40 - Costa Rica

The Republic of Costa Rica is in Central America.

It is bordered by Nicaragua, Panama, the Caribbean Sea to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It has a population of around 5 million. It is a long standing democratic country and the people are highly educated as the government spends 6.9% of its budget on education compared to most countries who only spend 4.4%.

Costa Rica was inhabited by indigenous people before being ruled by the Spanish during the 16th century. It finally became independent again in 1847. In 1949 Costa Rica abolished its army and is one of only a few countries that still do not have an army!   

Costa Rican cuisine is influenced mainly by Native American, African and Spanish traditions. Dishes like tamale are very traditional having been originally made by indigenous people, the Spanish introduced spices and meat from livestock. The 19th century saw influences from Africa and the Caribbean.

For our Costa Rican meal we decided to make their national dish Gallo Pinto, peas and rice (literal translation is spotted rooster). It is usually served for breakfast but can be eaten at every meal. 

We had our Granddaughters staying with us and so we decided to make our Costa Rican meal for brunch.

To accompany the Gallo Pinto we made scrambled eggs, fried plantain, avocado and corn tortilla.

To make the Gallo Pinto first saute the peppers, onions and garlic.

Then add the black beans

Everything is stirred together with something called Salsa Lizano.
We couldn't find it anywhere but apparently you can substitute Worcestershire sauce or HP sauce, so we did!

Sprinkle over chopped coriander/cilantro leaves.

Finally add the rice and some liquid.

We had two helpers to make the corn tortillas.

The tortillas are made from corn flour and water

Make into small balls

and flatten them using the tortilla press.

Then dry fry until cooked

They can be kept warm until the rest of the meal is ready.

Serving the scrambled egg.

We also had avocado, sour cream (made from Greek yoghurt and lemon juice) and fried plantain

The final meal.

The Verdict

It was ok!

The avocado and scrambled eggs disappeared very quickly. 

The children weren't as keen on eating the corn tortillas as they had been making them, we have them quite often so were used to the taste. The rice was interesting, I think it will go well with some chilli during another meal. We probably won't make it again though.