California-Style Succotash
A fresh succotash spin
Ingredients
- 4 ounces pancetta, cubed see Notes
- 1/2 medium sweet onion, diced
- 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
- 4 ears of corn kernels removed, (~ 2 cups corn)
- 2 cups cooked and drained fresh or dried Lima beans see Notes
- 1 pound 16 ounces cherry tomatoes, quartered
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 to 3 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 3 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
- 1/3 cup fresh basil, cut chiffonade-style
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a 12-inch skillet over medium-low heat, add the pancetta and cook until it’s browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the pancetta to a paper-towel covered plate and set aside. Drain off all but 1-1/2 tablespoons of fat. (Alternatively, drain the fat and use 1-1/2 tablespoons of olive oil.)
- Add the onion and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally for 1 minute.
- Add the jalapeño pepper and corn, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is tender, about 5 minutes.
- Gently stir in the Lima beans, tomatoes, and pancetta. Cook until heated through, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Taste and season with Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from the stove.
- Add lime juice to taste, stirring gently to combine.
- Gently stir in feta, basil and mint.
Notes
- You can use the same amount of bacon in place of the pancetta.
- You’ll want to pre-cook the lima beans first as this recipe simply heats up pre-cooked beans (dried or fresh). Dried: I used 3/4 cup (~ 5 ounces) dried Rancho Gordo Large White Lima Beans (you can use the same amount of Rancho Gordo Green Baby Lima Beans). Follow Cooking Dried Beans to prepare them. Fresh: You can also use 2 cups (~ 12 ounces) fresh, shelled Lima beans. To cook, bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the shelled lima beans and reduce to a gentle simmer. Cook until tender but not mushy, generally 10 to 20 minutes, depending on their size and maturity. Very young baby lima beans may take less time.
- You can use cilantro in place of the basil and mint. I don’t recommend mixing cilantro and mint. You can also use Cotija in place of feta for the cheese.
- Make this vegetarian by omitting pancetta and using olive oil and vegan by omitting pancetta and feta cheese and using olive oil.
