Enjoy a comprehensive list of some of my favorite Costa Rican recipes. Whether you are looking to try a new recipe in your kitchen, wanting to recreate a favorite recipe at home, or planning what food you’ll try on your next trip to Costa Rica, this is the list for you!
Table of contents
These recipes are the basis for many popular Costa Rican foods. It can be good to have some of these ingredients on hand when cooking, or to cook these recipes ahead in order to make daily cooking easier.
For example, I will often cook a weekly batch of black beans that I then use throughout the week for recipes such as gallo pinto or to add to a lunch casado (more below).
This makes my time in the kitchen shorter when preparing meals for my family.
Costa Ricans generally eat a fairly heavy breakfast. These recipes will get you going for the day.
Lunch is the main meal in Costa Rica, and the casado is the most popular lunch option. Fried rices are also very popular. Many of the side dish recipes below are accompaniments to the casado.
These recipes are often served with a casado. The picadillos are often served on top of a tortilla as a “gallo.”
Costa Rican drinks are generally fruit juices blended in water or powdered milk.
Appetizers, also called bocas, are generally eaten in the late afternoon or evening hours in place of dinner. Many of these recipes are bar foods. Some are main dishes served in a smaller portion.
Coffee hour happens between 2-6 pm and often replaces dinner. These recipes are generally quite easy to make ahead. Many people purchase these items and take them to the place where they will drink coffee with family and friends.
These foods are generally found for sale outside the home- at soccer games, festivals, national holidays and more.
These guides will help you to know exactly what to do in the Costa Rican kitchen or are roundups of recipes grouped together.
Hi- I’m Christa, and I’m on a mission to help the world fall in love with Costa Rica through food, travel and language. I’m a mom of two Latinas, bicultural, bilingual (English/Spanish), and 100% in love with celebrating parenthood in all its forms, (even the sucky parts). I’m so happy you found the site- WELCOME! Find out more about me here
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