Cowboy Caviar or Texas Caviar is the viral salad recipe that is a mix of beans, fruits, and vegetables in a sweet and tangy vinaigrette. It’s ready in under 30 minutes and great food to eat with friends!
I am not fond of making salads since I like getting my veggies through Korean side dishes like Spicy Cucumber, Seaweed Salad, or Spicy Radish Salad. That’s my kinda salad! However, since wifey has been craving them lately, Texas Caviar going viral actually got her interest!
We made this in collaboration because she really wanted to try it out. For this recipe, she was the one who chopped up the vegetables and I made the sauce. More than the recipe itself, I loved that we got to bond in the kitchen!
As I looked up more about this salad, I found out that the pioneer woman for this Cowboy Caviar dip was Chef Helen Corbitt when she moved to Texas. It was said that she wanted to create something delicious out of local southern ingredients. Since Black-eyed Peas were southern staples, she tried mixing it up with vinaigrette, and boom, years later it is apparently a hit!
Personally, it was actually my first time hearing about Black Eyed Peas because the only Black Eyes Peas I know is the one who sang “Where is the love, the love, the love~” Nah mean??
The Viral Salad Recipe
A lot of evolutions from the original recipe have been made, but we followed one from Samantha of SpendWithPennies which had great feedback! What I loved about this recipe is how pleasing it looks with all the colors of the fruits and vegetables. The sweetness, tanginess, spiciness, and freshness from all the ingredients also worked out well.
The vegetables and fruits we used were bell peppers, tomatoes, red onion, jalapeño, cilantro and avocado. We also mixed in canned corn, black beans, and black-eyed peas. All these were diced and mixed in homemade vinaigrette.
TIP: If you have an excess of these fruits and vegetables in your pantry, this is an excellent way to finish them up. You just have to make sure it’s still fresh, so it won’t ruin your salad! Kakaka~ Dice them up really well so they mix nicely, and you get everything in one bite!
How to Serve and Store Cowboy Caviar Salad
Many people serve this as a dip because the saltiness of the tortilla chips complements the salad. However, wifey opted to eat this with romaine lettuce.
We also had some friends come over so we could share it with them. They brought some chicken and it worked too! It’s a good dip and side dish because it’s healthy and definitely filling!
You can easily make this ahead. It’ll be good in the fridge for about 2-3 days, just leave out the avocado and only add them when it’s about to be served.
The Verdict
Me & Wifey: It’s honestly okay. It’s good but we are not really sure why it is viral. No disrespect though! If people like it, then I ain’t messing with that. We just have different preferences.
Our friends: They actually had interesting takes on it! One of them said he wanted to try swapping one of the beans with chickpeas. Another mentioned that she would add more lemon for the flavors to pop even more. And honestly, I agree. Nevertheless, they still liked the salad!
What about you? Did you like this trend? Give this easy recipe for Cowboy Caviar a try and let me know your thoughts!
Other healthy recipes you might like:
- Balela Salad
- Eggplant with Spicy Sauce
- Avocado Roll
- 2-minute Watermelon Juice
- Homemade Fruit Popsicle
Make sure to leave a rating, a comment, or tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok when you chop them up! Yeobosayo!
Cowboy Caviar (Viral Salad Recipe)
Equipment
- Huge Salad Bowl
Ingredients
- 2 pcs Bell Peppers Different colors, Diced
- 3 pcs Roma Tomatoes Diced
- 1 pc Red Onion Diced
- 1 pc Jalepeño Pitted and diced
- Cilantro Finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups Kernel Corn
- 1 can Black Beans Washed and drained
- 1 can Black-eyed Peas Washed and drained
- 2 pcs Avocados Diced
Salad Dressing
- 1/3 cup Olive Oil
- 2 tbsp Lime Juice
- 2 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
Instructions
- Chop up the fruits and vegetables.
- Wash and drain the beans and corn.
- Mix up the sauce ingredients.
- Combine the fruits, vegetables, and sauce. Mix thoroughly.
- Serve with lettuce, chips, or other proteins and enjoy!
I love ur presentations. Want to learn to cook different food other than our yup’ik Eskimo food,
I never tried Eskimo food!