The inaugural You Must Dip It was held on Sunday, August 6th, 2023 on Vanderbilt Open Streets in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn.

It was a smashing success.

We had 7 competitive entries and 17 tasters in total including one passerby, Keith, who was visiting for Maryland.

Votes were tallied by an unbiased panel including Anne, local hypewoman, and Matt, who stated that this was “the best time he’d ever had in Brooklyn”.

• 1st place went to Tal’s Fever Dream by Katie.
• 2nd place went to Fresita by Bianca.
• 3rd place went to Bayoumi’s Bodacious Bissara by Moustafa and Yana.

Matt dutifully wrote really lovely, complimentary tasting notes, which I guess comes naturally from his career as a New York City restaurateur. I’ve shared them with each of the entries below.

The Winning Dips

Tal’s Fever Dream was inspired by Katie’s favorite bagel order at her favorite bagel joint: Tal Bagels on the Upper West Side. She has done Tal and her favorite order proud by taking the trophy at You Must Dip It: 2023, and winning it by a large margin.

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

the second one I tasted and frankly the one to beat so far. There’s genius in the simplicity and these were familiar flavors that were elevated by the ratios in which they were applied.

Recipe: 8oz block of cream cheese, 1.5 cups of greek yog, most of a container of Trader Joe’s everything but the bagel seasoning, a very smally diced tomato, a bundle of scallions cut the heck up, and also some cucumber smally diced, and an undying love to emulate tals bagels and make them proud

Fresita was a salsa made solely from fresh, unmolested ingredients. Making salsa without roasting or smoking anything is apparently sacrilege in Bianca’s family, but with a validating 2nd place win at You Must Dip It: 2023 she can share this website with her family to prove how very wrong they were (are?).

Fresita won with a 1 point lead over 3rd place.

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

amazing flavors. Simple, tried and true ingredients with a nice kick of heat. What’s good is good and this was very good.

Recipe: Not available yet.

Bayoumi’s Bodacious Bissara was Moustafa and Yana’s traditional Egyption entry into You Must Dip It: 2023. Aside from clinching 3rd place, it was one of the more involved and best-presented entries, with crispy fried shallots adorning the bissara served in a really pretty bowl.

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

I initially really wanted this one to come out on top. I loved the flavors in here and thought the shallots added a wonderful textural note. A squeeze of lemon would have made this the winner.

Recipe:

This recipe, with additional lime.

The Other Dips

The other dips didn’t place in You Must Dip It: 2023, but they were all delicious, strong contenders.

“It’s Peach Salsa.”

–Chase

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

possibly the most balanced of the 2023 dips. Fantastic interplay of salty and sweet and acidity with a nice kick of heat for the summer.

Recipe: Not available yet.

Phil went to a picnic recently where he had delicious pico, and he recreated it here.

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

this was a solid pico de Gallo with classic flavors and execution. I was looking for a little more acidity - it was almost there.

Recipe: Not available yet.

Vikram made a Palestinian zucchini dip that he enjoyed, and substituted the zucchini with caramelized peaches.

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

smooth creamy texture, I enjoyed the sweet notes but felt it needed more savory elements to balance out

Recipe: Peel and dice a few peaches, fry them up in olive oil for 10-15 minutes so they caramelize and lose moisture. Stick them in a sieve over a bowl to let them drain and cool. Mush them roughly in a bowl with a fork, then throw in: mint, greek yogurt, tahini, garlic, balsamic reduction, olive oil, and salt.

Try to use less ripe, crunchier peaches.

Here is the base recipe that uses zucchini. I substituted balsamic reduction for the pomegranate molasses.

Inspired by the tomato dinner, Seth made a muhamarra using the New York Times Cooking recipe but added in a bunch of tomatoes from the CSA box that has been providing him with a burdensome amount of vegetables all summer.

Matt’s Tasting Notes:

there was a flavor in here reminiscent of charoset which, as a Jew, made me smile. I thought it could’ve been more interestingly seasoned but overall a solid effort.

Recipe: Not available yet.

Rules

• Dip-makers must bring their own dipping implement.
• The dipping implement must be one of: a corn tortilla chip, a pita chip, or a slice of baguette-or-close-equivalent.
• Everyone, including the dip-makers, may vote.
• Everyone will vote for their 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choice dips.
  • 1st choice gets 3 points.
  • 2nd choice gets 2 points.
  • 3rd choice gets 1 point.

Public Health and Safety Guidelines

• Use hand sanitizer before you get to tasting.
• No double dipping, even if you turn a chip around to use the part that didn’t touch your mouth.
• Keep it clean next to the dips.

Controversies

You Must Dip It: 2023 was, thankfully, free of major controversy.

• Seth accidentally brought pita bread instead of pita chips. He was not disqualified.
• One of the voting pens ran out of ink, leading some participants to suggest sabotage.

More Photos