10 Yummy Father’s Day Dinner Ideas To Surprise Your Dad

On his big day, you could take him out for dinner and a drink, or you can make it more special and cook for him at home! This father’s day, show your dad how much you appreciate him by preparing a delicious meal that he would love. We have, in this article, a set of yummy father’s day cooking ideas that are easy to make and sure to win his heart!

Simple And Delicious Father’s Day Dinner Recipes

These items make an excellent addition to your fathers day dinner menu:

1. Chicago-Style Chicken Dogs

These chicken dogs are excellent snack items for your dinner party.

Ingredients

• 4 hot dog buns (grilled, if desired)
• 2 jarred pepperoncini peppers – sliced thin
• 1 tablespoon pepperoncini peppers brine
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard (some extra for serving)
• 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
• ¼ small sweet onion – sliced thin
• 4 chicken sausages, fully cooked
• 2 small plum tomatoes – cut into half-moons
• 4 dill pickle spears
• 1 small romaine heart lettuce – sliced thin (3 cups)

Total Cooking Time – 25 minutes

Servings – 4 servings

How To Make

1. In a bowl, add pepperoncini brine, mustard, and honey and whisk well.
2. Stir in the poppy seeds.
3. Drop pepperoncini peppers and onions into the mix and toss to coat them evenly.
4. Turn up the grill to medium heat.
5. Grill the sausages and turn it occasionally.
6. Continue heating for 10 to 12 minutes or till they have a slightly charred surface.
7. Stuff the sausages into the buns and add pickles and tomatoes, and top with the mix. Add romaine lettuce and sprinkle poppy seeds.
8. Serve with extra mustard and romaine mixture.

2. Salpicon Taco

This salsa-rich recipe is a perfect dip to serve all the leftovers after your party and make a delicious filling for your tortillas. It combines radishes, cucumbers, red onions, tomatoes, and habanero to soak the meat with spices and citrus juices that taste both hot and cold in the tortillas.

Ingredients

• 3 medium plum tomatoes – diced
• 3 medium radishes – finely diced
• Finely diced red onion – ½ cup
• ½ cup cucumber – Peeled, seeded, and diced 
• 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
• 2 medium habanero chillies – halved
• 3 tablespoons – fresh orange juice 
• 3 tablespoons – fresh lime juice
• 1 pound skirt steak or flank steak – cut into ¾ inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro – chopped
• 8 White corn tortillas (6-inch) 

Total Cooking Time – 25 minutes

Servings – 4 servings

How To Make

1. In a medium bowl, add the radishes, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and salt and mix well.
2. Let it stand for 5 minutes to let the veggies release water and make the mix juicy.
3. Stir in the orange juice, lime juice, and chillies.
4. Add the meat and cilantro.
5. Add a little more salt to taste and serve with corn tortillas.

3. BBQ Grilled Chicken

What better way to impress your dad than some hot grilled chicken right off the BBQ!

Ingredients

• 2 cups barbecue sauce
• Juice from 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons Honey
• 1 tablespoon Hot sauce 
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lb chicken breasts or drumsticks – Boneless and skinless
• Vegetable oil for the grill

Total Cooking Time – 30 minutes

Servings – 4 servings

How to Make

1. In a large bowl, whisk together lime juice, barbecue sauce, hot sauce, honey, and season with pepper and salt to make the marinade. Save about ½ cup for basting.
2. Add the chicken breasts to the bowl and mix until thoroughly coated.
3. Turn up the grill to high and oil the grates.
4. Grill the chicken and baste with the saved marinade.
5. Grill each side for 8 minutes for breasts.
6. Grill for 10 to 12 minutes if using drumsticks.
7. Serve Hot!

4. El Paseo Porterhouse Steak

This mouth-watering Steak is sure to win hearts at the family gathering this father’s day!

