In this video, discover the delicious Spinach Maria, a classic dish from Calhoun's, an iconic East Tennessee BBQ joint. This indulgent side features plenty of spinach, Monterey Jack cheese, and crushed red pepper, with a rich cheese sauce warmed by cayenne and nutmeg. Topped with melted cheese, it’s a fantastic side dish or dip. Serve it with toasted pita wedges or tortilla chips, and customize with garlic, hot chiles, pickled peppers, herbs, or crabmeat for extra flavor.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 Ooey, gooey, cheesy, melty goodness.
00:03 Spinach Maria is a cheese lover's dream.
00:06 Starting out with fresh spinach,
00:08 three whole bags of this stuff.
00:10 It's all going to get wilted down, blanched,
00:12 and then we're squeezing out all of that water
00:14 to make sure that our dip is luscious and creamy
00:17 and not watered out.
00:18 Grating your cheese is super important here
00:20 for that melty cheese moment.
00:22 Pre-shredded cheeses usually have some sort of caking agent
00:25 and we want melty, not clumpy.
00:27 I'm also building up a very basic roux here
00:30 to flavor up this dip and work our cheese into.
00:33 The best part about this is everything comes together
00:36 really quickly and it bakes in the oven for just 15 minutes.
00:41 This is one of those instant gratification dishes.
00:43 It makes for a great appetizer or a stunning side dish.
00:46 Grab toast, grab crudités, grab everyone.