Opinion 15+ summer salad recipes to brighten your next BBQ

Looking for a vibrant summer salad to freshen up your BBQ spread? These summer salad recipes are nourishing, refreshing, and guaranteed to steal the show at your next sunny gathering.

Nothing beats the crispy, dressing-drenched crunch of a fresh salad — especially in the Aussie heat 😅 In fact, we’d argue summer salads are a must for just about any food-centric gathering you’ve got coming up this sunny season. Whether you’re planning a plant-based BBQ feast, complete with vegan snags and meat alternatives, or just a casual picnic in the park, these summer salad recipes will have you sorted. 

Light yet satisfying, salads are the perfect way to balance heavier flavours. And, as an added bonus, they’re also a great way to make the most of the seasonal produce abundant this time of year.

If you’ve found yourself defaulting to the same old salad for a while now (love you, Greek salad, but it’s time to give someone else a turn), we’ve got some truly knock-out vegan salad recipes that are wildly easy to make — and never fail to impress. 

Any dish that has die-hard meat-eaters asking for the recipe is a winner in our books! Introducing your new favourite summer salads for the BBQ season… 

1. Caesar Salad with Herb-Roasted Chickpeas

Wholesome, hearty, and bursting with plant-based goodness, this vegan take on Caesar salad — including a ridiculously tasty cashew-based dressing — is not to be missed. 

2. Summer Pesto Pasta Salad with Olives & Sun-Dried Tomatoes

This garlicky pesto pasta dish, jewelled with salty pops of olives and sundried tomatoes, is amazing served cold and comes together in minutes. A must-have for any vegan BBQ spread!

3. Watercress Salad with Peaches & Piccalilli

Would you believe this stunning recipe only calls for six ingredients? Peppery watercress and plump summer peaches are a match made in heaven in this sophisticated yet straightforward salad.

4. Roasted Beetroot & Pumpkin Salad

Caramelised beetroot and delicately spiced pumpkin bring earthiness and depth to this rustic roast veg salad, with a subtly sweet mustard dressing to finish. 

5. Tuscan Kale, Orange & Avocado Salad

Nourishing kale, sun-kissed oranges, and creamy avocado come together in this lively salad that’s just as nutritious as it is delicious. This is an easy veggie option for BBQs that you’ll want to make all summer!

6. White Bean, Lemon & Dill Salad

Infused with fragrant dill and topped with toasted sesame seeds, this light, zesty white bean salad takes just 10 minutes to whip up. Plus, it’s packed with fibre!

7. Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Tahini Dressing

Tell us your mouth wouldn’t water at the sight of this winning dish amongst the BBQ spread: Golden, roasted cauliflower drizzled with velvety tahini dressing and scattered with pomegranate seeds. Yum!

8. Strawberry & Feta Salad with Smoked Almonds

Sweet strawberries, salty vegan feta, and smoky almonds make for an unexpectedly irresistible combination. You can find vegan feta at the supermarket or make your own using tofu or almonds. 

9. Barley, Pomegranate & Pistachio Salad

A colourful mix of barley, pomegranate, cranberries, nuts, and fresh herbs, this easy salad recipe feels right at home alongside vegan sausages and roast veg. 

10. Farro Salad with Pickled Red Onions 

Bringing together the freshness of cucumber, mint, and coconut yoghurt, plus the briny tang of quick-pickled red onions, this farro-based salad is an oasis of cooling flavours on a hot summer’s day. 

11. Fig, Spelt & Rocket Salad with Lemon-Mustard Dressing

Late summer is the season for lusciously juicy figs! (The perfect excuse to keep whipping out this eye-catching rocket, avo, and seeded mustard salad for every possible occasion.)

12. Roast Veg with Brown Rice & Feta Salad

Categorised somewhere between a summer salad and a roast veggie side, this wholesome, hearty recipe boasts a filling of freshly herbed rice and tangy vegan feta.

13. Creamy Potato Salad with Peas & Mint

Bright, comforting, and irresistibly moreish, no vegan BBQ (or any hot-weather event, for that matter!) is complete without a potato salad. Peas and mint add a fresh twist on this absolute classic.

14. Rockmelon Salad with Salted Capers & Hazelnuts 

Rockmelon isn’t just for fruit salads — it absolutely shines in savoury dishes too! Paired with capers, hazelnuts, and crumbled vegan feta, this unexpected combo proves just how versatile this summer staple can be.

15. Chickpea ‘Tuna’ Salad

We can’t recommend this chickpea ‘tuna’ salad enough: It’s well worth a try even if you don’t gravitate towards traditionally fishy flavours! Bring it along to the BBQ with a loaf of grainy bread, and watch the resulting flavour-packed sandwich blow people’s minds. 

16. Charred Cucumber & Dill Salad with Pine Nuts

This is one of those recipes that sounds fancy (charred cucumber?!) but is actually deceptively simple. Featuring the rich crunch of pine nuts and a delightfully creamy coconut yoghurt dressing, this low-fuss salad is the last-minute option you’re looking for.

17. Bok Choy Soba Salad with Sesame Dressing

Bejewelled with pomegranate and generously coated in the most divine tahini-based dressing, this soba noodle and bok choy salad is a great go-to for any plant-based potluck situation — BBQ-centric or otherwise. 

18. Fragrant Cambodian Noodle Salad

A light and zesty noodle salad always goes down a treat on a hot day! With saltiness, sweetness, and nuttiness in all the right places, this Cambodian-inspired recipe is one for the (recipe) books. 

Ready to dig into these crowd-pleasing summer salads? 

There’s so much to love about Aussie summer — from the long days and quality downtime with friends and family, to the beach trips, pool hangs, and laid-back backyard parties. But the thing that takes every single one of these summertime memories to the next level is usually the accompanying feast! 

No matter what social event is coming up next on the calendar, one of these killer summer salads might just be the unsung hero that ties it all together. 

We hope this list has inspired you to bring some more freshness and flavour to the table in 2026. And who knows? Maybe some of these salad recipes will become staples that carry you all the way through the warmer months and right into winter (between us, that white bean, lemon, and dill salad is delish all year round!).

Got a favourite salad of your own that deserves some love? Tag us in all your summery plant-based creations on Instagram — we’d love to see what’s cookin’ in your kitchen this season.

Need more vegan BBQ ideas? You can’t go wrong with these ‘meaty’ mains, side dishes, and desserts — or (lazy option) just pick up some ready-to-grill plant-based snags from Coles and Woolies.