Texas Caviar (aka Cowboy Caviar)

Texas Caviar, also known as Cowboy Caviar, is an easy, light, and fresh dip that is perfect for parties, potlucks, and cookouts! 

bowl of texas caviar on a board surrounded by tortilla chips. There is a chip full of dip and a white linen as well.

TELL ME ABOUT THIS TEXAS CAVIAR RECIPE

Level of difficulty: Easy! The bulk of the work for this recipe is chopping the vegetables.

Flavor: This light and fresh dip is similar to a mild salsa (kind of like pico de gallo). 

Time: It will take you approximately fifteen minutes to make Texas Caviar. The time really depends on how proficient your knife skills are, as the bulk of the time required is to chop the vegetables.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED

DIP INGREDIENTS

  • Canned Black Eyed Peas
  • Canned Black Beans
  • Canned Corn
  • Cherry Tomatoes
  • Red Bell Pepper
  • Jalapeno Pepper
  • Red Onion
  • Cilantro
  • Lime Zest
  • Tortilla Chips (for serving)

DRESSING INGREDIENTS

  • Olive Oil
  • Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Lime Juice
  • Granulated Sugar
  • Oregano
  • Garlic Salt
  • Cumin
  • Paprika
  • Salt
ingredients needed to make cowbow caviar

OVERVIEW: HOW TO MAKE COWBOY CAVIAR

  1. Make the dressing: add the lime juice, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, granulated sugar, garlic powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, and salt into a jar and shake to combine. Set aside.
  2. Make the dip: place the black eyed peas, black beans, corn, red pepper, cherry tomatoes, jalapeno, red onion, lime zest, and cilantro into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Pour the dressing over and stir to coat all ingredients.
  3. Let the dip marinate for 30 minutes or up to 1 day prior to serving.
  4. Serve and enjoy! Stir the dip prior to serving and then enjoy with tortilla chips.

See step-by-step story series here!

RECIPE VARIATIONS AND SUBSTITUTIONS

  • Beans: dried beans can also be used for this recipe instead of canned. If using, cook each bean variety separately as the cooking times may vary. You need to cook ½ to ¾ cup of dried beans for every 15-ounce can of beans that is being replaced.
  • Corn: frozen corn or fresh corn on the cob (boiled or grilled) can also be used in this recipe.
  • Peppers: you can also use orange, yellow, or green bell pepper instead of red bell pepper if desired.
  • Tomatoes: you can also dice roma (or your favorite) larger tomatoes for this recipe. In a pinch, canned diced tomatoes can work too.
  • Vinegar: if you do not have apple cider vinegar, you can use white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar instead.
  • Onions: purple onions are the best for this recipe. However, you can replace the purple onion with a white onion, a yellow onion, or a small bunch of green onions.
  • Dressing: a popular substitution for the homemade dressing outlined in this recipe is Italian dressing. If you’d prefer to use Italian dressing, do not make the vinaigrette as outlined in the recipe and use ½ cup of dressing and add more as needed.
  • Avocado: some versions of cowboy caviar include avocado. If you’d like to add this to your recipe, start with one small avocado cut into small cubes. Stir in just before serving. 
    • Note: avocados tend to darken over time, so the salad may not stay as well in the fridge. 
bowl of texas caviar on a board surrounded by tortilla chips. In the background, there are packages of ingredients.

HOW TO SERVE COWBOY CAVIAR

Texas caviar is great served as a dip, as a fun party appetizer, as a side dish, on salads, on tacos, on nachos, and on grilled meats! 

MODIFICATIONS FOR DIETARY RESTRICTIONS: VEGAN

Cowboy caviar is vegetarian, gluten free, and dairy free as written! It can also easily be made vegan with a simple substitution.  

  • Make this into a vegan dip recipe by replacing the granulated sugar with a natural sweetener like agave syrup.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED

Liquid Measuring Cup

Measuring Spoons

Measuring Cups

Lemon Press (Citrus Juicer)

Large Mixing / Serving Bowl

top down view of a bowl of cowboy caviar on a board surrounded by tortilla chips. There is a chip full of dip and a white linen as well.

