I tried a TikTok-famous recipe for 'cowboy caviar,' and I already know how I'd make it even better next time

Cowboy caviar has been popular on TikTok, and I wanted to see what all the hype was about.

Cowboy caviar has been having a moment on TikTok. The tag currently has over 10 billion views, and various users are testing out their own spins on the recipe.

Sometimes referred to as Texas caviar, the dip is similar to either bean salad or salsa depending on how it's made. Cowboy caviar was coined in Texas in the 1940s, but it's similar to different traditional dips and side dishes from Hispanic and Latine cuisines. 

It usually includes black-eyed peas — whose spots can resemble caviar — but the ingredients are pretty customizable.

I turned to Taste of Home's written version of a recipe from TikToker Bria Lemirande (@brialem) since her video didn't list out measurements for every ingredient. 

 

The recipe calls for a ton of ingredients.

With roughly 20 ingredients, it's a hefty recipe. But it's customizable.

This worked out for me when things went wrong along the way — like discovering the mango I bought was severely underripe.

The recipe has a good balance of fresh foods, like bell peppers, red onion, and jalapeños, and canned items, like black beans, pinto beans, and sliced olives.

It took a long time to chop and prepare all of the ingredients.

I didn't time myself, but cutting four bell peppers, an onion, two jalapeños, four ears of corn, an avocado, and cheese took a while. Plus, I spent time cooking the corn to get a bit of a char.

I also had to drain and rinse all the canned goods and measure out ingredients to whip up a homemade dressing.

It probably took about 45 minutes to get all of my ingredients in place.

When I figured out my mango wasn't ripe, I tried to pivot, and I've seen Lemirande sub in peaches. I didn't have fresh peaches, but I had homemade peach preserves on hand.

I put a few generous tablespoons of that into the dressing at the last minute, which was a perfect addition for sweetness.

I also decided to sub the feta for cotija cheese, which I thought would taste better.

Once everything is prepped, it comes together quickly.

After cooking the corn, chopping the veggies, and whisking together the dressing, actually assembling the cowboy caviar was easy.

I dumped all the peppers, onions, beans, and olives into my stand-mixer bowl (the biggest one I had) and added the cotija cheese. 

Once these ingredients were thoroughly combined, I mixed in the dressing, put some of the dip into a bowl, and topped it with half of an avocado.

The recipe made a ton of cowboy caviar.

I knew this recipe would have a high yield, but I was surprised by just how much it made.

I had multiple containers' worth, which means I'll be eating this all week and sharing it with just about everyone I know.

It's a good option for meal-prepping or a potluck, but I don't know that I'd make it again for just myself.

The final product was slightly sweet and spicy.

My final product reminded me more of a bean salad than salsa. Because of this, it was good on tortilla chips and delicious on its own.

I also think it would be good on avocado toast, over lettuce to make a salad, or with eggs for a filling breakfast.

I also decided to test my cowboy caviar against a jar from Trader Joe's to see if making it myself is worth the effort.

Trader Joe's cowboy caviar is a popular salsa from the chain, so I was excited to try it.

I opened the jar and noticed it was very thick with a spicy smell.

It took a lot of vigorous shaking to get any of the salsa to pour out into a dish.

The store-bought version had a much stronger flavor.

I thought Trader Joe's cowboy caviar was both sweeter and spicier than the homemade version, and it kind of tasted like a hot barbecue sauce to me.

It was good, but I liked that I could taste the fresh ingredients in the homemade version. 

It was challenging to compare the two, really. They had quite different flavors and textures, despite having a handful of common ingredients.

Additionally, I don't know how I'd enjoy the Trader Joe's dip outside of eating it with tortilla chips or veggies. The homemade "caviar," in comparison, seemed much more versatile. 

Next time, I'll add some of the Trader Joe's salsa to my homemade cowboy caviar and make a smaller batch.

I loved the flavor of my homemade cowboy caviar, but I wish I added more sweet and spicy ingredients.

The store-bought dip definitely had stronger flavors, but I missed the fresh taste of the beans and peppers.

As an experiment, I took a chip and loaded it up with both cowboy caviars.

Although it might be a hassle to make a huge batch and run to Trader Joe's, I thought combining the two made an amazing dip full of flavor.