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Calabacitas with Evelyn & her family

Evelyn’s dish is calabacitas. Made entirely of vegetables, it connects her to Mexico and New Mexico where her family is from and where the key ingredients of calabacitas (zucchini), corn, and jalapeño peppers also come from. She learned to make calabacitas from her mother, who raised eight children and always knew “how to make enough for everyone.” Evelyn’s mother made sure to actively teach her the recipe so that she “wouldn’t butcher it.”

Evelyn has taught her children and grandchildren how to make it as well. She brought her daughter June, and her granddaughter Gabriela along to help teach the recipe, which Evelyn said she never changes unless she is the only one eating. But she says that her grandson makes it best of his generation.

In Evelyn’s family, food is about more than physical nourishment. Her granddaughter Gabriela explained that cooking together and sitting down to eat together helps her family let go of tensions and reconnect to one another. Because they make calabacitas for many special occasions, the dish connects the family to past celebrations and milestones. Calabacitas is just one of many recipes the family has passed down as generations moved from Mexico to New Mexico, and then from New Mexico to Colorado. With just a few core ingredients, this recipe is also relatively easy for Evelyn to gather ingredients for.





Calabacitas Recipe

Servings: 8-10
Time: 45-60 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 5 small to medium sized zucchinis
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 2-4 jalapeño peppers (depending on how spicy you want it)
  • 4 ears of fresh corn
  • neutral oil such as canola, vegetable, or corn oil
  • salt to taste

Instructions:

  • Dice zucchinis, onion, and jalapeños, making sure to cut everything into small relatively uniformly sized pieces.
  • Remove corn kernels from cob.
  • Add all of the vegetables to an unheated pan, then turn on the heat to medium-high.
  • Once the veggies start to sizzle, add about two tbsps of oil and stir to incorporate.
  • If needed, add more oil to keep veggies from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
  • After about 5 minutes, cover the mixture, turn down the heat, and let it cook on medium for about 30 minutes or until the corn is fully steamed and has no crunch.
  • Turn off the heat and stir in about 1-2 tsps of salt. Add more to taste as needed.