23 Cool And Refreshing Dinners & Sides For When It's Way Too Hot To Cook

These spicy, savory noodles will remind you of the classic Chinese take-out dish. The dressing, made of peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, peanut oil, and chili garlic sauce will be your new obsession. Get the recipe for cold spicy peanut noodles here.

This recipe calls for imitation crab meat to keep it very affordable, but if you want to up the ante you can use a combination of jumbo lump crab meat, lobster meat, and chopped shrimp. Get the recipe for crab salad sandwiches here.

Give your standard chicken salad a flavor boost with the help of pickled jalapeños, bacon, and shredded cheddar cheese. Serve it straight over a bed of lettuce, in wrap sandwiches, or as sliders. Get the recipe for jalapeño popper chicken salad here.

How do you upgrade your instant ramen into a gourmet meal? Take a trip to the farmer's market, stock up on all your favorite produce, then toss it all together with the noodles in a dressing made of soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. Get the recipe for cold summer ramen here.

Seared tuna tastes delicious either warm or chilled. Serve it on Boston lettuce with some thinly sliced veggies and a dressing made of soy sauce, orange juice, garlic, and vinegar. Get the recipe for ahi tuna lettuce cups here.

Start with store bought rice paper sheets, boiled shrimp, and whatever veggies you like best such as avocado, thinly sliced carrot, lettuce, or bell pepper. Whatever you do, don't skimp on the creamy peanut dipping sauce. Get the recipe for Vietnamese spring rolls here.

During the summertime, we can't get enough refreshing, chilled soup recipes. Cucumbers are blended with Greek yogurt, lime juice, sesame oil, and herbs. Serve it with a crispy loaf of fresh bread for dunking. Get the recipe for chilled cucumber soup with chili and lime here.

No cooking required. Now isn't that music to your ears? Get the recipe for avocado salad with tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil pesto here.

Nothing screams summer like lobster salad. Add ripe heirloom tomatoes and sweet corn and you've got a picnic-perfect dish. Get the recipe for lobster pasta salad here.

Raw fish gets "cooked" in a zesty mixture of lime juice, orange juice, jalapeños, garlic, and mint. Get the recipe for Cuban-inspired fish ceviche here.

Begin with your favorite hummus (bonus points if it's homemade!), then top it with any protein like grilled chicken or falafel and lots of chopped veggies. Get the recipe for Mediterranean hummus bowls here.

This soba noodle salad happens to be vegan, but you can always add anything from tofu to shredded chicken to make it more filling. Get the recipe for cold soba noodle salad with citrus scallion dressing here.

Whether or not you're vegetarian, give this chilled tofu a shot. Soft tofu gets topped with an outrageously good sauce made of chili bean sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, and sesame seeds. Get the recipe for cold tofu with spicy chili sauce here.

The best salads call for pasta instead of lettuce. This one takes tiny orzo noodles tossed with chopped tomato, cucumber, pepper, olives, and feta cheese. If you don't have time to make the dressing from scratch, just grab any store-bought Greek-style dressing or toss it with a little olive oil and lemon juice. Get the recipe or Greek orzo salad here.