Texas Caviar (or sometimes called Cowboy Caviar) is a cold salad made of black-eyed peas, black beans, corn, peppers, tomatoes, avocado, and an oil-based dressing. Served cold it is one of my favorite summertime salads. It is light and refreshing and is the perfect side to burgers, grilled pork, chicken, or steaks, or as an appetizer served with your favorite chips for dipping.
This recipe is easy and not too fancy but is oh so tasty. It can be made in advance so it’s great for potlucks or barbecues.
Texas Caviar is the perfect side for potlucks, barbecues, or picnics.
Happy Eats!
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Let’s Talk Texas Caviar Ingredients
Made from fresh ingredients Texas Caviar is the perfect cold side. Black-eyed peas are the backbone of this salad but you can easily substitute ingredients. Since cooked black-eyed peas are softer in texture you will want something with a little crunch like corn, peppers, and onions. Fat and acid are also essential ingredients. I chose olive oil and avocado for my fat and lime and tomatoes for acid. These are my favorite ingredients but you can easily adjust any ingredients so get creative.
- Black-eyed peas are a must-have legume for this recipe. Dried beans are great but make it easy and use canned black-eyed peas.
- Black beans are some of my favorite legumes but you can easily substitute them with another bean like pinto or red beans. Again use canned to save some time.
- Corn can be fresh, canned, or frozen and adds a hint of sweetness and crunch.
- Avocado is not only heart-healthy but adds a delicious creaminess.
- Red onion has a milder flavor than other onions and adds color, crunch, and sweetness.
- Cilantro is a bit spicy with citrus hints. It’s the perfect garnish but parsley can be substituted.
- Scallions add another layer of onion flavor as well as a pop of freshness.
- Tomatoes have a unique flavor profile and will add a little sweet, sour, bitter, and savoriness to the dish. I prefer to use cherry or grape tomatoes since they tend to be a little sweeter.
- Peppers add color, sweetness, and crunch. Bell peppers are the go-to for most recipes. If you want a little heat you can use jalapeno or serrano. I choice dulce Mediterraneo peppers which are not as sweet as bell peppers.
- Dressing for this salad includes lime juice for a little acid along with olive oil, sugar, garlic powder, and salt.
Let’s Get Cooking
Are you ready for Texas Caviar? The hardest part of this recipe is prepping the ingredients. Then it is just a toss and it is ready to be served.
Pro-tip: Texas caviar can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Texas Caviar
Ingredients
Dressing
- 4 tbsp lime juice, fresh
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp lime zest
Texas Caviar
- 15 ounces black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
- 15 ounces black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup corn, drained and rinsed
- ¼ cup red onion, diced
- ½ cup avocado, cut into ½ inch cubes
- ¼ cup dulce Mediterraneo peppers, diced
- ½ cup tomatoes, sliced
- 2 scallions, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
Dressing
- Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt, sugar, garlic powder, and lime zest. Set aside.
Texas Caviar Dip
- Drain and rinse black-eyed peas, black beans, and corn.
- In a large bowl combine black-eyed peas, black beans, corn, red onion, avocado, peppers, tomatoes, scallions, and cilantro.
- Pour dressing over salad and mix gently.
- Serve with your favorite main dish or as an appetizer with chips.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
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