Our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités make fantastic homemade dips, snacks and starters for your holiday entertaining, whether it’s spontaneous weekend gatherings, planned get-togethers with loved-ones or more formal festive parties. We’ve got everything from a traditional Middle Eastern hummus recipe and an authentic Mexican guacamole recipe to recipes for Southeast Asian dips such as a Cambodian dip called prahok k’tiss and for nam prik ong and nam prik num from Thailand.
When I was in my twenties I was as guilty as the next person of making last-minute trips to the supermarket to load up on store-bought dips, boxes of water crackers and bags of corn chips, whether for planned casual get-togethers, spontaneous gatherings with friends, and dinner parties, especially on a Friday evening when I was still tired from a week of work and study.
Although there was one dip that I always made at home from scratch after learning how to make an authentic Mexican guacamole in Mexico. Although helping Mum make what we now consider to be ‘retro’ dips for weekend backyard backyards was still fresh in my mind, that experience gave me a new appreciation for making homemade dips. I haven’t bought a commercial guacamole since.
These days we wouldn’t dream of serving guests a shop-bought French onion dip, and Terence thinks nothing of whipping up a hummus made to a Lebanese friend’s family recipe or baking trays of spicy crackers or a loaf of herb and olive sourdough bread – especially over the festive season, which is all about giving and sharing.
Our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités are terrific for casual gatherings, festive parties and holiday get-togethers and include favourites such as creamy hummus, traditional guacamole and tomato salsa. We’ve also included some of our favourite Middle Eastern dips and Southeast Asian dips we recommend you make for spice-loving guests.
If you’re a fan of making dips, see our guide to how to make a dip out of almost anything. And if you’re looking for more ideas for small plates, browse our compilations of Spanish tapas recipes and Basque pintxos recipes. I’ll also be adding recipes for Italian aperitivi and Venetian cicchetti soon, so do bookmark this collection of recipes for dips or click on the heart on the right of the post to save recipes in your private account.
And if you’re already starting to think about Christmas and New Year’s entertaining, we have more festive recipe collections that should provide plenty of holiday cooking inspiration, including recipes for the best Christmas day breakfast and Christmas day brunch, best dips for crackers and crudités and Christmas cocktails for festive parties, best Christmas starters, best Christmas salads, best Christmas seafood recipes, alternatives to traditional Christmas roasts, vegetable sides, and best desserts for Christmas.
We’ve also got recipes for homemade edible Christmas gifts, my traditional Russian-Ukrainian Christmas food, Christmas menu ideas for casual gatherings for non-traditionalists, last minute Christmas meal ideas, and ideas for Christmas leftovers. We also have Christmas gift ideas for home cooks from pro chefs and last minute festive cooking and entertaining tips from the world’s best chefs, Australia’s finest chefs, and cookbook authors, food writers and editors.
Before you scroll down to our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités, we have a favour to ask. Grantourismo is reader-supported. If you’ve enjoyed our recipes, please consider supporting Grantourismo by buying something on Amazon, such as classic cookbooks for serious cooks, cookbooks for culinary travellers or cookbooks by Australian chefs; buying a handcrafted KROK, the best mortar and pestle ever; or shopping our Grantourismo store for gifts for food lovers designed with Terence’s mouthwatering images. Now let me tell you about our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités.
Best Dip Recipes for Crackers and Crudités
These are our best homemade dip recipes for crackers and crudités for your New Year’s Eve parties and holiday gatherings.
Homemade Traditional Hummus Recipe
This easy authentic hummus recipe makes a homemade traditional creamy hummus that a Lebanese friend taught Terence when we lived in Abu Dhabi in the late Nineties. We make this classic hummus recipe whenever we have cravings for Arabic food or are missing the Middle East. If you have a can of chick peas in the cupboard, hummus is one of the best dip recipes for crackers and crudités. It’s so easy to make and so delicious.
Easy Authentic Hummus Recipe for a Creamy Homemade Traditional Hummus
Homemade French Onion Dip Recipe for a Rich Caramelised Onion Dip
Make this homemade French onion dip recipe for a rich, creamy caramelised onion dip that will take you back in time to the dips you helped your mum make for backyard barbecues by stirring French onion soup mix into cream cheese or sour cream. Made from scratch, this onion dip recipe makes an even more delicious dip and is worth the little extra effort.
Creamy Smoked Salmon Dip Recipe with Salty Capers and Dill Pickles
My smoked salmon dip recipe makes an utterly addictive smoked salmon dip from scratch, made with cream cheese, sour cream, salty capers, zingy pickled gherkins, crunchy pink shallots, a little kick of paprika, and a whole lot of fresh aromatic dill and chives. I also add white pepper, garlic powder and sea salt, all of which you can adjust to your taste.
