Texas Caviar for Summertime Entertaining
Texas Caviar combines black-eyed peas, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and cilantro for a light yet substantial summer dip or salad.
Texas Caviar just may be the perfect summer recipe. Making it won’t heat up your kitchen since there’s no cooking required, it’s low in fat and high in protein, and keeps well in the fridge for several days.
You can make just enough for your family, or easily multiply the recipe for a crowd. And it has loads of everyone’s favorite southwestern flavors – jalapeno, lime, and cilantro! Plus all the chopping and dicing is great knife skills practice.
You’ll want to keep this vintage southern recipe handy all summer for your cookouts and pool parties.
According to Saveur, the recipe was invented by Texax cook Helen Corbitt in 1940. It’s really just a black-eyed pea salad and everybody and their cousin has a different recipe for it. I’m sharing mine today.
How to Make Texas Caviar
Like most simple salad recipes, the directions are brief. Toss all the ingredients together in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate to give the flavors time to develop. Great to make the day before your party and pull out when your guests arrive.
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Check out more southern comfort food recipes!
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Texas Caviar
Ingredients
- 29 ounces canned black-eyed peas rinsed and well drained
- 3 plum tomatoes diced
- 1 medium white onion finely diced
- 3 green onions finely chopped
- ¼ cup green bell pepper finely diced
- 2 jalapenos finely diced
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- juice of 2 limes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Tortilla or corn chips (for serving)
Instructions
- Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl.
- Cover and refrigerate for several hours to allow the flavors to blend.
- Serve with tortilla or corn chips.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your health care provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
Absolutely delicious, I used dry black eyed peas.
Very economical if you have the time!
I’ve made this several times this summer and everyone loved it! The lime juice in this recipe tastes so much better than the bottled Italian dressing.
Thanks Linda! I like the lime juice, too :-) Very fresh tasting.
I can eat a ton of this, love it!
I LOVE Texas caviar! Friends bring it to potlucks all the time here in Austin. I’ve never made it myself, though. Great recipe, Lana!
This looks absolutely yum-my!
Texas Caviar is Great thanks for the recipe.
Growing up in Texas, I have had many a bite of Texas caviar. It is always a favorite at parties…yours looks terrific.
I, too, love Texas caviar – and it’s what I make for New Years to carry on the blackeyed peas tradition of good luck!
I often make this when I am expecting a group of folks. And, leftovers are wonderful on a bed of shredded lettuce as a salad the next day. Take care.
Miss P
Yep – you can also serve it on a slice of toasted baguette almost like bruschetta. Or as a dip with chips. Or, as you say, in a salad. Very versatile! I know some people use a bottled Italian dressing in this recipe, but I prefer the fresh lime juice and olive oil. Which do you do?
Don’t tell anybody, but I don’t use either. The fresh taste of the tomatoes, paired with the other veggies and a little salt, pepper and other seasoning, has enough kick to carry the dish. Again, don’t tell anybody.
Miss P
I was JUST introduced to this last summer and I LOVE it. And I was thinking of making it this weekend and then I saw this. Fate.
Well, you absolutely MUST make it this weekend for sure! Hope you enjoy it.
I love Texas Caviar and your recipe looks great!
I love this stuff. Well I have loved it I should say but haven’t made it in years so thanks for the reminder!
Seems like I’m always reminding you of something from the past, Barb. I kinda like that :-)