Costa Rican Food Is Amazing And Here Is Why

Costa Rican food was not something we had a clear picture of.

When you think of typical Italian food, for example, several dishes pop into your mind, right? Same goes for Indian or food in Barcelona.

Or Mexican food - wait! That one requires a whole blogpost coming up somewhere in the next few weeks because we just went to Central Mexico. And we tasted stuff we didn't see in Mexican cuisine AT ALL.

But that's a whole other topic!

Costa Rican food is yummy! That is, if you like rice and beans. Because there are loads of dishes involving these two main ingredients.

But fear not! Even for rice-with-beans-haters, Costa Rica has lots to offer in terms of food!

Get to know Costa Rican food, the dishes you have to taste and where you can find the best versions of them!

Read also | 10 days in Costa Rica itinerary for epic trips

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Costa Rica in a nutshell (pun intended)

Costa Rica's resources influencing their cuisine

These conditions, meaning the proximity to other countries and cultures, a mix of indigenous and Spanish influences, a rich flora and access to resources are a good basis for developing a diversified cuisine.

Costa Rican tap-water

Another element that is crucial for cooking and that actually surprised us the most is this: tap-water in the cities is actually drinkable! We only learned this on the spot.

I must admit, our research on the country beforehand was quite limited and so we just assumed that Costa Rica was like any other country in Latin America in terms of drinking water.

It's not! The water is safe to drink thanks to numerous fresh water ressources and a rather good water sanitation system. At least in the cities. It's a whole other story in very rural areas.

The basics of Costa Rican food

The main ingredients

Rice & beans

Rice.

And beans.

That's what you get with pretty much every 'traditional' dish in Costa Rica. And we're not only talking lunch and dinner, no.

Breakfast as well. I kid you not.

And while as a visitor, you are obviously free to choose something else and you might think the ticos* would be tired of rice and beans... well, they're not. 

We actually saw lots of Costa Rican's enjoying their gallo pinto for breakfast every morning. Read on to know what the heck I'm talking about.

*tico or tica is what a Costa Rican calls him-/herself because of their particular use of diminutives in Spanish by adding '-tico' to a word instead of 'ito'.

But naturally, there are lots of other breakfast options if you're not in the mood for the rice&beans combo.

Fruits & vegetables

As I previously said, Costa Rica's rich fauna obviously influenced the food. It's a very green country with a climate that favours tropical fruit and vegetables to grow amazingly well.  

The plantain

To be honest: never thought I would crave green plantain one day! It's really not part of our European diet!

Plantain is actually a variation of the banana. The main differences are that it's slightly bigger and a little less sweet than banana. 

Especially when it's still green - that's the one they use to make patacones: they look like thick chips made of smashed, flattened and refried plantain. Usually served with dips (yes, bean dips mostly), guacamole or simply as a side-dish.

Cilantro

Ughh. I HATE cilantro! I do!

Apparently there's a scientific reason for it. Just google it! It has something to do with the DNA why some people love cilantro and others don't. 

To us who DON'T like it, it takes like soap. Or like the Greek meaning of the word 'coriander' (yes, cilantro and coriander are the exact same plant): unwashed sheets.

But yes, cilantro or coriander is very present in Costa Rican food. Luckily, it's just put on top of the dish most of the times. 

If not, I have to stop breathing through the nose and just swallow it haha. They love to put it in the cabbage-salad, for example. A very popular side-dish.

So if you hate it like I do: yes, it's there. No, you can't escape it. But yes, the food still tastes delicious!

Pico de gallo

Pico de gallo is actually considered a 'sauce' with cubed tomatoes, onions, vinegar and cilantro. It's served either as a side-sauce or on top of dishes.

Protein sources

Vegans, be warned. If you mean to taste the traditional, authentic Costa Rican food, there's hardly anything vegan or even vegetarian.

Ticos love their meat. The most common ones are pork and beef along with chicken and fish.

Especially on the Caribbean side, fish is like the main ingredient. So be aware of that.

It's not impossible, however, to find vegan restaurants. Like I said in the introduction, the country is very modern, well developed and enjoys a mix of cultures. So there are plenty of vegan options.

But the typical Costa Rican meals, no. They're definitely not vegan.

