mozzarella into bite-size pieces.

Heading to a potluck? Feel free to make this recipe ahead of time; just be sure to let it come to room temperature and toss with an extra drizzle of vinegar and oil before serving. Add a few tablespoons of chopped fresh basil leaves for an extra layer of flavor.

This salad comes together in just 20 minutes. But spring for heirloom tomatoes—their rich flavor and vibrant color add a huge wow factor. Beans bulk it up with fiber and protein.

Chickpeas, goat cheese, and walnuts pump up the protein in this arugula salad, making it a hearty meatless main. Dried figs add a big fiber boost—more per serving than any other fruit.

Chicken cutlets get great flavor from a lemon-rosemary marinade while the leeks cook into a silky, caramelized vegetable side dish. If you’ve never enjoyed the darker green leek tops, give them a try in this recipe. 

Pick up unpasteurized miso—fermented soybean paste—for the best probiotic boost. Look for it near the refrigerated tofu products at your grocery store.

Here we season quick-cooking scallops with inspiration from Caribbean pepper pot recipes. To get a nice sear on the scallops without any sticking, be sure to thoroughly pat your scallops dry and preheat the skillet until it’s nice and hot.

The spicy scallops are cooled by the sweet, minty watermelon salsa. Ask for “dry” sea scallops at the fish counter. Other scallops have been treated with a sodium solution that prevents them from browning nicely and can make the texture of the meat less pleasant.

What’s the secret to getting this zucchini pizza on the table quickly? Use pre-baked crusts. Cut the zucchini and mozzarella as thin as possible to guarantee tender zucchini and expertly melted cheese in under 10 minutes. If you like to make your own pizza crust and have one on hand, pre-bake your crust for about 8 minutes before flipping it over and adding the toppings.

This dish is inspired by the crab melts that New England che Ana Sortun’s mother made her when she was growing up in the Pacific Northwest.

Harness the abundance of summer vegetables and pair these stunning vegetable stacks with your favorite grilled protein. This show-stopping, yet simple, side dish combines grilled vegetables, fresh tomatoes, creamy goat cheese, and a bright, herby vinaigrette. The herbs are also interchangeable with other “soft” herbs of your preference—basil and dill would both work well.

This fresh, citrusy pasta salad features chickpea pasta for a gluten-free fiber boost. Canned wild sockeye salmon is worth seeking out; it contains not only healthy omega-3 fatty acids but also a large amount of vitamin D—two nutrients that can help tamp down inflammation.