
Smashed Cucumber and Chicken Salad Because It's Too Hot to Cook
If you, too, are looking for no-cook dinner ideas, we've put together a recipe collection here, and I've picked five recipes for you that I'd call 'low-cook,' most requiring a small amount of stove time but not more than that. And if you're OK to light the grill, here are recipes for you.
Stay cool, eat a Popsicle, blend up a limonada, make a watermelon and feta salad and then call it a day. And as always, reach out to me anytime at dearemily@nytimes.com. I love to hear from you.
Coconut fish and tomato bake; sheet-pan chicken thighs with spicy corn; lemon blueberry muffins; and classic birthday cake.
Crunchy and cool, Sichuan cucumber salad is one of the most refreshing dishes you can eat on a sweltering day. Zainab Shah draws inspiration there, combining shredded rotisserie chicken with salted cucumbers for a satisfying meal.
View this recipe.
People often think of pasta salad as a side dish, but I think we should free ourselves from the side-main dichotomy. This recipe from Melissa Clark could easily be dinner, packed as it is with fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, cucumber and salami, which you can leave out to make it vegetarian.
View this recipe.
This clever summer idea comes from Hetty Lui McKinnon, who combines all the elements of vegetarian chili — the beans, tomatoes, bell peppers and spices — but doesn't cook them. Just like hot chili, this is begging to be topped with sour cream, cheese and avocado, and then scooped with tortillas or chips.
View this recipe.
This is not the last you'll be seeing of Hetty's dumpling salad with chile crisp this summer. It's beloved for a reason.
View this recipe.
Try Julia Moskin's recipe and you'll never make another.
View this recipe.
Thanks for reading and cooking. If you like the work we do at New York Times Cooking, please subscribe! (Or give a subscription as a gift!) You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest, or follow me on Instagram. I'm dearemily@nytimes.com, and previous newsletters are archived here. Reach out to my colleagues at cookingcare@nytimes.com if you have any questions about your account.
View all recipes in your weekly plan.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Vogue
26 minutes ago
- Vogue
Selena Gomez's Pink Mocha Nails Are the Perfect End of Summer, Start of Fall Set
Just when you thought we had our color set for the last of the summer nail tech appointments, along comes Selena Gomez and her mocha pink nails. It's a sweet manicure, without being cloying, and with a natural touch. According to Pantone, the official color of 2025 has been 'Mocha Mousse.' (This followed 2024's 'Peach Fuzz,' and the previous year's 'Viva Magenta'). Mocha Mousse is a soft, warm shade that brings to mind creamy chocolate and coffee, a tone that connects to beauty and fashion's ongoing love affair with brown. The Rare Beauty founder has long been a fan of elevating the classic and elegant, which is exactly what her latest nail shade—concocted with her nail artist of choice, Tom Bachik—does. So why not add a few drops of pink to the Mocha Mousse equation? The result is a delicate, minimalist shade, a soft and sweet statement. The pop star, actor, and beauty mogul wore the manicure for a recent night in L.A. celebrating her first Rare Beauty perfume, Rare Eau de Parfum. The gourmand offering features notes of caramel, vanilla, and sandalwood—'warm with just a touch of spice,' as she so recently told Vogue. She's leaned into those sweet, delectable tones throughout the promo, on another day, hosting a perfume-themed baking class with fiancé Benny Blanco, where they made pistachio and caramel tiramisu. A similarly deliciously shaded manicure? A textbook Gomez detail. To go with the nail shade, Gomez wore a shimmering, almost-bridal halter-neck dress by Cult Gaia, combined with a high, polished ponytail by Renato Campora, and a brown smoky eye with a pink-glossed caramel lip by makeup artist Hung Vanngo. Gomez kept her mocha pink nails in the on-trend, round and short shape—a failsafe elegant silhouette, too.
