40 Easy Potluck Recipes
Oriental Coleslaw [1]
Uncooked ramen noodles, almonds and sunflower kernels add crunch to this salad from a Dubuque, Iowa, reader. It was one of the winners in a Midwest Living® potluck recipe contest.
Ricotta and Parmesan Spread [5]
Fresh herbs season this ridiculously simple spread from BelGioioso Cheese in Wisconsin. It keeps well in the fridge and is delicious with cherry tomatoes or other vegetable dippers, as well as crackers or baguette slices.
Chicken and Corn Hash Brown Bake [9]
This comfort food hotdish offers a new twist on the usual hash brown casserole. Try it for everyday meals as well as potlucks!
Sunny Broccoli Salad [13]
A Cleveland reader makes this potluck salad the day ahead and refrigerates the dressing and vegetables separately. When it's time to serve it, she tosses everything together. Bacon, sunflower kernels and raisins make a crunchy and flavorful side dish.
Sunny Broccoli Salad [14]
Stuffed Party Pinwheels [17]
Our recipe actually makes two different kinds of tortilla spirals—one flavored with curry powder, the other with garlic and herbs.
Best Salsa [21]
Make this thick and chunky salsa with fresh tomatoes from your garden. Add more jalapeno peppers if you prefer more heat.
Best Salsa [22]
Mexican Biscuit Casserole [25]
This taco-flavored main dish is a potluck favorite from a Fargo, North Dakota, reader. Serve it with tortilla chips so your guests can scoop and eat.
Mexican Biscuit Casserole [26]
Salted Caramel, Chocolate and Peanut Cracker-Stack Bars [29]
These fantastic potluck bars come from Patrice Hurd of Bemidji, Minnesota. She won the grand prize in our 2012 Best of the Midwest® Recipe Contest. Patrice says they're a twist on her grandmother’s cracker bars. They cut beautifully and brim with salty-sweet-nutty-chocolately flavor.
Salted Caramel, Chocolate and Peanut Cracker-Stack Bars [30]
Greek Orzo Salad [33]
Olives and feta give salty punch to this pasta salad from Surdyk's Liquor and Cheese Shop in Minneapolis.
Greek Orzo Salad [34]
Light and Layered Taco Dip [37]
Ground turkey, reduced-sodium and light ingredients, and a confetti of crisp, colorful veggies make this potluck staple more nutritious than a typical layered dip—but every bit as tasty.
Hash Brown Casserole [41]
An all-time reader favorite, this creamy hotdish is a guaranteed hit at potlucks. (In fact, you may want to make two pans!)
Hash Brown Casserole [42]
Roasted Tomato Pasta with Mozzarella [45]
Red and yellow cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella balls, and plenty of herbs and spices add color and flavor to this bountiful pasta salad. Sprinkle fresh basil on top.
Asian-Style Chicken Salad [49]
Curly noodles, almonds, sesame kernels and rice vinegar blend in this crunchy, tangy salad from a West Des Moines, Iowa, reader.
German Potato Salad [53]
This old-fashioned potluck dish is served warm.
German Potato Salad [54]
Our Own Dream Cookies [57]
It's not easy satisfying everyone, but this cookie from the Midwest Living® Test Kitchen tries to meet the challenge! It's packed with oatmeal, chocolate, peanut butter and nuts.
Triangle Ranch Scalloped Corn [61]
Diced green chile peppers give this baked and cheesy potluck dish character with some hotness. We like the crunch from the saltine crackers, too. The recipe comes from Triangle Ranch Bed and Breakfast in western South Dakota, where guests enjoy hearty meals prepared by B&B owner Lyndy Ireland.
Triangle Ranch Scalloped Corn [62]
Download our FREE printable collection of 10 favorite casserole recipes [63]
Baked Beans 'n' Bacon [69]
Bacon and brown sugar punch up the salty-sweet flavors in this canned pork and beans fix-up from Triangle Ranch Bed and Breakfast in South Dakota. For a candied top, leave Baked Beans 'n' Bacon uncovered in the oven.
Tropical Tomato Salsa [73]
Try this sweet, colorful salsa with chips, fish or chicken, and feel free to switch the mango or melon for other summer fruits.
Broccoli Grape Salad [77]
Juicy grapes and crunchy broccoli blend sweet flavors with savory, salty bacon. The side-dish salad recipe comes from the Triangle Ranch B&B in South Dakota.
Broccoli Grape Salad [78]
Blueberry-Almond Bars [81]
Fruit fillings complement the sweetness of other bar cookie ingredients. Blueberry-Almond Bars was a grand champion award recipe at the Marshall County Fair's annual Blueberry Bake-A-Rama in Plymouth, Indiana. Lori Van Der Weele combined blueberries, butter, white baking pieces and almonds for this winner.
Pizza in a Bowl [85]
One of the winners in a Midwest Living potluck recipe contest, this recipe from a North Canton, Ohio, reader combines pizza toppings with macaroni, sprinkled on top with Parmesan and pepperoni.
