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Gallo Pinto

By July 16, 2016November 27th, 20169 Comments

Gallo Pinto Recipe Costa Rica

I’ll level with you; I’m currently missing my mom. She’s in Costa Rica for a few months this summer taking care of my grandfather. Even though I don’t live at home anymore, I’m still used to seeing her on a regular basis and lately I’ve seriously been craving some motherly home-cooked meals (no offense to your barbecue, Dad!)

Recently, I’ve been thinking back to whenever I was last in Costa Rica with her and I remembered how glorious it was to wake up to a plate of Gallo Pinto in the morning. My mom knows how much I love it, so she goes out of her way to make it when I’m there. She’s basically the best!

Gallo Pinto is a pretty traditional dish in Costa Rica. It’s simple, but delicious; being made up of mainly rice and beans. It’s also a typical dish in Nicaragua, but I’ve yet to visit there, so I can only speak to my Costa Rican experience. At my grandfather’s house we would typically have bread, coffee and fresh orange juice for breakfast, and reserve Gallo Pinto for the weekend or special occasions.

So, in honor of my mom and one of my favorite things to have for breakfast, I thought I would share this simple Gallo Pinto recipe so you can easily reproduce it at home! Since I’m usually just making it for myself, I don’t need a ton of the ingredients and take a few shortcuts. It’s not the most traditional way to make it, but it still tastes amazing and takes very little time!

Gallo Pinto Recipe Costa Rica

Here’s What You’ll Need:

  • 1 cup white rice
  • 1 15 oz. can Goya black beans
  • 1 white onion
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 1 egg
  • 1 bottle salsa lizano

Directions:

  1. Prepare the rice anyway you like! I use 2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice. I heat the water and rice together on medium-high until the water is almost all gone. Then I cover and simmer on low for about 15 minutes.
  2. Cut the onion and red bell pepper into small pieces. I used half of a medium onion and half of a red bell pepper. Sauté on medium until tender.
  3. Add the entire can of black beans to the onion and bell pepper mix. I like to add a packet of Goya cilantro and tomato seasoning! You can also add a tablespoon of Salsa Lizano at this point. Simmer for about 8 minutes.
  4. Once both the rice and the black bean mixture are done, it’s time to mix them together. I only used about 3/4 of the rice, but it depends on how you like your rice:bean ratio.
  5. The last step is to fry the egg! I like mine overeasy, but you can really prepare anyway you like.
  6. Plate the rice and bean mixture and place the egg on top. You’re done!

Gallo Pinto Recipe Costa Rica

Gallo Pinto Recipe Costa Rica

The great thing about Gallo Pinto is that you can make this and have leftover rice and beans for the next day. All you have to do is fry up another egg!

Hope you enjoyed this easy Gallo Pinto recipe! My talented friend Laurel Autumn Cabrera did the wonderful illustrations for this recipe, so please go check out her instagram, she’s a pattern queen 🙂

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