Top 10+ easy make-ahead side dishes that are perfect for spring

These easy make-ahead sides make the most of spring’s best vegetables.

I’m all about side dishes these days. My fridge is jam-packed right now with airtight glass containers, an ever-rotating selection of make-ahead recipes—from quick pickles to hearty salads and roasted vegetables—basically provisions for the time-crunched workweek when I take limited lunch breaks (which often means eating in front of the computer) or need an easy-prep dinner after the gym. Come spring, that rotation includes asparagus, sweet peas, snap peas, and radishes, which is why the following recipes will come in handy. They’re all fairly easy to put together in advance, loaded with flavors and textures like preserved lemon, fresh herbs, warm spices, legumes, grains, dried fruit, nuts, and seeds—and, of course, lots of spring vegetables. The best part is that they taste even better the next day, so you can enjoy them for several meals. Needless to say, I have no excuse to skip lunch.

01 of 10

Make-Ahead Chickpea Salad With Cumin and Celery

It’s worth taking the extra step of soaking dried chickpeas in salted water and simmering them with aromatics, giving them plenty of time to absorb the flavors of bay leaves, carrots, celery, and onion. Toss the cooked chickpeas with crunchy celery, shallots, and parsley, then let them sit overnight in the cumin vinaigrette so they taste even better the next day.

02 of 10

Pea, Olive, and Preserved Lemon Salad

I know what I’m going to make with those Meyer lemons I preserved this winter, as soon as spring peas hit the farmer’s market. The sweetness of the peas pairs wonderfully with the brininess and salty-tartness of the olives and fragrant lemon, and the intensity of ginger and turmeric for an easy, Moroccan-inspired salad packed with assertive flavors.

03 of 10

Green Goddess Potato Salad

This zippy spin on classic potato salad will be your go-to this spring, loaded with tender potatoes, crisp-tender haricots verts, and perfectly cooked hard-boiled eggs tossed in a herby green goddess dressing. A cold start in well-salted water ensures flavorful potatoes with a creamy texture throughout, while umami-packed anchovies and an abundance of fresh basil and dill add layers of flavor and freshness to the tangy mayonnaise- and sour cream–based dressing.

04 of 10

Quick-Pickled Asparagus With Tarragon and Shallot

Quick-pickling is perhaps one of the easiest ways to prolong the relatively short life of spring vegetables like asparagus, and this recipe couldn’t be simpler. Here, we’ve added tarragon and shallots to the hot pickling brine to give the asparagus a French vibe.

05 of 10

Easy Make-Ahead Carrot and Chickpea Salad With Dill and Pumpkin Seeds

Sweet, juicy, tender grated carrots meld with chickpeas and a simple vinaigrette flavored with garlic, olive oil, sherry vinegar, and lots of chopped fresh dill for this make-the-night-before salad. Microwave-toasted pepitas provide a welcome flavor and textural contrast.

06 of 10

Lemon Thyme Couscous Salad

The beauty of this couscous salad is that it strikes a perfect balance of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors and textures, and it’s also incredibly adaptable. Swap the thyme for parsley, mint, or oregano; the pistachios for almonds; or the dried cherries for apricots. Dressing the couscous while it’s warm allows it to fully absorb the lemon juice, olive oil, and aromatics, creating a flavorful base.

07 of 10

Quick-Pickled Snap Peas With Mint and Fennel

Snap peas and mint are a classic spring combo. For this recipe, rice vinegar and fennel seeds soften some of the sharpness of the pickling brine that can overwhelm the delicacy of the snap peas.

08 of 10

Warm Farro Salad With Asparagus, Peas, and Feta

This warm grain salad is the ideal transition-into-spring dish—a combination of hearty, nutty farro and sturdy kale, tender, sweet peas, and both cooked and raw asparagus, for textural contrasts and pops of freshness. The farro is boiled in well-salted water until plump, then tossed with the raw kale, sweet peas, and Dijon-based vinaigrette while warm, which allows each grain to absorb the dressing and slightly soften the vegetables with residual heat.

09 of 10

Kkakdugi (Radish Kimchi)

If you love the funky, punchy flavors of aged kimchi, this spicy lactic acid-fermented radish will be right up your alley. The radish is left to ferment in a mixture of fruity gochugaru, fish sauce, and saejeot (preserved shrimp) at room temperature for three days, which mellows out the raw spiciness of the radish while preserving its crisp texture, bringing out its sweetness, and adding heat and layers of pungent savoriness.

10 of 10

Moroccan Roasted Carrot and Date Salad With Honey Dressing

Inspired by classic Moroccan carrot salads seasoned with cumin, coriander, paprika, and vinegar, we amp up the flavors by roasting our carrots instead of boiling them to provide a deeper caramelized flavor and tease out more of the carrots’ natural sweetness. Adding the dates after the carrots have roasted a bit ensures everything is evenly cooked, while letting them cool briefly before tossing the salad prevents the arugula from wilting.