Above: The Green Chile Dip from Creamland Dairies. Photograph by Douglas Merriam.

It is the ubiquitous party dip of New Mexico, a treasured attendee at every backyard barbecue, birthday party, game-day potluck, and summer camping trip. Rich with sour cream and studded with green chile bits, it delivers a slow, steady burn that is instantly addictive. Introduced sometime in the 1960s—nobody remembers exactly when—it is still made in mass quantities at the Creamland Dairies plant at Second Street and Indian School Road in Albuquerque. Two million pounds of dip come out of that little plant every year, and though some is jalapeño and some Fiesta (red and green), the vast majority is green chile dip, to be sold in more than 6,000 stores in New Mexico and West Texas. “You see nothing like this anywhere else in the country—no dips have the following this one does,” says Tim Hawk, a company vice president who started at Creamland Dairies 30 years ago. “Have you tried it on a baked potato? It’s so good.” I say go Ruffles or go home (delicate Lay’s snap off in this thick dip) and definitely buy more than you think you’ll need. People can’t control themselves around this stuff.

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Find creamland Green chile dip (plus jalapeño and Fiesta dips) in virtually any local grocery store.

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The Essential New Mexican Party Dip