Enjoy your veggies and give these refreshing, light, yet flavorful healthy summer dinner ideas a try!
Summer is my absolute favorite season. Like no doubt about it. The sun is up, the food is fresh and naturally healthy and living is just easy. Nothing like getting together with friends or family on a warm summer night to enjoy a good meal, a cold drink and a good time together outside. So, to celebrate this wonderful season I want to share some of the best healthy summer dinner ideas that you will absolutely love!
What to make for dinner on a hot summer day? Pshh, problem solved! This collection of healthy summer dinner recipes has everything you need – easy refreshing salads and one-pan dinners, veggie-packed bowls and summer pasta dishes, there’s something delicious for everyone to enjoy!
The Best Healthy Summer Dinner Ideas
I know you won’t remember all of them, so make sure to save this list of healthy summer dishes for later.
1. The Best Vegetarian Dinner Salad
This healthy summer salad is quite unique in that it’s made with roasted potatoes and a garlicky feta appetizer. It’s light, but comes with so much flavor. The other ingredients include roasted peppers, avocado, cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce and onions. So fresh and so good – the perfect vegetarian summer dinner!
2. Healthy Leftover Chicken Gyros Bowls
If you’re like me and enjoy getting rotisserie chicken every now and then, you can make these healthy summer bowls for dinner with leftover chicken in around 20 minutes. Chop some tomatoes, onions and cucumbers, add in some olives and crumble feta cheese, put everything into a bowl…It seriously doesn’t get easier and better than this. This bowl is a must-try when you’ve got some cooked chicken to use up!
3. Healthy Mediterranean Chicken Wraps
One of my favorite things to do for dinner during summer is wrapping fresh and delicious food into a tortilla or a pita. There’s just something about it…it’s pretty magical!
For these amazing Mediterranean chicken wraps, I used some herby chicken, garlicky yogurt sauce, hummus and lots of summer vegetables like cucumbers, tomatoes and avocado. It takes around 30-40 minutes, but this healthy recipe is so worth it! You can definitely prep the chicken for the wraps on the grill as well.
4. Fifteen Minute Garlic Shrimp In Tomato Sauce
Get your favorite bread, slice it and dip it into this delicious tomato-based shrimp recipe. It’s one of the best healthy summer dinner ideas when tomatoes are sweet and juicy and, well, in season! Made with just 5 ingredients this easy one-pan recipe is super simple, yet so flavorful and fresh. Make it in 15 minutes using fresh tomatoes, frozen shrimp, dill, garlic and olive oil.
5. Summer Avocado Quinoa Salad
Use your tomatoes, cucumbers and feta cheese to make this healthy quinoa salad! This light summer salad is especially refreshing for dinner when the weather is hot.
6. Five Minute Mediterranean Bowl
Tzatziki, hummus, tomato cucumber salad, some cooked quinoa and chickpeas make an amazing healthy Mediterranean bowl! Seriously, making a nutritious summer dinner for everyone to enjoy has never been this easy. Great for meal prep too!
7. Avocado, Corn and Chicken Summer Salad
Corn, ripe avocado, chicken, feta and lots of vegetables make it into this satisfying summer salad! It’s refreshing, satiating, full of healthy protein and fiber.
8. Healthy Mediterranean Salmon Wraps
Make these amazing Mediterranean wraps using baked or grilled salmon, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs, tortillas and a wonderfully easy tzatziki sauce. You can make the entire thing in about 30 minutes and everyone at the dinner table will be so happy you did. Definitely one of my favorite healthy summer dinner ideas!
9. Quick Tomato Basil Quinoa Risotto
Got some cooked quinoa? Then you can make this fabulous tomato basil quinoa risotto in around 10 minutes and you will be so glad you did. It tastes amazing and is such a good healthy and easy summer recipe!
10. Twelve Minute Spicy Feta Pasta
Feta pasta made without turning on the oven. Well, you will cook it on the stove, but the entire thing should take you around 12 minutes if you’re using quick-cooking pasta. It’s so tasty, you won’t be able to stop eating it!
