Cowboy caviar is a great dip or snack for any occasion. Whether it be a potluck, cookout, picnic, party, or just sitting on the couch and binge watching your favorite new show.
A simple dip that can be ready in just 15 minutes. And easily made in a time crunch too which we all love.
I discovered cowboy caviar when I was much younger. My mom had brought home some from one of her clients for us to try. We were instantly obsessed.
It is a delicious summery vegetable dip. And it’s vegan to boot. Kind of like a pico de gallo, it is made with fresh tomatoes and peppers. However it differs with the addition of beans and fresh summer corn.
For the love of corn
Always go for the freshest corn and use it the day that you buy it. The corn stays sweeter that way. Every day after an ear of corn is picked, the sugars break down more and more into starches which lessen the sweetness of the corn. So get to that flavor while it lasts!
Now remember to save those corn cobs! You can use them to make my corn stock and use it in plenty of other recipes as a stock replacement. Then you can taste that sweet summer corn flavor further into the year.
Now a lot of people will like to add avocado to their cowboy caviar to which I say, “go for it!” Just cut it small and bean sized pieces. I only omit it from my own recipes for allergy reasons.
A side note:
Latex allergies are more common in food than you know. So if you happen to be allergic to latex and wonder why some foods make you feel not right, it could be that. The foods with the highest levels of natural latex are avocado, kiwi, chestnuts, and banana. So always be aware of what you are eating.
Cowboy Caviar
A good place to start with this recipe is to drain and rinse your beans. This way, they have time to dry off from the excess water after rinsing. Next dice your tomatoes, onions, and peppers into small bean sized pieces. Then set them aside in a medium sized metal bowl.
Now cut your corn from the cob (if you are using fresh corn) by laying it down on the cutting board length wise and slice off the kernels. This will give you a flat side to roll the corn onto for the next few cuts to be much easier. Also, by cutting it this way instead of standing it up and cutting down, the kernels tend not to go flying every which way.
Once the corn has been removed from the cob, break it up into individual kernels over the other vegetables.
Next, mince your garlic very finely chiffonade your cilantro and add both to the bowl.
Cowboy caviar dressing:
Now, juice and zest your lime and mix in your olive oil, vinegar, salt, sugar, and pepper together in a bowl and pour over the veggies.
Finally give it all a good toss and let everything marinate for 5 minutes. This will help the sugars and acids to marry with all of the flavors.
Get some tortilla chips or a spoon and devour! I only say spoon because sometimes it’s quicker to grab to get there before everyone else and if you don’t, it will be gone.
Cowboy Caviar
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 large tomato
- 1 white onion
- 2 15 ounce can of beans of your choice unsalted I like to use 2 15oz cans of different beans sometimes
- 2 ears fresh summer corn you may replace this with 1 1/2 cups thawed frozen corn
- 1 bell pepper
- 1/3 cup cilantro chiffonade
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 lime
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper may be replaced with black
Instructions
- A good place to start with this recipe is to drain and rinse your beans. This way, they have time to dry off from the excess water after rinsing. Next dice your tomatoes, onions, and peppers into small bean sized pieces. Set them aside in a medium sized metal bowl.
- Cut your corn from the cob (if you are using fresh corn) by laying it down on the cutting board length wise and slice off the kernels. This will give you a flat side to roll the corn onto for the next few cuts to be much easier. Also, by cutting it this way instead of standing it up and cutting down, the kernels tend not to go flying every which way. Once the corn has been removed from the cob, break it up into individual kernels over the other vegetables.
- Mince your garlic very finely. Chiffonade your cilantro. Add both to the bowl.
- Juice and zest your lime into a small dish.
- Mix your olive oil, vinegar, salt, sugar, pepper, lime zest, and lime juice together in a bowl and pour over the veggies.
- Give it all a good toss and let everything marinate for 5 minutes. This will help the sugars and acids to marry with all of the flavors.
Comments
One response to “Cowboy Caviar for A Crowd or the Couch”
Thanks. Sounds yummy. I hope to make some this weekend for the Bergene family gathering.