Cookin’ With Hoss: Texas Caviar

It’s just around the corner. Yes, the summer soiree season is coming right up, and you can’t do anything about it, so you might as well be prepared. There will be numerous invitations to get-togethers coming in, many of which you will be expected to bring a dish to contribute to the communal table. 

What to bring? You don’t want to be the person who brings the tub of pre-packaged grocery store deli salad, or even worse, a bag of chips. Potato salad or coleslaw are dependable options, but if there’s mayo in the recipe, there’s the issue of refrigeration and maintaining the correct temperature to avoid being the one responsible for everyone’s gastrointestinal discomfort — so that’s probably not the best choice.  

What are good options? What is visually appealing, tasty, not mundane — and not potentially hazardous? 

In the many years that we had Hoss’s Market, we came up with a substantial repertoire of recipes for side dishes to satisfy these criteria — with many hits and a few misses — to avoid being too redundant for catering jobs. One of the more popular items that we served is great as an appetizer with chips or as a side dish. The heat level can be adjusted to your taste by increasing or decreasing the amount of jalapeño peppers, and it is safe to put on a table and not be too concerned about the serving temperature (although it should be kept refrigerated until serving time).   

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Texas Caviar

Ingredients

• Four 14 oz cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed 
• Four 14 oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed
  (The beans and black-eyed peas need to be rinsed thoroughly or the result will have a cloudy appearance) 
• 3 cups fresh or frozen corn 
• 3 cups seeded and chopped fresh tomatoes 
• 1 cup chopped red pepper 
• 1-1/2 cup chopped red onion 
• 1 cup chopped cilantro 
• 1 cup seeded and diced fresh jalapeños

Dressing 

• 2/3 cup olive oil 
• 3 tsp honey
• 3 tsp raspberry red wine vinegar 
• 3 tsp lime juice 
• 1/8 cup minced fresh garlic 
• 2-1/2 tsp Hoss’s Southwest seasoning

Instructions

1. Mix the veggies together.
2. Whisk together the dressing ingredients.
3. Toss it all together.

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Jim “Hoss” Koetting is a retired restaurateur/chef who enjoys gardening, good food, good bourbon, and good friends.