Not Ready to Say Goodbye to Summer? These Mediterranean-Inspired Recipes Keep the Vacation Vibes Going

Skewers served with salad, pita, and tzatziki sauce — Serious Eats / Julia Estrada

It's almost September, and kids are already heading back to school. I'm not ready for summer to be over, though—not when sunny days still linger and stalls at farmers markets are brimming with late-summer produce. I want to hold on to those vacation vibes a little longer, so I'm turning to simple Mediterranean dinner recipes, which capture the vibrant, sun-drenched flavors of the season with ease. Below, you'll find one-pan marvels, including a chicken with bulgur pilaf and warm panzanella salad, alongside easy dishes, such as grilled squid and chicken souvlaki, that take barely any time to cook. With olive oil, garlic, fresh herbs, and warm spices on hand, you'll be able to transform your farmers market haul into fuss-free Mediterranean-inspired meals.

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Chicken With Warm Bulgur Pilaf and Tomatoes

Serious Eats / Two Bits

Perfect for a weeknight meal, this six-ingredient chicken dinner comes together in about 20 minutes, all in one pan. Starting with skinless, boneless chicken breasts in a cold skillet ensures they are tender and juicy. Fond—the delicious brown bits at the bottom of the skillet—from cooking the chicken provides a flavorful base for searing the tomatoes and creates an aromatic broth for cooking the bulgur with.

Chicken With Warm Bulgur Pilaf and Tomatoes
Chicken Souvlaki With Tzatziki Sauce and Greek Salad

Serious Eats / Julia Estrada

No need to fire up the grill to pull off this Mediterranean feast. Just use a stovetop grill pan to char skewers of chicken breast marinated in a zesty vinaigrette that doubles as salad dressing. Warm some store-bought flatbread on the grill pan, then sandwich it with juicy chicken, Greek salad, and cool, garlicky tzatziki.

Chicken Souvlaki With Tzatziki Sauce and Greek Salad
Pork Souvlaki With Pita and Tzatziki

Serious Eats

A zippy marinade of olive oil, onion, garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, oregano, salt, and black pepper gives contributor Joshua Bousel’s rendition of pork souvlaki its characteristically Greek flavor profile. Marinating chunks of pork tenderloin for at least two hours keeps the meat juicy and tender as it grills. Serve it with a creamy, cool tzatziki and grilled pita to complete the meal.

Pork Souvlaki With Pita and Tzatziki
Grilled Squid With Olive Oil and Lemon

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

The key to perfectly grilled squid is to pat it thoroughly dry first, then cook it hot and fast over direct heat. This promotes quick searing and charring before the squid has a chance to overcook. A light coating of oil before cooking also helps prevent it from sticking to the grill. Then, all it needs is a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and freshly ground black pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Grilled Squid With Olive Oil and Lemon

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Warm Panzanella Salad With Lamb Chops

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

This is a dish to make before summer tomatoes disappear. Tomato water, leftover from salting and draining, adds extra tomato flavor and liquid to the warm vinaigrette that dresses the toasted bread and tomatoes in the panzanella. The bright, warm vinaigrette is built right in the pan, using the fond from the lamb chops. Opt for double-ribbed lamb chops, which are more forgiving and allow for better crust formation.

Warm Panzanella Salad With Lamb Chops
Grilled Paella Mixta (Mixed Paella With Chicken and Seafood)

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

This variation on Spain’s most iconic dish captures the best of the Mediterranean, brimming with chicken, pork, chorizo, and fresh shellfish. The paella may look complex, but it’s surprisingly straightforward to prepare, thanks to a few key techniques. For one, making the sofrito ahead of time streamlines the cooking process without sacrificing depth of flavor. Using a lighter broth—or even water—lowers the protein content in the cooking liquid, which helps minimize scorching on the bottom of the pan.

Grilled Paella Mixta (Mixed Paella With Chicken and Seafood)
Mussels Escabeche

Serious Eats / Jenny Dorsey

Although more commonly found in its tinned form, mussels escabeche tastes infinitely better homemade—especially since you can control how the mussels are cooked. This classic Spanish dish features plump mussels in an aromatic marinade of olive oil, vinegar, garlic, herbs, and spices.

Mussels Escabeche
One-Pot Sherry-Braised Chicken With Chickpeas, Chorizo, and Fennel

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

Packed with intensely aromatic, smoky Spanish flavors, this is the kind of braised chicken dish you'll want to make on repeat. Even better, it comes together in one pan, minimizing clean up. Start the chicken skin side down in a cold skillet to slowly render the fat and maximize crisping, then build more flavor with fennel, onion, and Spanish chorizo. Here, sherry brings nuttiness and complexity to the braising liquid.

One-Pot Sherry-Braised Chicken With Chickpeas, Chorizo, and Fennel

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Greek Salad (Horiatiki)

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

For the best Greek salad, combine traditional and non-traditional elements. This version stars fresh, juicy peak-season tomatoes and skips the lettuce, and a quick soak in red wine vinegar tames the onion's sharpness. Topping the salad with slabs of feta—instead of crumbling in the cheese—allows you to control just how much cheese you want in each bite.

Greek Salad (Horiatiki)
Mediterranean Chopped Salad With Tomatoes, Peppers, Feta, and Basil

Serious Eats / J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

The key to a great chopped salad—like this one—is salting and draining the vegetables to avoid a watery mess by the time you reach the bottom of the bowl. Here, some of that liquid is repurposed for the vinaigrette, which amplifies the brightness of the summer vegetables.

Mediterranean Chopped Salad With Tomatoes, Peppers, Feta, and Basil