Cowboy Caviar is a sunny bean and corn salad that is begging for an invite to a barbecue bonanza. This scaled up side dish is a nutritious mix of bitey beans, smoky corn, vibrant red bell peppers and tomatoes with a subtle chilli kick, and lightly liquored with a simple homemade dressing.
Love it. But now can you make it hot? And cheesy? Yes, ma’am! Smoked cheddar Southwestern dip is a hot, cheesy, bean and corn combo giving all the Southern comfort. Until it’s barbecue weather.
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Bean and corn dip
Crowd-pleasing Cowboy Caviar, aka Texas Caviar, is the dish I always take to summertime potluck parties. It’s vegan, gluten-free and because it’s loaded with grilled corn and red peppers, most kids will eat it too.
What’s more it’s heavy on the beans which means it’s protein packed and plant-rich. I’ve used a mix of 3 different kinds of bean; black beans for creaminess, pinto for earthiness, and black-eyed peas (yes, they are a bean) for nuttiness.
Beans themselves are pretty mild in flavour, so I’ve ramped things up with lots of impactful vegetables; sweet red bell peppers, acidic tomatoes, tangy red onion and garlic, spicy jalapenos, and flowery coriander.
You can customise your caviar with any variations you prefer, for example different types of beans or coloured peppers, fresh or canned corn, with or without tomatoes. The sheriff and deputy here are beans and corn, so they ain’t goin’ nowhere.
And dressing. Lots of recipes suggest an Italian dressing; lemon, honey, herbs, as well as the usual oil and vinegar. I’ve kept it way simpler with just oil, vinegar and a teaspoon of mustard. I’ve already used lots of cilantro and I genuinely love the flavours of salad vegetables so I don’t want to drown them with a complex dressing.
Recipe tips and notes
- This straight-shooting recipe could not be simpler. My main tip though is to dice everything evenly so each mouthful gets a good, balanced mix of ingredients.
- You can totally customise your cowboy caviar. For example, rather than using canned corn, I grilled corn on the cobs for a smoky suggestion of campfire.
- The classic recipe doesn’t contain tomatoes either, feel free to take them or leave them.
- And avocado- I avoid it and would actively discourage including them! The reason is they turn brown fast, so if you’re taking this bean and corn dip to an event it will have gone from colourful to khaki quickly. Not a good look.
- Herbs are kind of my signature. And this dish is brimming with clean and soapy cilantro. I cannot get enough of that flavour! You can dial the quantity back if you’re less keen or cut it loose completely.
- Lastly, I use dressing fairly sparingly. All those bursting, fresh flavours shouldn’t be drowned in oil and vinegar. I only used ¾ of the dressing I made and kept the rest for another day. However, it’s your salad, hombre, use as much as you darn please.
Serving suggestions
This bean and corn salad is as lively as a bucking bronco and goes beautifully with meat straight off the grill like homemade beef burgers or chicken burgers, summer party mojito grilled chicken thighs, or chicken souvlaki. Oh, how I am longing for barbecue season! But it’s just not reached the UK yet.
So far this year, all the outdoor parties I’ve been invited to have ended up indoor parties. But fortunately, this chunky dip is just as content beside a baked potato, cozying up to a quesadilla, or tucked up with a pulled pork taco.
Or just dive right in with a tortilla chip!
Storage and leftovers
Party, picnic or potluck, get prepared by putting together this bean and corn salad a day ahead. Store it in an airtight container, one that’s good to travel if you’re guesting rather than hosting, and refrigerate. Keep the dressing separate for now and pour over just before serving.
NB: I wouldn’t give this salad more than 2 days in the fridge as the red onion will begin to taint the other ingredients.
More salad recipes to try:
- Garden Salad
- Dill Potato Salad Recipe
- Israeli Salad with Lemon Garlic Tahini Dressing
- Roasted Summer Vegetable Salad with Nuts and Seeds
Cowboy Caviar
Ingredients
- 3 ears of corn, grilled or 1 ½ cup canned corn
- 1 can (400g / 14oz) black beans drained
- 1 can (400g / 14oz) black-eyed peas or pinto beans drained or a mix of both
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 3-4 small tomatoes seeded and diced
- 1 small red onion
- 1 jalapeño chilli pepper seeded and diced
- 1 cup cilantro (coriander) chopped
- 1-2 small clove garlic minced
For the dressing
- 3 tbsp red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
- 80ml / ⅓ cup This is an affiliate link.olive oil
- 1 tsp This is an affiliate link.Dijon mustard
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Grill the corn until slightly charred on the out side and the kernels are cooked all the way through. This will take about 10 minutes. Let it cool completely, then cut the kernels off the cob.
- In a large bowl combine the grilled corn, drained black beans, drained black-eyed peas or pinto beans (or a mix of the two), diced bell red pepper, seeded and diced tomatoes, diced red onion, seeded and diced jalapeño pepper, chopped cilantro leaves and 2 cloves minced garlic.
- To make the dressing combine the red wine vinegar, olive oil, dijon mustard and a pinch of salt and pepper in a mason jar, twist a lid on and shake well until emulsified.
- Dress the salad with half of the vinaigrette and mix to combine, taste and add more if needed. Store leftover dressing in the fridge.
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