Sufferin' Succotash!

For the past week or so I'd been wanting to make salmon with some kind of sweet corn and red bell pepper side dish, but I couldn't put my finger on exactly what the side dish should be. Last night I got the chance to make the salmon so I had a look at the "Joy of Cooking" to see if there were any recipes for corn that could provide inspiration.

I was a little surprised that what I had been wanting to make was pretty much succotash. The surprise came from the fact that my exposure to succotash up to that point had been Yosemite Sam saying the above phrase in cartoons.

After a couple of modifications I came up with a really good dish that Megan and I thoroughly enjoyed. Here's the recipe.

Succotash (sufferin' if you must)

1/2 T. butter

1 t. vegetable oil

1 1/2 c. sweet corn (frozen is fine)

1 1/2 c. lima beans (frozen is fine)

1/2 large red bell pepper diced

1 t. paprika

salt and pepper to taste

If the beans are not cooked, boil them for a few minutes until they are slightly underdone. Drain and set aside. Heat the butter and oil in a skillet over medium high. Add the diced pepper and sautee until the pepper starts to brown slightly around the edges. Add the corn and sautee for 4-5 minutes or until the corn starts to brown. Add the lima beans and continue cooking for another 2 minutes. Add the paprika and cook for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Note: If the paprika starts to stick to the skillet deglaze the pan with about 1/8 c. water. Let the water cook off until the liquid has almost completely evaporated before seasoning and serving.