Food on Postcards

Tropical islands are always the most popular places to spend a vacation. The past spring break, my friend Haylie went to Cocos Island in Costa Rica. Knowing that I am interested in various cultural cuisines, she sent me several postcards that featuring recipes and pictures of traditional food in Costa Rica. 

• The breakfast speciality, Gallo Pinto (Morning Rice and Beans)

"In the central valley of Costa Rica, the early call of roosters precedes the glorious aroma of Gallo Pinto"

2 cups of cooked rice

2 cups of cooked black beans

1/2 cup bean “stock”

1/2 onion and 1 bell pepper, chopped

2 garlic clover, chopped

2 tbsps fresh coriander, chopped

2 tbsps vegetable oil

heavy cream (add as desired)

fry onion and bell pepper in vegetable oil, add the garlic. Pour in the beans and the stock; bring to a simmer, taking care that the mixture doesn’t dry up. Add in the rice and stir thoroughly but gently—you don’t want to mash the beans! Season to taste with salt and pepper. Just before serving, stir in the fresh coriander. Serve and top with a little heavy cream.

• Lunch, Runddwn (or Rondon)
  
  
  

1 pound fish, cut into pieces (red snapper, dorado, or marlin)

2 coconuts or 2 cans of coconut milk (with no sugar added)

1 pound different Caribbean vegetables (nampi, breadfruit)

1 green banana

1 medium onion whole

1 celery stalk and a twig of thyme leaves

salt and pepper (to taste)

1 bell or Panama pepper whole

Cut the coconut meat into small pieces, add 4 cups of water and blend until smooth. Press through a strainer two or three times adding 1 cup of water. Peel the nampi, breadfruit and green banana. Cut into medium pieces. If you don’t find some of these vegetables, you can make a wheat breadball substitute (mix 2 cups of wheat with 4 shots of water. Make tiny breadballs, pressing your thumb into each ball to give it shape). Fry onion, celery stalk, bell or Panama pepper whole. Add fish and continue frying. Add in the coconut milk, green banana, all the vegetables (or the breadballs), and the other seasonings. When the milk separates (curdles) and the vegetables are tender, remove the Panama pepper carefully and serve.

• Dinner dessert, Platanos En Gloria

2 big ripe plantains

2 cinnamon sticks

1 cup of sugar

1 1/2 cups of water

Vegetable oil (as needed)

Peel the plantains and cut them into three pieces, then cut again lengthwise into two or three slices. Bring the water, sugar, and cinnamon to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the mixture becomes a syrup. In a separate pan, fry the plantains in a little oil until soft ; remove them and daub away the oil with a paper towel. Now place the plantains in the simmering syrup, letting them absorb the candied sauce.