This Cowboy Caviar is a wonderfully fresh, healthy, and easy-to-make dip. It’s loaded with tomatoes, avocado, beans, corn, and the best dressing infusing every bite. This recipe is popular for good reason and we make this salsa all year long.
Just like classic Pico de Gallo and Guacamole, this is one of those appetizers you’ll make over and over. Watch the video tutorial and you’ll be craving this ‘Texas Caviar’ until you finally make it.
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Cowboy Caviar
If you are looking to spice up your ordinary summer cookout, you have to add this to your menu. Serve it as a side dish with crispy tortilla chips or Scoops corn chips, or pair it as a side with Hamburgers and Homemade Lemonade.
This cowboy caviar is a crowd-pleaser and always disappears fast! There are many recipes for cowboy caviar, but we really love this delicious version that my classmate, Annie from nursing school, shared with me years ago. It makes a big batch so it is an ideal potluck or party appetizer; right up there with Spinach Artichoke Dip and Ceviche!
Cowboy Caviar Video Tutorial
Watch the video tutorial and see just how easy it is to make this Cowboy Caviar. If you enjoy our videos, subscribe to our and click the bell icon so you will be the first to know when we post a new video!
What is Cowboy Caviar?
According to the stories, in the 1950’s Neiman Marcus’ food director, Helen Corbitt, introduced this dish at a party in Houston, Texas. Because of its “humble” ingredients, guests dubbed it “Cowboy Caviar”.
Is it a salsa? A dip? Or is it a black bean salad? Call it what you will, I call it delicious. Cowboy Caviar, also known as “Texas Caviar,” is a beefed-up Pico De Gallo type salsa, but unique because it’s loaded with beans, avocado, and corn and is dressed with our special ingredient, Italian dressing.
It’s so colorful with all of the fresh vegetables and those black beans add a great source of protein. Today, stores such as Costco and Trader Joe’s sell packaged versions of this popular dish, but we, of course, think fresh is best.
Time-Saving Tip: Save time by using our favorite food chopper for cutting up the tomatoes, jalapeños, avocado, onion, and bell pepper.
Ingredients
This cowboy caviar salsa is so colorful, loaded, and satisfying. This salsa tastes best in Summer when you can get fresh and garden-grown veggies but it’s delicious with store-bought ingredients as well.
- Tomatoes – Fresh tomatoes are the tastiest in season, but the beauty of this salsa is it can be made all year long.
- Beans – We love home-cooked beans or canned black beans or black-eyed peas. Be sure they are rinsed and well-drained. We often interchange these two beans based on what we have on hand and either one works great.
- Corn – During the winter months, we use canned or frozen corn and in the summer months, we add freshly cooked Corn on the Cob.
- Avocado – Adds an irresistible creaminess. I’ve been known to sneak in extra avocado.
- Bell Pepper – We have used red, orange, yellow, and even green bell pepper. Any kind will work.
- Onion – Adds great flavor and crunch to every bite.
- Jalapeños – Don’t be intimidated by the jalapeños – the Italian dressing mellows it out and even the kids love it!
- Italian Salad Dressing – This surprising ingredient infuses every bite with incredible flavor. We love Newman’s Own brand, but you can use your favorite one or try our Homemade Italian Dressing.
- Limes, garlic, and salt – Use fresh lime juice and garlic for the best flavor.
- Cilantro – salsa would not be complete without it!
Pro Tip: Wear a glove when handling the jalapeño, and scrape out the seeds with a spoon to reduce the heat.
How to Make Cowboy Caviar
- Chop the fresh ingredients – tomatoes, avocados, onion, jalapeños, bell pepper, cilantro, fresh corn. Mince the garlic and add everything to a large bowl.
- Rinse and Drain – Black beans (and corn if using canned corn). Add to the bowl.
- Combine – Add Italian dressing, lime juice, and salt. Stir to combine and enjoy!
It really is that easy. You can make it several hours ahead and the leftovers are still great the next day.
Pro Tip: Make this side dish a complete meal by adding shredded chicken and/or cooked pasta such as penne, macaroni, or fusilli just before you mix all of the ingredients together. To make it a totally simple, no-cooking-required meal, purchase a rotisserie chicken from the deli and omit the pasta.
