Looking for holiday party food ideas? Look no further!
These holiday party appetizer recipes will have your guests swarming – and staying – around the snack table. Whether you’re hosting your own holiday gathering or bringing a dish to share at a friend’s party, there’s always a need for holiday party food!
The MSGdish partiers have assembled 12 of our favorite holiday appetizer and side dish recipes that we would like to share with you. And yes, you guessed it, they all have a little secret ingredient to give the dish some zing – with a dash of extra savory goodness provided by MSG (aka “umami seasoning”)!
Click on the recipe name to jump right to it (or scroll down):
- Spicy Meatballs Recipe
- Balls of Spinach Recipe
- Crab Rangoon Recipe
- Homemade Sure-Fire Chili Recipe
- Chicken Almond Crunch Casserole Recipe
- Creamy Dill Dip Recipe
- Cheesy Chopped Beef Log Recipe
- Monterey Jack Salsa Recipe
- Ginger-rific Chicken Wings Recipe
- 3 Festive Salad Side Dish Recipes
Spicy Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 cup corn flakes crushed
- 3/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
- 2 tbsp. finely chopped onion
- 1 tbsp. ketchup
- 4 drops hot sauce
- 1/2 tsp. prepared horseradish
- 2 eggs well beaten
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 tsp. MSG
Sauce:
- 1 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 to 3 Tbsp. butter
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup chili sauce
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 2 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
- 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp. MSG
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. dry mustard
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- Chopped green onion garnish
Instructions
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Combine first 11 ingredients into a large bowl.
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Mix well and shape into 1 inch balls.
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Sauté balls into butter until brown; drain and set aside.
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Combine sauce ingredients, except green onion in a large saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.
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Add meatballs and simmer 10 more minutes. Transfer to a chafing dish and keep warm. Garnish with green onion.
Recipe Notes
Popular brands for MSG that you can most likely find at your local grocery store in the spices/seasonings section: Accent, Ajinomoto or Vedan brand.
Recipe courtesy of Cooks.com
Photo credit: Flickr user, jay.tong
Balls of Spinach
Ingredients
- 2 packages frozen chopped spinach thawed and drained
- 1 medium white onion chopped
- 6 large eggs beaten
- 1 tsp. MSG
- 3/4 cup butter melted
- 2 cups herb stuffing mix
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. thyme
- 2 tsp. garlic salt
Instructions
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Mix all ingredients and shape into small balls.
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Place on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
Crab Rangoon
Ingredients
- Wonton skins
- 1 can crabmeat
- 8-12 oz. cream cheese
- A dash of MSG
- Salt to season
Instructions
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Soften cream cheese and mix with crabmeat and seasoning.
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Drop a teaspoon full into center of the wonton skin.
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Fold skin in triangle, then fold in edges. Hold with toothpicks.
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Deep fry until golden brown.
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When cooled slightly remove toothpick. Pop into oven on cookie sheet to keep warm.
Homemade Sure-Fire Chili
A sure-fire hit at your holiday party! Have your punch cup ready, this will need some serious beverage follow-up!
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 Tbsp. chili powder seasoning
- 1 Tbsp. flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 1 tsp. seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp. MSG
- 3 drops Worcestershire sauce
- 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup bell pepper optional
Instructions
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Brown together the ground beef, onion, garlic, and bell pepper. Drain excess fat.
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Stir in remaining ingredients. Mix well.
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Cover and simmer 30 minutes.
Chicken Almond Crunch Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts boiled and cut in cubes
- 6 hard-boiled eggs
- 2 cup celery chopped
- 1 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 can chicken soup
- 1 sm. jar pimento chopped
- 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 Tbsp. minced onion
- 1 Tbsp. MSG
- Salt to taste
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 1 1/2 cup chopped almonds
- 1 1/2 cup chow mein rice noodles
Instructions
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Mix mayonnaise and seasoning together. Add chicken soup.
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Blend and add chicken cubes, eggs, celery, onion, pimento, and lemon juice.
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Spread in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Refrigerate overnight.
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When ready to bake, sprinkle over the top in the following order: cheese, then almonds, then chow mein rice noodles.
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Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes in 325 degree preheated oven.
Creamy Dill Dip
Ingredients
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tsp. MSG
- 1 tsp. seasoning salt
- 1 tsp. dried parsley
- 1 1/4 tsp. dried dill weed
Instructions
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In a medium bowl, combine sour cream, mayonnaise, MSG, seasoning salt, parsley and dill.
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Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Cheesy Chopped Beef Log
Ingredients
- 2 8 oz. package packages cream cheese
- 1 2 oz. package dried beef, chopped
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 4 green onions chopped
- 1 pinch MSG
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
Instructions
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Combine the cream cheese, dried beef, Worcestershire sauce, green onions, and monosodium glutamate; mix well, and refrigerate until chilled.
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Mix together the chopped pecans and parsley. Roll cheese into log or ball, and roll in pecans and parsley to cover.
Recipe Notes
Recipe courtesy of AllRecipes.com
Photo credit: By Severein [CCO], via Wikimedia Commons
Monterey Jack Salsa
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 5 green onions chopped
- 1 avocado peeled, pitted and diced
- 1 tomato chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 4 oz. can diced green chilies
- 1 6 oz. can chopped black olives
- 1 cup zesty Italian dressing
- 1 tsp. MSG
Instructions
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In a medium bowl, mix together cheese, onions, avocado, tomato, cilantro, chile peppers, olives, dressing, and MSG.
Recipe Notes
Recipe courtesy of AllRecipes.com
Photo credit: Flickr user, Marco Verch
Ginger-rific Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chicken wings
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup margarine
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp. water
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp. MSG
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 3 serrano chili peppers minced (optional)
- 2 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
- 2 Tbsp. sesame seeds toasted
Instructions
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Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F.
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Blot chicken wings dry with a paper towel.
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Beat the eggs in a bowl, and place the flour in another bowl. Dip chicken wings into the egg, then into the flour to lightly coat, shaking off the excess.
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Melt the margarine in a large skillet over medium high heat.
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Pan fry the chicken wings until well browned on all sides, about 10 minutes.
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Meanwhile, gently boil the cider vinegar, soy sauce, water, brown sugar, monosodium glutamate, salt, serrano chili peppers (optional; will add a lot of “heat” to the dish), and ginger in a saucepan over medium heat until thickened, 5 to 7 minutes.
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Toss the browned chicken wings in the sauce to coat, then transfer the wings to large baking dish with a slotted spoon. Reserve remaining sauce.
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Bake in the preheated oven until the chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 30 minutes, rotating and basting with the reserved sauce after 15 minutes.
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Sprinkle sesame seeds on the chicken wings before serving.
Recipe Notes
Recipe courtesy of AllRecipes.com
Don’t forget salads at your holiday party table! These three salads are “can’t-miss” as a holiday side dish, and chances are that you’ll be the one people thank for making them feel a little less guilty about eating all the indulgent food. Don’t focus on the ingredients, they’re “salads”!
Recipes courtesy of Cooks.com
The MSGdish Team wishes you a joyful Holiday Season. May your holidays sparkle and shine, especially while you dine!
