9 Best Buy-And-Serve Store-Bought Foods For An Effortless Potluck

You've been invited to a potluck! That means you get to try a variety of dishes from attending guests, but it also means you have to figure out something to bring to the party. And if you don't like to cook or you're pinched for time and can't spend hours cooking an elaborate dish, you may be scratching your head about what to bring. But no worries — there are lots of buy-and-serve store-bought foods to take with you to ensure you're contributing to the meal. We've included both sweet and savory options in this list, so whether you're tasked with bringing a main course, a side dish, or a dessert, these ideas should have you covered.

These store-bought potluck ideas don't involve any cooking at all, although a few require some basic assembly once you arrive at your destination. So, save your go-to recipe for another day. These ideas will have you showing up to the potluck with dishes that everyone wants to eat.

Sure, every potluck needs a good fresh, green salad, but you don't have to stop there on the salad front. If you're looking for an excellent side dish to bring to a potluck, consider grabbing pre-made chicken salad, pasta salad, or potato salad. This is one of the easiest dishes to bring because you merely have to open the container, set out a serving spoon, and allow people to dig in. You don't have to do any arranging or mixing like you might with some of the other dishes on this list.

We think that pasta and potato salad are especially fun picks for a BBQ, since they tend to complement BBQ favorites like hot dogs and burgers exceptionally well. The same can be said for chicken salad, but it is set apart from the others because it can also function as an entree. Pick up croissants or good-quality bread to make chicken salad sandwiches (which guests can construct themselves). You can usually find these pre-made salads in the refrigerated section of your local grocery store. 

Have you ever been to a potluck where there wasn't anything fresh to eat? Yes, there's a place for substantial dishes if you're trying to make an actual meal of a potluck, but it's also nice to offer guests something lighter and more refreshing. That's why fruit trays are a great potluck pick. First of all, they're easy because you don't have to cut any of the fruit; it's already all arranged in an attractive presentation. Some grocery store fruit trays even come with dips, so you can offer the guests more of a complete snack.

If you opt for a fruit tray without a dip, there are a few easy ways you can make the dish more exciting. Drizzle on chamoy and add a sprinkle of Tajín to give the fruit a kick of spice, acidity, and extra sweetness, or use lime or lemon juice and salt to liven up the flavor of the fruit. No matter how you decide to present your fruit plate, though, it's going to be a win.

Try bringing a tray of pre-made sushi to the potluck if you prefer to bring something unexpected. And no, you don't have to spend a fortune at your favorite sushi spot to feed a crowd. Many grocery stores sell pre-made sushi, and it can make for a fun potluck option. It's easy to grab a piece or two, so it's simple to serve, and you can always find a sushi tray that features different types of sushi. That way, whether the people at the party prefer salmon, crab, or tuna, they'll have something to snack on. Make sure that the tray or sushi you're buying comes with soy sauce, ginger, and wasabi — otherwise, you can grab those condiments to serve on the side.

One of our favorite places to grab sushi for a crowd is Costco. While some grocery stores sell smaller sushi trays, Costco offers larger selections that are better for feeding a group of people. Just make sure to check the best-by date to ensure that you're getting the freshest sushi possible.

Have you been tasked with bringing salad to the potluck? You may assume that you have to spend a ton of time cheffing it up, chopping a bunch of veggies, and building a salad dressing from scratch. In reality, though, serving a salad at a potluck can actually be easy if you snag yourself a salad kit from the grocery store. 

These kits don't only come with the greens — they also offer toppings and sometimes even protein to create a whole, coherent dish. Of course, most also come with a dressing that complements the flavor profile of the ingredients in that salad. You can find different bagged salad kit options at grocery stores, from Caesar salad to chopped salad and beyond.

Don't worry if you don't think a single bagged salad will cut it for the number of people who RSVP'd to the party. Grab two or three bags, and then mix them in a bowl once you arrive at the party — it only takes a minute or two.

