60 Tasty Tailgate Recipes To Make For Game Day

During football season in the South, every good match has an even better tailgate spread that fans look forward to on game day. Over the years, menus have evolved to include wow-worthy recipes that are perfect for serving on any given Saturday. Our impressive roster of crowd-pleasing favorites contains a wide variety of dishes that are guaranteed to be the talk of the tailgate. It’s never too early to get to planning so you’re sure to score come football season.

Champions of the Tailgate: How the South Tackles the Tradition Better Than Anywhere Else

Poblano Smash Burgers

Fire up the grill and add a little spice to your tailgate with this all-new burger recipe. Poblano peppers are grilled right into the burger patties for incredible texture and flavor.

Baby Back Ribs With Coffee-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce

It’s not gameday without barbecue! Coffee and bourbon make for an ultra-rich barbecue sauce that’s sweet and tangy.

Texas Breakfast Tacos

Early kickoff? Breakfast tacos are the easiest, most portable way to get everyone geared up for the day.

Grove-Worthy Pimiento Cheese Sandwiches

The Grove at Ole Miss is the ultimate tailgate locale, and these grab-and-go sandwiches are the ultimate tailgate dish. 

Football Brownies

These adorable treats are a surefire way to impress a tailgate full of fans. If you’re short on time, swap for boxed brownie mix but keep the homemade frosting. 

Homemade Corn Dogs

Corn dogs are the ideal grab-and-go food for mingling tailgaters. Don’t forget the ketchup and mustard! 

Florida State Fried Chicken

A drizzle of honey is the secret that makes this chicken recipe irresistible. 

Million Dollar Dip

You can make this dip and put it in the fridge up to three days in advance, but top it with freshly chopped scallions just before serving. 

Soft Pretzels

Everyone at the tailgate will be blown away that you made your own pretzels from scratch. It’s a labor of love to make them, but they can be served at room temp, which is great for tailgates. 

West Virginia Pepperoni Rolls

You don’t have to be from the Mountain State to appreciate this delicious dish. They’re surprisingly simple to make with just a few ingredients. 

Chocolate Chip Blondies

You can freeze the blondie batter before or after baking, making this dessert the perfect make-ahead option for tailgates on the go. 

Pigs In A Blanket

If you’re looking for a no-fail snack, here you go! These Pigs In A Blanket also freeze beautifully for make-ahead purposes. 

Slow-Cooker Chipotle Brisket Sliders

“Absolutely fabulous!” wrote a reviewer who left five stars. “I even purchased the spicy pickles which I had never had before and that was the cherry on the top! Thank you for such a great dinner!”

Beef Sliders With Bacon Jam

Instead of standing at the tailgate and flipping burgers all afternoon, make a big batch of these tasty sliders ahead of time. Homemade bacon jam sets them apart from your usual burger recipe. 

Copycat Chick-Fil-A Chicken Minis

Those 11 a.m. kickoffs aren’t exciting for everyone, but your tailgate crew will be thrilled to see a platter of these homemade chicken minis on the spread. 

Toomer’s Lemonade Sheet Cake

Inspired by the famous Toomer’s Drugs lemonade in Auburn, Alabama, this sheet cake was made for serving a crowd.

South Carolina Bird Dogs

A Gamecocks favorite, these chicken dogs will be a hit at any tailgate. Wrap them in foil to make them easily portable to the tailgate, and let visitors add their own toppings. 

Ham-And-Cheese Sliders

When you need something more substantial than dip to feed your hungry crowd, you can’t go wrong here. Southerners will instantly recognize this handheld staple, made with ham, cheese, and Hawaiian rolls. This recipe elevates the basic ham-and-cheese with an amazing homemade béchamel sauce and Gruyère cheese. 

Jalapeño Popper Dip

This recipe is as good as stuffed jalapeños but packed into a shareable party dip. Though delicious as is, for even more color and texture you can fold in chopped red and yellow bell peppers. If you’re busy the day of the tailgate, this dip is a great option that can be made ahead of time.

Slow-Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs

Game day isn’t truly complete without a scrumptious meatball dish on the table. These saucy meatballs slow cook in grape jelly, adding sweetness to the heat and spice of chili sauce and barbecue sauce. Set a container of toothpicks next to the slow cooker and let your guests do the work.

Easy Buffalo Chicken Dip

This is hands-down the most crowd-pleasing dip recipe for when you’re feeding a group of hungry Southerners. It’s melty, creamy, cheesy, chicken-filled, and packed with a kick of Buffalo flavor. Flat pretzel chips or crusty bread make excellent scoops.

