Memorial Day Sides

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t your Memorial Day barbecue this weekend, you're going to need to have some side dishes that are good to go along with whatever meat (or non-meat) choices you're grilling. Here are some sides we think pair well with barbecue food.

Coleslaw is always a good choice, and there are a wealth of ways to prepare it: with a mayonnaise-based dressing for a creamy salad, or with a vinegar-based dressing to keep things a little lighter. Either way, it's great on its own as well as on some sandwiches, or if you're slightly adventurous, on a hot dog.

Man cannot subsist on hamburgers alone...or at least, that's what we hear.

Macaroni salad or other pasta salads are also great for cookouts because it's easy to make a lot in a small amount of time. For pasta salads, all you have to do is chop up your choice of veggies, cook a bunch of rotini or other spiral-shaped pasta, then mix the two together, pour your favorite Italian dressing over the top, and chill.

Fruit salads are great too, especially with warm weather upon us. Fruits like watermelon help your guests stay hydrated, and the colorful assortment looks great on a table.

Potato salad is also a barbecue favorite, and like coleslaw, there are many variations on what you can dress it with.

For a vegetable, who could forget about grilled corn? Grilled corn is as simple as, well, putting the corn on the grill. Easy-peasy, and delicious. A BBQ staple, for sure.

Whichever sides you pick for your get-together, it's important to keep things at their proper temperature—for example, mayonnaise-based salads should not be left in the sun, lest they spoil. Fruit salad should also be kept cold, because warm fruit salad is pretty gross.