Ingredients

• 52 ounces Porterhouse 28 Day Dry-Aged Steak 
• Sea Salt
• Clarified butter
• Fresh sage leaves
• Fresh thyme
• 2 bulbs of Garlic
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Shallot butter (for serving)

Total Cooking Time – 45 minutes

Servings – 1 serving

How To Make

1. Rub salt liberally on both sides and place it in the broiler at 1200 degrees for 20 minutes.
2. Turn over the stake after 10 minutes and return to the broiler.
3. Remove after 20 minutes.
4. Marinade steak in a mixture of sage, clarified butter, thyme, and Garlic for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from the mix and place it on a kitchen roll to remove excess butter.
6. Reassemble the Steak by placing the T-bone in the plate centre with sliced filler on the right and sliced sirloin on the left.
7. Sprinkle freshly ground black pepper.
8. Put some shallot butter on all Steak and garnish with a sprig of thyme, half a garlic bulb from the clarified butter, and garlic butter.

5. Jamaican Jerk Chicken

This Jamaican chicken is perfect on salads, in wraps, or just on its own!

Ingredients

• 2 pounds skinless chicken breasts
• 1 jalapeno pepper – seeded and diced
• 3 tablespoons Water
• Juice of 1 whole lime
• 1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
• 2 cloves of Garlic – minced 
• 2 cubes Chicken Stock
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin 
• ½ teaspoon Dried thyme 
• ½ teaspoon Allspice or cinnamon 
• ½ teaspoon Black pepper
• A Dash of cinnamon

Total Cooking Time – 40 minutes

Servings – 4 to 5 servings

How To Make

1. In a baking dish, add all the ingredients except chicken and stir well.
2. Place the chicken and turn to coat well.
3. Cover up the bowl and place it in a refrigerator to marinate for 1 hour.
4. Preheat the grill and remove chicken from jerk marinade.
5. Pour marinade into a saucepan and bring it to a boil.
6. Place chicken on the grill and cook for about 10 minutes until it’s done.
7. Use the leftover jerk marinade for basting periodically until the chicken is done.

6. All-American Burger

Here is one of the simplest and best father’s day meals you can’t go wrong with. It’s a classic for a reason!

Ingredients

• ¼ cup Soft white breadcrumbs
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Water 
• 1 tablespoon Milk 
• ½ tablespoon Seasoned salt
• ½ teaspoon Onion powder 
• 1/8 teaspoon Pepper
• 1-1/4 pounds Ground beef 
• 4 Sandwich buns – split (toasted/grilled, according to preference)

Total Cooking Time – 30 minutes

Servings – 4 servings

How To Make

1. Prepare the grill and bring it to heat.
2. In a large bowl, combine the water, Worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, and milk. 
3. Pour in the onion powder, pepper, and salt and mix well. Let it stand for 5 minutes.
4. Add the ground beef and use your hands to incorporate the mix thoroughly.
5. Shape the meat into 4 patties, sized according to the sandwich buns.
6. Cook over the coal for 10 to 15 minutes until they are pink in the centre.
7. Place the patty between the burger buns and serve the burger with toppings of your choice – pickles, mustard, ketchup, American cheese, relish, etc.

7. Asian BBQ Grilled Salmon

This mouth-watering father’s day seafood dinner idea will have your family serving second helpings – so make sure to have some extra food ready to go!

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons Hoisin sauce
• 2 tablespoons Rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons Mirin 
• ½ teaspoon Garlic chilli paste 
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger – minced 
• ½ lime Juice and zest
• ½ teaspoon Garlic powder 
• Vegetable oil, to brush
• 4 Skin-on salmon fillets (4-oz)
• Green onions – thinly sliced (to taste)
• Sesame seeds

Total Cooking Time – 25 minutes

Servings – 4 servings

How To Make

1. In a large bowl, mix hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic chilli paste, Mirin, ginger, garlic powder, lime juice, and zest.
2. Preheat and oil the grill.
3. Place the salmon on the grill with the skin side down. Let it cook for 5 minutes.
4. Using tongs, flip the salmon over and apply barbecue sauce with a brush.
5. Continue cooking for a few more minutes until fully cooked.
6. For the topping, brush more glaze and sprinkle sesame seeds and green onions.

8. Fried Chicken

Fried chicken makes for an excellent side dish for fathers day dinner.