LOVE THIS RECIPE? YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY:

bowl of texas caviar on a board surrounded by tortilla chips. There is a chip full of dip and a white linen as well.

Texas Caviar (aka Cowboy Caviar)

Meredith
Texas Caviar, also known as Cowboy Caviar, is an easy, light, and fresh dip that is perfect for parties, potlucks, and cookouts!
4.64 from 11 votes
Prep Time 15 mins
Inactive Time 30 mins
Total Time 45 mins
Course Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 12 Servings
Calories 176 kcal

Ingredients
  

Dressing Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoon lime juice (approximately the juice of 1 medium lime)
  • ¼ C apple cider vinegar
  • ¼ C olive oil
  • 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 2 teaspoon salt

Dip Ingredients

  • 1, 15 oz can of black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
  • 1, 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1, 15 oz can of corn, drained and rinsed
  • 1 medium bell pepper, diced
  • ½ pint cherry tomatoes
  • ½ medium jalapeno pepper, seeds removed, minced
  • ½ small red onion, minced
  • 1 tablespoon lime zest (approximately the zest of 1 medium lime)
  • ½ C chopped cilantro
  • tortilla chips for serving

Instructions
 

  • Make the dressing: add the lime juice, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, granulated sugar, garlic powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, and salt into a jar and shake to combine. Set aside.
  • Make the dip: place the black eyed peas, black beans, corn, red pepper, cherry tomatoes, jalapeno, red onion, lime zest, and cilantro into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Pour the dressing over and stir to coat all ingredients.
  • Let the dip marinate for 30 minutes or up to 1 day prior to serving.
  • Serve and enjoy! Stir the dip prior to serving and then enjoy with tortilla chips.

Notes

*Texas caviar is great served as a dip, as a fun party appetizer, as a side dish, on salads, on tacos, on nachos, and on grilled meats!
*The nutrition facts were calculated without the tortilla chips

Nutrition

Calories: 176kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 7gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gSodium: 393mgPotassium: 361mgFiber: 7gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 257IUVitamin C: 8mgCalcium: 26mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means at no additional cost to you I may receive a small commission for purchases made through these links. However, please know that I strive to provide links to products that I actually use and wholeheartedly recommend whenever possible.
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Comments

  1. Susan says

    5 stars
    This is the recipe I have been looking for! Delishish.

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      I’m so glad I could help! Enjoy 🙂

  2. Lori D says

    5 stars
    Simple to make and tastes amazing. Took it to a potluck at work, everyone absolutely loved it. The longer it chilled and the more it marinated, the better it got. Although it’s still delicious after a hour chilled.

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      I’m so happy to hear that you and your co-workers loved this Lori! Thank you so much for making my recipe.

  3. Deidra says

    5 stars
    I made this several times last year and today I made it again for the first time this summer. I love it! 😋😋💖💖 I made a few changes but it is still delicious! I love it on tacos and as a dip for tortilla chips. 😋😋😋😋

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      I’m so glad to hear that you enjoy Texas Caviar too Deidra. Great idea to put it on tacos, delicious!

  4. Terry says

    5 stars
    I love this recipe and it is s easy to make.

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      So glad you hear you love it too! Thanks for making my recipe.

  5. Lynn says

    5 stars
    DELICIOUS!!!!!

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      I’m so glad to hear you loved it – hooray!

  6. David says

    5 stars
    Love this stuff! Being from the upper midwest, I hadn’t ever heard of Cowboy Caviar until I saw it carried at Costco. SO GOOD. I love this version: a little sweet, a little heat, a little tart (from the lime). I could eat this every day.

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      I’m so glad you enjoyed it – I could eat this every day too 😂

  7. M. says

    5 stars
    I loooooooove Texas Caviar, and this recipe was great!

    • ourlovelanguageisfood says

      so glad you enjoyed it!! thanks for making my recipe.