Typical Costa Rican meals is unquestionably not probably the most thrilling delicacies on the planet. Actually, many individuals could even go so far as calling conventional Costa Rican meals unmemorable, boring, and bland. This isn’t shocking because the Costa Rican food regimen consists primarily of two staples: rice and beans.
“How can they eat rice and beans daily, thrice a day?” – I requested earlier than my journey to Costa Rica.
“Simply wait until you strive them; you then’ll perceive,” – I used to be advised.
Sooner or later into my Costa Rican journey and three rice and beans meals later, all of it made sense! I used to be hooked on typical Costa Rican meals.
Inside an area’s restaurant in San Jose
Conventional Costa Rican Meals
Over the following two weeks, I needed to drive myself to department away from probably the most well-known Costa Rican meals, rice and beans. I completely needed to strive a number of the different conventional meals. The meals in Costa Rica is recent, and there’s such a spread!
So, in case you are interested by what meals is like in Costa Rica, listed below are the eight that made my record of must-try, typical Costa Rican meals.
Gallo Pinto
They are saying, “There may be nothing extra Tico (the time period for native Costa Rican) than Gallo Pinto, “and it’s true. Most days start with a plate of Gallo Pinto, the nationwide dish, consisting of Costa Rican rice and beans sautéed with garlic, onions, and cilantro, typically served with 1-2 fried or scrambled eggs and a sausage on the aspect.
If you wish to eat Gallo Pinto like a real native, you need to pour some Lizano salsa over your rice and beans and benefit from the meal with a cup of freshly brewed Costa Rican espresso (sadly, ingesting tea shouldn’t be part of Costa Rican tradition).
Relying on the place you might be if you go to Costa Rica, you may see a slight variation within the recipe. Alongside the Caribbean coast, you may see Gallo Pinto with both black or crimson beans, with some cooking the beans in coconut milk. Different areas favor a spicier model, which is usually served with bitter cream to mood the warmth.
Costa Rican Gallo Pinto
Casado
At meal time, locals savor one other standard meals, a standard Costa Rican dish referred to as Casado. Casado is an ideal mixture of rice, beans, fried plantains (a kind of not-sweet banana), cabbage and tomato salad, and a bit of fish/meat. You’ll discover a easy model of Casado in each native restaurant (often called a Costa Rican “Soda”) and perhaps a barely totally different interpretation on the eating places catering to vacationers.
When getting ready Casado, Costa Ricans all the time prepare dinner extra rice and beans than they want for the meal and use leftovers to whip up an ideal Gallo Pinto the following morning. Sure, to scrumptious leftovers as a Costa Rican breakfast!
Costa Rican Casado at a Soda
Costa Rican Casado at a Western Restaurant
Olla de Carne
When you’re within the temper for consolation meals, you possibly can’t go fallacious with Olla de Carne, a Costa Rican beef stew made with beef, a wide range of greens, and a tasty broth. Translating to ‘meat pot’, this typical dish is historically slow-cooked in giant clay pots to permit loads of time for the meat to grow to be tender.
This conventional beef and vegetable stew is made with native substances like candy potatoes, plantains, yucca, and chayote squash, however you’ll see many variations of it relying on what is out there. In houses, Olla de Carne is usually ready for Sunday dinner, as it’s meant to prepare dinner slowly and serve a lot of folks. You possibly can normally discover it in sodas all through Costa Rica, nevertheless it may solely be obtainable on sure days.
Sopa Negra
For many who favor a vegetable-based soup, Sopa Negra is a well-liked Costa Rican black bean soup that may be ready with a vegan recipe. Historically, this soup has a base of rooster broth and is garnished with hard-boiled eggs, however you’ll find variations which might be fully vegan.
There are additionally regional variations of Sopa Negra that embody meat like pork or rooster, root greens, and a various degree of spice. It’s sometimes served with white rice and/or tortillas and may be present in most neighborhood sodas.
Ceviche
Not only a typical Costa Rican meals however a seafood dish standard within the coastal areas of each Central and South America. Ceviche is constituted of uncooked fish cooked in lime/lemon juice with onion, cilantro, salt, pepper, and different non-obligatory substances like bell peppers, celery, and tomatoes. As one of many extra standard Costa Rican recipes, it’s served as an appetizer and eaten with salt crackers or plantain chips.
The great thing about ceviche is that it has so many variations in Costa Rican delicacies, and every one tastes barely totally different than the opposite. There may be crimson snapper ceviche, tuna ceviche, Mahi Mahi ceviche, marlin ceviche. In addition to a mixture of shrimp, octopus, clams, ceviche, and plenty of extra!
When you like seafood, we assure you received’t get bored with having this standard Costa Rican meals with each meal!
Ceviche at Bar Amigos in Santa Elena, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Costa Rican white fish Ceviche
Costa Rican Tamales
With regards to conventional Costa Rican meals, Tamales tops the snack chart as probably the most conventional and scrumptious. Tamale is a dish fabricated from masa (a starchy corn-based dough) blended with greens, meats, and/or cheese, which is steamed or boiled in a banana leaf as one of the vital cherished Costa Rican snacks.
