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Costa Rican Food

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Costa Rican cuisine is known for being flavorful, yet fairly mild, with high reliance on fresh fruit and vegetables. Rice and black beans are a staple of most traditional Costa Rican meals, often served three times a day; gallo pinto, a breakfast dish of rice and beans mixed together with onions and bell peppers, is often considered the Costa Rican national dish. For lunch, the traditional meal is called a casado. It again consists of rice and beans served side by side instead of mixed. There will usually be some type of meat (carne asada, fish, pork chop, or chicken) and a salad to round out the dish. There may also be some extras like fried plantain (patacones or maduro), a slice of white cheese, and/or corn tortillas in …show more content…

Coffee is usually served at breakfast and during traditional coffee breaks in the afternoon, usually around 3:00 pm. It has traditionally been brewed in a native Costa Rican drip brew device called a chorreador. The traditional drinks for lunch are called refrescos naturales, or frescos or naturales for short, and consist of liquefied fruits diluted in either water or milk and sweetened to taste. They come in many varieties such as canteloupe, blackberry, strawberry, watermelon, mango, tamarind, passion fruit, guanabana, cas, and lime. Another popular drink is known as a granizado, a slush drink made of finely shaved ice and flavored syrup. The most popular flavor is kola. This is not the cola usually associated with carbonated soda, but a fruity flavored syrup. It is usually served with evaporated and/or condensed milk on top. The national liquor of Costa Rica, guaro, is made from sugar cane. Costa Ricans often drink guaro as a shot or mixed with juice or soda. The cost of guaro is very cheap compared to beer (cerveza) in Costa Rica which has one major beer producer. Imperial is the most popular beer and is an American-style lager that is also available in Light. Pilsen is a Bohemian style Pilsner produced in Costa Rica. During the 2007 holiday season, a 6.0 version with higher alcohol content was produced. Due to its popularity, production of Pilsen 6.0 was continued through mid-2008. At that point, it was replaced with Pilsen Red. It has a 5.2%

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