Chifrijo from Costa Rica
Chifrijo is a very popular dish in Costa Rica. A bed of rice forms the base of the dish which is then piled high with red kidney beans, chicharrón, pico de gallo, and avocado. Eat it as is or use tortilla chips to scoop it up! This delicious Costa Rican bar food will fill you up quickly!
Servings 2
Calories 2231kcal
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Pots
Ingredients
Pico de Gallo Ingredients
- 2 Roma tomatoes finely chopped
- ½ cup white onion finely diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp cilantro minced
- ½ tsp garlic minced
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
Red Kidney Bean Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp oil
- 15 oz red kidney beans 1 can, drained and rinsed
- ½ sweet onion diced
- 1 tsp garlic
- ¼ tsp salt to taste
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper to Taste Use code FF20 for 20% off
- 1 tbsp Lizano or Worcestershire sauce if you don't have Lizano
Chicharrones Ingredients
- 8 oz pork belly cut into cubes about 1 inch in diameter
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp chili powder or more to taste
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Assembly Ingrediens
- 2 cups Long Grain White Rice cooked (about 1 cup, uncooked)
- 2 Avocados diced
- Tortilla chips for serving
Instructions
Pico de Gallo Instructions
- Combine all pico de gallo ingredients together and allow to sit for a half an hour.
How To Make Red Beans Instructions
- Drain and rinse 15 oz red kidney beans.
- In a medium pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add ½ diced onions and saute for about 5 minutes until they turn translucent.
- Add the kidney beans into the pot. Add 1 tsp garlic, ¼ tsp salt, pepper to taste, and 1 tbsp Lizano (or Worcestershire sauce).
- Stir until warm. Remove and set aside.
Chicharrones Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine 8 oz uncooked, cubed pork belly with all of the spices. Mix until all pieces are fully coated.
- In a medium cast iron skillet, heat 1 tbsp 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 the pan and leave to rest on a paper towel-lined plate.
Assembly
- Assemble the bowl with rice on the bottom, then beans, then chicharrones, then the Pico de Gallo, the avocado on top. Serve with tortilla chips for extra deliciousness.
Notes
Recipe Copyright The Foreign Fork. For educational or personal use only.
- Beans: Most Costa Rican recipes for Chifrijo call for Cubace beans, but in America Red Kidney Beans are a good substitute. Most people soak the beans overnight and then boil them and cook the next day. This is the most traditional method, but in an attempt to make this dish more approachable, I chose to doctor up some canned red beans. Feel free to soak and boil dried red beans if you prefer. You can substitute black beans in a pinch, but I recommend red beans for a more authentic flavor.
- Salsa Lizano: This is a popular condiment in Costa Rican restaurants and kitchens. See the “The Importance of Lizano” section for substitutions if desired.
- Pork Belly: Not all Chifrijo Recipes call for adding seasoning to the fried pork, but I think it adds some great flavor and highly recommend it. The flavor and texture of pork belly is really important in this recipe! I don’t recommend substituting it, but if you need to, here is a list of 10 Pork Belly Substitutions that could work in a pinch. Some people substitute packaged pork rinds instead of pork belly, but I do not recommend this substitution.
- Long Grain White Rice: This forms the base of the dish. It’s great to use leftover white rice if you have it to make assembly of this dish even easier! If not, you can use these instructions on How to Cook Long Grain White Rice in the Instant Pot for instructions on how to cook your rice quickly and easily. Feel free to substitute Brown Rice for a healthier option.
- Avocado: The avocado adds so much creaminess to this recipe! It is a great ingredient that pulls the whole thing together, so don’t leave it out.
- This dish is easiest to make when you already have rice and beans left over from the day before! Gallo Pinto is another great Costa Rican dish to make with leftover rice.
- Ticos will sometimes call the Pico de Gallo “chimichurri”, though it’s not to be confused with Argentinian Chimichurri or Red Chimichurri, which is a thin parsley sauce often served with steak!
- Vegetarians and vegans can easily enjoy this recipe if it is prepared without the chicharrones.
- Add hot sauce for a spicy variation! Or a squeeze of fresh lime juice for a citrusy touch.
- If you want to get crazy you can make homemade tortilla chips by frying up corn tortillas.
- Serve this in a large soup bowl to have the most depth and width to enjoy the dish!
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 2231kcal | Carbohydrates: 230g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 127g | Saturated Fat: 31g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 20g | Monounsaturated Fat: 69g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 82mg | Sodium: 1064mg | Potassium: 2671mg | Fiber: 34g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 1187IU | Vitamin C: 43mg | Calcium: 195mg | Iron: 11mg