Talk:Gallo pinto

Tico vs. Nica controversy
I've attempted to give equal share to both Costa Rica and Nicaragua in the article. Until someone can come forward with a reliable source as to where the dish really originated, I think that's the best we can do.

I'm only knowledgeable about the Nicaraguan side of the debate. It may well be that this particular bit of cultural history is lost in the sands of time, and if that's the case, we may have to settle for documenting the controversy. --ryos 04:22, 8 July 2006 (UTC)


 * For what it's worth: googling "Costa Rica" "gallo pinto" yields 49,200 hits, "Nicaragua" "gallo pinto" 26,200 hits. This may reflect only CR's higher online presence, but it does suggest the dish is currently associated at least as much with CR as with Nicaragua.  I edited the page to be consistent with this. --ScottMainwaring 04:42, 8 July 2006 (UTC)

Gallo Pinto is the National Food of Costa Rica since the Colonial era (18th Century). For the sake of the truth, the history tell that all this territory: Costa Rica and Nicaragua was one Country, the red beans are preferred in Nicaragua, there is a good chance that nicaraguans have introduced the gallo pinto in Costa Rica in a time where the Province of Guanacaste and Nicoya was occupied by Costa Ricans, there are many similarity between Nicaraguans and Costa Ricans, the society of Costa Rica may not accept that because they reject the idea based on discrimination on any indian blood. The history is there to tell us that both societies have more to share than to discrept. I do believe that it is not right for the Costa Ricans to claim that the dish have its origin in their territory, even they know that the dish is 100% Indian, it is Chorotega, the Chorotega Culture was in Nicaraguan Territory, Guanacaste was part of Nicaragua as Nicoya was also, and the culture of Chorotegans the main dish are red beans. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.131.40.64 (talk) 00:47, 13 September 2007 (UTC)

It is not a Nicaraguan food. Our National Food consists of white rice and black beans, cooked with cilantro, white onion, red sweat chilli and garlic in butter. It is served with fried eggs, bread or tortilla, with fried plataners, sausages and sour cream. Also cofee, "agua dulce", or/and orange juice. Nicaragua's national plate is called "Nacatamal".

Nacatamal is the most famous and celebrated dish of Nicaragua. You can check it out here in Wikipedia, just type Nacatamal in the search engine and you will se the article there. Gallo Pinto is a costarrican food, originated in the Colonial capital of Cartago during the 18th century. Today Gallo Pinto is known to be a Breakfast meal. At lunch time, supper and dinner is commonly eaten any international origin dish. Traditional diches are only present in celebrations and parties among families or mayor events. But Gallo Pinto is eaten mostly daily as breakfast in our culture.

From a curious Costa Rican:

I want to know why this reference keeps getting deleted from the Gallo Pinto Wikipedia entry and continues to be refered to as a legend:

According to Costa Rican daily newspaper La Nacion the name "gallo pinto" was given in San Sebastian, one of the southern neighborhoods of San Jose, the Costa Rican capital:

For the celebration of the San Sebastian Day (January 20), a rich farmer invited a lot of people to his home. He announced he would kill and prepare the spotted rooster (gallo pinto) that he had been feeding for a long time. So many people accepted his invitation that the rooster was insufficient to give everyone even a pinch of bird. The cooks, not having anything else to give to so many guests, decided as an emergency solution to prepare a big pot of mixed rice and beans. The following day, as most people felt deceived, they made fun of the incident, asking each other if they had tried the gallo pinto, even though they knew that probably the only thing they had eaten was rice and beans. Ever since then mixed rice and beans has been called gallo pinto. (La Nación, San José, Costa Rica, Sept. 5, 2003).


