Chifrijo is a very popular dish in Costa Rica. A bed of rice forms the base of the dish (duh, we’ve already learned about Costa Rica’s love for rice), and then kidney beans, pico de gallo, and chicharrones top it off.
“Hello Reader! I try my hardest to research recipes as best as I can before posting to ensure I am representing each culture correctly. If this recipe is from your country and I have made a mistake or you have suggestions for how to make it more authentic, I would love to hear! Please leave a comment below letting me know what should be different, and I will rework the recipe. It is always my intention to pay homage and respect to each cultural dish that I cook. Thanks for reading!”
What is Chifrijo?
This dish is served a lot as a form of street food, but you can also order chifrijo in bars or restaurants across the country.
Restaurants and street vendors across the country sell this hearty and delicious dish! It’s pretty cheap to buy as street food in Costa Rica, costing usually around $3 USD. In restaurants, of course, you can expect the price of the dish to increase.
What is Chifrijo Made Of?
For the Chicharrones
Olive oil
Pork belly
Smoked paprika
Cumin
Chili powder
For the Red Beans
Olive oil
Red kidney
Sweet onion
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
Lizano (You can sub Worcestershire sauce if need be)
For the Rice
Rice
For the Pico de Gallo
For full measurements and instructions, visit the recipe card at the bottom of the page!
How to Make Chifrijo
How to Make Chicharrones
In a small bowl, combine the uncooked, cubed pork belly with all of the spices. Mix until the spices coat all of the pieces.
In a medium cast iron skillet, heat the oil on medium-high heat. Once heated, add the pork belly. Stir to cook, about 10 minutes. Chicharrones should be slightly crispy.
When cooked, remove from pan and leave to rest on a paper towel-lined plate.
How to Make Red Beans
Drain and rinse red kidney beans
In a medium pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, and saute for about 5 minutes, until translucent.
Add the kidney beans into the pot. Stir until warm.
Add the garlic, salt, pepper, and Lizano (or Worcestershire sauce). Remove and set aside.
Cook the rice according to package or follow these instructions for How to Cook Rice in an Instant Pot
Assemble the Pico de Gallo according to instructions.
Assemble the bowl with rice on the bottom, then beans, then chicharrones, then the Pico de Gallo on top.
What are Chicharrones?
Chicharrones are a really popular snack food in Costa Rica (and other countries in Central America and South America, like Colombia, where they eat Chicharrones in Bandeja Paisa).
Chicharrones are made with pork belly. In Costa Rica, the pork belly is cut into cubes and then fried. You can coat them in spices before frying (in this case, smoked paprika, cumin, and chili powder) to give them even more flavor.
Pork belly really is just uncured, unsliced bacon, which means that making chicharrones means that you’re just frying up thick cubes of bacon for crunching! Hey, sounds pretty good to me 😉
Ticos LOVE chicharrones and eat them across the country. Though they’re mixed into this dish, quite often they’re bought alone and eaten as a solo snack. Costa Ricans often cook them up in accompaniment with a celebration, like a birthday or a festival! The city of Puriscal in Costa Rica even hosts a Feria del Chicharrón (Chicharrón Festival) every year.
The Importance of Lizano
Lizano, the most common condiment used in Costa Rica, makes a special appearance on our recipe for Gallo Pinto! Lizano is a smoky, tangy dressing that I could liken to Worcestershire sauce. The difference between Worcestershire sauce and Lizano is the smokiness-factor present in Lizano. It gives the entire dish a different flavor.
Lizano can be found in most South American grocery stores, if you can find one. If not, you can also order it off of Amazon! If you either can’t afford that or need a quick substitute, you can use Worcestershire sauce and add a little cumin as well. This will be the best replacement!
Did you like this recipe for Chifrijo? Leave a comment on this post letting me know what you thought. And post a photo of your creation on Facebook and Instagram and tag @TheForeignFork and hashtag #TheForeignFork!
If you liked this recipe, check out these other recipes on my site too. I think you’ll like them:
Chifrijo
Ingredients
Chicharrones
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 6 oz pork belly cut into cubes about 1 inch in diameter
- ⅓ tsp smoked paprika
- ⅓ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp chili powder or more to taste
Red Kidney Beans
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- ½ sweet onion, chopped
- 1 tsp garlic
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp Lizano, or Worcestershire sauce if you don’t have Lizano
- ¼ tsp salt or more to taste
Rice
- 1 cup long grain white rice, dry
Pico de Gallo or Salsa, your favorite recipe (mine is linked below)
Instructions
How to Make Chicharrones
- In a small bowl, combine the uncooked, cubed pork belly with all of the spices. Mix until all pieces are fully coated.
- In a medium cast iron skillet, heat the oil on medium-high heat. Once heated, add the pork belly. Stir to cook, about 10 minutes. Chicharrones should be slightly crispy.
- When cooked, remove from pan and leave to rest on a paper towel-lined plate.
How to Make Red Beans
- Drain and rinse red kidney beans
- In a medium pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, and saute for about 5 minutes, until translucent.
- Add the kidney beans into the pot. Stir until warm.
- Add the garlic, salt, pepper, and Lizano (or Worcestershire sauce). Remove and set aside.
- Cook the rice according to package or follow these instructions for How to Cook Rice in an Instant Pot
Assembly
- Assemble the bowl with rice on the bottom, then beans, then chicharrones, then the Pico de Gallo on top.
John says
I don’t think you ever ate Chifrijo.
First of all kidney beans are not available in CR. I have seen any for years. They use red beans. You can buy larger red beans but they are not kidney beans.
Yes Costa Ricans love lizano sauce but not really for Chifrijo.
Salsa picante is used. Lizano sauce is used on Gallo pinto.
A bowl costs more than 3$ nowadays. 4-5$ now.
A Costa Rican chicharrone is a deep fried hunk of meat not a pork belly. I have lived in Colombia and there is a big difference.
Also every Chifrijo I have ever eaten comes with tortilla chips inserted along the sides of the bowl. And I have eaten hundreds.
Hope this helps
The Foreign Fork says
Hey John,
You are so right! I’ve never tried Chifrijo before. The concept of my blog is that I’m cooking one meal from every country in the world, so I cook a lot of things I’ve never tried before. I do try to research as much as humanly possible to make sure I get it right but sometimes I still end up making mistakes. I really appreciate when locals/people from that country (who know what they’re doing better than I) reach out with suggestions though! So thank you for all of these suggestions! I will put this recipe on my list of ones to try again 🙂 Have a great day!