Type | salad or dip |
---|---|
Place of origin | United States |
Region or state | Texas |
Associated cuisine | American cuisine |
Created by | Helen Corbitt |
Main ingredients | |
Ingredients generally used | |
Similar dishes |
|
Texas caviar, also called cowboy caviar,[1][2][3][4] is a bean salad consisting of black-eyed peas lightly pickled in a vinaigrette-style dressing, often eaten as a dip accompaniment to tortilla chips.[5][6]
Texas caviar was created in the U.S. state of Texas around 1940 by Helen Corbitt, a native New Yorker who later became director of food service for the Zodiac Room at Neiman Marcus in Dallas, Texas.[7][8] She first served the dish on New Year's Eve at the Houston Country Club. When she later served it at the Driskill Hotel in Austin, Texas, it was given its name, "Texas caviar," as a humorous comparison to true caviar, an expensive hors d'oeuvre of salt-cured fish roe.[9]
In addition to black-eyed peas and a piquant dressing, the dip can be modified by adding black beans, alliums like red onion, scallions, and garlic, hot or mild peppers, tomato, cilantro, corn, and spices like cumin and coriander.[10][11][12]
((cite web))
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
She pickled the peas in a vinaigrette marinade and served them for New Year's Eve at the Houston Country Club. Only later, when she took her pickled black-eyed peas to Austin's Driskill Hotel, did the dish get the nickname of Texas Caviar.