Walking into my husband’s childhood home to reunite with his extended family we were hit with the smell of olla carne cooking on the gas stove in the kitchen. In all…
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Costa Rican Recipes
We love traditional Costa Rican food here at Casa Pura Vida, and we’ve spent countless hours recreating our favorite Costa Rican recipes to share with you!
Not familiar with the food of Costa Rica? Don’t worry, here’s a quick overview! The main staples of the Costa Rican diet are white rice, black beans, and lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Costa Rican food (or tico food as we also call it!) is generally flavored with salt, garlic, onion, cilantro and Salsa Lizano.
We’ve got all kinds of recipes in every category- Costa Rican main dishes, Costa Rican desserts, Costa Rican traditional foods, breakfast foods, and more. Here are some of our most popular posts:
- Costa Rican Gallo Pinto Recipe
- Costa Rican Arroz con Pollo Recipe
- Costa Rican Style Slow Cooker Black Beans Recipe
- Costa Rican White Rice Recipe
- Costa Rican Tres Leches Recipe
- Garbanzo Bean Soup Recipe
Don’t see a recipe here that you’re looking for? Contact me– I’ll add it to my list of recipes to post!
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One of our favorite recipes here at Casa Pura Vida is Sopa Azteca - it tastes like home for my husband, I LOVE anything with melted cheese, and the girls have…
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This traditional Costa Rican black bean soup recipe is a delicious, healthy, and simple vegetarian meal that everyone loves! Served with Costa Rican white rice and Salsa Lizano. You can find…
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For some reason, every single person that tries my guacamole immediately falls in love with it. And people- this is the most unfussy, unpretentious, EASY guacamole recipe you will ever find.…
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I have to have a huge disclaimer here- while this is the Carne Asada recipe that we use when we make meat in Costa Rica, I would be doing you a…
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This recipe is a very popular recipe in the Central Valley of Costa Rica as part of a casado. If you visit small restaurants or roadside buffets (called sodas in Costa…
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Full transparency here- this is my all-time favorite of all the Costa Rican fruit drinks ever. Literally any chance I have to drink this juice, I take it. Just call me…
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This shredded beef (carne mechada) is generally prepared in a pressure cooker, although I will include slow cooker instructions here too. This recipe is a staple in Costa Rica because it…
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Tamarind juice is made from tamarind pods that grow on the tamarind tree throughout Costa Rica. Because they are so commonly found throughout the country, the fruit is used for both…
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Bean and cheese empanadas (empanada de frijol con queso) are a popular vegetarian type of empanada. Most other empanadas just have a single filling, but the bean and cheese are a…
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Coconut empanadas (empanadas de coco) are a popular Costa Rican sweet treat. Obviously, there are tons of coconuts in Costa Rica, so the basic ingredient is easy to find and abundant…
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This Costa Rican black bean empanada recipe is great for vegans, vegetarians, and those who follow a gluten-free diet. Plus they are delicious little fried pockets of corn dough full of…
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Miel de coco literally translates to coconut honey in Spanish, but that is not exactly what this recipe is. In Costa Rica, "miel" refers to almost any sticky, sweet fruit concoction…
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In Costa Rica during the week before Easter, a lot of cooking happens. That's because most Costa Rica Easter traditions center around food- and sharing holiday dishes with family and friends. I…
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Pan casero is a strangely traditional Costa Rican recipe. I say this because everyone loves it but very few people actually make it. Pan casero literally translates to homemade bread (casero/a…
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The tamal mudo is a vegetarian and vegan version of the traditional Costa Rican pork tamal that is made during Lent and especially Holy Week. Most all Costa Ricans who stay…
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Potato empanadas are made from a corn-based dough, and therefore gluten-free. The dough is formed into a circle, stuffed with a potato filling consisting of roughly mashed potatoes stir-fried in a…
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These potatoes are unique because after cooking, they are roughly mashed and then refired in a typical Costa Rican sofrito before serving with a meal (such as in picadillo), or using…
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Dessert empanadas are popular throughout Latin America, and Argentina and Chile are most well known for their sweet empanadas, but Costa Rican empanadas have a special place in my heart because…
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Costa Rican cheese empanadas are half-moon shaped fried appetizers made from a corn-based dough. They are then filled with traditional white Costa Rican cheese and fried up until hot- and the…
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These crispy deep-fried half-moon shaped empanadas are filled with shredded beef and then fried to golden perfection. This beef empanada recipe uses a traditional Costa Rican shredded beef filling. While many…
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These Costa Rican pineapple empanadas (empanadas de piña) combine a homemade pastry dough and sweet pineapple preserves baked to perfection for a delightful baked dessert. With just a few ingredients- flour,…
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Costa Rican suspiros are little delicate meringue cookies popular year-round but especially at Christmas and Easter. With just three ingredients, they are easy to make with what you have on hand,…
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These yuca fries are made by boiling large chunks of yucca in saltwater, cutting the rounds into thick straw pieces, and then frying them in vegetable oil. The taste is very…
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This is a traditional Costa Rican chicharron recipe that uses pork belly or boneless pork ribs- known in Spanish as chicharrón de cerdo. In Costa Rica, chicharrones are generally either pan-fried…
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Boiled green plantains are a sort of a staple in Costa Rican cooking. We use the recipe either as a starting point to make patacones (thick round fried plantain chips served…
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Like many popular Costa Rican dishes, the Costa Rican vigorón is an easy to prepare mix of several popular Costa Rican recipes combined to make a unique dish. Made from chicharrones…
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Yuca roots are large tubers endemic to Central America and much of the world. It's one of the oldest foods around- it's filling and inexpensive. Many Latin American countries use yucca in…
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The Costa Rican chifrijo, much like its name, is a mix of several Costa Rican recipes, and it's a beloved dish throughout the country. The word chi-frijo is a combination of…
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This Costa Rican chimichurri sauce recipe is served with almost every meal possible in Costa Rica. It's made from ingredients readily available year-round in Costa Rica (tomato, onion, cilantro, lime and…
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So let's get one thing straight- salsa rosada is decidedly not just a Costa Rican thing. It's a Latin America thing- and I actually suspect that back in the day McDonald's…
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Lovingly called "pinto" for short, you can also find this dish on lunch and dinner menus alongside freshly braised meat. Sometimes we substitute gallo pinto for rice and beans in a…
