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Paseo Colón Turns To Gallo
Pinto Today
A reminder that Paseo Colón is closed off to
vehicular traffic today for the gallo pinto
eatout.
Beginning at 8am today, the section from the
east of the Sabana Park to the Hospital de
Niños will be closed off completely as some
90.000 people are expected to enjoy a
traditional Cost Rican gallo pinto for free.
In addition to the gallo pinto, you can
expect live music and entertainment for the
whole family.
Although gallo pinto is nothing more than a
mixture of rice and beans, it differs from
the "rice and beans" dish that is typical in
the Caribbean region of Limón, which
includes coconut.
Today's celebration is part of the Gallo
Piinto National Day.
Gallo Pinto is eaten all over the
country no matter what time of the day is
and it’s incredibly easy to make. Here is a
recipe that should take no more than 10
minutes to make, more if you forgot to buy
the Sala Lizano, for your gallo pinto just
will not taste the same without it.
Gallo Pinto Recipe
- 1 lb (450 gr.) Black beans. Fresh are
best.
- 8-10 sprigs cilantro (coriander leaf)
fresh or frozen, not dried!
- 1 small or medium onion
- ½ small red or yellow sweet pepper
(optional)
- 3 cups (700 ml) chicken broth or water
- 2 cups (350 ml) white rice
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt
- 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) vegetable oil
- 1-3 Tablespoon oil to fry the Gallo Pinto
If beans are dried, cover with water and
soak overnight, if they are fresh, just
rinse them off. Drain the beans and add
fresh water to an inch (2.5-cm) above the
top of the beans, salt, and bring to a boil.
Cover the pan and reduce heat to very low
simmer until beans are soft (~3 hours).
Chop cilantro, onion, and sweet pepper very
fine.
Add 1 Tablespoon oil to a large pan and
sauté the dry rice for 2 minutes over medium
high flame then add half of the chopped
onion, sweet pepper and cilantro and sauté
another 2 minutes. Add water or chicken
broth, bring to a boil, cover and reduce
heat to simmer until rice is tender (20-35
minutes). This is also the recipe for Tico
rice used in other favorites like tamales.
Once the rice and beans are cooked you can
refrigerate or freeze them. Keep a
significant amount of the “black water” with
the beans (½-1 cup 120-240 ml). This is what
gives the rice its color and some of its
flavor. Sauté the rice, beans reserved
chopped onion, sweet pepper and cilantro
together in vegetable oil for a few minutes.
Sprinkle with a little fresh chopped
cilantro just before serving.
Once the rice and beans are cooked you can
also refrigerate or freeze them. Make up
small batches of Gallo Pinto when you want
it by simply sautéing them together.
In Guanacaste they sometimes use small very
hot red peppers instead of or in addition to
the sweet. Some people add a tablespoon or
so of salsa Lizano or Chilera to the beans
while they're cooking.
Note, there are many variations to the Gallo
Pinto, especially between the Costa Rican
and Nicaraguan dishes. For more recipes
search
Yatzu.com for "gallo pinto
recipes" and most all enjoy preparing and
tasting each one of the different recipes.
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