Common Questions
A bowl of fresh vegetables surely has great nutritional value. With black beans and/or black-eyed peas, this recipe is a great source of fiber and protein. Of course, you could choose a healthier option than tortilla chips for scooping, but I am not judging.
This recipe is so versatile and modifications based on personal preference or which ingredients you have on hand are so simple to make. Want to add red onion instead of white onion? Chili powder instead of jalapenos for an extra kick? Canned corn kernels instead of fresh corn on the cob? By all means… substitute. It is so simple and you really cannot go wrong.
Texas Caviar can easily be prepared up to two days ahead of time and be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Longer than two days, and the vegetables will start to lose their crispness. This recipe is also easily doubled or tripled for your party crowd.
How to Serve Cowboy Caviar
- Appetizer – We always serve Cowboy Caviar with tortilla chips as an appetizer. It’s perfect for parties because it makes a big batch. My husband and I often skip dinner and just make a big batch of this black bean salad in the evening with crunchy tortilla chips.
- Topping – If you are lucky enough to have leftovers, it can be served as a topping for Beef Tacos, burritos, Nachos, or over Pan-Seared Steak.
- Side Dish – You can serve this as a salad or side dish for a potluck. It is definitely a crowd-pleaser.
This recipe for Cowboy Caviar is a keeper. Make this once and you will make it again and again.
More Party Appetizers
These are our best appetizers, from salsas to dips and small bites. These are the top-rated recipes that always get rave reviews:
Cowboy Caviar Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 Roma tomatoes, diced
- 1 bell pepper, any color, seeded and diced
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and finely diced
- 1 large avocado , peeled, pitted and diced
- 15 oz can corn, drained (or from 1 cooked cob of corn)
- 15 oz can black beans, well rinsed and drained (or make your own)
- 1/2 bunch of cilantro, About 1/2 cup chopped
- 3-4 Tbsp lime juice
- 1/2 cup light Italian Dressing, *
- 4 medium garlic cloves, pressed
- 1 tsp sea salt or to taste
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine diced tomatoes, chopped onion and bell pepper, seeded and diced jalapeño, sliced avocado, fresh (or drained canned) corn, rinsed and drained black beans, and chopped cilantro.
- Stir in 3-4 Tbsp of lime juice, 1/2 cup of Italian dressing, 4 pressed garlic cloves, and 1 tsp of salt or season to taste. Mix everything together and serve with tortilla chips.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
I love all of your recipes, but I should never watch you cook when I am hungry….I wish you lived next door!!!
love this! Thank you Lynne! 🙂
This is listed under “Paleo” recipes, but black beans are not allowed on the paleo diet. Just wanted to point that out so there is no confusion for people who are trying to adhere to that type of diet.
Hi Sharon. Thank you for sharing That with us! Our readers will find that helpful.
how do you come up with 38g of sugar??
Hi Tina, oh my goodness you are right! The recipe calculator I used somehow read that as 15 oz of candy corn. Goodness gracious that is definitely wrong! I updated the recipe card. Now I’m setting off to check all of my corn recipes. WOW!! Thanks for asking 🙂
If I didn’t want to use ready made Italian dressing, could you recommend a vinegar based dressing recipe like you mentioned in the introduction to this recipe?
Thanks
Hi Peggy, we don’t have an Italian dressing recipe posted yet, but most Italian homemade dressing would work. The clear ones are better as opposed to the creamy ones for this recipe. You could also use a lemon dressing similar to what is in this salad and that will work here and adjust the seasoning to taste.
Just wanted to leave a recipe suggestion, I tried this pirog and it was delicious. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hC9wazAFSEY
Btw, my kiddos love watching your videos/bloopers can go all day watching them, often copy you when I serve them their meals saying, “time for the taste test.” 😄
Awww that’s the best! Thank you so much for sharing that with me :). I’m all smiles!
I made this last night. Very delicious… So happy……
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the wonderful review!
