Calabacitas
Calabacitas is a classic Mexican side dish made with zucchini, corn, and tomatoes - just like my mom made growing up.
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced (yellow or white)
- 1 poblano pepper, diced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, diced (seeds removed if you don't want it spicy)
- 1 ½ cups yellow corn, fresh or frozen (or 15.25-ounce can, drained)
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
- 1 large zucchini, sliced into ¼-inch thick quartered pieces or half moons
- 1 large yellow squash sliced into ¼-inch thick quartered pieces or half moons
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ cup water
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup milk
- Crumbled cotija cheese, for garnishing
- Chopped cilantro, for garnishing
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the onion, poblano, and jalapeño. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Add corn and tomatoes, and cook for 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the zucchini, yellow squash, garlic, salt, black pepper, oregano and ground cumin. Stir to combine and cook for 5 minutes, stirring every minute or so.
- Pour in the water, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the shredded cheese and milk until the cheese has fully melted.
- Remove from the heat, garnish with a sprinkling of cotija cheese and cilantro, and serve.
Video
Notes
- Squash: You can use any type of summer squash you have, or use all zucchini or all yellow squash.
- Peppers: Instead of fresh peppers, you can use 1 or 2 (4-ounce) cans of diced green chiles. Drain them before adding them to the skillet.
- Spice level: If poblanos and jalapeños are too spicy for your liking, you can use 1 large or 2 small bell peppers instead.
- Cotija cheese: Substitute it with crumbled feta cheese or leave it out completely.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I don’t recommend freezing as it will be extremely mushy when reheated.
- Reheating: Warm on the stovetop over medium heat for 5 minutes or in the microwave in 30-second intervals until heated through.
Nutrition
Serving: 1/6th of recipe | Calories: 149kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 11mg | Sodium: 962mg | Potassium: 493mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 590IU | Vitamin C: 43mg | Calcium: 106mg | Iron: 1mg