Cowboy Caviar

This fresh and colorful Cowboy Caviar recipe combines two types of beans, delicious summer vegetables, and a sweet and tangy lime vinaigrette dressing to make a bold and versatile dish that you’ll find yourself making all summer long. It’s a great chip dip, party appetizer, taco topper, salad add-on, or just a simple side dish. Plus, Cowboy Caviar holds up great in the fridge, so it has become my go-to healthy meal prep. I literally never get tired of it!

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What is Cowboy Caviar?

Cowboy Caviar, sometimes called Texas Caviar or Mexican Caviar, is like a cross between a bean salad and a fresh salsa. It combines two types of beans, black beans and black-eyed peas, with a colorful medley of fresh vegetables and a tangy balsamic-lime vinaigrette. It can be served as a side dish, or a garnish for any number of foods like tacos, salads, grilled meats, and more.

Where Do You Find Black-Eyed Peas?

Because black-eyed peas are technically a “pea” (vegetable) they’re sometimes found with the canned vegetables rather than the beans. You can also often find them in the freezer aisle, although you’ll want to boil those black-eyed peas first, according to the cooking instructions on the package. And if you can’t find black-eyed peas, you can substitute pinto beans or navy beans.

Cowboy Caviar Variations

How Long Does it Last?

Well, if you don’t eat it all in one sitting (it can happen!), this Cowboy Caviar recipe holds up extremely well in the refrigerator and will stay good in the refrigerator for about 4-5 days. While the vegetables will let off a little water, most of the ingredients are very sturdy. Just be sure to stir the salad before serving to redistribute the dressing. This salad will probably not freeze well, due to the fresh herbs and vegetables.

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Cowboy Caviar

4.88 from 56 votes

Cowboy Caviar is a deliciously fresh bean salad with a colorful mix of beans and vegetables, plus a zesty lime dressing.

Author: Beth Moncel

Servings 10 (1/2 cup each)

Prep 20 minutes mins

Total 20 minutes mins

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Ingredients

DRESSING*

• 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.22)
• 1 fresh lime (2 Tbsp juice) ($0.25)
• 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar ($0.10)
• 1/2 tsp chili powder** ($0.05)
• 1 tsp ground cumin ($0.10)
• 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
• 1/2 tsp sugar ($0.02)

Salad

• 1 15oz. can black beans ($0.94)
• 1 15oz. can black eyed peas*** ($1.24)
• 1 bell pepper (any color) ($1.48)
• 2 Roma tomatoes ($0.48)
• 1 jalapeño ($0.33)
• 1/4 red onion ($0.11)
• 1/4 bunch fresh cilantro ($0.20)

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Instructions 

• In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, 2 Tbsp of juice from the lime, balsamic vinegar, chili powder, cumin, salt, and sugar.
• Rinse and drain both cans of beans in a colander. Once well drained, transfer them to a large bowl.
• Finely dice the bell pepper, tomatoes, jalapeño, and red onion. Try to dice the vegetables into pieces that are roughly the same size as the beans. For a less spicy salad, scrape the seeds out of the jalapeño before dicing. Roughly chop the cilantro.
• Add the chopped vegetables to the bowl with the beans.
• Pour the dressing over the salad, then stir until everything is well coated. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to eat.

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Equipment

• Chef’s Knife
• White Cutting Boards
• Measuring Cups Spoons

Notes

*If you’re in a rush, bottled Italian dressing makes an easy and fun substitution for the homemade vinaigrette. 

**”Chili powder” is a mix of spices used to season chili, not pure red pepper.

***Because black-eyed peas are technically a “pea” (vegetable), they’re sometimes found with the canned vegetables rather than the beans. You can also often find them in the freezer aisle, although you’ll want to boil those black-eyed peas first, according to the cooking instructions on the package. And if you can’t find black-eyed peas, you can substitute pinto beans or navy beans.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5CupCalories: 140kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 7gFat: 3gSodium: 122mgFiber: 7g

Read our full nutrition disclaimer here.

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Video

How to Make Cowboy Caviar – Step by Step Photos

Make the dressing first so the flavors have a few minutes to blend. Whisk together 2 Tbsp olive oil, 2 Tbsp lime juice, ½ Tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp cumin, ½ tsp chili powder, ½ tsp sugar, and ½ tsp salt.

Rinse and drain one 15oz. can of black beans and one 15oz. can of black-eyed peas in a colander. 

Gather one bell pepper (any color), two Roma tomatoes, one jalapeño, 1/4 of a red onion, and 1/4 bunch of cilantro. While any color bell pepper can be used, I like the colorful pop of yellow or orange bell pepper. 

Finely dice the bell pepper, tomatoes, jalapeño, and red onion. The idea is to get the pieces close in size to the beans so that you have a “caviar” type appearance in the end. Roughly chop the cilantro leaves. Place the chopped vegetables in the bowl with the rinsed beans.

Pour the prepared dressing over the salad.

Stir the salad until everything is coated in the dressing. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat. This is one of those salads that tastes even better after it has time to chill in the fridge, so it’s great to eat over the course of a few days!

This Cowboy Caviar recipe makes a great snack with tortilla chips, a topper for tacos, bowl meals, or salads, or spoon some onto baked or grilled fish for a nice light meal!

Try These Other Bean Salad Recipes:

• Lemony White Bean Salad
• Classic Three Bean Salad
• Mediterranean White Bean Salad
• Cucumber and Black Bean Salad