The typical dishes you'll mostly get everywhere

Costa Rica's most popular dish: casado

The 'married man'

Okay, what's that now?

Doesn't casado mean 'married'? It sure does! 

It's typically served for lunch and is the most inexpensive meal in Costa Rican restaurants. The name stems from the fact that this is what the tica would pack for her husband as a lunch when he went out to work in the fields.

The main ingredients - who'd have though? - are rice and beans with a protein source that is either pork, beef, chicken or fish. Unlike the gallo pinto, rice and beans are served separately.

It's mostly accompanied by fried sweet plantain, cabbage salad (or any kind of salad), cheese and/or tortillas. Sometimes pico de gallo (I explain that one below).

Casados every day

This was actually Sebi's favourite dish in Costa Rica: inexpensive, very filling and tasty. He had this almost every day!

As the protein source generally varies and the preparation depends on the cook (with or without cabbage salad, more spices, added vegetables, etc.) it never got boring.

Me? Well, having rice and beans for breakfast was enough for me to not have that again during the day...

Where to find casados?

Basically everywhere. But mostly in what they call sodas which are smaller restaurants with generally a more limited menu.

Casado will most likely always be the cheapest dish you'll find.

Rice & chicken

Another popular dish would be arroz con pollo: rice with chicken. In this case, the rice is generally fried and seasoned. All served with vegetables and spices as well as typical sauces to add more flavour.

This was another one of Sebi's favourite dishes - he just loves rice!

Fish & seafood

Depending where you are, fish and seafood are really popular. 

You will find lots of Ceviche, a dish with raw fish and seafood cooked in lemon juice with onions, garlic, cilantro and chiles.

Meaty dishes

Alright, here are a few dishes we absolutely wanted to try but it's not something we will likely be eating a lot.

Chicharrón

Chicharrón is fried pork. But not necessarily fried meat but fried pork-belly. It gets really crispy and I must admit it was quite tasty. 

It's just that after a few bites my stomach had enough as it's really greasy.

You can get them separately as chips or as part of a dish (read on).

Chifrijo

A chifrijo is the combination of chicharrón and frijoles, beans. It's served with rice and pico de gallo in a bowl with tortilla chps.

This is one of the  most typical Costa Rican foods.

Vigorón

This is originally from neighbour Nicaragua but is also very popular in Costa Rican food. 

Vigorón is chopped cabbage with tomatoes, onions with chili pepper and vinegar. They add Yuca (cooked) and crispy chicharrónes to round it up. It's usually wrapped in a banana leaf but we had it served in a bowl.

Snacks you'll find everywhere

Empañadas

These are little corn pockets filled with meat, cheese or vegetables. Much like the ones you find in Mexico.

Fried yuca

Yuca, also called cassava or manioc in other parts of the world, is a starchy root that resembles the potato in terms of texture. They are fried and served either as a snack or as a side-dish with the casado for example.

Read more | Driving in Costa Rica: useful tips and info

Influences from all of the world

While Costa Rican food has its own mark, it's not rare to find a combination of tico food with Japanese, Chinese or Italian influences.

Particularities of the Caribbean coast

The Caribbean coast is a very particular part of Costa Rica with lots of Jamaican and Afro-Caribbean influences.

Naturally, their food also differs.

While you do find the typical dishes in the form of casados, they are often served with 'Caribbean-style chicken' for example: marinated in coconut-milk and curry, flavours that are not especially tico.

They do the same with camarones (shrimps) or other seafood: cooked in coconut-milk and served with rice and beans - very tasty!

Beverages

Coffee

Duh! Costa Rica is famous for its coffee plantations! And yes, the coffee is really excellent wherever you go.

Except maybe in the capital San José, we were a little bit disappointed at times...

Fruit juices

They are delicious! Whether it's papaya, mango (so fresh!), guanábana or cas, they are usually freshly made and taste delicious!

Beer

Costa Rican food tastes even better with a good, cold beer! They have several micro-breweries but even their top-seller Imperial (in all variations) tasted really good.

Yes, we are beer-lovers.

Conclusion: Costa Rican food is amazing

Don't tell me you didn't get hungry while reading this post...

Sure, it's not vegan heaven or extremely varied. But it's tasty, filling and always made with the freshest ingredients.

Plus it's generally budget-friendly. That is, if you choose the local dishes.

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