5 Vegetarian Side Dishes You Can Make For Any Occasion

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You know that panicky feeling that strikes when someone asks you to bring a side dish to dinner? There’s nothing worse if you’re not someone who cooks too often. While it’s close to impossible to please everyone, you can come pretty damn close. Here are five vegetarian side dishes you can make for any occasion.

1. Zucchini Fries

You can’t go wrong with zucchini fries. Vegetable “fries” are fun and healthy-ish for any meal. Zucchini fries are light and airy, and they can hold up to all kinds of savory seasonings. The number one rule to remember about zucchini is that it retains a lot of water. If you’re not careful, these fries will shrivel up in no time. Here’s a recipe for baked parmesan zucchini fries with a breading made of garlic powder, paprika, Italian seasoning, panko breadcrumbs and parmesan. If you want something even lighter, try these shoestring zucchini fries.

2. Mexican Street Corn Salad

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If you don’t like corn, crumbly cheese, chili powder and lime juice, look away, but there’s a good chance you’ll be a fan of this combination. Despite the name, Mexican street corn salad doesn’t involve any lettuce. It’s a combination of cooked corn, cojita cheese, jalapeño, lime juice, scallion, cilantro, chili powder, garlic and a little mayo. Feel free to substitute the mayo for Greek yogurt if you want to give everyone peace of mind. Here’s a kickass recipe for Mexican corn salad, or esquites, that won’t take you more than 15 minutes to prepare.

3. Cold Asian Noodle Salad

What’s not to love about noodles, sesame oil and a bunch of vegetables? You can’t lose with a cold Asian noodle salad. You can go with anything from ramen to zoodles to soba to spaghetti in the noodle realm. For the veggies, common add-ins include snap peas, green beans, carrots and edamame. Throw in some black sesame seeds, a little sesame oil, scallions, cilantro, peanuts and something sweet like a drizzle of honey. For a 20-minute recipe, try this nutty Asian noodle salad or check out this whole range of cold noodle salad inspiration.

4. Roasted Beets With Shallots

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Beets and shallots are a dynamic duo. When you roast the two together, you get a subtle and sweet dish that’s hard not to love. This roasted beets recipe makes enough for a party of eight people and chances are, you already have most of the ingredients in your kitchen. For something with a little tang, try these roasted beets with shallots, red wine vinegar and grapefruit. Be careful not to wear white clothes while you’re making this recipe. That is, unless you want your clothes to turn magenta. Beets tend to stain.

5. Crispy Smashed Potatoes

Crispy smashed potatoes are one of the most straightforward sides to make. You boil, squish, drizzle and bake these small potatoes with a little bit of butter and oil to give them a golden brown color. This recipe calls for small potatoes, unsalted butter, olive oil, salt, pepper and finely chopped parsley. For potatoes that are a little more on the herby side, these red potatoes are smashed with basil, thyme and rosemary.

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