Cowboy Caviar is also lovingly known as Texas Caviar. It's a zesty and easy recipe that's full of your favorite veggies and is made with a tangy vinegar dressing. It's a healthy vegan dip, salsa or salad topping.
Full of fresh vegetables, beans, corn, and a tangy red wine vinegar dressing, this cowboy caviar recipe is a hit in our household — and with all of our friends.
Plus, it’s ready to serve in minutes.
This delicious recipe is also called “Texas caviar” and it is the perfect companion for any get-together.
👩🏻🍳 What is Texas caviar
Texas caviar is commonly referred to as a salad or a dip. It can be used as a condiment on things like sandwiches, salads, and bean burgers or can be eaten as a dip on chips, crackers etc.
But it is also splendid to eat by itself. It is extremely versatile and one of the easiest dishes to make. Just like this Loaded Black Bean Salad recipe you can also have it as a side dish with no problem.
The dressing adds a zestiness to the dip, all while the vegetables remain crunchy. It’s the perfect mix.
Jump to:
To make Texas caviar, you simply chop, pour, stir and chill.
🍅 Cowboy caviar health benefits
If the rainbow of colors don't have you hooked on this recipe, the flavor will.
At our house, we make a batch of this Cowboy Caviar recipe as our go-to snack (and sometimes even lunch) for the week. This recipe makes so much, you don’t have to worry about running out in one sitting.
What’s in Texas caviar? Boundless goodness.
But really, there are so many beneficial ingredients in this dip, that I don’t ever feel bad eating it multiple times a day.
- This dip is full of beans — black beans and black-eyed peas. These nutrient-dense beans are full of fiber and protein.
It's great getting to have a recipe where you can add black-eyed peas. They are overlooked way too much.
They’re also a great source of iron and manganese. If you’re looking for an energy boost throughout your day, this dip is the perfect solution.
Just look at all of these beautiful ingredients.
- Tomatoes are a great source of vitamin C and antioxidants — perfect to fuel your immune system and rid your body of free radicals.
- Compared to other vegetables, corn is also high in protein — making this cowboy caviar especially great for vegetarians, vegans, and people looking to add more protein into their diets.
- Increased eye health and reduced risks of several chronic diseases are only a couple of benefits that come from eating red and green bell peppers.
- Eating red onions comes with its benefits too — they contain fiber, folic acid, and vitamin B which helps the body make new cells.
- Rich in vitamins A and C, potassium, and carotene — an antioxidant that may help fight cell damage — jalapeños add a kick and added benefits to your diet.
This cowboy caviar dip is the perfect healthy dish to bring along to any summer picnic — your family and friends will be asking for it on every occasion after the first bite.
💭 FAQ's
Texas caviar typically does well in the refrigerator for three to four days.
Yes, you can. Although Texas Caviar typically does not call for avocado, it is an excellent addition to the dip. Simply chop an avocado and add it into the dip right before serving to keep it from discoloring.
Jalapenos are pretty darn good and add a lot but you can sure omit them if you aren’t a fan of the heat that it brings, consider adding a quarter of the amount called for in the recipe and add more in as desired.
If you don’t have any red wine vinegar on hand, you could substitute apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, or lime juice.
📋 Making the dressing
You can't beat the simplicity and special flavors using lime along with red wine vinegar. Just mix all of the ingredients together in the measurements called for in the recipe card.
- Extra virgin olive oil has deep rich flavors that are perfect for an addition to a vinegar dressing.
- Red wine vinegar is richer than white vinegar and works well with bean salads.
- Lime juice is such a nice alternative to lemon and offers a milder dressing.
- Ground cumin gives a little bit of a spicy twist.
- Salt and pepper are the perfect seasonings.
📖 Cowboy caviar dip serving suggestions
- Try it as a side, or as a topping on these wonderful Black Bean Burgers.
- Serve it alongside any of your favorite tacos and especially with this Crispy Tenders Meatless Tacos recipe.
- How about making it a lunch and have some delicious Focaccia Bread on the side.
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If you take a photo of your beautiful and flavorful Texas Caviar I would love to see it. Follow me over on Instagram and tag me on your photo @vegan_in_the_freezer.
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📋 Recipe
Cowboy Caviar Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes - quartered
- 16 ounces black beans - can, drained and rinsed well
- 16 ounces black-eyed peas - can, drained and rinsed well
- 15 ounces corn - can, drained
- ½ cup red onions - diced
- ½ cup green bell pepper - chopped
- ½ cup red bell pepper - chopped
- 1 jalapeno pepper - cleaned, seeded and chopped - more or less pepper for preference
- ½ cup cilantro - or parsley, chopped
- tortilla chips
Dressing:
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together ingredients for the dressing, set aside.Mix well
- In a large bowl, add drained beans, black-eyed peas and corn.
- Cut vegetables if you have not already done that and add to a large bowl. Mix well.
- Pour dressing over mixture and mix until well combined.
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving,
- Serve with tortilla chips.
Notes
Nutrition
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Pamela
So delicious!!
Sharla
Wow! I’m a huge fan. Saw this recipe today, sent my son to the store for the few things I needed to make this while I went to the garden to pick tomatoes and start prepping what I did have on hand. We just gobbled it’s up! The flavors are amazing together! This will be on our weekly rotation. Thank you!