Easy Cowboy Caviar (Black Eyed Pea Salsa)

A small bowl of redneck caviar with black-eyed peas, corn, black beans, and tomatoes with a side of tortilla chips.

5 from 3 votes

Easy Cowboy Caviar (Black Eyed Pea Salsa)

This easy Cowboy Caviar recipe is the perfect Southern dip or side dish with black-eyed peas, corn, and tomatoes in a tangy lime dressing.

Prep Time15

Total Time15

Servings:

Calories: 55kcal

Author: Kari

Equipment

a large bowl
measuring spoons

Ingredients

1 15 ounce can sweet corn drained
1 15 ounce can black-eyed peas drained and rinsed
1 15 ounce can black beans drained and rinsed
1 pound tomatoes diced - I use whatever we have, cherry tomatoes, sun gold tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, etc
1 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeño seeded and diced
½ red onion finely diced
1 cup fresh cilantro chopped
¼ cup olive oil
⅓ cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon kosher salt
juice of one lime

Instructions

In a large bowl, mix the olive oil, red wine vinegar, chili powder, cumin, lime juice, and kosher salt together.
¼ cup olive oil, ⅓ cup red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, juice of one lime
Add the tomatoes, black-eyed peas, beans, corn, red onion, bell peppers, jalapeño pepper, and cilantro, and toss everything gently to combine.
1 15 ounce can sweet corn, 1 15 ounce can black-eyed peas, 1 15 ounce can black beans, 1 pound tomatoes, 1 cup red bell pepper, diced, 1 jalapeño, ½ red onion, 1 cup fresh cilantro
Give a quick taste and adjust the salt - you might need to add more - then cover and chill for at least one hour.
Serve the caviar with your favorite tortilla chips, as a side dish, or on top of fish, steak, or chicken.
BUT - if you want to be totally lazy like me, you can just mix it all together, you will just have to stir a little more, so just try your best not to stir too hard because you can accidentally squish the beans! I put the corn, beans, and veggies, then stir - then add oil, vinegar, spices, lime, then cilantro - and stir it all.
Enjoy!

Notes

How to Store Leftovers

Store your chip dip in the fridge in an airtight container. It will keep for about 5 days. To freshen it up before serving, you can sprinkle it with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of fresh lime. Do not freeze this dip.

How long can you keep it in the fridge?

If properly stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container, cowboy caviar will keep for up to five days.

Helpful Tips

For the best possible cowboy caviar, mix the ingredients up at least 3 hours ahead of time possible to allow the flavors to really develop.
Serve this dip with your favorite tortilla chips – it works best with chips that have a scoop, so you can get some of the spicy dressing in each scoop.

Make Ahead Instructions

One of the best things about this tasty side dish is that it can easily be prepared in advance. You can make the dressing up to 3 days ahead of time, then store the dressing in a mason jar or airtight container in the refrigerator.

You can also cut up the onions, tomatoes, and peppers the night before you plan on putting the salad together. The next day, drain and rinse the canned beans and corn, then dice up the cilantro and put everything together. (Without the dressing, the black beans will stain the colorful veggies, so it is best to wait to assemble the salad.)

Nutrition