Some Sides Deserve A Seat At The Table, Others Don't
Barbecue is a battlefield, and the meat usually gets all the glory while the sides sit quietly on the sidelines, either propping up the plate or dragging it down. Anyone who has stood in a buffet line at a backyard cookout knows the feeling of scooping something onto your plate out of habit, only to regret it two bites later. The truth is, a great side can make a mediocre brisket forgivable, and a bad side can ruin a rack of ribs you waited three hours for. Some dishes show up at every cookout because tradition says they have to, not because anyone actually wants them there. Here's 10 sides that need to be quietly retired, and 10 that deserve a permanent invite to the table.
1. Watery Baked Beans
Baked beans should taste like something happened to them, not like they got dumped straight from the can into a bowl and warmed up. Too many versions show up thin, sugary, and flavorless, with a sauce that pools at the bottom instead of clinging to the beans. If there's no smoke, no bacon, and no real depth, it's just beige soup with a side of disappointment.
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2. Store-Bought Coleslaw
You can spot it from across the yard: that unnervingly uniform shred, drowning in mayonnaise that tastes like it came out of a tub.
Real coleslaw has crunch and a little bite of vinegar to cut through rich meat. The pre-made stuff just sits there, limp and sweet, doing none of the work a good slaw is supposed to do.
3. Canned Corn
Canned corn at a barbecue is a small betrayal. It's mushy, metallic, and about as far from a summer cookout as food can get. Fresh corn is everywhere in the months people actually fire up a smoker, so there's really no excuse.
4. Flavorless Potato Salad
Potato salad goes wrong the same way almost every time: underseasoned potatoes, too much mayo, and nothing to wake it up. It ends up tasting like starch and regret. A little mustard, some pickle brine, or a hit of paprika would fix most of these, but somehow that step keeps getting skipped.
5. Soggy Cornbread
Cornbread is supposed to have a little crumble and a slight crisp on the edges. Too often it shows up dense, wet, and sweet enough to pass for cake. If you need syrup to choke it down, something already went wrong in the kitchen.
6. Gluey Mac And Cheese
Barbecue mac and cheese has a reputation to live up to, and a lot of versions just don't. The cheap kind turns gluey and stiff the second it cools, clumping into a sad orange brick.
Good mac and cheese should stay creamy on a paper plate in ninety-degree heat, and most of it simply can't.
7. Underdressed Green Salad
Nobody comes to a barbecue for a pile of undressed lettuce with a couple of tomato slices on top. It reads like an afterthought, tossed on the table so someone could claim there was a vegetable option. If it's going to take up plate space next to ribs, it needs an actual reason to be there.
8. Bland Hush Puppies
Hush puppies should be crisp outside, soft inside, with a little onion or pepper kick running through them. Instead, plenty of versions come out greasy and one-note, like fried dough that forgot to bring any personality. They're a texture with no flavor attached, which defeats the entire point.
9. Store-Bought Deviled Eggs
These usually arrive from a plastic container, filling piped in with mechanical precision, tasting faintly of preservatives. Real deviled eggs have a little tang and a little heat, maybe some smoked paprika dusted on top. The packaged version just sits there looking the part without earning it.
10. Overcooked Green Beans
Somewhere along the way, a lot of cooks decided green beans needed to be boiled into submission until they turned gray and lost all snap. Overcooked green beans taste like the memory of a vegetable rather than the real thing.
A quick sauté with garlic and a little bacon fat would solve the whole problem.
Here's 10 that reliably steal the show, and earn every bit of plate real estate they take up.
1. Smoked Gouda Grits
Grits alone can taste like wallpaper paste, but stir in smoked gouda and a touch of butter, and they turn into something worth fighting over. The cheese adds a nutty, slightly smoky richness that soaks right into the corn, and a runny egg or some shrimp on top only makes the case stronger. This is the side that quietly upstages the brisket.
2. Fried Okra
Cornmeal-crusted and fried hot, okra loses all the sliminess people worry about and turns crisp and a little addictive instead. A sprinkle of salt while it's still hot is really all it needs. It's the kind of side you keep picking at even after your plate is technically full.
3. Watermelon Feta Salad
Cold watermelon, salty feta, and a little mint cut through the heaviness of a barbecue spread in a way almost nothing else on the table can. The sweetness and the salt play off each other, and it works even better with a squeeze of lime. On a hot day, people reach for this before they reach for anything else.
4. Cheesy Squash Casserole
Yellow squash, sharp cheddar, and a buttery cracker topping turn a vegetable most people ignore into something closer to comfort food. It bakes up soft in the middle with a crisp top layer that gives every bite some texture. Even people who claim they don't like squash tend to go back for more.
5. Dirty Rice With Andouille
Dirty rice loaded with andouille sausage and the right amount of Cajun seasoning brings a little heat and a lot of depth to the table. It's hearty enough to eat on its own, but it also does a great job soaking up sauce from whatever meat sits next to it. This one disappears fast at any Southern cookout.
6. Broccoli Salad With Bacon
Raw broccoli gets a bad reputation, but toss it with bacon, cheddar, and a slightly sweet dressing, and it turns into one of those sides people ask for the recipe of. The crunch holds up even after sitting out for a while, which makes it a reliable pick for a long afternoon of grilling. It's simple, but it earns its spot.
7. Smoked Cabbage
Cabbage might not sound exciting, but a few hours on the smoker with butter and seasoning turns it soft, sweet, and faintly smoky. It's an easy side to throw on next to whatever else is cooking, and it barely needs any attention.
People are often surprised by how much they like it.
8. Cheddar Bay Biscuits
Soft, buttery, and studded with cheddar, these biscuits bring a little Red Lobster nostalgia to a backyard cookout. A brush of garlic butter right out of the oven seals the deal. They vanish from the basket faster than almost anything else on the table.
9. Collard Greens With Smoked Turkey
Collards cooked low and slow with smoked turkey neck or ham hock carry a deep, savory richness that pairs naturally with barbecue. The greens soften down while the pot liquor turns into something you'll want to spoon over rice or just drink straight. It's a Southern staple for a reason, and it holds its own next to any meat on the table.
10. Bourbon-Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes get a boost from a bourbon glaze that leans into caramel and a little smoke instead of turning the dish into dessert. The natural sweetness of the potato meets a hint of bitterness from the bourbon, and it balances out in a way that works surprisingly well next to smoked brisket or ribs. It's the kind of side that gets requested again at the next cookout.
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