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  6. 25 5-Ingredient Side Dishes That Are Simply Delicious

25 5-Ingredient Side Dishes That Are Simply Delicious

portrait of Dani
Danielle DeAngelis September 03, 2022
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roasted garlic parmesan cabbage
Credit: Ali Redmond

If you're looking to add more flavor to your dinner plate tonight, try one of these side dish recipes. Using five ingredients or less (alongside basics like salt, pepper and oil), these sides are easy to put together to complete your meal. Recipes like our Roasted Garlic-Parmesan Cabbage and Hasselback Potatoes with Cheese are tasty additions to the table.

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Roasted Garlic-Parmesan Cabbage

roasted garlic parmesan cabbage
Credit: Ali Redmond
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Cabbage gets transformed in the oven with garlic, Parmesan and olive oil in this simple vegetable side. This irresistible side dish would make a welcome addition to any meal—try serving it alongside chicken or steak.

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Zucchini & Mushroom Sauté

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Serve this simple side dish with grilled turkey burgers. Other fresh herbs, like thyme or oregano, work well too.

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Hasselback Potatoes with Cheese

hasselback potatoes with cheese
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Hasselback potatoes are the perfect side dish for people who love crispy potato-chip-like slices as well as the tender interior of a baked potato. Simple to prepare, these hasselback potatoes look impressive and decadent with melted Cheddar cheese and a sprinkle of paprika on top.

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Skillet Corn

skillet corn
Credit: Photographer: Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely, Food Stylist: Karen Rankin
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This skillet corn recipe features plenty of sweet, fresh summer corn. A small amount of aromatics complement the corn but don't overpower it. Parsley adds color and freshness.

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Smashed Zucchini with Pesto & Burrata

Smashed Zucchini with Pesto & Burrata
Credit: Photographer: Fred Hardy II, Food Stylist: Ali Ramee, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle
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Tender zucchini rounds get topped with creamy burrata and tangy, bright pesto for an easy side dish that's sure to impress. Crushed red pepper adds a light kick of spice to round out the flavors.

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Balsamic-Roasted Green Beans with Parmesan

Balsamic-Roasted Green Beans with Parmesan
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Sweet balsamic vinegar and nutty Parmesan cheese complement roasted green beans and shallots in this easy and healthy side dish. Roasting the green beans gives them a sweet, caramelized flavor while they still retain some bite. Serve with chicken, fish, pork--you name it. These green beans are also a wonderful addition to your Thanksgiving meal.

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Simple Roasted Zucchini & Squash

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This simple roasted zucchini and squash recipe is perfect for when you have extra squash on hand. Serve this easy side dish alongside grilled or roasted chicken or steak.

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Marinated Cucumber & Tomato Salad

Marinated Cucumber & Tomato Salad
Credit: Andrea Mathis
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This marinated salad is such a healthy way to enjoy those fresh summer veggies and can be easily customized. Try adding in some fresh herbs or feta cheese for a little added flavor. You can also swap in seasoned pepper, which is amped up with additional seasonings, in place of the plain ground pepper for an additional flavor boost. This recipe is part of our Juneteenth Family Cookout Menu.

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Air-Fryer Cabbage

air fryer cabbage
Credit: Jacob Fox
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Cabbage gets nice and crispy in this simple air-fryer cabbage recipe. The crumble of Parmesan and spices gets into the grooves of the cabbage, adding flavor throughout.

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Spicy Grilled Corn on the Cob

Spicy Grilled Corn on the Cob
Credit: Andrea Mathis
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This grilled corn on the cob is a real summertime treat. It's basted with a spicy butter blend and grilled to perfection in about 20 minutes. This recipe is easily doubled to serve a larger gathering. This recipe is part of our Juneteenth Family Cookout Menu.

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Air-Fryer Sweet Potatoes

air fryer sweet potato
Credit: Jacob Fox
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These air-fryer sweet potatoes are nicely crisped around the edges and tender on the inside. Ground sumac adds a nice tang to the spice mix, but paprika can be used in its place.

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Baked Parmesan Tomatoes

<p>A sprinkle of Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil transform tomatoes into the perfect side dish. Or try sandwiching them between slices of your favorite whole-wheat country bread.</p>
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A sprinkle of Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil transform tomatoes into the perfect side dish. Or try sandwiching them between slices of your favorite whole-wheat country bread.

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Corn on the Cob with Cilantro-Lime Butter

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A dash of crushed red pepper adds the perfect amount of spice to this flavorful cilantro-lime corn on the cob.

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Ranch Potatoes

ranch potatoes
Credit: Sonia Bozzo
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These ranch potatoes get nicely browned in the oven. Adding spices to the dressing and sprinkling with fresh herbs before serving helps bring out that classic ranch flavor.