When able to be consumed, tamales are opened, seasoned with Lizano salsa, and eaten with a fork or by hand. This scrumptious Costa Rican meals is notably standard over the festive season, so look out for tamales when touring to Costa Rica round Christmas time. There could also be higher occasions to go to Costa Rica, however Tamales make the vacation time value it!
Costa Rican Tamale served within the banana leaf wrap.
Chicharrónes
Chicharrónes should not only a standard Costa Rican meals. They’re standard throughout all of Latin America. Chicharrónes are a snack meals and basically deep-fried pork rinds, the pores and skin a part of the pork, served with lime juice, fried yucca, and/or cabbage salad.
There may be completely nothing wholesome about them, and so they in all probability carry little or no dietary worth, however these crispy, crackly, juicy pork bits are a depraved deal with that’s inconceivable to withstand. You possibly can by no means have only one, so no surprise it ranks as one of many extra standard meals in Costa Rica.
Chicharrónes are sometimes offered at native fiestas or exterior of a Costa Rican Soda. You’ll typically discover this merchandise on a menu at Western eating places, however they’re by no means nearly as good there, so preserve your eyes peeled for them on the streets of Costa Rica.
A plate of chicharrones served with salad and salsa.
Carne Asada
Carne Asada is Spanish for roasted or grilled meat (particularly beef). Usually consumed as a late night time snack but in addition served as a dinner principal, Carne Asada is one other typical Costa Rican meals. It’s typically eaten with tortillas together with different native favorites like black beans, onions, guacamole, and so forth.
Pollo and
Carne Asada on the grill in Tamarindo, Costa Rica
Tres Leches Cake
Tres Leches cake actually interprets into “Three Milks”, and is a well-liked conventional Costa Rican dessert. Tres Leches is a sponge cake/butter cake soaked in three sorts of milk: evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream for over three hours.
The cake is then saved within the fridge till it is able to be consumed. Relying on the recipe Tres Leches cake may additionally include an extra layer of whipped cream and a garnish on high. It’s spongy, it’s candy, and it’s scrumptious!
Costa Rican Tres Leches
Arroz con Leche
A standard Costa Rican rice pudding, Arroz con Leche is made with rice, sweetened condensed milk, sugar, vanilla, and many cinnamon. This candy dessert is a favourite meals all all through Latin America, with totally different locales including substances to create their distinctive recipes. You may discover it with pineapple, raisins, and nuts – the variations are infinite.
This dessert is served both scorching or chilly and is finest loved with a cup of Costa Rica’s fantastic espresso or Agua Dulce, a standard scorching drink made with unbleached, unrefined sugarcane. When you’ve got an opportunity to strive Agua Dulce, don’t skip it!
Chifrijo
You’ll discover scrumptious bowls of Chifrijos in cantinas (bars) throughout the nation. With some locals declare that guests to Costa Rica haven’t actually skilled the nation till they dine on this typical Costa Rican meals.
The naked bones of the standard dish is a mixture of chicharron, beans, chile, and chimichurri. Then topped with a chef’s selection of pico de gallo, avocado, cabbage, and tortilla chips. And, in fact, as certainly one of our favourite Costa Rican dishes, Chifrijos should be accompanied by a refreshing beer. They’re cantina staples in any case!
A hearty bowl of Chifrijo. Photograph by Raul Alvarez by way of Flickr CC.
Patacones
One other standard Costa Rican snack is patacones, that are fried plantains served with floor beans and chimichurri. Inexperienced plantains are minimize into rounds, fried till softened, then flattened into disks and fried once more. This may sound like a greasy mess, however they’re completely scrumptious and satisfying.
They’re normally served alongside a protein like beans or ceviche or as an accompaniment to conventional dishes with roasted meats or fish. Plantains fried on this manner aren’t distinctive to Costa Rica; you’ll find them all through the Caribbean and Latin America, simply referred to as by a distinct title.
Stir Fried Beef Patacones with Stew
Empanadas
These hand-held snacks are good for street journeys or picnics and may be present in bakeries, meals vans, and neighborhood sodas throughout Costa Rica. These handmade pockets of dough are stuffed with both candy or savory substances, then fried or baked to a golden brown.
The candy and savory variations are normally made with several types of dough – the candy empanadas sometimes have a pastry dough, whereas the savory variations use a cornmeal-based dough. There are infinite variations to the fillings in empanadas, together with vegan and vegetarian choices like beans, potatoes, or fruit.
Chorreadas
Generally discovered at festivals and meals stands, chorreadas are corn pancakes which have comparable substances to corn tortillas. On this case, recent corn and milk are used, leading to a richer taste and cakey texture.
Chorreadas may be made to be candy or savory. Candy corn pancakes are normally topped with honey and eaten for breakfast, whereas savory variations can have cheese, onion, and recent herbs blended in with the batter. When you’ve got an opportunity to do that standard road meals, don’t miss it! Usually, they’re made to order, so they’re splendidly scorching and recent.
A visit to Costa Rica wouldn’t be full with out making an attempt conventional Costa Rican meals! If you are there, give them a go… you can be glad you probably did. So, when you have been questioning what sort of meals to strive in Costa Rica, we hope this offers you a good suggestion of conventional Costa Rican delicacies to strive as you journey.