Pizza in a Bowl [86]
Mexican Polenta Pie [89]
Great for a potluck or family dinner, this 12-serving casserole combines polenta with ground turkey, spices, black beans, tomatoes and Monterey Jack cheese.
Mexican Polenta Pie [90]
Potluck Pleaser Chili [93]
Beverly Gardner or Franklin, Illinois, lets her Bavarian-Austrian heritage show with added vinegar, sour cream and lots of sugar. Our heat rating: ! (Mild, Not Wild)
Corn and Tomato Pasta Salad [97]
Shredded chicken makes this gorgeous salad hearty enough to serve on its own for dinner.
Very Berry Triple Fruit Pie [101]
More than 4 cups of berries make this pie extra juicy. Be sure to let it cool completely before you slice it. And don't forget the vanilla ice cream! The recipe comes from Covered Bridge Farm in Forest Lake, Minnesota.
Bonanza Bean Dip [105]
Lime- and jalapeño-spiced guacamole adds a kick to layers of refried beans, cheese, tomatoes and onions. Serve seasoned tortilla chips on the side.
Bonanza Bean Dip [106]
24-Hour Tex-Mex Salad [109]
Layered salads, popular in the 1970s and 1980s, are making a comeback. Assemble this easy potluck salad in either individual jars or a clear salad bowl, dressing and all, then refrigerate.
24-Hour Tex-Mex Salad [110]
Classic Potato Salad [113]
This creamy potato salad is full of tender new potatoes, sweet pickles, crisp celery, and chopped hard-cooked eggs.
Classic Potato Salad [114]
Tortilla-Black Bean Casserole [117]
Layer a tomato-bean mixture, cheese and tortillas for a casserole with south-of-the-border flavor. Let each guest top their portion with chopped tomato, shredded lettuce, green onions, olives and/or sour cream.
Creamy Scalloped Potatoes [121]
This rich side dish earns compliments at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Dearborn, Michigan— just as it will from your potluck guests. Because potatoes can darken once sliced, prepare this dish right before you plan to bake it.
Calico Bean Bake [125]
This recipe blurs the line between baked beans and chili. It's great for feeding a crowd.
Calico Bean Bake [126]
Cherry-Apple Slaw [129]
Nuts and fruit add crunch and color to cabbage tossed in a homemade vinaigrette. This beautiful twist on traditional coleslaw is best served right away for maximum crispness, but it will hold for up to 24 hours.
Cherry-Apple Slaw [130]
Spinach Artichoke Dip [133]
Jazz up purchased spinach-artichoke dip with just three extra ingredients.
Spinach Artichoke Dip [134]
Easy baked bean fix-ups [137]
Pop the top on a can, and give summer's easiest barbecue side new personality with these simple baked bean mix-ins. Go saucy: Barbecue sauce. Go sweet: Pineapple tidbits. Go meaty: Diced ham. Go smoky: Smoked paprika.
French Onion Dip [140]
Add pizzazz to potato chips or veggies with this dip made from sweet onions, sour cream, fresh chives, and cayenne pepper.
French Onion Dip [141]
Zesty Three-Bean Salad [144]
Combine kidney beans, garbanzo beans and frozen sweet soybeans (edamame) with red onion, cilantro and lime juice for a fresh twist on three-bean salad.
Zesty Three-Bean Salad [145]
Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings [148]
A reader in Saint Paul gave us this recipe, which always gets raves from her guests. The sweet glaze uses pineapple juice, ketchup and soy sauce.
Buffalo-Style Chicken Fingers [152]
Add to your potluck buffet with this neat-to-eat chicken breast variation of chicken wings. Dunk them in bottled blue cheese dressing.
Macaroni and Cheese Perfection [156]
Forget what you know about store-bought packages -- this is REAL macaroni and cheese. The children of cheese-makers Shelley and Randy Krakenbuhl accepted nothing else while they were growing up above the Prima Kase cheese factory in Monticello, Wisconsin. Here's the family recipe for Macaroni and Cheese Perfection, which Shelley prepares using Prima Kase's Emmentaler cheese and some Parmesan.
Beefy Chili Dogs [160]
The Coney Island Lunch Room in Grand Island, Nebraska, has served its all-American chili dog since 1933. In honor of this Cornhusker State edible institution, we created this recipe for Beefy Chili Dogs. Stewing the hot dogs in the seasoned meat mixture makes them extra juicy. Top them with cheese.
Beefy Chili Dogs [161]
Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip [164]
Blend chopped fresh spinach with cream cheese, sour cream, canned artichoke hearts and three kinds of cheeses for this hot-and-hearty dip. Serve with toasted pita chips, thinly sliced French bread or crackers.
More potluck recipes [168]
For more delicious potluck recipe ideas, click on any link below!
Free printable casserole cookbook and more [175]
Click below to download our free printable collection of 10 casserole recipes or other free printable cookbooks.