Skies are blue. The sun is out. A three-day weekend is nigh. It seemed like grilling season would never come, but here we are: welcome to that magical stretch of the year when beer is extra cold, cookouts become all-day affairs, and backyard BBQ spreads turn into glorious museums of homemade sides.
When it comes to outdoor cooking, most of the praise goes to the grillmaster sweating over hot coals in pursuit of the perfect burger, juiciest sausage, or beautifully charred kebab. But that doesn’t mean the sides should phone it in. A great cookout side can steal the entire show—especially when chicken sausage enters the equation.
In that spirit, we’ve assembled 10 of our favorite sausage-spiked BBQ sides for grilling season. From a showstopping German-style potato salad to smoky jalapeño poppers and pasta salads built for second helpings, these recipes are easy to pull off and guaranteed to become the dishes people ask you to bring back every summer. Or every Sunday.
German-Style Potato Salad with Chicken Sausage
Too often, potato salad is a missed opportunity. Invariably, somebody insists on making it for the cookout, only to get lazy and grab a tub of store-bought mayo-spuds that sits untouched in the sun. It’s time to up your game—and luckily, doing so doesn’t take much effort. Show up with a giant bowl of this mustardy, pickle-loaded masterpiece packed with crispy Classic Roasted Chicken Sausage and watch what happens when potato salad isn’t an afterthought (it disappears, is what happens). And yes, this pairs wonderfully with beer—it’s an Oktoberfest favorite, after all.
Get the recipe: German-Style Potato Salad with Chicken Sausage
Grilled Jalapeño Poppers with Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage
Spicy (but not too spicy), creamy, and oh-so-savory, these poppers follow in the proud tradition of Texan backyard grillmasters. These aren’t your sports bar poppers: gone is the soggy breading, replaced with beautifully charred pepper skin, bubbling cream cheese, and impossibly juicy Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage. Just be sure to wear gloves when you make them, unless you really want to feel the burn every time you touch your face.
Get the recipe: Grilled Jalapeño Poppers with Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage
Grilled Esquites with Chicken Sausage
Grilling season is also peak corn season, and such an auspicious time calls for an elite recipe that brings out the best in every kernel. This twist on Mexican street corn does exactly that, loading a bowl with gorgeously blistered grilled corn kernels, zippy lime, chili, and the savory punch of Classic Roasted Chicken Sausage. It’s a surefire way to transform a side into the main event, and proof that pasta salad isn’t the only cold cookout side worth getting excited about.
Get the recipe: Grilled Esquites with Chicken Sausage
Italian Herb Chicken Sausage Panzanella
Panzanella is what happens when somebody who usually eats croutons straight out of the box gets put on salad duty, and it’s glorious. This vibrant twist on the Italian classic mixes fresh herbs, juicy tomatoes and cucumbers, savory mozzarella, and chunks of bread into a caprese-adjacent salad for the carb-loving set. The real secret ingredient, though, is Italian Herb Chicken Sausage, whose embedded herbs and Calabrian peppers come to life in every bite while adding a savory dose of juicy protein that especially soaks into those glorious bread chunks.
Get the recipe: Italian Herb Chicken Sausage Panzanella
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Chicken Parm Sausage Sliders
In the world of appetizers, sliders are a statement snackmic—the kind of starter that shrinks an entrée down into three glorious bites. These crowd-pleasers jump on the internet trend of bulk-building sliders using a package of Hawaiian rolls, and the results are spectacular. Cheese, marinara, Italian Herb Chicken Sausage, and even more cheese get layered between buttery rolls, then baked to golden perfection. Naturally, the cheese pull speaks for itself.
Get the recipe: Chicken Parm Sausage Sliders
Melty Cheddar Sausage Mac
Mac & cheese is one of those sides whose demand never wanes. It’s as much a mainstay on a Thanksgiving spread as it is on a picnic table. That’s why having a trusty go-to recipe in your pocket is a must. This version—amped up with a savory, protein-packed hit of air-fried Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage—is pure bliss. And sure, you could dress it up with extra ingredients or bake it into muffins for the kids, but we’re firmly in the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” camp here.
Get the recipe: Melty Cheddar Sausage Mac
Spring Pasta Salad with Chicken Sausage, Asparagus, and Peas
Grilling season is also pasta salad season, and because peak BBQ months straddle the line between spring and summer, Memorial Day is the perfect time to make this produce-packed beauty. While peas, asparagus, and lemon are at their mightiest in spring, pairing them with the savory flavors of Italian Herb Chicken Sausage is a year-round move. Add in maple and tahini for richness and balance, and suddenly you’ve got a pasta salad that feels far more impressive than the effort required to make it.
Get the recipe: Spring Pasta Salad with Chicken Sausage, Asparagus, and Peas
Caprese Sausage Skewers
It’s a proven scientific fact that most foods taste better on a stick (citation still pending). And yes, that includes salad. These easy Caprese skewers take the classic tomato, mozzarella, and basil combo out of the bowl and onto skewers—with the added bonus of seared Italian Herb Chicken Sausage and a balsamic drizzle. No cooking required. And almost no effort, either.
Get the recipe: Caprese Sausage Skewers
Vietnamese Chicken Lettuce Wraps
For those about to drop the mic, we salute you… especially if you roll in with this DIY lettuce wrap platter bursting with fresh herbs, crunchy vegetables, sweet heat, and bright aromatics. Basically a lettuce-wrap station for people who love salad but hate forks, this spread is loaded with Classic Roasted Chicken Sausage for an extra savory hit. Don’t be surprised if you catch people making their second wrap while they’re still chewing the first one.
Get the recipe: Vietnamese Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Chicken Sausage and Shrimp Paella Pasta Salad
Some pasta salads do the quiet work. This one is more the “hold my beer” variety… especially if that beer is a DAMM. That’s because it takes all the flavors you want in a paella—shrimp, saffron, sausage, you know the drill—and transforms them into a shockingly straightforward pasta salad. Is it a flex? Absolutely. But summer is the season for showing off a little.
Get the recipe: Chicken Sausage and Shrimp Paella Pasta Salad