Hispanic Heritage · Costa Rica

El Valle Central y Guanacaste

San José · Escazú · Desamparados · Curridabat · Cartago · Paraíso

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Olla de carne

Descubre

Costa Rica’s olla de carne is an invitation to explore the generous variety of roots and vegetables that can share a soup pot. Beef, corn, yuca, and other vegetables make a meal with broth to spare.

La Gente

The order of cooking matters more than a crowded spice shelf. Give the meat time to soften, then add the vegetables according to their texture. Serve in deep bowls with rice nearby to catch the broth.

Sabor

The valley cooks gentle and clean. Onion, garlic, sweet pepper, and culantro are the whole seasoning of most dishes, with a splash of Salsa Lizano, the tangy bottled sauce the country has kept on the table since 1920, on the gallo pinto. Guanacaste cooks a little richer, with achiote and more pork fat and the red bean. Heat is a bottle of chilero on the counter and is used sparingly. This is a kitchen that trusts its ingredients.

Spice DNA · Herb medium · Sweet low · Smoke low · Heat none · Acid low

Seasonings to explore

Minced Garlic in Olive Oil. In the olla and the gallo pinto. Adds a savory garlic base.
Black Pepper, ground. In the olla, lightly.
Cilantro flakes. For the culantro coyote when there is no fresh. Fresh culantro is what the valley wants.
Onion Powder. With the fresh onion.
Oregano, whole. In the olla, in some houses. A pinch.
Cumin, ground. In the gallo pinto, which is the note the Lizano brings. Badia does not make Lizano; a splash of Worcestershire with the cumin is an adaptation with a different flavor.
Sazón with Coriander and Annatto. For Guanacaste's achiote in the rice and the tamales.

From your market: beef short ribs or shank with bone, chayote, yuca, ñampí or malanga, tiquisque if the market has it, green plantain, corn on the cob, carrots, potatoes, a piece of squash, an onion, a sweet pepper, culantro or cilantro, and rice and black beans for the pinto. Salsa Lizano from a Costa Rican market or online if you want the pinto to taste like home. Badia does not sell it and the page will not pretend.

Cocina

Olla de carne

Beef on the bone with the vegetables of the valley, in two parts: broth first, then the plate. Hours, not minutes.

Serves 8

3 lb beef short ribs or shank, bone in
14 cups water
1 onion, quartered
1 sweet pepper, halved
2 tbsp Badia Minced Garlic in Olive Oil, or 5 garlic cloves crushed
½ tsp Badia Onion Powder
½ tsp Badia Black Pepper, ground
Pinch of Badia Oregano, whole, optional
Salt
2 chayotes, peeled and quartered
1 lb yuca, peeled and cut in chunks
1 lb ñampí or malanga, peeled and cut in chunks
2 green plantains, in chunks
3 ears of corn, cut in thirds
2 carrots, in chunks
3 potatoes, halved
2 cups squash, in large pieces
A bunch of culantro or cilantro, tied, plus more chopped to serve

The beef. Cover the beef with the water, bring to a boil, and skim. Add the onion, sweet pepper, garlic, onion powder, pepper, oregano if using, and salt. Simmer, partly covered, 1½ to 2 hours, until the meat is tender and pulling from the bone.
The roots. Add the yuca, ñampí, green plantain, and carrots. Simmer 20 minutes.
The rest. Add the chayote, corn, potatoes, and squash. Simmer 20 to 25 minutes more, until everything is tender. Add water if it drops below the vegetables. Taste for salt.
The herb. Drop in the tied culantro for the last 5 minutes and lift it out.
Serve in two parts. Broth in a bowl with chopped culantro. Meat and vegetables on a plate beside it, with white rice and a tortilla. Chilero on the table for anyone who wants heat, which in the valley is not many.

Gallo pinto

Fry ½ chopped onion, ½ chopped sweet pepper, and 1 tbsp Badia Minced Garlic in Olive Oil in 2 tbsp oil until soft. Add 2 cups cooked black beans with ½ cup of their liquid and ¼ tsp Badia Cumin, and cook 5 minutes so the liquid darkens. Add 3 cups day-old cooked rice and fry, stirring, until the rice is spotted and the edges crisp. A generous splash of Salsa Lizano, or Worcestershire if you must. Chopped cilantro at the end. Serve with eggs, a slice of queso, a spoon of natilla, and coffee. Más tico que el gallo pinto, the country says, and means it.

Pueblos del Valle Central y Guanacaste

San José · Escazú · Desamparados · Curridabat · Cartago · Paraíso · Turrialba · Heredia · Barva · Santo Domingo · Alajuela · Grecia · Sarchí · San Ramón · Atenas · Liberia · Nicoya · Santa Cruz · Cañas · Tilarán · Bagaces · Puntarenas · Quepos · San Isidro de El General