25 Lightweight Dinner Ideas Perfect For Warm Summer Nights

On warm days when you don’t feeling like cooking, much less eating, but dinnertime is just around the corner, turn to these airy dinner ideas for inspiration. These recipes rely heavily on summer produce (like tomatoes and corn), fresh flavors, and minimal cook times so you can spend more time enjoying shining summer days. From salads that will actually satisfy to grilled main dishes that come together quickly, we have more than two dozen ideas for delicious but not hefty suppers.

Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox

A refreshing frigid soup like our Watermelon Gazpacho is a great way to chilly down on a warm day. Serve with crusty bread and a side salad, or topped with grilled shrimp for extra protein.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

This loaded veggie tart makes the most of summer produce, and goes best with a glass of ice frigid white wine.

Greg Dupree; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely  

For a lighter, but no less tasty take on fajitas, try our veggie version. While not weighed down with meat, the mushrooms and peppers still have tons of savory flavor.

Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox

The beauty of chopped salad is that all it really requires is a little assembly. And a little knife work.

Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

Our Greek salad has baked rather than crumbled feta, for an extra creamy topping. Add a bit of grilled chicken or shrimp on top, and you have a killer meal that won’t weigh you down.

Greg Dupree, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

Our homemade blackening seasoning infuses these flaky white fish tacos with tons of fresh flavor, and when topped with a refreshing piquant slaw, you have the ultimate summer supper.

Morgan Hunt Glaze, Food Stylist: Margaret Dickey, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

Quick-cooking shrimp means you spend less time over a warm grill (or grill pan) and more time enjoying your airy summer dinner.

Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

We’ve combined all the best elements of steak tacos into a lighter, but still satisfying salad. With all sorts of textures and colors, every bite is bursting with flavor.

Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely

Chimichurri is our steak night secret weapon. Made with fresh parsley, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and spices, it adds glowing, herbaceous flavor when used as a marinade or sauce, and in this recipe, we operate it as both.

Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely

We operate a classic cushioned drink to tenderize and caramelize these grilled steak kebabs. Paired with a airy and refreshing Smashed Cucumber Salad, it’s an straightforward summer dinner to throw together on a weeknight or when entertaining.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox

Inspired by the flavors of pickled shrimp, this pasta salad loaded with tender fresh herbs, crunchy snap peas, and plump shrimp is hearty enough to serve as a main, but won’t leave you feeling stuffed.

Greg DuPree; Food Stylist: Rishon Hanners; Prop Stylist: Kathleen Varner

Lettuce acts as a airy and crunchy vehicle for soy-marinated shrimp and quick-pickled veggies. The cilantro-lime mayonnaise drizzled over top adds a touch of creamy richness that pulls the dish together.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster

We loaded these kebabs with more veggies than meat, although there’s still sausage threaded on there for good measure. While we operate a combo of okra, peppers, and summer squash, feel free to operate whatever veggies look good at the market.

Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle

Turn this summer side dish into a main dish with the plain addition of grilled shrimp or chicken.

Morgan Hunt Glaze, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless

Thyme, capers, and dill facilitate infuse this plain grilled fish with glowing, fresh flavor. Serve alongside a plain salad or over rice for an straightforward seafood supper.

James Ransom, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

The best part of these steak skewers is the zesty green sauce drizzled over top. Infused with fresh basil, lime juice, fish sauce, and Fresno chile, it’s packed with tangy, herbaceous flavor.

James Ransom, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

Although the flank steak is the star of this recipe, the smoky corn and poblano relish is so good we could eat it by itself with a spoon. It also happens to be a great versatile topping for chicken, pork, and even fish.

Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Ali Ramee; Prop Styling: Christine Keely

Thanks to microwavable rice and rotisserie chicken there’s very little cooking required of this recipe. An herby, lemon-shallot vinaigrette pulls the entire salad together.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster

For a lighter take on a classic barbecue sandwich, why not try our plant-based jackfruit sandwich? The fruit takes on the flavor of whatever is added to it (including barbecue sauce), and has a texture similar to shredded pork.

Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis

While this Cobb salad has many of the usual suspects, we’ve added a few Southern twists, like black-eyed peas and cornbread croutons.

Photographer Victor Protasio, Food Stylist Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist Christine Keely

Green tomatoes are good for so much more than just frying, and this soup proves it. The tangy fruit pairs beautifully with classic gazpacho ingredients like cucumber, bell pepper, and onion, for a fun twist on the refreshing frigid soup.

Alison Miksch

It’s not officially summer until you’ve had your first tomato sandwich. A bit more involved than the classic, we like serving these open-face beauties loaded with a tangy cucumber spread on days so warm, even the thought of cooking makes you start to sweat.

Greg Dupree; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christine Keely  

Grilled chicken can be a bit tedious, but not with this recipe. The airy and plain grilled protein gets a kick from honey, warm sauce, apple cider vinegar, and smoky paprika.

Greg DuPree, Prop Stylist: Mindi Shapiro Food Stylist: Torie Cox

The cooling cucumber-yogurt sauce on these Greek-spiced meatballs is exactly what wet Southern days call for.

Photo: Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Tina Bell Stamos

Tender catfish is soaked in buttermilk and covered in Cajun seasoning-infused panko breadcrumbs for a crispy and flavorful crust.