Texas Caviar Dip contains a variety of beans and veggies, tossed in Italian dressing. It’s a crowd-pleaser for your next cookout or party.
I’m a sucker for a good dip! One of my favorites is Texas Caviar Dip. Texas Caviar, also known as Cowboy Caviar, is a dip traditionally made with beans, peppers, and Italian dressing.
What is Texas or Cowboy Caviar?
Cowboy Caviar was invented in Houston, Texas by a chef named Helen Corbitt in the 1940’s. Corbitt created the dish as a fun way to serve black-eyed peas on New Year’s Eve.
For those unfamiliar, it’s a Southern tradition to eat black-eyed peas and collard greens on New Year’s Eve. These dishes, among others, bring good luck and good fortune in the new year.
I’m usually not the biggest black-eyed pea fan. Except when it comes to this dip! It is so hearty, and tangy! I also amp up my own variation of Texas Caviar by adding avocado for a bit of creaminess.
So whether you are hosting a cookout, watching football, or looking for luck in the new year, give this delicious Texas creation a try!
Dip Ingredients
- Black Eyed Peas (canned)
- Black beans (canned)
- Corn (canned)
- Green bell pepper
- Orange (or red) bell pepper
- Jalapeno pepper
- Roma tomatoes
- Red Onion
- Avocado
- Italian salad dressing
- Cilantro (fresh or refrigerated)
How to Make Texas Caviar Dip
Texas Caviar Dip is super simple to make, and it doesn’t require any cooking! It’s made with canned black-eyed peas, black beans, corn, and a few fresh veggies mixed in Italian salad dressing!
Rinse Your Beans!
First, thoroughly rinse the black beans, black-eyed peas, and corn. Rinsing canned foods, like beans, cleans away the excess salt and starches. This enhances the flavor of the beans, rather than just tasting the salty juices! After rinsing the canned ingredients, add them to a large serving bowl.
Next, dice all of the vegetables for the dip. I like to use half of an orange (or red) bell pepper, half of a green bell pepper, one jalapeño, 2 Roma tomatoes, 1/2 a red onion, and 1 avocado. The avocado was one of my additions because it adds a nice creamy texture to the dip. Be sure all of the vegetables are cut small enough that they can fit on a chip. The more dip on your chip, the more flavor!
Once all the vegetables are diced into scoopable pieces, add them to the beans and corn. Pour 1 1/2 cups of Italian salad dressing over top. Italian salad dressing is full of spices like garlic, paprika and basil. The vinegar from the dressing adds acidity to the dip. Acidity enhances the flavor of dishes.
Sub Cilantro Paste for Fresh!
Mix the dip until thoroughly combined. Finish it off with cilantro, either as a garnish or mixed into the dip. I prefer to finely chop the cilantro and mix it into the dip. Another option is using cilantro stir-in paste. Herb pastes are an excellent alternative to fresh herbs. The flavor is pretty similar. And they can last up to 3 months in the refrigerator. That’s way longer than fresh cilantro!
Serve the Texas Caviar Dip with Tostino’s Scoops (or any kind of tortilla chip). Tostino’s Scoops are my favorite because you can get a hearty scoop with a variety of beans and veggies in just a single scoop.
What About Leftovers?
Keep dip leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container. I don’t recommend storing leftovers for more than 24 hours. As time passes the condensation in the container turns the dip more watery.
This dip is highly addictive! I’ve never taken home leftovers when I bring it to cookouts. Plus, any leftovers make great toppings for tacos!
Check out my other dip recipes like Pepperoni Pizza Dip, Layered Greek Dip and Buffalo Chicken Dip!
Texas Caviar Dip
Ingredients
- 1 15.5 oz can black eyed peas
- 1 15.5 oz can black beans
- 1 15.5 oz can yellow corn
- 1/2 red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 green bell pepper diced
- 1/2 red onion diced
- 2 Roma tomatoes diced
- 1 jalepeno pepper diced
- 1 avocado diced
- 1 1/4 cups Italian salad dressing
- 1 tbsp cilantro finely chopped
Instructions
- Drain and thouroughly rinse black eyed peas, black beans and corn. Set aside in serving bowl.
- Chop all vegetables and add to the beans and corn.
- Pour in the Italian salad dressing and mix until all incredients are well coated.
- Finely chop roughly 2 tablespoons of cilantro and top as a garnish or mix into the dip.
- Serve with Tostino’s Scoops (or tortilla chips in general) and enjoy!
Aside from the cilantro (I’m violently allergic to it) this looks like a good try to for summer!