Hasselback Sausage Bites

Southern-favorite Conecuh sausage is turned into bite-sized pieces that are sliced up and fanned out to create extra bites of crispy, juice meat. The tangy dipping sauce puts this special tailgate appetizer over the top. These will be the first to go at the party.

Buffalo Chicken Bites

These practically mess-free chicken bites are boneless, letting guests indulge with a fork. If you’ll be transporting these chicken bites after cooking, we recommend keeping the chicken and sauce separate until right before serving. For variety, offer a bowl of both ranch and blue cheese dressings on the side.

Baked BLT Dip

Creamy, cheesy, bacony, and oh-so bubbly, this dip will have the whole tailgate doing victory dances. This dip packs an entire pound of bacon, plus cream cheese, Cheddar, sour cream, and mayo. Top with lettuce and cherry tomatoes to make it look just like the sandwich.

Pulled Pork Nachos

It’s not game day without a huge plate of nachos. Pick up some pulled pork from your favorite barbecue joint to help these nachos come together in just 15 minutes. All you need to do is layer your favorite toppings, bake, and then add any cold ingredients you’d like.

Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels

Imagine all the best flavors of Buffalo chicken dip rolled into a delicious and flaky pastry. To make these, you’ll need thawed sheets of frozen puff pastry, on which you’ll spread the Buffalo chicken filling before rolling them up jelly-roll style. The pinwheels are topped with blue cheese dressing and chopped fresh celery leaves or parsley.

Spicy Bisquick Sausage Balls

Did someone say sausage balls? We can hear the people running from other tailgates already. This recipe spices it up a notch with hot pork sausage and pepper Jack cheese, but also makes life easier with Bisquick.

Pizza Pepper Poppers

These bite-sized poppers check off all the boxes: colorful, adorable, and tasty. Use baby bell peppers as the base for cheese and pepperoni to deliver the flavor of pizza in popper form. Garnish with bright green basil.

Bacon Bow Tie Crackers

Who doesn’t love a two-ingredient recipe that’s destined to be the hit of the party? As is, this recipe makes 24 crackers, so we recommend doubling (or tripling!) this recipe. The crackers need to bake on low heat for 90 minutes to achieve a nice and crisp bowtie shape.

Spinach-Artichoke Dip

Serve this tasty dip with pita chips, radishes, or fresh broccoli for a surefire crowd-pleaser. This recipe is heavier on the artichokes than many, so we used frozen for the best flavor. The leftovers are great on a baked potato or chicken, too.

Classic Deviled Eggs

Simplicity is key in this tasty make-ahead recipe. It comes together with just five ingredients in less than 20 minutes. You’ll love the classic flavor, and you can spice things up with a jar of hot sauce.

Brownie Cookies

Hard choices aren’t to be made on game day, so get the best of both worlds with this recipe that combines the sweet outer crunch of a cookie with the rich decadence of a brownie. Oh, and did we mention it all starts with a box of brownie mix? Chill the dough before baking so the cookies stay in cookie form.

Dry-Rubbed Smoked Chicken Wings

Cooked low and slow, these tender wings are sure to be a hit at your next tailgate feast. The fragrant, orange-hued rub is predominantly due to paprika, enhanced with a few other spices. It comes from pitmaster Wade Reich of Butts To Go in Alabama, so you know it’s good.

Sweet-And-Salty Autumn Snack Mix

This munch mix is filled with cereal, bite-size pretzels, candy-coated peanut-butter candies, mini marshmallows, and a yummy butter mixture with brown sugar and honey. What can go wrong? Keep it in an airtight container and serve it in waffle cones during the game.

Tex-Mex Deviled Eggs

We first debuted this recipe in the ’90s, and we’re still fans today. Classic deviled eggs get a festive spin from cilantro, serrano peppers, diced green onions, and cheese. Sprinkle on chili powder to taste.

Smoky Black-Eyed Pea Hummus

Smoked paprika gives all the flavor to this hummus recipe made with black-eyed peas instead of chickpeas. Top with extra olive oil, lemon zest, and paprika for an extra zing and pop of color. Serve with pita chips.

Georgia-Style Boiled Peanuts

This easy snack is always a crowd-pleaser at a Southern tailgate. Make the nuts in a slow cooker and haul it over to the tailgate to keep the boiled peanuts warm all day. They go down especially well with an ice-cold beer.

Our Favorite Pimiento Cheese

Need we say more? It’s not a Southern daytime party without at least one batch of pimiento cheese. Hot tip: Serve with crackers and a jar of Wickles on the side.

Laura Bush’s Cowboy Cookies

This reader-favorite won in a bake-off between the wives of presidential candidates. Filled with all the most delicious ingredients like chocolate chips, oats, coconut, and pecans, this cookie recipe makes a big enough batch to feed your crowd all day long.

