Gallo Pinto-Costa Rica Style 

Living in Costa Rica means you must make adjustments especially in your menu. One key is in breakfast. Gallo Pinto is a big one. Wherever you go this dish is omnipresent. It is served with eggs or french toast or sausage or ham and/or a special cheese that is made here or all of the above and anything else you can think of. Even McDonald's serve it!

 

                                                       Recipe

Ingredients

2 tablespoons light-tasting oil (vegetable, mild olive, canola)

1 red bell pepper , chopped

1 small yellow onion , chopped

2 cloves garlic , minced

2 cups cooked black beans , in 3/4 cup reserved cooking liquid*

1/4 cup Salsa Lizano ****(Salsa Lizano is essential to this dish. It's available in some Latin markets or the international isle at the larger grocery stores.

3 cups cooked rice , preferably, day-old and refrigerated

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Sauté chopped bell pepper and onions until peppers are soft and onions are translucent, about 6-8 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.
• Add black beans, reserved cooking liquid, and Salsa Lizano, stirring to combine. Simmer for 5 minutes, until slightly thickened and little bit of the liquid is evaporated. Gently stir in cooked rice and cook until heated through and most of the liquid is absorbed, but not dry, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in chopped cilantro. Season to taste with additional Salsa Lizano (we added about a tablespoon extra).
  Total time for prep and cook is 30 minutes.

 

It is a mild dish with a lot of flavor and very filling for the stomach. I toss on a little Tabasco sauce to spice it up along with a light sprinkle of salt and pepper. They make a bread here that goes well with it but toast will work in a pinch.

 

They eat a hardy breakfast and a huge lunch here and very little, if any, at dinner. Although I have noticed that Chinese or pizza is their choice of food if they do eat dinner. And no, I don't believe that cat is used as the meat in the Chinese food. My stepfather would not eat Chinese due to this belief. 

 

One of my son-in-laws insists on having beans and rice (food staples here) at ever meal. 

 

So there you have it. If you visit Costa Rica you have a heads up on the breakfast favorites. The coffee is fantastic and don't worry, the water is safe to drink. I do it every day.