Weird Food? Yep! The Costa Rican Salchipapa

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Costa Rican salchipapa- hot dogs and french fries served with salsa rosada.  A popular and weird Costa Rican street food!

About This Costa Rican Salchipapa Recipe

Salchipapa.” Yep, you read that correctly! Part salchicha (sausage) and part papa (potato) this french fry and hot dog medley is a favorite fast food all over Central and most South American countries. This deliciously greasy creation started out as a street food in Peru but has since expanded outward. 

Salchipapa is now a classic kid’s menu staple in Costa Rican restaurants (and most of South America)  and is often served at bars as well. It usually comes drizzled with ketchup or mayonnaise, or salsa rosada for dipping. 

A truly multipurpose meal, salchipapa is at once kiddie cuisine, late-night fare, and quite possibly, a hangover cure! (That last one is still pending testing!)

More Costa Rican Street Food Recipes:

Salchipapa Costa Rica Recipe

Ingredients: 

  • 1 lb pre-cooked hot dogs
  • 1 lb frozen french fries
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • Condiments (ketchup, mayonnaise or salsa rosada)

Instructions:

Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet or frying pan until you have very hot oil.

While the oil is heating, slice up the hotdogs into 1/2-inch segments. Once the vegetable oil is hot, place the desired amount of french fries and hot dogs into the oil and fry until golden.

You may have to fry everything in batches if you are making a lot- I usually do. 

Remove everything from the heat and drain excess oil on paper towels. I usually add salt to the top.

Once the hot dog slices have crisped up a little around the edges, remove them from the heat and scatter them on top of a bed of fries. Drizzle the fries and hot dogs with ketchup and mayonnaise and serve. 

Substitutions

You can substitute any type of frying oil you choose (peanut, canola, etc).  

Note- if your French fries are frozen and have a lot of excess ice crystals on them, you’ll need to dry the potatoes so that you don’t end up with hot oil spattering. 

Variations

You can use Not too many variations on this one. I will say that I had this recipe in Finland with reindeer sausage. Now that was a new twist!

You can fry the potatoes and the hot dogs separately. Also- some places put ketchup, mustard, and mayonaise on the dish. 

Serving Suggestions

Scatter your hot dog pieces over the warm fries and drizzle them with ketchup and mayonnaise. Enjoy- preferably with a favorite Costa Rican drink.

FAQ

Where does salchipapa come from?

Salchipapa originated as a street food in Lima, Peru, and is now popular all over Latin America. 

How should I reheat my salchipapa?

You can toss everything into a pan with a little oil and fry on medium heat until the french fries and hot dogs are crispy again. You can also reheat in the microwave.

Printable Recipe

Yield: 4 servings

Costa Rican Salchipapa

Hot dog sections on a bed of french fries.

Fast, easy, and undeniably delicious, this salchipapa is like the Latin American cousin of Poutine. Perfect for late nights out or dinner with the kids!

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 lb pre-cooked hot dogs
  • 1 lb frozen french fries
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • Ketchup
  • Mayonaise

Instructions

  1. Slice up the hotdogs into 1/2 inch segments and fry them in a saucepan over medium-high heat with the olive oil. 
  2. While the hot dog slices are cooking, prepare your frozen french fries according to the package instructions.
  3. Once the hot dog slices have crisped up a little around the edges, remove them from the heat and scatter them on top of a bed of fries. Drizzle the fries and hot dogs with ketchup and mayonnaise and serve. 

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 602Total Fat: 45gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 24gCholesterol: 67mgSodium: 1394mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 16g

Please double-check this information with your favorite nutrition calculator.

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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!

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