10 Spectacular Summer Dinner Recipes That Are Ready in 30 Minutes or Less

Because summer meals should be light, refreshing, and quick to make.

By
Yasmine Maggio
Yasmine Maggio
Yasmine Maggio
Associate Editor
Yasmine is an Associate Editor at Serious Eats. Her work has been featured in Women’s Health and on L’Officiel USA, and she recently graduated from New York University with a master's in journalism. You can find her at Bleecker Street Pizza on any given weekend.
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The Serious Eats Team
The Serious Eats Team
At Serious Eats, we’re a team of self-proclaimed food nerds who are ever-curious about the “why” behind cooking. The staff has worked in restaurants, test kitchens, bakeries, and other notable publications, bringing extensive culinary and editorial expertise to the table.
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Published August 13, 2024
Overhead view of crunchy fish taco

Serious Eats / Jen Causey

Summer is, without a doubt, my favorite season for cooking. The abundance and variety of produce available has me running to the farmers market so I can snatch up juicy peaches, heirloom tomatoes, and bicolor corn. I fill my basket with tender zucchini and crunchy sweet peppers, eager to take advantage of all that summer has to offer.  

While I love turning all the seasonal produce into delicious meals, that doesn’t mean I want to spend the entire summer in the kitchen—most evenings, I still want to get dinner on the table fast. Aside from occasional undertakings like eggplant parm or Southern tomato pie, I often look to summer meals that are light, refreshing, and quick to make. 

Luckily for me, there are plenty of speedy, minimal-effort seasonal dinner recipes on our site to choose from. Below, you’ll find 10 of my favorite summer dinner recipes that bring together the best of the season—and can be made in less than 30 minutes.

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