The main course is rarely the problem. What stalls dinner is the second thing on the plate, the part that has to be decided after the chicken is already in the oven. This page is the list I check when that happens.

It starts with dressings, because a homemade one turns any bowl of leaves into a side worth eating, and ends with the jams and relishes that do the same job in a spoonful. In between: chopped salads, fruit salads, potatoes and sweet potatoes, roasted vegetables, cabbage and braises, vegetable bakes big enough to be dinner, and rice.

What is in this guide

Homemade Dressings and Vinaigrettes

A vinaigrette holds together when the oil goes in slowly against something that emulsifies, usually mustard. Mix it in a jar and shake, and it will hold through the meal.

The basil dressings are the set I use most: basil buttermilk ranch, basil green goddess, basil pesto vinaigrette and basil tomato vinaigrette. Make one on Sunday and the week’s salads stop being a decision. The peach honey dijon balsamic is the one for stone fruit season.

Taste a dressing on a leaf, not off a spoon. Straight from the jar everything reads too sharp, and people over-sweeten to compensate. Dressings keep for about a week, and the dairy-based ones separate, which is normal; shake and carry on.

Still in this group:

Green and Chopped Salads

A chopped salad keeps better than a leaf salad because everything is cut to the same size and coated evenly, so no single piece wilts first.

My unconventional Caesar salad is the one that gets argued about, and shredded Thai salad with avocado is the one I make when I want crunch without lettuce. Barefoot Contessa's pear and blue cheese salad is the dressed-up option, pizza salad is the one the kids actually finish.

Salt the vegetables, not just the dressing. A pinch directly on tomatoes or cucumber draws out water and concentrates flavor, which is why a restaurant salad tastes like more than the sum of its parts.

The remaining ones:

Fruit Salads

Fruit salad holds up if you dress it with citrus and keep the softest fruit out until the last moment. Berries break down fast once they are stirred.

Healthy berry fruit salad is the everyday version and mandarin orange jello salad is the retro one that still shows up at family gatherings. Both go on a brunch table without any further thought.

Cut everything to a similar size so no single fruit dominates a spoonful, and keep it cold until it goes out. If it has to sit, hold back the banana and the berries until the last minute.

What else is here:

Potato and Sweet Potato Sides

Potatoes crisp when the surface is dry and the pan is hot before they touch it. Starch rinsed off, oil on, space between the pieces.

Crispy garlic parmesan julienne fries explain the shatter-crisp method better than I can summarize here. Scalloped sweet potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes and the Texas Roadhouse-style loaded sweet potato are the comfort end, and sweet potato casserole handles the holiday.

Starchy potatoes crisp and fluffy ones mash; using the wrong one is the usual reason a side disappoints. Sweet potatoes behave differently again, holding more moisture, so they want higher heat and a little more time to caramelize.

The others, in no particular order:

Roasted and Caramelized Vegetable Sides

Roasted vegetables need high heat and room. Overlap them on the pan and they steam into something soft instead of caramelizing.

Roasted brussels sprouts with bacon, pecans and cranberries is my Thanksgiving regular, caramelized vegetables with feta and walnut glaze is the one that looks like more effort than it is, and steakhouse creamed spinach is the one I make when I want the table to go quiet.

Use two pans rather than crowding one. It feels wasteful and it is the single change that turns limp vegetables into browned ones. Season after roasting as well as before, since salt tastes different on a hot caramelized surface.

Also worth a look:

Cabbage and Braised Vegetable Sides

Cabbage turns sweet when it is cooked long and slow, and sharp when it is dressed raw. The same head gives you two completely different sides.

Braised red cabbage is the slow version and the one I plan a Sunday around; sweet and spicy honey cabbage steaks is the fast one. Smoky maple bacon baked beans belongs beside either of them at a cookout.

Cabbage is the cheapest vegetable in the store and the most forgiving, which makes it worth keeping on hand. A half head lasts a week wrapped in the fridge, and it goes from raw slaw to a slow braise with no other shopping.

Vegetable Bakes and Casseroles

A vegetable bake crosses over into dinner the moment it includes cheese and starch. These are the recipes I serve as a main on a meatless night and as a side the rest of the time.

Eggplant parmesan bake, cheesy white bean tomato bake and crustless tomato pie all do that double duty. The stuffed peppers, from classic to ricotta, are the portioned version of the same idea.

Assemble these in the morning and bake them in the evening, straight from the fridge with a few extra minutes. Salt the vegetables first if they are watery, like zucchini or eggplant, and let them drain before they go in the dish.

The rest of the shelf:

Rice and Grain Sides

Rice reheats best when it is cooked slightly dry, because a little firmness gives it somewhere to go on the second day.

Garlic turmeric rice is the one that makes a plain piece of chicken look intentional, and Mediterranean lemon rice with chickpeas and feta is substantial enough to be lunch on its own.

Rinse the rice until the water runs clear if you want separate grains. Toasting it briefly in the pan before the liquid goes in adds a nutty depth that costs you one extra minute.

Filed here too:

Jams, Relishes and Quick Sauces

A quick jam or relish is the cheapest way to make a plain dinner taste finished, and most of them keep for weeks in the fridge.

Tomato relish goes on everything from burgers to eggs, small-batch vanilla peach jam is the one worth making when peaches are cheap, and eel sauce is the sweet-salty glaze that improves rice bowls.

Small batches are the point here. A few jars keep in the fridge without any canning equipment, and you get to use fruit at its peak rather than at its cheapest. Label them, because tomato relish and peach jam look identical in a jar.

The others in this section:

Questions about sides and salads

What is the easiest side dish to make?

Roasted vegetables, by a distance. Cut, oil, salt, hot oven, and the only real skill is not crowding the pan. A homemade vinaigrette over leaves is the same amount of work and feels like more.

How do I keep salad from wilting before dinner?

Dress it at the table, not in the kitchen. If you need it ready ahead, use a chopped salad with sturdy ingredients like cabbage and carrot, which hold dressing for hours without collapsing.

Can side dishes be made ahead?

Casseroles and bakes can be assembled a day early and baked from cold. Dressings keep for a week in a jar. Roasted vegetables are the exception, since they lose their edges as they sit.

What side goes with almost anything?

Something acidic. If the main is rich, a vinaigrette-dressed salad resets the palate between bites, which is why I keep a jar of basil dressing in the fridge most weeks.

What do I serve these with?

Most often a chicken dinner, and the whole collection is on the chicken dinner recipes page. In colder weather it is usually something from the soups, stews and hearty dinners guide.