August Menu Plan – Cool Summer Meals And Grill Menu

When the hot weather hits, you need ideas for cool summer meals. This August menu plan is packed with grill-friendly dinner ideas and simple August recipes to keep you as cool as a cucumber.

Planning a monthly menu doesn’t have to be difficult. This post will give you plenty of summer meal ideas for building your own monthly meal plan.

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Why Make a Monthly Menu Plan for August?

I don’t know about where you live, but here in Michigan the summer has been HOT. Most mornings, my husband & I just ask each other, ‘What do we want to grill tonight?’

We usually decide on plain grilled chicken, sometimes hamburgers — most often served with raw vegetables. Once in a while I’ll turn on the a/c in the house and cook something with pasta or potatoes.

I’m going to be totally honest here and admit that I was not going to make a monthly dinner menu for August.

If you check out my June menu plan, it pretty much covers what we eat during the summer. I figured we would go with it for another month.

Then I started to think maybe we could try something a little different with the chicken that we usually just lightly season and grill. So I turned to Pinterest and started searching for summery-type chicken meals and grilling recipes for different foods.

I discovered some delicious-looking recipes that would make perfect light meals for summer, and I decided a new monthly meal plan for August was definitely a good idea. Let me tell you, my printer got a workout this month!

August Monthly Meal Plan

Even though I list a full month of 31 dinners here, in reality I don’t plan a dinner for every single night. I’ve learned to leave nights open for leftovers and restaurant dinners. But with this list, there are always plenty of options.

Most dinners do not have a side dish listed. This is because it’s either an all-in-one meal, or my plan is to serve raw or grilled vegetables with the main course. August is usually our month to grill loads of zucchini and corn on the cob.

The highlighted links you see in the menu will take you directly to the website for each recipe. I’m always pinning new recipes, so following my Pinterest board for main dish recipes is a great idea if you’re looking for dinner inspiration.

1. Grilled Barbecue Chicken Legs and Thighs

2. Grilled Coffee Rubbed Burgers with Horseradish Sauce

3. Grilled Salmon

4. Grilled chicken burgers

5. Grilled Foil Packet Loaded Cheese Fries

6. Grilled BBQ B/S chicken thighs

7. Grilled Arnold Palmer Chicken

8. Grilled Fajita Chicken Kabobs

9. BBQ Ranch Grilled Chicken and Veggie Bowls

10. Grilled kabobs — We usually use Italian sausage, mushrooms, onion, peppers, and interweave with bacon.

11. Grilled Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Chicken

12. Grilled Easy Tin Foil Sausage and Veggies Dinner

13. Grilled Peach and Balsamic Chicken Breast

14. Marinated Grilled Flank Steak

15. Grilled Garlic Shrimp Skewers

16. Sausage, Potato, and Green Bean Foil Packets

17. All-Purpose Buffalo Chicken

18. Honey Sriracha Chicken

19. Lexington Grilled Chicken

20. Outdoor fish fry, homemade onion rings, sweet potato fries

21. Oriental Chicken Salad

22. BBQ Chicken Salad

23. Tostadas — Make these “refried” beans in the crockpot to use on them.

24. Nachos

25. Smothered boneless skinless chicken breasts

26. Fried cabbage w/sausage or ground beef

27. Easy Chicken Parmesan Bake — My new favorite easy dinner!

28. *crockpot meal* Red Beans & Rice

29. Deviled Chicken Thighs and glazed carrots

30. One Pot Spaghetti with Sausage Sauce

31. White Chicken Enchilada Pasta

More ideas: A Full Year Of Monthly Meal Plan Ideas For Easy Meal Planning

Monthly Meal Plan Frequently Asked Questions

What is our monthly grocery budget?

When I first wrote this post in 2016, my monthly grocery spending for all of our food would naturally land around $400, some months a little more or less. This amount fed 3 adult-size people very well.

Updating to account for 2025 prices and the fact that my husband now does quite a bit of the grocery shopping, we spend at least twice that amount.

Doing one big monthly grocery shop at 1-2 major stores (like Aldi) and only popping into the local store once or twice for milk and produce can save hundreds of dollars compared to shopping more often. We’ve started moving back to that style of shopping after a few years of more random multiple-times-per-week shopping.

During the summer when I originally wrote this post, my older son was home with us for a few months. We love that boy, but after he went back to college, my husband was happy to have leftovers again for his lunches. 😉

What do we eat besides dinner?

Breakfast – Honestly, we’re not really breakfast people.

I’m a homemade iced coffee drinker during the summer — more often I just let coffee get cold and make it the lazy way rather than the Pioneer Woman’s Perfect Iced Coffee way. (As long as it’s sweet and creamy caffeine, it’s all the same to me.)

Sometimes my husband makes eggs and bacon on the weekend, maybe once or twice a month. And sometimes I make a pot of steel-cut oats or rolled oats that provide breakfast for several days.

Lunch – Leftovers, pb&j, lunchmeat sandwiches, crackers & cheese, wraps. Sometimes I’ll get all healthy-ish and make a salad.

Snacks – Fruit, crackers, nuts, tortilla chips.

I usually don’t make desserts. If we’re craving something during the summer, we might go on a little ice cream buying binge. Or I’ll make some chocolate pudding to use up milk. Anything to keep cool!

What do I use for planning meals?

I keep these monthly dinner ideas as a base. Then, when it’s time to plan, I grab my Essential Meal Planning Printables to keep myself organized and make the process EASY.

Favorite Kitchen Items for Easy Summer Meals on the Grill

OXO Good Grips Grilling Tongs and Turner Set — My husband loves these for grilling. He says the tongs grip better than some other brands we have tried. I love that I can throw them in the dishwasher.

Used upside-down, these 13×18 plastic sheet pan lids are perfect for holding meat to thaw in the fridge and to hold seasoned meat for transporting to the grill for cooking. Place one of these aluminum half sheet pans underneath to provide stability — and you’ll have a clean tray for bringing in the food after it’s grilled.

Try these silicone basting brushes for spreading sauces while grilling. They’re a little shorter than some of the fancy mop-style brushes, but my husband likes using them and I like knowing I can get them *really* clean in the dishwasher.

We keep things pretty simple when it comes to kabob skewers. These 17″ stainless kabob skewers are similar to the ones we use, but might be just a little nicer IF they’re actually dishwasher-safe. We have to wash ours by hand, and it’s not my favorite thing to do.

More Meal Planning and Meal Prep Inspiration

Summer Dinner Ideas: 38 Easy Summer Meals You’ll Want To Make On Repeat

Quick Food Prep Routine for a Week of Easier Meals

30 Quick And Simple Summer Meals (Plus Easy Summer Food List Ideas)

September Dinner Ideas – Back to School Easy Meals List

3 Amazing Ways Weekly Meal Planning Changed My Life

January Menu Plan

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Updated June 2, 2025