11. Hummus Veggie Wraps
These vegetarian hummus wraps are proof we don’t need cheese or meat with every single meal. You will not miss any of those when you try these wraps for dinner with the family. The wraps are filled with hummus, zucchini garlic sauce, fresh produce and some chickpeas.
If you’re having a party, you can grill the zucchini instead of frying and you can throw some extra vegetables like carrots, eggplants or peppers on the grill.
12. Mediterranean Chicken Summer Skillet
10/10. This healthy summer dinner skillet is going to be one of the best meals you’ve ever had…I’m pretty sure about it. It’s so simple, so easy to make, yet absolutely incredible.
Chicken, feta cheese, eggplant, tomatoes, olives and lots of garlic are just a few of the fresh ingredients you will use to make this amazing Mediterranean one-pan recipe.
13. Arugula and Asparagus Summer Salad
If you love asparagus you will love this vegetarian salad! Filled with arugula, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and Parmesan cheese this healthy bowl is light, yet satisfying and super tasty.
You can also roast the asparagus for the salad on the grill – simply rub them with a little bit of minced garlic, olive oil and salt before grilling.
14. Healthy Rice and Sausage
Rice and sausage are the main ingredients for this one-pan summer dinner, but there’s a lot more to it. Zucchini, peppers, parsley and peas are all part of the plan too! This easy meal is flavorful and ready in 25 minutes from start to finish.
15. Avocado Black Bean Salad
This is the black bean salad to make during summer if you can’t or don’t want to have corn. It’s so wonderfully easy and tasty. All you need to do is place black beans, roasted red peppers, cherry tomatoes, green olives, avocado and minced garlic into a large bowl and toss. It is SO good.
16. Mediterranean Baked Falafel Bowls
These wonderful healthy power bowls are filled with a tomato cucumber salad, some garlicky tzatziki sauce, olives and baked spinach falafels. The falafels are so so good and super easy to make. You basically put things into a food processor, shape that mixture into balls and bake. Tastes great and is easy to clean up! My favorite kind of cooking, especially during summer!
17. Clean Eating Salmon Lettuce Wraps
You can prep the ingredients for these salmon lettuce wraps on the stove, in the oven, or on the grill. This is one of the best flavorful and light summer dinner ideas! Filled with grilled salmon, asparagus, carrots, leeks or scallions and some fresh tomatoes and cucumbers. There’s also a sunflower-seed based sauce that you will love!
18. 10-Minute Chicken Macaroni
If you’ve got some leftover chicken, then this pasta recipe comes together in 10 minutes. It’s a great way to use up some fresh tomatoes that are abundant during the summer months.
19. Herby Quinoa Salad
You will love the freshness of this herby quinoa and avocado salad, especially for dinner on a warm summer evening. Made with cooked quinoa, avocado, cherry tomatoes, onions, arugula and herbs this quinoa salad is super satisfying and really healthy.
20. Best Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
I know, a new recipe for a Mediterranean chickpea salad is popping up on the internet every millisecond, but trust me: this is the best one. Why? The secret is in the combination of roasted vegetables, feta cheese and the raw summer vegetables. I know it might not be the prettiest presentation, but this is seriously SO good.
21. Mediterranean Feta Quesadilla
You’re going to seriously enjoy this one if you love feta cheese! The filling is made with fresh herbs, avocado, tomatoes, garlic and of course feta cheese. All you need to do is mix these together, spread over a tortilla, then toast the tortilla on both sides. It’s pretty amazing, ready in 10 minutes. Serve with some tomato cucumber salad for a quick and easy summer dinner.
22. Super Fresh Avocado Shrimp Salad
If you’re in the mood for something lighter, this shrimp and avocado salad is your best choice! The only cooking involved is searing the shrimp on both sides for 2-3 minutes (can also be done on the grill)…Then comes some chopping and tossing. With avocado, arugula, cherry tomatoes and basil this salad is a refreshing healthy dinner option during summer.
