While chifrijo does not have a long history — it was invented in a bar in Costa Rico in the 1990s — it is now a mainstay of Costa Rican cuisine. The name is a merger of the words chicharrón and frijoles, which makes perfect sense, because that's essentially the essence of the dish! Chifrijo can be a labor of love, but thanks to canned beans and air fryers, it can also be a quick meal with impactful flavors.
Crispy Pork Belly Bowl (Chifrijo)
2 cups cooked white rice, medium or long grain
1 lb. cooked chicharrón, recipe below
1 cup pice de gallo, recipe below
1 cup Costa Rican beans, recipe below
1 avocado, sliced thinly
corn tortilla chips
Salsa Lizano or Worcestershire sauce [NOTE 1]
In the bottom of a cereal bowl or other small bowl. Place ~1 tablespoon of sauce from beans. Top with ½ cup rice, ¼ cup beans, ¼ of the prepared chicharrón, ¼ sliced avocado, and 2-3 tablespoons of pico de gallo. Repeat with remaining 3 bowls.
Lightly drizzle each bowl with Salsa Lizano or a touch of Worcestershire sauce, then garnish with a few tortilla chips.
Serve with additional chips and pico de gallo.
Air Fried Crispy Pork Belly (Chicharrón) [NOTE 2]
1 lb pork belly, sliced into 1-inch cubes
2 limes
1 cube chicken bouillon, crushed
¼ teaspoon baking soda
Mix together juice of both limes, bouillon, and baking soda. Place pork in and marinate for at least 30 minutes, at room temperature. You can marinade the pork for up to two hours in fridge, but be sure to have it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before cooking.
Preheat air fryer to 250°. Because fat and meat juice will accumulate at the bottom of the air fryer base, line the bottom (not the basket, just the base where the basket sits) with a circle of aluminum foil or parchment paper.
Remove meat from marinade and pat dry with with a paper towel. Place on air fryer rack. Cook for 20 minutes at 250°.
Flip pork pieces over, and turn air fryer to 400°. Cook for another 5-10 minutes, until brown and crispy.
Pico de Gallo
½ medium white onion, chopped [NOTE 3]
1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
2 limes
½ teaspoon salt
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (optional) ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Mix together juice from both limes and all remaining ingredients.
Let sit anyway for at least 15 minutes, up to two hours.
Beans
1 tablespoon canola or other neutral cooking oil
½ medium white onion, chopped
1 small clove garlic, minced.
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon paprika
1 ~14-ounce can of kidney or black beans
½ teaspoon salt
few shakes Salsa Lizano or Worcestershire sauce
Heat oil on medium in bottom of small sauce pan. Add onions and cook until translucent and soft. Add garlic and sauté 3 more minutes.
Add cumin and paprika, and cook for 1 minutes until fragrant. Add beans and sauce. When mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat to low. Add salt and a few shakes Salsa Lizano or Worcestershire sauce. Taste to adjust seasonings.
NOTE 1: Salsa Lizano is a Costa Rican staple and often can be found in Latino grocery stores. It has a sweet, tangy umami. Worcestershire is a close substitute.
NOTE 2: If you do not have an air fryer, you can line a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment, then cover with a gridded metal cooling rack. Bake at 350° for ~35-40 minutes, until crispy. You may also sub for any traditional, oil fried recipe you find.
NOTE 3: Because my family does not like raw onion, I cooked a full onion when prepping the beans, then removed half for the pico before adding the garlic to the pan.
FUN FACTS:
In Costa Rica, most major radio stations play the national anthem each morning at 7am.
The Costa Rican army was dissolved in 1949, and they haven’t had one since.
As many as 100,000 turtles come ashore on Ostional National Wildlife Refuge’s beaches, leaving behind as many as 10 million eggs in a day.
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