Creamy Smoked Salmon Dip Recipe with Salty Capers, Dill Pickles, Paprika and Fresh Dill
Shrimp Dip Recipe for a Creamy Prawn Cocktail Inspired Dip
This speedy shrimp dip recipe makes a rich and creamy dip inspired by the retro prawn cocktail appetiser. Peeled cooked prawns are sliced into chunky pieces and stirred into a classic seafood sauce thickened with crème fraiche. Apart from how delicious it is, one of the best things about it is that it’s made it ten minutes or less if you’ve got peeled cooked prawns. Serve this shrimp dip or prawn dip with crinkle cut crisps, Jatz crackers, homemade croutons, or round cucumber slices for scooping it up.
Speedy Shrimp Dip Recipe for a Creamy Prawn Cocktail Inspired Dip
Easy Olive Tapenade Recipe for the Traditional French Tapenade
This easy olive tapenade recipe is based on the traditional French tapenade recipe from Provence in southern France that’s made with only four ingredients – black olives, capers, anchovies, and olive oil. You could add garlic, herbs and spices, but this Mediterranean olive dip is absolutely delicious in its original form, eaten on fresh or toasted baguette slices or crostini or with cheese straws.
Easy Olive Tapenade Recipe for the Traditional French Tapenade Recipe with Only 4 Ingredients
Easy Cheese Straws Recipe for Your Cocktail Nibbles, Charcuterie Boards and Cheese Plates
Our easy cheese straws recipe makes grissini style cheese sticks, which are perfect dipped into the olive tapenade, above, or added to your charcuterie boards and cheese plates. Or simply serve them with a chilled bottle of crisp white or spritzes or negronis, and you’ve got some very enjoyable drinks snacks right there.
Easy Cheese Straws Recipe for Your Cocktail Nibbles, Charcuterie Boards and Cheese Plates
Russian Eggplant Caviar Recipe for Ikra
Our easy Russian eggplant caviar recipe makes ikra, known as the ‘poor man’s caviar’ during the Soviet period. This is a deliciously-rich version of this traditional Russian dip, spread or side dish that’s somewhere in between the ikra my baboushka made that was sumptuous and velvety and the ikra popularised during the Soviet era that more closely resembled a diced salad. It’s another one of our best dip recipes for crackers and can be made a couple of days ahead. It can also be eaten with baguette slices.
Easy Russian Eggplant Caviar Recipe for Ikra, the Soviet Union’s Poor Man’s Caviar
Sichuan-Inspired Eggplant Dip Recipe
This delicious eggplant dip recipe takes a classic Sichuanese braised eggplant dish and transforms it into an amazing dip. It’s another of our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités. You could also serve it as a starter before settling down to a full Sichuanese feast. It’s fantastic with our spicy Sichuan flavoured sourdough crackers (below), which were literally made for this dip.
Delicious Eggplant Dip Recipe Inspired by the Classic Sichuan Braised Eggplant Dish
Authentic Mexican Guacamole Recipe
This authentic Mexican guacamole recipe makes a genuine Mexican guacamole that’s made table-side at good restaurants in Mexico. It’s all about the creamy luscious texture, bright green colour and full flavour of perfectly ripe avocados. It’s easily one of the best dip recipes for parties, and while it could be served with crackers and crudités, I recommend you try your hand at baking homemade tortilla chips or plain store-bought corn chips.
Authentic Mexican Guacamole Recipe Just Like Your Mexican Abuela Would Make
Chilli Con Carne Dip Recipe
While this chilli con carne recipe makes a good old bowl of chilli for those who like their chilli hot and smoky, this chilli con carne is also terrific eaten cold as a dip with homemade tortilla chips or corn chips. You’ll need to put this on the stove the the day before your party, as it takes a few hours, but not a lot of work, to make, and is another of our best dip recipes for parties.
Chilli Con Carne Recipe For Those Who Like Their Chilli Hot and Smoky
Easy Mexican Tomato Salsa Recipe
This easy red tomato salsa recipe makes a spicy Mexican salsa that we’ve been perfecting since we returned from our first big trip to Mexico and the USA way back when we first began travelling. Like the guacamole, it’s great with tortilla chips or corn chips, but it’s also another one of our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités.
Easy Red Tomato Salsa Recipe – How to Make Homemade Spicy Tomato Salsa
Crispy Chicken Skins with Spicy Chicken Mince Dip Recipe
This crispy chicken skins with spicy chicken mince recipe makes a fantastic snack for drinks or a Southeast Asian themed dinner party. When the chicken skins firm up in the oven, they form a perfect ‘crisp’ and an excellent vehicle for this classic minced dip found in Cambodia and Thailand.