23. Mediterranean Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Chicken lettuce wraps, but Mediterranean style! With hummus, lots of vegetables like avocado, tomatoes and onions and some grilled chicken. Super light, yet so so tasty, this easy dinner recipe is gluten and dairy-free.
24. Healthy Chicken Tostadas
Another delicious idea with shredded chicken! If you love anything served on a crunchy piece of bread, then you will love this one too. The chicken is cooked with tomatoes, garlic and herbs, spread over a small toasted tortilla and topped with whatever type of fresh veggies you like. Jalapenos, sweet peppers, mashed avocado, scallions…these are all great options.
25. Low Carb Garlic Squid
Calamari, squid…I still can’t tell the difference. What I can tell you is that this super tasty low carb meal is ready in under 20 minutes, it’s healthy and it’s a great summer recipe for dinner.
Some of the main ingredients include, well, squid, tomato paste, olives, garlic and Parmesan cheese.
26. Ground Beef Dinner Bowls
These healthy ground beef dinner bowls are wonderful during any season, but especially during summer and spring, because there are lots of vegetables involved in the recipe. Avocado mash, spiced ground beef, jalapenos, roasted peppers and zucchini, lettuce and don’t skip the feta cheese – these bowls are low carb and packed with protein and antioxidants!
If you want to make it a grilling recipe, you can definitely put the zucchini on the grill and make patties with the ground beef. You will need to mix the ground beef with thinly chopped onions, garlic, thinly chopped or grated sweet or even spicy peppers (if you dare), mint, cumin, paprika and chili powder. Shape patties and put them on the grill, then serve with the other ingredients in a bowl – it will make one of the best summer dinner recipes that is both healthy and fairly easy to make!
More Healthy Summer Recipes:
And we’ve come to the end! I don’t know about you, but my mouth is drooling and I am hungry. Putting together this list of my favorite healthy summer dinner ideas and adding the images was more challenging than I expected! But, I think it was worth it and I really hope you enjoy these recipes as much as I do and make the most out of these precious months. For more healthy summer recipes, make sure to check out these posts as well:
- 3-Ingredient Healthy Ice Cream, No Machine
- 7-Day Healthy Summer Meal Plan
- Overnight Oats: 4 Delicious Ways To Make Them
Salmon Lettuce Wraps: Healthy Summer Dinner Recipes
The best healthy summer dinner ideas that you will absolutely love! Wonder no more "What should I make for dinner on a hot day this summer?" From fresh salads and one-pan summer dinners to veggie-packed summer bowls and pasta dishes, there's a delicious healthy meal for everyone to enjoy!
Ingredients
- 350g salmon / 12oz salmon
- a small bunch cilantro
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tbsp thinly chopped ginger
- 7 green asparagus spears
- 2 carrots
- 3 scallions
- 1/2 cup zucchini cubes
SERVE/GARNISH WITH
- lemon
- some flax seeds
- some black pepper
- a head of lettuce
- tomato
- cucumber
- vegan garlicky cream cheese
Instructions
- Chop carrots, scallions, zucchini, cilantro and mince garlic and fresh ginger. Remove stems from asparagus (the hard part) and slice the bunch of asparagus spears in 3 parts. Cube salmon.
- In a large nonstick pan cook salmon at medium-high, lid covered. Add some water, 1-2 tbsp if needed - this is just so that the salmon doesn't stick, I did not need any water, but this could be different. After 1-2 min add asparagus (at this step make sure, there's no water in the pan!) and cover again for 2 min.
- Then add ginger and garlic, stir.
- After that carrots, scallions and zucchini. Stir without the lid for 2 more minutes (or until salmon is done). In the end add cilantro and turn off heat.
- Assemble the lettuce wraps. Bottom - spread some vegan garlicky cream cheese, then the salmon filling you just made, top with some cucumbers and tomatoes if you want. Sprinkle some flax seeds, black pepper and some lemon juice.
- Enjoy!
Notes
You can find the original recipe with more details here.
Nutrition Information
Yield 4 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 466Total Fat 26gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 17gCholesterol 117mgSodium 144mgCarbohydrates 17gFiber 7gSugar 6gProtein 43g