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts – boneless and skinless
• 1 cup Whole milk or buttermilk
• 1 large egg
• ¾ cup All-purpose flour
• ¼ cup Cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon Garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon Dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon – Freshly ground black pepper 
• ½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper 
• Vegetable oil to fry

For Gravy:

• ¼ cup Butter 
• ¼ cup All-purpose flour 
• ½ cup Whole milk
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• A pinch of paprika

Total Cooking Time – 60 minutes

Servings – 4 servings

How To Make

1. The chicken breasts must first be pounded to about ¼ inch thin by placing it in a plastic wrap and beating it with a meat mallet.
2. In a shallow bowl, mix together milk and egg, and in a separate bowl of the same kind, whisk cornstarch, flour, salt, and spice. This sets up your dredging station.
3. Each breast piece is first dredged in milk and then the flour mixture. Repeat until the breast piece is fully coated.
4. Prep all the chicken breast pieces similarly and let them sit in the fridge until you prepare the gravy.
5. To prepare gravy, place a large skillet over medium heat. Melt butter, add flour and cook until it is bubbling and golden in colour. Add milk and season with pepper, salt, and paprika. Allow the mixture to simmer for 3 – 4 minutes until it slightly thickens. Remove it from the heat.
6. To cook chicken: Heat vegetable oil in a skill filled about an inch with oil. Fry each piece for about 8 minutes until it is golden brown.
7. Serve both the chicken and gravy hot.

9. Mancakes

This sweet and savoury hybrid could just be the perfect surprise you could give your dad!

Ingredients

• 8 ounces Bacon – chopped 
• ½ cup Green onions – thinly sliced
• 1 ¼ cup All-purpose flour 
• ¾ cup Cornmeal 
• 1 tablespoon Baking powder 
• ¾ teaspoon Salt 
• 1 pinch Ground black pepper
• 1 pinch Cayenne pepper 
• 1 1/3 cup Milk 
•  2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese – grated
• 2 large beaten eggs
• 2 tablespoons melted butter 
• 1 tablespoon White sugar 
• 1 cup maple syrup 
• 1/8 teaspoon Chipotle chilli powder 
• 1 teaspoon Vegetable oil
•  1 teaspoon Butter 

Total Cooking Time – 45 minutes

Servings – 6 servings

How To Make

1. In a large skillet over a medium skillet, place portions of Bacon and stir until evenly brown. Remove heat.
2. Add green onions into the skillet until it is slightly softened by sauteing in hot fat for 1 or 2 minutes. Strain the Bacon and retain drippings.
3. In a large bowl, add cornmeal, flour, baking powder, black pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper and whisk thoroughly.
4. To the bowl, add the bacon mixture, cheddar cheese, milk, eggs, sugar, and melted butter and whisk with the flour mixture until it forms a smooth batter. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
5. In a small bowl, dissolve chipotle chilli powder in maple syrup by whisking it thoroughly.
6. On a skillet over medium flame, heat 1 teaspoon bacon dripping, 1 teaspoon butter, and 1 teaspoon oil. Drop about ¼ cup batter on the griddle and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until the edges are dry. Then flip and continue until the other side also becomes golden brown.
7. Serve hot with maple syrup topping.

10. Rolled Oats Cookies

These amazingly chewy cookies are healthy and tasty!

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cup All-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon Baking soda 
• ¾ teaspoon Salt 
• 1 cup White sugar 
• 1 cup Brown sugar 
• 1 ½ cup Rolled oats 
• ½ cup Flaked coconut 
• ¾ cup Vegetable oil 
• 2 Eggs 
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

Total Cooking Time – 30 minutes

Servings – 36 servings

How To Make

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease the cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, white sugar, salt, brown sugar, coconut, and oats.
3. Whisk the mixture and stir in the oil, eggs, and vanilla.
4. Use your hands or a heavy spatula to make good dough.
5. Roll up the dough into small balls and place them on the cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Flatten with a fork or tablespoon.
6. Bake the cookies in a preheated oven for 10 minutes until they turn light brown but not crispy.These delicious father’s day recipes are sure to make an excellent addition to any meal on your dad’s special day. Follow the ingredients for the perfect dish, or tweak it a little to make it better suit your taste!

Make this Father’s Day memorable by preparing a delightful and personalized dinner to show your dad how much you appreciate him.

Also Read:

Best Father’s Day Gifts
Last Minute Father’s Day Gift Ideas
Father’s Day Quotes and Wishes