Yahoo
44 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Travis Kelce Praises Taylor Swift's Stamina on Eras Tour in Latest Interview
Travis Kelce Praises Taylor Swift's Stamina on Eras Tour in Latest Interview originally appeared on Parade. Travis Kelce is in awe of Taylor Swift. In his GQ cover story that was published on Tuesday morning, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end covered many topics, including his thoughts on the upcoming season, training and living in Florida, his family and of course, his girlfriend, Taylor Swift. The Grammy-winning singer, who announced on Monday night that she was releasing her twelfth studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, and the NFL star have been dating for two years now. Though their relationship is pretty private, their support for each other on and off the field and stage is very noticeable. "I get to be the plus one. I get to go and be that fan, because I am a fan. I'm a fan of music. I'm a fan of art," Kelce told GQ. "And it's so cool that I get to experience her being that plus one for me on the football field. I feel that same enjoyment every time she comes to my shows." From March 2023 to December 2024, Swift embarked on her famous Eras Tour, where she performed 149 shows in 51 cities across five continents. It was the highest-grossing tour of all time, and the first tour to generate $2 billion in revenue. The "You Need to Calm Down" singer's show was three hours long, where she performed about 44 songs across her 11 studio albums. In most cities she visited, Swift performed that setlist for multiple nights in a row, took a few days off, then repeated the cycle at the next place. Swift began getting in shape six months before the Eras Tour kicked off in Glendale, AZ. She revealed to TIME Magazinein December 2023 that her training routine included running on the treadmill every day while singing the entire setlist out loud, followed by specialized strength training at the DOGPOUND Gym in West Hollywood and months of dance lessons. But what Kelce really emphasized during his GQ interview was the conditions Swift performed in. "The Eras Tour floor is literally...a football-field-sized computer," Kelce explained. "You take that into Singapore, where it is scorching hot, and all of a sudden you're feeling the fumes from the computer and you're feeling the fumes from the sun and you're doing a show for three hours with a lot of energy, bringing it every single song." Kelce went on to compare her shows to his own work on the football field. "That is arguably more exhausting than how much I put in on a Sunday, and she's doing it three, four, five days in a row," the 35-year-old athlete concluded. NFL preseason is already in full swing, with the Chiefs set to play against the Seattle Seahawks this Friday at 7 p.m. PT. As Kelce gears up for another season and Swift continues teasing her twelfth studio album, both still prove that they know a thing or two about stamina and Kelce Praises Taylor Swift's Stamina on Eras Tour in Latest Interview first appeared on Parade on Aug 12, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 12, 2025, where it first appeared. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
44 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Travis Kelce Breaks the Internet After Posting Taylor Swift to his Instagram For The First Time
Travis Kelce Breaks the Internet After Posting Taylor Swift to his Instagram For The First Time originally appeared on Parade. After two years of dating, Travis Kelce has finally made it Instagram official with his girlfriend, Taylor Swift. On Thursday, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end shared a photo dump on Instagram highlighting many moments from his NFL offseason. While the post included many snaps with his friends and family, it was the multiple photos featuring Swift that had fans freaking out. The Grammy-winning pop star made several appearances throughout the post, and it officially marked the first time Kelce has ever posted her on his Instagram. "Had some adventures this offseason, kept it 💯," Kelce wrote in his caption. Within minutes of the post being shared, fans, friends and supporters of the couple flocked to the comment section, expressing their excitement and shock over the couple becoming Instagram official. "I'm gonna need 3-5 business days to recover from this 🫢🥹," one fan said. "i screamed," a fan commented. A user commented, "I'm unwell right now." "Trav breaking the internet on a random Thursday," another said. One fan commented, "is this an appropriate time to cry of happiness?" Dom Dolla, a famous Australian DJ, even joined the conversation, writing, "QTs." The couple began dating in the summer of 2023. Since then, their relationship has become a pop culture sensation, with Swift frequently attending Chiefs games and Kelce watching multiple Eras Tour shows in 2023 and 2024. Though they do their best to keep their relationship private, their support for each other has only grown stronger throughout the years. During the NFL offseason, the 35-year-old athlete spent his time training intensively in Florida. In late June, he co-hosted Tight End University (TEU) in Nashville, a yearly summit he co-founded with San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle and sports commentator Greg Olsen, to mentor rising NFL tight ends. Kelce also spent a lot of time with the "Shake It Off" singer, as they were spotted out together multiple times in New York City, Philadelphia, Nashville and around Florida. Kelce clearly made the most of his offseason, using the time to train, recharge and soak up moments with close friends, family and loved ones before the NFL season kicks off in Kelce Breaks the Internet After Posting Taylor Swift to his Instagram For The First Time first appeared on Parade on Jul 24, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 24, 2025, where it first appeared. Solve the daily Crossword