Succotash (from
Narragansett ''sahquttahhash'', "broken corn kernels"
) is a vegetable dish consisting primarily of
sweet corn with
lima beans or other
shell bean
''Phaseolus vulgaris'', the common bean, is a herbaceous annual plant grown worldwide for its edible dry seeds or green, unripe pods. Its leaf is also occasionally used as a vegetable and the straw as fodder. Its botanical classification, alo ...
s.
Other ingredients may be added, such as onions, potatoes, turnips, tomatoes, bell peppers,
corned beef,
salt pork
Salt pork is salt-cured pork. It is usually prepared from pork belly, or, more rarely, fatback. Salt pork typically resembles uncut side bacon, but is fattier, being made from the lowest part of the belly, and saltier, as the cure is stronger ...
, or okra.
Combining a
grain with a
legume provides a dish that is high in all
essential amino acids.
History
Succotash has a long history. An invention of the Indigenous peoples in what’s now known as New England, foreign colonists adapted the dish as a
stew in the 17th century. Composed of ingredients unknown in Europe at the time, it gradually became a standard meal in the
cuisine of New England and is a traditional dish of many
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden ...
celebrations in the region, as well as in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...
and other states.
Because of the relatively inexpensive and more readily available ingredients, the dish was popular during the
Great Depression in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. stat