10 Delightful Dips for Any Occasion
Americans love to mix different flavors to find combinations they like, which could explain why dips are so popular! Often eaten at parties, hosts will put out a variety of fruits, pretzels, and crackers for guests to eat the dips with. Most Americans prefer their snacks with a dip, and may even refuse to eat certain foods without the extra flavor. This post covers a wide variety of dips with different flavors for simple snacks or for more formal events.
Everyday Snacks
Photo: Big Oven
-Peanut Butter-
Bananas, apples, crackers and celery are all commonly eaten with peanut butter (or sometimes almond butter). It is also eaten on toast, and is often paired with chocolate in desserts. The picture shows a snack called ‘ants on a log’, which is celery with peanut butter in the middle and raisins on top.
Photo: Julia Spector
-Nutella-
While many Europeans tend to eat Nutella with bananas or waffles, Americans experiment a little more. Nutella is still eaten with bananas and crepes, but some people try it with pretzels, oatmeal, potato chips, and apples.
-Hummus-
Carrots, celery, and pita chips all go well with hummus, which comes in a wide variety of flavors.
-Salsa-
As a snack, salsa is eaten with chips, but is found in many Mexican or Tex-Mex foods. Nachos can be served with salsa on the side, and many Americans put salsa on tacos, quesadillas, and burritos.
-Guacamole-
Made from avocados, onions, peppers, tomatoes, and cilantro, guacamole is eaten with many Tex-Mex foods or on its own with tortilla chips.
Eating Out
Photo: dinnerthendessert
-Queso-
This cheese based dip is also from Mexico, and is often served as an appetizer in Mexican restaurants. Authentic queso has a blend of cheeses and salsa, and is eaten with tortilla chips. Nacho cheese is different than queso since it doesn’t have the salsa in the cheese.
-Fondue-
Most Americans only eat fondue at certain restaurants. Cheese fondue is eaten with a variety of meats and bread, while chocolate fondue is eaten with strawberries, bananas, marshmallows, graham crackers, and pieces of pound cake.
-Marinara-
Made from tomatoes, onions, and basil, marinara is often served alongside fried foods such as mozzarella sticks or with Italian-style foods like spaghetti and stromboli.
-Caramel-
While apples with caramel can be eaten year-round, most Americans only eat them in the fall. The apples can either be cut up, and then dipped in the caramel, or the whole apple can be covered in caramel. Sometimes, the apple will then be rolled in chopped peanuts.
-Pumpkin Dip-
During the fall and winter, some people will get creative with the dips to try something new! Pumpkin is often used for desserts in the fall, ranging from pies to breads and from cookies to this dip! The video suggests eating the dip with apple slices, ginger snap cookies, or graham crackers.
Vocabulary:
Dip: a thick sauce that is often eaten with other food instead of utensils
Flavor: the taste of a food
Refuse: not willing to do something
Formal: official, fancy
Log: a tree that has fallen (and the branches have been taken off)
Experiment: doing tests to find a result
Cilantro: an herb, also known as coriander
Tex-Mex: Mexican American food (Tex = Texas, Mex = Mexico). This type of food is very popular in the United States, and usually has beans, corn, meat, and cheese.
Alongside: with, on the side
Mexican Food
A tortilla (tor-tea-ya) is made from corn flour and is a very thin flatbread (similar to a French crêpe). A quesadilla (kay-sah-dee-ya) is a tortilla with cheese in the middle, and a taco has meat, cheese, and salsa in the tortilla. While a taco has an open side in the tortilla, burritos do not. Burritos have meat, cheese, salsa, beans, and other toppings all wrapped up in a normal (not corn) flour tortilla. Tortilla chips are made when the tortilla is baked or fried. When the chips are eaten with liquid cheese, it is called nachos. Pita chips are made from baked pita bread, which is common in the Middle East.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sydney Weidler is a sophomore (2nd year) student studying Nutrition and Dietetics at Messiah College, and is one of the virtual interns at America House this year! She loves travelling, reading, and baking, as well as playing the oboe and spending time with friends and family.