Perfect Crispy Chicken Skins with Spicy Chicken Mince Recipe for an Addictive Southeast Asian Snack
Cambodian Coconut Minced Pork Dip Recipe
Cambodia’s delicious prahok k’tis dip is eaten with a combination of crunchy raw vegetables and blanched or steamed vegetables. If you’re not a fan of funky flavours like fish sauce and shrimp paste, you might want to leave the prahok (fermented fish) out. If you do want to try the prahok, head to your nearest Asian supermarket. If using this ingredient for the first time, perhaps reduce the amount of prahok.
Authentic Khmer Prahok Ktis Recipe for Cambodia’s Pork and Coconut Milk Dip
Cambodian Pork Coconut and Peanut Dip Recipe with Crispy Rice Cakes
This recipe for natang makes a Cambodian dip of minced pork, coconut cream and peanuts that’s made to be eaten with homemade crispy rice cakes, which in turn are intended to use up the rice that sticks to the bottom of a pot or any leftover rice, however, you can use store-bought rice cakes. This is another one of our best dip recipes for festive parties and social gatherings, especially if you want to serve something a little different.
Natang Recipe for a Cambodian Pork Coconut and Peanut Dip with Crispy Rice Cakes
Thai Rice Cakes with Chilli Prawn and Pork Dip Recipe
This Thai khao tang na tang rice cakes with chilli prawn and pork dip recipe makes a popular Thai snack or starter of homemade crispy rice crackers used to scoop up this creamy, slightly sweet, a little salty, and gently-spiced dip. A cousin of the Cambodian dip, above, it’s typically served with rice cakes but would also work with crackers and it’s another one of our best dip recipes.
Thai Khao Tang Na Tang Rice Cakes with Chilli Prawn and Pork Dip Recipe
Thai Nam Prik Num Recipe
This Thai nam prik num recipe makes a smoky green chilli dip that’s one of the best known Northern Thai specialties – so much so that it’s often called Chiang Mai chilli relish. Made from local chillies, it’s grilled on a barbecue with garlic and shallots and typically served with crunchy pork crackling and sticky rice, but could also be paired with crackers. It’s easily another of our best dip recipes for spice lovers.
Thai Nam Prik Num Recipe for Smoky Green Chilli Dip from Northern Thailand
Thai Nam Prik Ong Recipe
This Thai nam prik ong recipe makes a spicy pork and tomato dip from Northern Thailand. Served with fresh or steamed vegetables or sticky rice, which you dip into the bowl, nam prik ong is the most approachable of the Thai relishes and dips, not being as pungent or fiery as some. It’s another of our best dip recipes which could also go with crackers.
Tasty Thai Nam Prik Ong Recipe for a Spicy Pork and Tomato Dip from Northern Thailand
Sourdough Crackers Recipe
And you thought we were only going to share our best dip recipes. This sourdough starter discard crackers recipe makes a crispy cracker that’s a little salty, a tad spicy, a tiny bit tangy, and utterly addictive. Triangular in shape, they’re perfect for scooping up dips and they’re probably the easiest crackers you’ll ever make, so should inspire you to test out more sourdough starter discard recipes.
Sourdough Starter Discard Crackers Recipe – The Easiest Crispiest Crackers You’ll Ever Make
Spicy Sichuan Inspired Sourdough Crackers Recipe
This spicy Sichuan sourdough crackers recipe made with sourdough starter discard and Sichuan peppers makes a cracker that’s delightfully hot and numbing and incredibly moreish. Roughly shaped like a homemade corn chip, these crackers are perfect for eggplant dips such as baba ghanouj and mutabal, as well as hummus or muhammara, not to mention the dips from Thailand and Cambodia, above.
Spicy Sichuan Inspired Sourdough Crackers Recipe Made With Starter Discard and Sichuan Peppers
Easy Homemade Pita Chips Recipe for Crunchy Baked Pita Crisps Made in Minutes
This quick and easy homemade pita chips recipe will make you super crunchy baked pita crisps that are made within minutes. They’re perfect for scooping up dips such a hummus, baba ganoush, guacamole, and salsas, or using in the Arabic salad fattoush. They’re also versatile – brush them with olive oil flavoured with spices or herbs to complement any dip.
Easy Homemade Pita Chips Recipe for Crunchy Baked Pita Crisps Made in Minutes
Hummus bil Lahme Recipe
This easy hummus with spiced beef recipe makes hummus bil lahme, another delicious Arabic mezze that originated in the Levant. It’s a breeze to make. After draining the canned chickpeas, you simply transfer the chickpeas, garlic powder, extra virgin olive oil, tahini paste, ground cumin, and lemon juice to a food processor or blender, and pulse until well-combined. Make the wonderful spiced beef mince, spread the hummus on a plate, pile the spiced ground beef on top, sprinkle on some finely chopped parsley, and serve.
