recipes

64 Recipes for One-Bite Appetizers

Nobody wants to maneuver a fork at a party. These one-bite appetizer recipes will save you a load of dishes—and help you drink more Champagne.
Image may contain Plant Dish Food Meal Fruit and Platter
Photo by Alex Lau

Appetizers are amazing: they keep the animals busy munching before it's quite time for dinner, and give everyone a chance to quit the small talk for a minute and focus on eating. Yet, you don't want an appetizer that requires both hands, let alone a plate and a fork—no one wants to put down their drink for that long.

Enter the one-bite appetizer. All you need is your thumb and index finger—and maybe a little dipping prowess—to nosh on these little morsels. From tiny shrimp toasts to pop-able crispy meatballs, ditch the silverware for finger foods. It'll save you a load of dishes, and it'll let you drink more wine (or beer, or cocktails). You're welcome.

  • Homemade Salsa Recipe
    Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    1/64

    The Only Salsa You Need

    It’s pico de gallo, but make it roasted.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig, food styling by Kat Boytsova
    2/64

    Curried Peanut Dip

    This creamy, spicy-sweet dip pairs with leftover rotisserie chicken, jammy eggs, cucumber spears, and roasted sweet potatoes for the perfect desk-friendly lunch.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime
    3/64

    Giardiniera Antipasto Platter

    This is how you kick off a heavy winter meal.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Lillian Chou, prop styling by Beatrice Chastka
    4/64

    Mala Fried Peanuts

    Mouth-numbing, sweet, salty, and crunchy peanuts you can’t stop eating.

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  • Alex Lau
    5/64

    Relish Tray with D.I.Y. Eggs

    Smoked almonds and black olives are our suggestions for this appetizer, but use any nut or olive that you like.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig, styling by Judy Mancini
    6/64

    Crispy Cheese Twists

    Store-bought puff pastry + shredded cheese = the easiest, flakiest, most irresistible dinner party snack of all time.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig, Food Styling by Kate Buckens
    7/64

    Savory Cheese-Filled Croquembouche

    This croquembouche is constructed with cheesy gougères and an herbed cheese filling. It’s the showstopping holiday appetizer you didn’t know you needed.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boytsova
    8/64

    Spinach and Feta Tarte Soleil

    The most impressive appetizer to “casually” pull out of the oven when your friends come over (and it also happens to make a nice Thanksgiving snack for while the turkey rests—just sayin').

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Lillian Chou, prop styling by Beatrice Chastka
    15/64

    Soy-Braised Chicken Wings

    Sticky, flavorful wings that get a rich, deep color from dark soy sauce.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Sue Li, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    16/64

    Pimento Cheese Crackers

    The highly addictive, melt-in-your-mouth cheddar cracker is all grown up thanks to a little heat from the cayenne and a hint of sweet pepper from the pimento.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Sue Li, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    19/64

    Mortadella Moments

    This party-ready dish hits all the right notes—bready, fatty, pickle-y—in a single bite-sized portion, delivering maximum satisfaction with the least amount of friction.

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  • Photo by Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott
    20/64

    Swiss Chard–Tahini Dip

    If you love hummus or baba ganoush, this dairy-free dip will become a new favorite.

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  • Alex Lau
    21/64

    Scallion Pancakes

    The secret to layered, flaky, chewy-crunchy scallion pancakes? It’s all in the roll (and the spin, and the re-roll). Not to mention the low and slow crisping. Once you master this recipe, you might not ever order them at a restaurant again.

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  • Photo by Marcus Nilsson
    22/64

    Boiled Peanuts With Chile Salt

    Boiled peanuts tossed with chile and coriander remind Vivek Surti, chef at Tailor in Nashville, of Cajun peanuts from Southern gas stations, but also of India.

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  • Photo by Heidi's Bridge
    25/64

    Slow-Roasted Onion Dip

    Like the one you make with the packet of soup mix, but with no weird chemicals and 1,000 percent tastier.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig
    26/64

    Pretzel Bites

    These pretzel nubbins are crunchy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside.

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  • Photograph by Victoria Jane, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi
    29/64

    “The Greatest” Deviled Eggs

    The filling for these eggs is coarsely mashed and studded with crunchy celery and scallion.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig, food styling by Molly Baz, prop styling by Emily Eisen
    30/64

    Niçoise Toast

    Fried bread, with buttery oil-packed tuna on top. This is what you call dinner toast.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Sue Li, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    31/64

    Lemon-Pepper Salami Bites

    Bright citrus and fresh-ground pepper put a festive spin on two party staples: Cured meat and Marcona almonds.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Sue Li, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    32/64

    Onion-Dip Potato Chips

    We made these homemade onion-flavored chips to be even more addicting than the store-bought versions.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, Styling by Sue Li
    33/64

    Dairy-Free Trout Dip

    The almond purée that is added to the smoked trout will fool you into thinking there’s a boatload of dairy in this dip. It gives the dip an outrageously creamy consistency.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Sue Li, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    34/64

    Spicy Lightly Pickled Cucumbers

    These zippy, zingy, crunchy pickled cucumbers are sure to be the sleeper hit of your party spread.

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  • Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott
    61/64

    Marinated Anchovies With Bread and Butter

    For a simple, just-the-right-amount-of-salty appetizer, doctor up a tin of anchovies. The acid, heat, and olive oil mellow the anchovies’ flavor, and serving them with a seedy loaf of bread and butter rounds the recipe.

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  • Alex Lau
    62/64

    Bacon-Butter Radishes

    You’ll probably have some of this deliciousy bacony butter leftover from this recipe, in which case you should probably serve it atop a juicy steak. Obvs.

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