This spinach dip recipe is creamy, crunchy, and make-ahead friendly, with tender spinach, crisp water chestnuts, and a savory sour cream and veggie mix. It’s a classic cold spinach dip that’s perfect served chilled in a sourdough bread bowl.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Creamy and tangy with crunchy water chestnuts and a herby flavor from the soup mix.
- Why Make It: This is a version of the Knorr spinach dip recipe. It’s a one-bowl party favorite, with no cooking, that only gets better after chilling.
- Technique: Squeeze the spinach as dry as you can to keep the dip thick and creamy.
- Serving Suggestions: I love serving this creamy spinach dip on a breadboard, with sourdough cubes and crunchy veggies like cucumbers, peppers, and carrots.
Ingredients
- Spinach: Use frozen chopped spinach that has been thawed and squeezed to remove excess liquid to prevent a watery dip. You can also replace frozen spinach with fresh.
- Water Chestnuts: These add great crunch and a little texture. Drain well and chop finely to get a satisfying crunch in every bite without big chunks.
- Sour Cream or Greek Yogurt: Full-fat sour cream is classic and rich, while Greek yogurt is tangier and lighter. So to lighten up this spinach dip, swap out the sour cream with plain Greek yogurt.
- Seasoning: The secret ingredient is a packet of Knorr vegetable soup mix (Lipton makes one as well). It is added dry and seasons this dip, so there is no need for additional salt.
- Sourdough Bread: Choose a sturdy round loaf with a thick crust so it holds the dip. Fill it just before serving so it stays firm.
Favorite Variations
- Mix-Ins: Stir in chopped artichoke hearts (drained well), some mozzarella cheese, or even a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.
- Seasoning: Change up the flavor and swap the vegetable soup mix with onion soup mix or ranch seasoning mix.
How to Make Spinach Dip
- Thaw spinach and squeeze dry (full recipe below).
- Combine the base. Fold in the spinach and water chestnuts, then chill.
- Prep and fill the bread bowl with the dip just before serving.
Leftover Spinach Dip
- Keep the dip chilled and refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours. Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Stir leftovers well before serving.
- Freeze up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge and stir well, as the texture may loosen slightly.
- Spread leftovers on sandwiches, tuck into wraps, stir into hot pasta, or spread in pinwheels.
Party Dip Lineup
Did you make this Spinach Dip? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach 1 package, thawed
- 8 ounces water chestnuts canned, drained
- 2 cups sour cream or Greek yogurt
- 1 cup mayonnaise or dressing, low fat or regular
- 1 package dry vegetable soup mix 1.4 ounces
- 3 green onions chopped
- 1 loaf round sourdough bread optional
Instructions
- Thaw frozen chopped spinach. Squeeze the thawed spinach or place it in a fine mesh strainer and press with a spoon to remove as much liquid as possible.
- Drain the water chestnuts and finely chop.
- In a medium bowl, combine spinach, water chestnuts, sour cream, mayonnaise, dry vegetable soup mix, and green onions. Stir until well combined.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours before serving.
- To make a bread bowl, cut 1-inch off the top of a loaf of sourdough bread and use a serrated knife to remove the center, leaving a 1-inch thick bread bowl.
- Fill the bread bowl with the spinach dip just before serving. Cut both the top and center of the bread into 1-inch cubes for dipping.
Video
Notes
To thaw spinach – Let the frozen spinach sit in the fridge overnight or thaw it quickly in the microwave. If using the microwave, place the spinach in a bowl and cook for 90 seconds on high. Then, break it up and continue cooking it in 30-second increments until it’s fully thawed.
Fresh spinach – To replace frozen spinach with fresh, remove the stems from 1 pound of fresh spinach. Place it in a large non-stick skillet with 1 tablespoon of water and cook over medium until the spinach is wilted, about 4 minutes. Cool, chop, and squeeze dry.
Serving – Spinach dip can be served in a serving bowl with crackers, tortilla chips, or crostini.
For individual servings, use small dinner rolls and hollow them out for mini spinach dip bowls.
Storage – Keep leftover spinach dip in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 174 | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 412mg | Potassium: 153mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2290IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 0.6mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Dip, Party Food
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This is the exact recipe I got from my hubby’s cousin over 60 years ago when we were first married…it has been a favorite since. My daughter prefers the Hawaiian bread with hers, but I always serve with the sour dough bread, and I find Knorr’s dry vegetables soup mix the best, which was in that original recipe! Absolutely delicious!!
I only have Ranch Seasoning mix,
Will that work?
Yes! It will change the flavor but will still be delicious!
About how many servings would you say this makes?
Hi Malin, this recipe makes 16 servings.
recipe doesn’t say when green onions go in.
Hi Dan, the green onions are stirred into the dip in step 3. Enjoy!
Love this recipe!
& many others of yours
Thank you!
Delicious and very easy to make
Would I have the option to bake this, just like any baked spinach dip recipe? A certain spinach dip sold at Walmart has the option to eat the dip cold or to put in oven safe dish and bake.
Absolutely, Stephanie! Bake in an oven safe dish at 350°F for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly.
I’ve never made spinach dip before because I assumed it was so much harder than this! But this was so easy to make. I prepped it ahead of time, then added it to the bread bowl when serving and everyone loved it! Thanks for the great recipe! SWP Employee
So happy to hear you loved this recipe, Samantha!
Looks like a winner!
Jícama would be a good substitute for water chestnuts, feels and tastes about the same, even looks the same,just way bigger.
can you use canned spinach instead of frozen for this recipe?
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure Karen, but that should work just fine. I would also squeeze the spinach dry. It may change the flavor slightly but will still be delicious!
I shall try this 4 sure
how much spinach would you recommend if I’m using fresh and saute it down?
1 pound. You can also find this information in the post.
Spinach: Use frozen chopped spinach that has been thawed and squeezed to remove excess liquid. You can replace frozen spinach with fresh – cook 1 pound of fresh spinach, cool, chop & squeeze it to remove moisture.
I always use 2 packages of frozen spinach. Otherwise exactly as written! Yummo!
Does the spinach need to be cooked? It says it does on the Knorr package.
Frozen spinach is pre-cooked and then frozen. To use frozen spinach in this recipe, you simply need to thaw it and then squeeze it. Enjoy!
love your recipes.