What to Serve with Seafood Salad: 15 Easy Sides

Seafood salad is delicious, but what do you serve with it?

It can be a challenge to strike the balance between your seafood salad and its sides.

It’s not that the search for the perfect side dish is too difficult; it just requires a little finesse.

If you want to serve your seafood salad in style, look no further than these 15 easy sides.

These options are simple to make and beautiful to look at, so they’re sure to impress your guests.

From fruit salads to pasta salads, these sides cover a wide range of tastes and textures so that you can find something that suits your taste buds and complements your seafood salad perfectly.

These are some of the most popular side dishes made by chefs everywhere!

What to Serve with Seafood Salad: 15 Easy Sides

If you’re looking to serve seafood salad, you’ll want to start with a side dish that complements the seafood. The classic choice is potato salad, but you can also make a potato gratin or even a green salad.

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1. Grilled cheese sandwiches

You can’t beat a classic combination of soft, melty cheese, crispy bread, and buttery spread.

Everyone loves it!

One thing to consider before choosing this particular side dish is how much time you have.

Grilled cheese sandwiches are easy to make, but they do require some preparation time. If you’re in a rush, we recommend serving something else instead.

2. Caprese salad

You could also do the classic summer side dish of caprese (fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, and olive oil), which is a great pick for any light meal.

It’s salty, it’s creamy, and it’s fresh—plus, you can easily put it together ahead of time if you’ve got other things to do before dinner.

The only thing you might want to think about before choosing this side dish is whether anyone at the table is lactose-intolerant or has allergies.

If that’s not the case, go for it!

3. A bowl of olives

Why not go with a bowl of olives?

We think this is an especially good pick because olives are light, and they’re also salty, which helps balance the flavors in a seafood salad.

Of course, it’s a good idea to consider what kind of olives you want to serve.

If you’re serving a seafood salad that has a lot of citrus in it, you may want to choose an olive that has been marinated in lemon juice.

On the other hand, if your seafood salad is more savory than tart, we’d recommend going for an olive that hasn’t been marinated, so you don’t end up with competing flavors.

4. Crispy, salty fries

Not only do fries play off the flavor of the seafood salad, they are also perfect for dipping into the salad and eating together.

So if you’re looking for a side dish that will complement your main course without distracting from it, this is a great pick.

One thing to note is this: if your seafood salad includes fish sauce, then you might want to skip this side dish; the two flavors can clash.

For example, if your seafood salad includes spicy mayo flavoring, then you might want to consider a side dish that is less pungent, like roasted vegetables or grilled chicken.

5. Pesto pasta salad

Pesto pasta salad is a fun twist on traditional pasta salad: the basil in the pesto is what makes this dish so tasty.

We also like that it’s tangy, which contrasts nicely with the seafood.

But there’s one thing to consider before serving this particular side dish: it contains dairy, so if any of your guests are lactose-intolerant, you might want to pick another side instead.

6. Creamy Potato Salad with Herbs and Lemon Zest

Creamy potato salad with herbs and lemon zest is a great pick for a number of reasons.

First, it pairs well with many different types of seafood.

Second, it’s filling, so your family won’t be hungry after just one helping.

Third, the zesty flavor complements the freshness of cold seafood really well.

There is one thing to consider before choosing this particular side dish: if you are serving your seafood salad straight from the fridge, know that it might be a bit too cold for some people’s tastes.

You can remedy this by letting it warm up to room temperature before serving.

7. Cornbread Muffins (with a Little Honey for Sweetness)

Cornbread muffins are the perfect complement to a seafood salad because they add just the right amount of heartiness without overpowering the main course.

Plus, you can add just a little honey for sweetness, which will really let the fresh flavors of your dish shine—without taking away from that classic taste we all know and love.

The only thing you need to consider before going this route is whether or not your guests will enjoy a dish with a lot of carbs.

But if everyone loves carbs, then this is definitely the way to go!

8. Vegetable Fritters with A Dipping Sauce

Vegetable fritters are just the right size and shape to go perfectly with this main dish.

The rich, creamy taste of the seafood complements the crisp crunch of the vegetable fritter.

And when it comes to dipping sauces, there’s too many great options to choose from, so let’s just leave it at this: You can’t go wrong!

The only thing you’ll want to think about before serving this side dish is how much time you have on your hands.

The fritters do take a decent amount of effort, so if you’re in a hurry (or if you don’t wake up until brunch), then this may not be the best choice for you.

But if you’re willing to put in a little extra work, then these vegetable fritters are an excellent option!

9. Eggplant fries

Eggplant fries are easy to make because they’re just eggplants that you cut into sticks and fry in a pan.

They go well with the main dish because they’re completely different than seafood but also aren’t so different that you couldn’t eat them together.

A thing to consider before choosing eggplant fries as your side dish is that you will have to cut the eggplants into sticks before frying them.

This can be pretty time-consuming if you have to do it on the day of your party, so we recommend doing this step at least one day in advance.

10. Garlic bread

We know that you might be worried about the carbs (don’t worry, it’s not as bad as you’ve been led to believe), but we think that the combination of rich, cheesy garlic bread and cold, refreshing seafood salad is so good that it will make your mouth water just to think about it.

11. Coleslaw

Coleslaw is light and fresh and crunchy, which means it’ll pair perfectly with the main dish—not overpowering it or weighing it down.

The vinegar in the dressing of most coleslaw recipes also helps to cut through the creaminess of any mayo-based dressings in your seafood salad, so that’s a huge plus!

Now, just one thing to consider before choosing this particular side dish: It’s best served at room temperature, which means you’ll need to make it early enough to let its flavors develop but late enough so that it won’t be warm by the time you serve it.

12. Fresh Fruit Salad

Fruit salad is especially good for summertime meals when the weather is hot and you want something cool, light, and refreshing.

With all the fresh fruit available in summer, there are plenty of options for creating your own unique fruit salads!

You can stick to traditional favorites like cantaloupe, watermelon, and blueberries or add some unexpected elements like pineapple or mango for a tropical flair.

The only thing to consider about this side dish is that it can be a bit of a hassle to prepare if you want to serve it at a party or picnic.

You should make sure you have enough bowls, serving spoons, etc., on hand before the big day!

13. Broccoli salad

We know what you’re thinking: “Broccoli salad? What does that even mean?”

It’s simple, really.

It’s a simple recipe of broccoli, bacon, red onion, and sunflower seeds in a mayo-based dressing.

It sounds weird, but trust us—it’s delicious!

And if the combination of flavors doesn’t convince you, the fact that it takes only 10 minutes to make should.

Just toss together your ingredients in a bowl and stir until they’re well combined; then pop your bowl in the refrigerator for an hour or so—and voilà!

Instant side dish.

However, broccoli doesn’t pair well with all types of fish.

Be sure to take that into consideration when deciding whether or not this is the right option for you.

14. A Baked Sweet Potato

A baked sweet potato is a great side for seafood salad because it is a healthy option that will fill you up, but won’t fill you out.

It’s also a good choice if you’re watching your diet because it has very few calories and contains plenty of nutrients.

Something to consider before choosing this particular side dish is that some people don’t like the taste of sweet potatoes, so it might be better to choose something else if you know that will be the case for some of your guests.

15. Grilled Veggies

Grilled veggies are light, tasty, and go well with just about anything.

Your guests will be full on seafood salad, but it’ll be nice to have a little something-something on the side, too.

Grilled veggies are a great option for this.

The fishiness of the seafood salad will blend great with their fresh taste.

One thing to consider is that you need to make sure that your grilled veggies aren’t overpowering.

You don’t want them taking over the dish, so tone down your seasonings if necessary!