I love how this looks. I despise Kraft Italian salad dressing it tastes like chemicals to me. What Italian dressing do you use? I usually like your recipes but not sure what to do about the Italian dressing part I think it might ruin it for me anyway
Hi Janine, you can absolutely use your favorite and we don’t usually use Kraft in this recipe, but I did recommend 2 brands that we prefer in the recipe above. You can use whichever brand you prefer or normally would purchase 🙂
Ah thanks didn’t see what you recommended I will give it a try
You’re welcome!
Natasha! Making this for the third day in a row and I can not tell you HOW MUCH MY DAD LOVES THIS. He won’t stop raving about how fresh and healthy and all the right ingredients this is “otse same ludshe, vobshe the best” haha! Already memorized the ingredients, super easy and simple to make, I just add a little less Italian dressing and use fresh tomatoes from the garden. You’re awesome for sharing this!
That’s so awesome Jenna! I love the mix of Russian & English in the same sentence! Thanks for sharing your wonderful review with me!
Oh this looks yum, I’m very tempted to make it even though it’s winter here ☺️
p.s it says 1 bell bell pepper in the print friendly recipe 😉
Oh oops thanks for catching that – should be 1 Red bell pepper 🙂
It’s been three weeks and the oops has not been corrected. My first time on the website and I noticed it right away.
I have a recipe for Cowboy Caviar that I just love. Very similar to this one. I make it a gallon at a time and I live alone. My favorite vegetable dish. The recipe for the dressing is as follows:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
Love it!
That sounds wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing!! 🙂
Very appealing but will try later. I am still in the chicken recepies that I adore.
I’m so happy to hear you are loving our recipes 🙂 I hope you enjoy this cowboy caviar just as much!
Just made a half portion to try before serving to a group. Definitely making this to share! Spice level was suitable for a mixed crowd. We tend to favor a bit more of a kick and will double the jalapeño in a batch for half the group. Either way, this was fresh, crisp and worthy of repeating in the future!
Thank you, Natasha for a new go-to recipe!
You’re welcome Kelli! I’m glad you enjoy the recipe enough to share it. Thanks for sharing your fantastic review with other readers!
Thank you for the recipe! How long does it keep in the fridge and is it freezable?
Hi Anastasia, I haven’t tried freezing so I can’t say for sure – you might test with a small batch to see how it thaws. We have always enjoyed it fresh.
Can I make this ahead of time and keep it in the fridge?
Hi Amanda, yes it does keep for a day or two in the fridge. 🙂
I have a tradition with my husband, and that is making a few appetizers while we watch Sunday’s game. I have already tried one dip from this website and this will be my next recipe! I love how simple and yet delicious these recipes are. I am also making the ceviche tomorrow! Can’t wait!
Make sure to get some tobasco or hot sauce to drizzle over the top 🙂 I’m so glad you like the recipes!!
Tanks for the recommendation! I will!
If I add chick peas to this salad will the taste b the same?
Chickpeas might a little firm for this salad. It might throw the texture off a little. I’d stick with the beans.
Looks wonderful, nothing like fresh salsa in the summer!
I know what you mean about nursing! I finished nursing school a few years ago, and I actually went to BYU-Idaho’s program in Rexburg and loved it! I love looking at your site–good luck with school!
Natasha,
I made this for our 4th of July party it was awesome, everyone loved it. I’ve made couple of things from your site and everything is always delicious:)
Thank you,
Elina
Don’t apologize, Natalia. Life happens. If it didn’t you would have nothing about which to blog. And congratulations on getting this far in the nursing program.
May I respectfully suggest that you change 1/2 of a cilantro bushel
to read 1/2 of a cilantro BUNCH? A half bushel would be 4 gallons of cilantro. Other than that it sounds great, almost a cross between a traditional fresh salsa and “southern caviar.”
Bet it would be great rolled up in a flour tortilla.
good eye Joe, I got it fixed.
Thanks for posting all of these recipes. I recently found your website and am really excited about it. Thanks for your hard work!!!
thank you Natasha for sharing your recipes with others, I like your site a lot and I just don’t know how you have time for all these – nursing school and family is a lot, but you also find time for cooking I think you just very gifted girl. God bless you