Barbudos – The Costa Rican Bearded Recipe
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Barbudos is a simple scrambled egg and green bean recipe from Costa Rica that everyone will enjoy!
About Barbudos
Let’s get one thing out of the way right away. In Spanish, barbudos means “bearded” and I have no idea why this recipe has this name. The barbudo name could be loosely translated as a green bean fritter, with the batter being egg instead of flour.
Barbudos is an extremely popular dish in Costa Rica, but a dish that you won’t find in many Costa Rican restaurants as it is more popular with home cooks.
The dish is perfect, using produce that can be grown at home or found at the Farmer’s Markets. Eggs are easy to come by and high in protein, making this a great recipe for vegetarians. It’s a simple, inexpensive meal or side dish that practically everyone likes.
In Costa Rica, you’ll find that adults and kids alike love barbudos, and if you ask a Costa Rican to make them for you, they will be thrilled.
RELATED POST: 30+ Foods To Try In Costa Rica
Costa Rican Barbudos Recipe
Printable recipe below
Ingredients
- fresh green beans
- eggs
- salt
- cooking oil
Instructions
Fill a 3-quart saucepan with water and salt. Allow to boil. Add the green beans and cook until very tender.
While the green beans are cooking, beat eggs in a shallow dish that is long enough for the green beans to fit.
Spray a frying pan with nonstick cooking oil and heat on medium heat high until warm. While the pan is heating, dip the green beans into the egg mixture until covered.
Place 4 green beans and egg into the pan and begin to fry. If the green beans are not fully covered in egg as in the photo, spoon more egg mixture in until fully covered. Barbudos is almost always made with 4 green beans each.
Cook until one side is almost done, then flip and cook until the egg is fully cooked on the other side.
Substitutions
You could substitute egg whites for the whole egg.
I have used frozen green beans. They aren’t as long sometimes, but they can be put into the egg omelet style and it tastes pretty good!
Related post: Costa Rican Kitchen Guide
Variations
Honestly, there really aren’t any variations on this recipe!
Related post: Costa Rican Casado
What To Serve With Barbudos
Barbudos are often served with fresh corn tortillas. They are popular as a mini-meal, served with traditional white rice and black beans. These would be super fun with a steak and onions, or bistec encebollado.
You can serve this with a traditional homemade Costa Rican juice, or traditional coffee.
Join me over at my favorite place- Instagram.
Barbudos Costa Rica
Barbudos are a simple scrambled egg and green bean recipe from Costa Rica that everyone will enjoy!
Ingredients
- 16-20 fresh green beans
- 3 eggs eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Cooking oil spray
Instructions
- Fill a 3-quart saucepan with water and salt. Allow to boil. Add the green beans and cook until very tender.
- While the green beans are cooking, beat eggs in a shallow dish that is long enough for the green beans to fit.
- Spray a frying pan with nonstick cooking oil and heat on medium heat high until warm. While the pan is heating, dip the green beans into the egg mixture until covered.
- Place the green beans and egg into the pan and begin to fry. If the green beans are not fully covered in egg as in the photo, spoon more egg mixture in until fully covered.
- Cook until one side is almost done, then flip and cook until the egg is fully cooked on the other side.
Christa Jimenez
Welcome! I’m Christa, a Spanish teacher married to a handsome Costa Rican and mother of two bilingual daughters. We’ve spent over 25 years living in and traveling to Costa Rica with our daughters, and this website is my love letter to all things Costa Rica- and to bilingual parenting too. You can read my full story here. Thanks for stopping by!
First of all, thank you for letting me see this information. I think this article can give me a lot of inspiration. I would appreciate if you could post more good contents in the future.
Thank you! I will continue to work on it! ~Pura Vida
This famous recipe with bred and we like to it
So good!
Your site is one of my favorites – it’s has been a treasure trove. I’m first generation, and previously, my family lived close. However, after COVID, they all moved and no more stopping by for yummy treats. Now, it was time to make my own – this was terrifying! However, being more comfortable following recipes in English and having access to all these delicious recipes that mom and grandma made has really helped me deal while being so far from family. Thank you so much and sending a giant hug!
Hi Daniella!
Thanks so much for commenting. I am SO GLAD that recipes are helpful- and yes, learning to follow recipes in English is a skill. But once you master it- the food world is wide open! A giant hug right back!
Christa