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Simple Tomato Salad with Minced Fresh Garlic

Simple tomato salad with minced fresh garlic
Credit: Jillian Atkinson
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In this installment of Diaspora Dining, Jessica B. Harris' series on foods of the African diaspora, the author and historian offers a summer salad that is simply delicious, but not for the fainthearted. Minced fresh garlic gives this salad, inspired from a visit to Guadeloupe, its special flavor.

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Sunomono (Japanese Cucumber Salad)

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This version of sunomono uses more readily available English or slicing cucumbers, but if you live near an Asian market you could substitute Japanese cucumbers. Some recipes call for salting the cucumbers first, but we found that squeezing them in paper towels removed enough excess moisture without adding additional sodium. This Japanese-inspired salad is cool, crisp and simply delicious.

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Air-Fryer Cauliflower

Air-Fryer Cauliflower
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An air fryer delivers nutty roasted cauliflower with a nice hit of zippy lemon flavor and a hint of coriander in this easy side dish that's perfect for most any meal.

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Broccoli with Creamy Parmesan Sauce

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Topping steamed broccoli with a good-for-you cheese sauce is an easy way to entice picky eaters to eat their veggies.

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Lemon-Herb Roasted Beets

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We love how roasting brings out the sweet flavor of beets. Golden beets look especially pretty when tossed with the fresh herb and lemon seasoning mix, but any type of beets will work in this recipe. If you're a lemon lover, be sure to add the squeeze of fresh lemon juice after the beets are roasted.

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Oven-Roasted Squash with Garlic & Parsley

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Learn how to roast squash in this healthy recipe adapted from Alice Waters. Look for squash varieties, including buttercup, kabocha or hubbard, at your farmers' market and try them in this tasty side dish.

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Balsamic & Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower

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Roasting isn't usually the first cooking method you think of for cauliflower but the results are quite delicious. The florets are cut into thick slices and tossed with extra-virgin olive oil and herbs. Wherever the flat surfaces come into contact with the hot roasting pan, a deep browning occurs that results in a sweet, nutty flavor.

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Crispy Smashed Brussels Sprouts

Crispy Smashed Brussels Sprouts
Credit: Jacob Fox
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Brussels sprouts get crispy and flavorful in the oven when they're "smashed" and seasoned with Parmesan cheese and everything bagel spice.

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Basic Tomato & Balsamic Salad

basic tomato salad
Credit: Andrea Mathis, M.A., R.D.N., L.D.
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It doesn't take much to create a delicious tomato salad. Here we pair juicy grape tomatoes with sliced onion, fresh basil and balsamic vinegar for a flavorful side dish. Once you've mastered this basic tomato salad recipe, you can try adding in extra ingredients to amp up the flavor even more. Think olives, feta cheese, beans or other herbs. While you can certainly eat this tasty salad right away, the flavor gets even more delicious if you let it sit in the fridge overnight.

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Air-Fryer Baby Potatoes

air fryer baby potatoes
Credit: Jacob Fox
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These savory air-fryer potatoes are crispy on the outside and make a perfect no-fuss side dish that pairs well with just about everything while freeing up your oven.

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Balsamic-Parmesan Sautéed Spinach

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Tender spinach with a hint of garlic, Parmesan cheese and sweet balsamic vinegar makes a quick and flavorful side dish. The sturdy leaves of mature spinach hold up best during cooking.

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    1 of 25 Roasted Garlic-Parmesan Cabbage
    2 of 25 Zucchini & Mushroom Sauté
    3 of 25 Hasselback Potatoes with Cheese
    4 of 25 Skillet Corn
    5 of 25 Smashed Zucchini with Pesto & Burrata
    6 of 25 Balsamic-Roasted Green Beans with Parmesan
    7 of 25 Simple Roasted Zucchini & Squash
    8 of 25 Marinated Cucumber & Tomato Salad
    9 of 25 Air-Fryer Cabbage
    10 of 25 Spicy Grilled Corn on the Cob
    11 of 25 Air-Fryer Sweet Potatoes
    12 of 25 Baked Parmesan Tomatoes
    13 of 25 Corn on the Cob with Cilantro-Lime Butter
    14 of 25 Ranch Potatoes
    15 of 25 Simple Tomato Salad with Minced Fresh Garlic
    16 of 25 Sunomono (Japanese Cucumber Salad)
    17 of 25 Air-Fryer Cauliflower
    18 of 25 Broccoli with Creamy Parmesan Sauce
    19 of 25 Lemon-Herb Roasted Beets
    20 of 25 Oven-Roasted Squash with Garlic & Parsley
    21 of 25 Balsamic & Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower
    22 of 25 Crispy Smashed Brussels Sprouts
    23 of 25 Basic Tomato & Balsamic Salad
    24 of 25 Air-Fryer Baby Potatoes
    25 of 25 Balsamic-Parmesan Sautéed Spinach

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    25 5-Ingredient Side Dishes That Are Simply Delicious
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