Gallo Pinto

Gallo pinto means spotted rooster, a name generally taken to describe the speckled appearance of dark beans scattered through pale rice. It is the staple breakfast of both Costa Rica and Nicaragua, and both claim it as a national dish.

The rivalry is longstanding and largely amiable, with both countries pointing to their own traditions and occasionally to record-breaking mass servings. The dish is eaten daily in both, and the honest answer is that it belongs to the region rather than to one state.

Its foundation — rice and beans eaten together — reflects the wider Caribbean and Latin American pattern in which the pairing forms a complete protein and an affordable daily staple. Afro-Caribbean cooking on both countries' coasts is generally credited as an important influence.

Costa Rican gallo pinto typically uses black beans and is seasoned with Salsa Lizano, a mild, slightly sweet and tangy bottled sauce that is close to a national condiment and gives the dish a characteristic brown tint.

Nicaraguan versions more often use small red beans and skip the Lizano, relying on the bean broth, onion and sweet pepper for flavour. The result is a little drier and, its partisans argue, cleaner-tasting.

Both are built the same way: day-old rice fried with sautéed onion, sweet pepper and garlic, then beans added with a ladle of their cooking liquid, which colours the rice, and fresh coriander stirred through at the end.

As breakfast it is served with eggs, fried sweet plantain, a slice of fresh white cheese, corn tortillas, and often a spoonful of soured cream. Coffee is inevitable in two significant coffee-producing countries.

Leftover rice is essential rather than incidental — freshly cooked rice turns sticky, so the dish is designed around what is already in the kitchen from the day before.

It reappears at other meals as a side dish, and in Costa Rica a plate built around it at lunch or dinner becomes part of the casado, the standard set meal.