Costa Rican Gallo Pinto with Fried Eggs
Costa Rica's classic rice-and-beans breakfast, stir-fried with sofrito and Lizano sauce and topped with a fried egg.
Gallo pinto — literally "spotted rooster," for the speckled look the rice gets from the beans — is what breakfast means in most Costa Rican households, and it's built for using up yesterday's rice and beans rather than starting from scratch. A splash of the bean cooking liquid is the real secret here; it's what gives the finished dish its color and lets the tangy Lizano sauce (or Worcestershire, in a pinch) coat every grain.
Topped with a fried egg, this becomes a genuinely balanced vegetarian breakfast with fiber from the beans and protein from the egg working together. Using a gluten-free Worcestershire or Lizano-style sauce keeps the whole dish free of gluten as written, and it comes together fast enough for a weekday morning as long as you've got leftover rice and beans on hand.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked black beans, with 0.5 cup of their cooking liquid
- 3 cups cooked white rice, preferably day-old
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp gluten-free Lizano or Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 eggs
- salt and pepper, to taste
Most ingredients here are everyday market staples across West Africa. A handful of specialty items may be easiest to find at a local open-air market or an African grocery store if you're elsewhere.
Instructions
- 1Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté onion, bell pepper, and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes.
- 2Add the rice and beans along with the reserved bean liquid; stir-fry 5-6 minutes until well combined and heated through.
- 3Stir in the Lizano sauce, cilantro, salt, and pepper.
- 4In a separate pan, fry the eggs to your preference.
- 5Divide the gallo pinto among plates and top each with a fried egg.