Delicious Hummus with Spiced Ground Beef Recipe for Hummus bil Lahme
Hummus Beiruti Recipe
Hummus Beiruti is topped with whole chickpeas, drizzled with spiced oil, showered with more fresh parsley and sprinkled with a blend of sweet paprika and chilli powder. Everything in this hummus is bumped up – the tanginess, spice levels, fragrance, and texture – making you a zestier, spicier and herbier hummus, thanks to the extra lemon juice, extra ground cumin and paprika, and addition of fresh flat-leaf parsley. As you’d expect from a hummus named after one of the Middle East’s most exuberant cities and the region’s most vivacious people, this is “next level hummus”, as one Lebanese chef described it to us many years ago.
Hummus Beiruti Recipe for a Zestier, Herbier, Spicier Hummus Mezze Dip
Muhammara Recipe
This easy muhammara recipe will make you the famous Syrian walnut and roasted red pepper dip from Aleppo. A traditional muhammara is a smoky, savoury, sweet, and subtly spiced dip. We fell in love with muhammara on our first trip to Syria many years ago and our recipe is based on the official Aleppo muhammara recipe from the Academie Syrienne Gastronomie (Academy of Syrian Gastronomy), with just a couple of tweaks.
Muhammara Recipe for Syrian Walnut Roasted Red Pepper Dip from Aleppo
Hummus Balila Recipe
Hummus balila, also known simply as ‘balila’, is a Levantine dish that has long been a popular breakfast staple or homemade snack everywhere from Lebanon and Syria to the Arabian Peninsula countries, but it’s also served as a mezze. Creamy warm chickpeas are gently spiced with ground cumin, and drizzled with a dressing of extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice.
Middle Eastern Hummus Balila Recipe for Creamy Warm Chickpeas Spiced with Cumin
Beetroot Hummus Recipe
This roasted beetroot hummus recipe make a more modern mezze and a deliciously healthy dip made with roasted fresh beetroots, chickpeas, tahini, lemon, garlic, and extra virgin olive oil. Roasted beetroots are more nutritious than canned beetroots and taste naturally sweeter and more flavoursome. Roasting beetroots is easy – set and forget – then it’s a quick to make in a blender or food processor.
Easy Roast Beetroot Hummus Recipe and Tips to Roasting Fresh Beets
Roast Pumpkin Hummus with Dukkah
Our pumpkin hummus recipe makes a roasted pumpkin and chickpea dip drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with dukkah, the Middle Eastern condiment of crushed nuts, seeds and spices. It’s a wonderful starter but it’s also a fantastic healthy snack served with crispy vegetable crudités, such as crunchy cucumber spears, carrot batons and radishes.
Pumpkin Hummus Recipe for Roast Pumpkin and Chickpea Dip with Dukkah
Baba Ganoush Recipe
This baba ganoush recipe makes another traditional Middle Eastern mezze – also spelt baba ghanoush, baba ghanouj and baba ganouj – made with smoky grilled eggplants, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and olive oil. The eggplants can be roasted, barbecued, grilled or baked, but the best method for preparing the eggplants is to roast them over a live flame over a gas stovetop, barbecue or oven-grill/broiler so the skin chars.
Easy Baba Ganoush Recipe for a Classic Middle Eastern Eggplant Dip
Eggplant Dip with Pomegranate and Pine Nuts
Our recipe for a Middle Eastern eggplant dip with pomegranate and pine nuts makes another variation of baba ganoush using the old fashioned method – mashing it with a fork or pounding it with a pestle and mortar. The result is a more rustic creamier textured dip. This rendition of the smoky aubergine dip is sprinkled with pomegranate and pine nuts. Scoop it up with warm flatbreads or crispy pita chips, as you would other mezze.
Eggplant Dip with Pomegranate and Pine Nuts for a Bejewelled Baba Ganoush
Carrot Hummus Recipe
Our carrot hummus recipe makes a roasted carrot and chickpea dip sprinkled with cumin and sesame seeds. Deliciously addictive, the Middle Eastern-inspired dip is light, bright and healthy, and fantastic served with crispy pita chips or crunchy crudités. It can also be used as a spread on sandwiches and baguettes or as a base for salads and vegetable sides.
Carrot Hummus Recipe for Roast Carrot and Chickpea Dip with Cumin and Sesame
Roasted Red Pepper Feta Dip Recipe
Mezze are called meze in Greece or mezedes (plural) and this spicy roasted red pepper feta dip recipe makes htipiti, a Greek meze made with roasted red capsicums and Greek feta cheese. It’s enjoyed as one of an array of mezedes that are traditionally washed down with ouzo in Greece. Scoop it up with warm pita bread and serve with other meze dips such as tzaziki and taramosalata, or saganaki (fried cheese) or keftedes (fritters or meatballs).
Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Feta Dip Recipe for the Greek Meze Htipiti
Do let us know in the comments below if you make any of our best dip recipes for crackers and crudités. We’d love to know how they turn out for you.
