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11 Picnic Food Ideas That Aren't Sandwiches!

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Who doesn't love a good picnic! These 11 picnic food ideas are perfectly portable - to make your picnic feel really special!

Collage of 4 images showing some picnic food ideas.

To be perfectly honest, I love a tasty sandwich as part of my picnic basket! But sometimes a special picnic calls for something a little bit different.

Our favourite portable picnic recipes:

Cornish Pasties

5 from 14 votes
Cornish Pasties - moist and tender traditional hand pies filled with steak, onion, potato and swede (rutabaga)
Cornish pasties on a black baking tray
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Pasta Salad with Italian Dressing

5 from 2 votes
A simple pasta salad with mozzarella and veggies plus an easy Italian dressing. Customize with whatever you've got in!
Large bowl filled with pasta salad on a light background
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Coronation Chicken Recipe

5 from 2 votes
Coronation chicken - cooked chicken in a creamy, spicy sauce with sultanas and apricots. It makes a fantastic sandwich filler, jacket potato topper or serve with a lovely crisp salad.
Coronation chicken on a bed of salad, topped with flaked almonds
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Easy Creamy Potato Salad Recipe

5 from 13 votes
Easy Creamy Potato Salad - My dad’s recipe that I’ve been eating (and making) for over 30 years!
Creamy potato salad in a blue bowl on a wooden table. Chopped vegetables in the background.
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Vegetarian Sausage Rolls That Meat-Eaters Love Too!

4.91 from 10 votes
A simple pastry treat for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike. Really easy to make at the same time as meaty sausage rolls - to keep all your guests happy.
Vegetarian sausage rolls piled up on a cooling rack
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Cheese and Tomato Tarts Recipe

5 from 2 votes
Cheese and Tomato Tarts with a rich tomato ragu and creamy béchamel sauce encased in shortcrust pastry. The best vegetarian lunch!
Cheese and Tomato Tarts with a rich tomato ragu and creamy béchamel sauce encased in shortcrust pastry. The best vegetarian lunch!
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Homemade Coleslaw

5 from 11 votes
A quick and easy creamy coleslaw with plenty of crunch - just like those luxury supermarket versions. Made at home in 5 minutes.
creamy coleslaw in a bowl. Cheese and cherry tomatoes in the background
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Chorizo Scotch Eggs Recipe

5 from 2 votes
These Chorizo Scotch Eggs are epic! Crispy and smoky on the outside with a perfect runny-egg filling!
These Chorizo Scotch Eggs are epic! Crispy and smoky on the outside with a perfect runny-egg filling!
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Sausage Rolls Recipe

5 from 8 votes
Buttery golden pastry with a delicious meaty filling. Three ingredients are all you need to make a plateful of fantastic sausage rolls.
Square image of sausage rolls on a cooling rack on a dark blue background
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Portable Apple Crumble Jars

5 from 1 vote
Portable Apple Crumble Jars - with a custard core!! Eat them hot or cold for a fab picnic treat!
Portable Apple Crumble Jars - with a custard core!! Eat them hot or cold for a fab picnic treat!
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

Individual Berry No Bake Cheesecakes

5 from 7 votes
These blueberry and blackberry mason jar cheesecakes are so quick and easy! Great for picnics and packed lunches. Gluten Free instructions included.
Square image of individual blueberry and blackberry cheesecakes in mason jars on blue background.
Made by: Nicky Corbishley

That's my top 11 picnic food ideas! I Also need to do a special callout to some of my other picnic food ideas that didn't quite make the top 11:

Do you have any picnic favourites? Let me know in the comments below.

What if I want a sandwich recipe?

Try my French Pressed Sandwich Bites!

Do I need to bring cutlery on a picnic?

Only for the dessert recipes!

Can I make these recipes ahead?

Yes, all of these recipes can be made ahead.

 

This post was first written in July 2017. Updated in Aug 2021 with new recipe ideas.

Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links – which means if you buy the product I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you). If you do buy, then thank you! That’s what helps us to keep Kitchen Sanctuary running. The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors. For more information please see our Terms & Conditions.

Hi I’m Nicky

I love to cook and I want to share with you my favourite, delicious family friendly recipes. I want to inspire you to create fantastic food for your family every day.

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  1. Mark wynn says

    Hi Nicky. Not a picnic food but how about chicken egg foo young? I’ve been making it for the last 3 weeks but it comes out as scrambled egg. I reckon you could do it better than restaurants.

    Reply

  2. Alphonse Glauser says

    I agree with you

    Reply

  3. Sonali says

    Cheese and Tomato Tarts Recipe, do you serve that cold or warm?

    Reply

  4. Anne Grey says

    Absolutely lovely ideas...I can turn all the recipes into vegetarian ones apart from the chicken, which would end up as fish.

    Reply

  5. Floranet says

    Worth Appreciating. Great work.

    Reply

  6. 2pots2cook says

    Pinned the beauties to "popular" but to !for my office lunch" also 🙂 Amazing !

    Reply

  7. All That I'm Eating says

    A great set of picnic ideas! I love the sound of those doughnuts and those sausage rolls look amazing!

    Reply
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