No-cook meals are designed for summertime feasts and can be just as satisfying as long-simmered dishes. Let your creativity be your guide as you make use of our 5 tips for no-cook, warm weather meals.

1. Beef up Your Salads

Taking a regular, everyday salad and adding protein, nuts and other seasonal ingredients can take it from entree to main dish quickly and eliminate the need for the stove. Slices of smoked salmon filet, capers, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a few dashes of salt and pepper makes for a very filling and delicious summer meal. Other combos that can substantially beef up your salad include: tuna fish and chickpeas; leftover asparagus with peaches, watercress and mozzarella; and the classic watermelon and feta.

2. Don't Discredit Sandwiches!

For some reason the word "sandwich" congers up less than sophisticated dining, but done right, this quick meal can result in some tasty and filling results. Tortilla wraps are easy enough to work with and come in different flavours like spinach and roasted red pepper. Fill them with leftover meats, some veggies and the condiment of your choice. Then it's just time to wrap and roll. Venturing outside of the rye bread arena can make sandwiches even more appetizing. Buy a large round of sourdough bread, scoop out the middle and fill with store-bought roasted veggies and spread with homemade butters (throw a stick of butter into the food processor and add garlic cloves, sun-dried tomatoes, herbs and/or spices).

3. Just Boil Water

Ok, so they're not entirely no-cook, but if you can stand boiling a few cups of water, then these "cooked" dishes are an easy out for the warm-weather (and weathered) cook. A package of rice vermicelli noodles just needs to be put into a bowl with a few cups of boiling water. A few minutes later they're completely edible-drain the water and add some soy sauce or your favourite Asian-style sauce. Cous-cous is a member of the same hot water-only club and you don't even need to drain afterwards. Once it's done fluff with a fork and add whatever pleases you: raisins, almonds, green onion or all of the above.

4. Hot Climate Staples

In hot climates like Mexico, South America, and Spain, they've got warm weather cooking down to a fine art (who wants to melt over a stove with the beach next door?).Ceviche, is both a dish and a cooking method: you're simply marinating seafood dishes in acidic acid like lemon or lime juice. Gazpacho is the tastiest tomato soup you'll never cook-literally. Chop up tomatoes, peppers, cilantro, garlic and enough chilli as you can handle and throw them into the blender. Chill in the fridge until you're ready to serve.

5. Use Supermarket Saviours

Let the supermarket do the hot work for you! Pick up a rotisserie chicken, pre-cooked shrimp or slices of beef from the deli counter and build your no-cook meals around them.