Yes, Canned Spinach Is Totally Fine For Making A Quick And Easy Dip

A good spinach artichoke dip's cheesy, salty creaminess has become a delightful mainstay for restaurants, baby showers, and Superbowl parties alike. It's no wonder — the seriously delicious base combination of spinach, artichokes, and cream cheese is quick and easy to make, requires few to no utensils, and is stress-free to serve. While many restaurants have developed their own tasty takes on the simple recipe through the decades, some of the best spinach artichoke dips remain those you make at home.

But what if you're in a bind and don't have any fresh or frozen spinach? The great news is you don't need it — as long as you have canned spinach in your pantry, you can make a spinach artichoke dip that's just as delicious as its fresh spinach counterpart and leagues easier. That's right — with a little preparation, canned spinach will work perfectly well to help you create a flavorful appetizer with no stress but a whole lot of enjoyment.

Quick and easy, spinach artichoke dip requires only a few minutes of simple preparation — no need to chop or cook down your spinach. But it's important to drain before using it. If canned spinach is too salty, rinse it under cold water before draining. Once your spinach is drained, combine it with artichoke hearts, parmesan cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, and minced garlic, and bake it for about 25 minutes. 

No oven available? No sweat — you can make this flavorful dip as easily in your Crockpot or slow cooker. Simply combine your ingredients in your slow cooker, cover it, and cook on low heat for two to three hours or high heat for one hour until the cheese is completely melted. However, check your dip periodically, as slow cooker temperatures can vary. Then you're ready for some seriously delectable dipping with whatever dippers you like — tortilla chips, homemade naan, even raw veggies. The dip can also be made ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator.

Canned spinach can come in handy to create many other easy, wonderfully delicious dishes you'll want to sing about as well. Just about any recipe that calls for fresh spinach can be adjusted to substitute canned spinach (just remember to drain, drain, drain!). You can substitute canned spinach for fresh or frozen to create a delectable spinach lasagna, or you can get brunchy with it, using it as your featured vegetable in a delicious quiche or vegetable frittata. Elevate your party menu with some spinach egg rolls using the canned variety. And your best spanakopita recipe can easily use canned spinach instead of fresh or frozen and still be a serious crowd-pleaser. With a little creativity, you can utilize the canned version of this iron-packed food to provide a low-effort, stress-free way to create appetizing dishes that would win the approval of Popeye himself.