Rotel Sausage Dip

We know that you know this dip because it might be the most popular game-day dip of all time. This recipe gives you the perfect ratio of cheese, meat, chiles, and tomatoes, which are all cooked and served warm in your slow cooker. Tortilla scoops will come in handy for this one.

Party Poppers

Stuffed with a cream cheese mixture and wrapped in thick-cut bacon, these jalapeño poppers are guaranteed to get the party going. Just make sure to remove the seeds and membranes before you fill your poppers—unless you’re looking to heat things up.

Broccoli, Grape, And Pasta Salad

Say hello to the most popular, swoon-worthy pasta salad around. Everyone loves the simple combination of broccoli, grapes, pecans, and bacon. The result is a perfect balance of sweetness, tartness, and crunch.

Pecan Pie Bars

Serve up fall’s favorite pie without any fuss. These chewy, bite-size bars are baked in a casserole dish and require just 20 minutes of prep time. The easy crust is simply patted into place.

Beer-Cheese Fondue

We upped the ante on this popular dip by using dry mustard, Gruyère, Cheddar, Worcestershire sauce, and a lager beer. Keep your fondue pot over a Sterno to keep the dip from clumping. Serve with sliced cooked bratwurst for extra fun.

Mini Muffulettas

You can easily make these mini muffuletta sliders the day before the party. Just assemble, place in zip-top plastic freezer bags, and refrigerate overnight. Store-bought craft paper and simple twine create clever sandwich wrappers.

Smoked-Tomato Salsa

What’s a party without salsa? If you have a smoker, make yours one to remember. Pair it with our homemade guacamole and warm chips and you’re set.

Corn And Jalapeño Dip

Let your slow cooker be the star of the tailgate by filling it with this creamy corn dip. Simply stir together seven ingredients and cook, then top with crumbled bacon and scallions. Tortilla chips will do, but extra-salty corn chips are even better.

Texas Caviar

Texas caviar has been a hit at dinner parties since the 1950s. Something like tangy salsa, the veggies are dressed with a bottle of Italian dressing. We like adding green tomatoes for their bright, citrusy flavor.

Philly Cheesesteak Dip

Enjoy everything you love about the classic sandwich, without the bun. This cheesy, meaty party dip is started on the stove and finished in the oven. There’s no such thing as too much cheese, so we’ve doubled up with melted provolone slices over top.

Skillet Beer-Cheese Dip With Pretzel Bites

Does this look like a game-day dip or what? Baked pretzel bites nestle in beer cheese made with sharp Cheddar and creamy Havarti. Serve extra pretzels on the side.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

This no-fuss dessert has a crust of graham cracker crumbs and crushed pretzels. That’s topped with layers of cheesecake batter, apples tossed in cinnamon and sugar, and a crunchy oat mixture. The bars become downright decadent when you drizzle caramel sauce over top.

Garlic Bread Pizzas

Ready in 25 minutes, these pizzas are not only faster than delivery, they taste delicious. They’re crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and perfect for topping as guests please.

Bacon-Wrapped Smokies

Bacon makes everything better. Everyone loves a grab and go recipe and this one is perfect for feeding a crowd.

Bacon Snack Mix

Tailgates always need those snack mixes that are easy to munch on between plays. This mix adds in cereal squares, almonds, and bacon.

Tailgate Margaritas

House drink at the tailgate tent? Of course. Mix up a margarita that everyone will enjoy sipping.

All-You-Can-Eat BLTs

Sandwiches are always a great idea because you won’t worry about keeping them warm. Give your go-to BLT a facelift on this toasty bread.

Knock-You-Naked Brownies

Why not offer to bring the dessert that not only tastes great but has an adorable name. These will be the talk of the crowd.

Quick Turkey Chili

Chili is always a great game day idea. This recipe features turkey and comes together in no time.

Bacon Pimiento Cheese

Bring the dip that everyone will devour. This recipe gives a flavorful twist to the basic pimento recipe with bacon in the starring role.

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Don’t forget about dessert. There will always be someone at the tailgate looking for something sweet and this chocolate sheet cake will do the trick.

Frequently Asked Questions

• How do you pack food for a tailgate party? Depending on your tailgate set-up, bring warming trays or coolers to keep foods at the correct temperature. Prepare most food items before arriving at your tailgating location, and do not leave food exposed for more than a few hours to avoid contamination and disease.
• What additional items should you bring to a tailgate? To complete the tailgating experience, remember to bring or assign someone to get things like plates, cups, drinks, ice, and towels. Using food-safe gloves for handling raw meat is a good idea when serving meat products. Also, consider bringing tables and chairs.

Best Portable Tailgate Grills That Cook For A Crowd