Edamame Succotash

My last few posts have focused mainly on desserts, so I decided to take a step back and do as my mother says and "eat more vegetables."

I have never actually liked succotash. Lima Beans have just never really been my thing (no offense to all of the Lima Bean connoisseurs of the world), so when I saw this recipe for edamame succotash, I was intrigued because edamame is definitely my thing. In fact, my college roommate and I went through a phase in college where, instead of eating popcorn, we would steam a bunch of edamame and eat it while watching TV. I think this healthy phase lasted for about a week. In the end, the pull of Thomas Sweet was a little too strong.

I was also drawn to this salad because more than anything, I thought it looked pretty---obviously an important factor in my recipe decision-making. I love the colors in my salad,  in particular, because of the color of the corn I used. If you look closely at the picture, you can see little red corn kernels. When my husband first looked at it, he asked if they were pomegranate seeds. I'm not sure sure whether or not we should be embarrassed, but neither of us had ever eaten red corn before. When I got home and started to peel the corn and saw that it was red, my first instinct was to assume that the corn had gone bad. A few google searches later, and I came to learn that red corn actually has a nuttier and richer flavor than yellow corn.  I have to agree.

This would be a great salad to bring to a summer BBQ potluck because it is pretty versatile in terms of what it can be served with. We ate it with fish the first night and chicken the second, and it went well with both. This can also be served cold, room temperature, or even a little warm (I heated it up in the microwave the second night).

Enjoy!

 

The Recipe

Step 1: Prepare the vegetables. Chop the red pepper, tomatoes, sweet onion, basil, and corn.

Check out my beautiful red corn!

 Step 2: Like all great recipes, this one starts with bacon. Cook bacon in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 teaspoons drippings in pan; coarsely chop bacon.

(I placed the bacon between paper towels to absorb the grease.)

Step 3: Increase the heat to medium-high. Melt butter in drippings in pan.

Step 4: Add onion; sauté 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Step 5: Add corn kernels; sauté for 3 minutes or until lightly charred.

Step 6: Add edamame, and sauté for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Step 7:  Add red wine vinegar, salt, freshly ground pepper, sugar, tomatoes, and red bell pepper. Cook 30 seconds, stirring occasionally.

Step 8: Sprinkle with bacon and basil and enjoy! You can serve cold or warm. I think I actually preferred it slightly warm, but it was still good the next day straight out of the refrigerator

Recipe Courtesy: Cooking Light Magazine

Ingredients

1 slice center-cut bacon
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups chopped sweet onion ( preferably Vidalia)
2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 3 ears)
1 (16-ounce) bag frozen, shelled edamame, thawed
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons torn basil

Preparation

1. Cook bacon in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 teaspoons drippings in pan; coarsely chop bacon.
2. Increase the heat to medium-high. Melt butter in drippings in pan. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn kernels; sauté for 3 minutes or until lightly charred. Add edamame, and sauté for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in vinegar and next 5 ingredients (through bell pepper); cook 30 seconds, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with bacon and basil.