When you don't have any time to prep anything for the potluck you're attending, but you're still expected to bring a main course, there's one grocery store pick that'll never let you down: rotisserie chicken. This is a great go-to potluck option because it's already cooked and hot when you buy it from the store. You don't have to worry about reheating it when you arrive, unless your party is far away from the grocery store. Then, all you have to do is open the bag and carve the bird. Suddenly, you have a main dish everyone wants to dig into. And since there's both white and dark meat on a rotisserie chicken, you'll please many different palates.

Another reason a rotisserie chicken is an excellent potluck selection is because it's affordable. At Costco, a rotisserie chicken will only set you back $5, which is ideal when you don't have a ton of cash to spend but don't want to totally cheap out. Other grocery stores sell rotisserie chickens for similarly low prices.

There might come a time when you want to bring something elevated to a potluck, and that's what shrimp cocktail offers. It's not an overly fussy dish, but it can still take time and effort to make, which you may not have. Luckily, though, you can grab a tray of pre-made shrimp cocktail at a lot of grocery stores. The shrimp is already cooked and plump, and it comes complete with cocktail sauce, so you don't even have to buy store-bought cocktail sauce separately and have to try to figure out what to do with it after the party.

There's one thing you'll want to keep in mind before choosing this option, though: Some grocery stores may only offer frozen shrimp cocktail. That'll take some time to thaw, so make sure you allow plenty of time between buying it from the store and serving. Otherwise, your guests might be biting into half-frozen shrimp. That being said, you can thaw frozen shrimp relatively quickly if you have to.

Who doesn't love a good charcuterie board at a potluck? It's a great option because guests can pick and choose from several different options on the board for lighter bites. That's why you might want to consider bringing cured meats and cheeses to your next potluck. You can select two or three meats and cheeses respectively, opting for different flavor profiles to appeal to a variety of palates. If you choose salami as one of your meats, for example, you might want to opt for bresaola, which is made from beef, for those who choose not to eat pork. Blue cheese can be a fun addition for those who like a little bit of extra funk on their charcuterie board, but also providing a wheel of Brie is a nice touch if you want to provide a milder option.

If you decide to go this route, pick up other accoutrements to take your board to the next level. Olives, pickled veggies, and crackers are a nice touch. Don't forget a spread, sauce, or jam to infuse even more flavor into the dish. You'll have to assemble the board once you get to the party (or before leaving the house, if possible), but it'll all be worth it when everyone is ooh-ing and ahh-ing over your potluck contribution.

Of course, you can't have a good potluck without a dessert. After all, a lot of guests will probably want a sweet treat after eating so much savory, salty food. But you don't have to be a star baker to bring a dessert to the party. Simply grabbing some cookies is a great way to go, since they're generally a popular option and you don't have to cut or slice them to serve the guests. Of course, you'll want to check the ingredients for allergens if anyone at the potluck has food allergies, especially when it comes to nuts.

We recommend skipping the packaged, processed cookies in the center of the grocery store aisle and instead opting for the generally fresher-tasting grocery store bakery cookies. Yes, they tend to be a bit pricier, but in our experience, they also have a better flavor and texture, and they feel closer to homemade. If you can, grab a pack that features different types of cookies so there's a bit more variety in the potluck dessert spread.

Now, if you really want to deliver a potluck dessert that people will get excited about, head to your local grocery store to get an assorted, pre-sliced cheesecake. You can find them in many grocery store bakeries, and we like them for several reasons. First of all, cheesecake is a super popular dessert that everyone can get behind, and it feels a bit more elevated than standard grocery store baked goods. It's also served cold, so it requires no prep work before it's ready to be served. But we recommend an assorted option because you get several different flavors to choose from. So, whether a guest prefers a slice of plain cheesecake, one that has lots of chocolate, or a variety that leans toward the fruity end of the spectrum, you've got them covered.

This is another dish, though, that sometimes comes frozen. Therefore, make sure to check that you're either buying a thawed cheesecake or you have enough time before the party so that the slices will be thawed by that time. Trust us — it's way easier than making your cheesecake from scratch.