To Costa Ricans, what we eat is simply as essential because the expertise within the kitchen and across the desk. We deeply worth the group that comes with cooking. Rising up, I at all times helped my household put together our meals, and even harvested among the substances. Lunches and dinners at all times lasted for a minimum of an hour, and it was our time to speak about our day. This sort of conscious, collective strategy to meals is one thing I like to share with the scholars who take my cooking lessons. It’s not simply concerning the meals we eat, however the connections that occur round it.One of the simplest ways to explain Costa Rican delicacies is straightforward and contemporary. Our weight-reduction plan depends extremely on staples like contemporary greens, fruits, grains, and beans.Listed below are among the meals that I prepare dinner and eat day by day to really feel more healthy and happier in the long term.1. BeansBeans are a terrific supply of protein, fiber, complicated carbohydrates, prebiotics, nutritional vitamins and minerals. They’ve been linked to diminished danger of power illnesses like coronary heart illness and diabetes. Black and pink beans are the most well-liked, often served as a part of a casado (our conventional dish of rice, beans, veggies and protein) or as a soup consisting of beans and greens.Chickpeas and lentils are widespread right here and can be utilized as an alternative choice to the standard black beans.2. Recent fruit and vegetablesFruit and greens in Costa Rica are usually eaten contemporary, not out of a can or a freezer. We usually get our fruits and veggies from native markets known as verdulerias. Among the commonest ones in our weight-reduction plan are papaya, mango, banana, watermelon, pineapple and keenness fruit, and they’re both eaten on their very own or made into drinks and juices. We use a wide range of greens in Costa Rican cooking, together with potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, avocado, onion, beets, yucca and zucchini. Veggies are both eaten uncooked, in easy salads dressed with lime, or ready as picadillo, chopped and boiled, often with some animal protein combined in for taste. Picadillo de chayote might be my favourite. Chayote is a sort of squash that’s native to Central and South America, and never quite common in the USA. It’s inexperienced and crisp, and it tastes much like a jicama.3. Rice and cornGrains like rice and corn are current in our weight-reduction plan, however primarily as a complement to the beans and greens that we eat.As an illustration, the tortillas are used to eat the picadillo in what we name “gallos.” Arroz con pollo is a conventional Costa Rican dish consisting of rice, plenty of chopped greens and completely different items of hen.This meal is a extremely popular at celebrations like birthdays, however additionally it is very generally loved day after day.4. CoffeeCosta Rican espresso is understood for being excessive in antioxidants, which may help scale back irritation. Sugary drinks are usually not an enormous a part of the coffee-drinking tradition.Espresso right here is loved black or with a little bit of milk. And as a lot as some other meal, a cup is finest loved slowly — we do take our time to drink.We eat rice and beans, both black or pink, two to 3 occasions a day. For lunch this meal known as casado. For breakfast, it’s known as gallo pinto and consists of rice and beans combined with onions, peppers, and cilantro, accompanied with corn tortillas and occasional. Due to its mixture of entire grains, protein, amino acids and antioxidants, longevity researcher and Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner considers gallo pinto to be the healthiest breakfast on the planet. It’s superb how such a easy dish may be filled with so many well being advantages. Right here is my recipe for Gallo Pinto, so you may make it at house.Right here is an instance of my favourite Costa Rican breakfast, Gallo Pinto.Photograph: Melissa GuzmanIngredients:2/3 cup of cooked black beans1 1/4 cup of cooked rice2 tablespoons chopped onion2 tablespoons chopped pepper2 tablespoons minced cilantro1/2 teaspoon salsa lizano (elective)1/2 teaspoon salt1/2 teaspoon cumin1/4 teaspoon pepperSteps: Warmth up a pan over medium-high warmth, add olive oil, and let it get hotAdd onions, peppers, cilantro, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepperCook for 3 to 5 minutes till the onion is translucent Combine within the beans, stir, and scale back warmth to mediumAdd the lizano sauce, stir, and prepare dinner for 5 extra minutesAdd the rice, stir, and prepare dinner for a number of extra minutes, to include all of the flavors within the riceTo my thoughts, the recipe for why we reside longer, more healthy, and happier lives in Costa Rica is a straightforward one: Recent substances which might be ready with care and meals which might be deliberately loved and shared with family members. Melissa Guzman is a Costa Rican cookbook creator of “Residing longer, more healthy and happier: recipes from Costa Rica. She additionally teaches Costa Rican cooking lessons at her home, the place she shares her ardour for meals and Costa Rica. Comply with Melissa on Instagram @recipesfromcostarica Right here is my web site so you possibly can hyperlink it to the bio, please: Melissa Guzman is a Costa Rican cookbook creator and cooking instructor from Llano Grande, Costa Rica. She is the creator of “Residing Longer, More healthy, and Happier: Recipes from Costa Rica.” Comply with Melissa on Instagram @recipesfromcostarica.Wish to be a profitable, assured communicator? Take CNBC’s new on-line course Change into an Efficient Communicator: Grasp Public Talking. We’ll educate you how you can converse clearly and confidently, calm your nerves, what to say and never say, and physique language strategies to make a terrific first impression. Join right now and use code EARLYBIRD for an introductory low cost of 30% off by July 10, 2024.