Gallo Pinto (Costa Rican Breakfast)

I've been to Costa Rica two times, both as a biology student in high school. To attempt to describe the magic of the place would be blasphemy; I'm no writer.

But let me just say that some of my fondest memories take place in the Costa Rican rainforest.

Every morning, some Ticos (native Costa Ricans) would prepare us breakfast. It would vary slightly from day to day, but there was always a huge bowl Gallo Pinto on the table.

Gallo Pinto is such a simple dish! At it's most basic, it's black beans and rice. The reason this breakfast dish came to mind was that I was out of all the usual breakfast items. I had no eggs, no bread, no milk. I won't wait until next time I am running low on pantry items to make this again. And next time, you better believe I'm putting a fried egg on top.

Directions:

1.) Cook 1 cup of white rice to directions.

You should know I dropped the food from my fork at
least several times before I was able to snap
this photo.

2.) Meanwhile, heat oil in pan. Once oil is hot and rice has about 5-7 minutes left on the stove, add diced onion, green pepper, and minced garlic (be sure to use a large clove!).
3.) Once onions are cooked, add 1 can of black beans, liquid and all. Add a splash of Worscestershire sauce (traditionally the recipe calls for Salsa Lizano, but I had none).
4.) Cook gently for a further 10 minutes while rice rests.
5.) Chop up a GENEROUS helping of fresh cilantro, and mix everything together!



 How can something so basic be so tasty?! I guess it's because it reminds me of the rainforest. That was 10 years ago now, and I'm itching to go back. Until then, preparing a traditional breakfast will have to do!