 * If you read the article closely you will see that the author himself recognizes that the origin of the dish is difficult to determine. He follows to give a possible story about the name of the dish.  It seems to me that the purpose of the editorial piece is not to give a historically rigorous account of the name but rather an account about a town's (San Sebastian) story of the origin of the name. The followng lines back me up: "En San Sebastián. Sin embargo, esa no es la verdadera historia."  That is why we cannot accpet that source as a historical account of the name.  Finally, inclusion of the story itself might be warranted under consensus but we have to be careful of undue weight. Brusegadi 19:13, 17 August 2007 (UTC)

Extra recipe
Someone added an other recipe. Gallo pinto in the U.S. - 		 - 	To make Gallo Pinto a la Americana (American Style) find two cans of black or red beans without condiments. Goya and most large retail stores carry brands with such already cooked and salted beans. - 	The next step in washing the contents of the regular sized cans in a small bowl with water. Rinse a few times until the spum from the preservatives has run out and the water comes clear. An exception can be made with bean soup cans that need not be washed out of preservatives. Then fry in little olive, sasaffras or canola oil and butter (it is okay to substitute this for margarine and the oil mix when there is someone in the family with lactose intolerance) - 		 - 	Appart cook rice. You can cut on grease by just pan toasting the rice -two cups- to four cups of water. Both the beans and rice should be cook longer for a harder, crispier consistency or less for more relaxed end product. however the rice will be made in 15 to 18 minutes depending on heat at stove top and 15 minutes sharp in microwave -Japanese cookers are available at Wal Mart and other stores.

Can we find a way to accomodate it with the already existing one? Since it mentions company's names I removed it because it may violate policy. Brusegadi 08:09, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

I would just like to say, as a Historian, specializing in Latin American Culture and Society, that the origins of Gallo Pinto are Nicaraguan. No doubt about it. Costa Rican claims of it's creation of Gallo Pinto hold as much water as the claims made by Costa Rica in 1979 when they claimed that they did not harbor communist forces during the Nicaraguan Revolution.

Riiiight, and youre a theology professor too right? provide citations from credible sources, or refrain from violating NPOV. VanTucky 18:06, 14 March 2007 (UTC)

I've visited both countries extensively over the years and met people from all walks of life. The rice and beans dish prepared in both countries are different in ingredients as well as the variety of bean used one being red and the other black. In CR this dish is prepared with black beans, cilantro (actually is called culantro in both countries)and is called CASADOS not gallo pinto. In nicaragua the dish is prepared with a variety of a small red bean that's got a very distinctive flavor from other varieties of red beans, chopped green pepper and onion is added to the mix, they call it over there gallo pinto. I can say from personal experience that many costa ricans resent that the name of one of their main staple(CASADOS)had been replaced by the ever increasingly popular nicaraguan gallo pinto. Even though nicaraguans and costa ricans resemble each other more than they can accept, there seems to be a rift exacerbated by the massive migration of poor nicaraguans into costa rica that started in the mid 80's as the result of the civil war in that country. There is an estimated half a million nicaraguans now living in costa rica whose population is estimated between 4.5 and 5 million people, this explains why the term gallo pinto has become popular in urban areas of CR like san jose. In the rest of central america and in the U.S. with large concentrations of spanish speaking people, gallo pinto is a synonym of nicaragua. I want to conclude this with a story from one of my co-workers while vacationing in CR last year at a restaurant near central plaza in san jose. One of the items in the menu offered a dish called "vigoron" that is yuca (cassava) with pork cracklings (chicharron) and a salad made with cabbage, diced tomatoes and vinegar, a note on the menu claimed that vigoron is a very typical costa rican dish when in fact the dish originated in granada nicaragua and I know that for a fact since I've never heard or seen this dish beyond some border towns like alajuela where used to be offered in restaurants owned by nicaraguan expatriates.

Jeff Dazbohrk Cutler Bay, FL. USA   —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.3.131.33 (talk) 03:15, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

What is it?
This article is a little light on answering the simple question, what is gallo pinto. It provides some variation and such, but doesn't list what the canonical form(s) are in each country.User:!jimtalk contribs 20:54, 24 November 2007 (UTC)
 * Good point. A basic definition has now been provided. Van Tucky  talk 21:00, 24 November 2007 (UTC)
 * Awesome, thanks! User:!jimtalk contribs 08:01, 3 December 2007 (UTC)

This is great and all...
But WTF is gallopinto? It says it has rice and varying spices, and that its origin is debated, but never actually says what it is! 128.146.46.2 (talk) 17:12, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

im so hood i wear my pants below my waist an avrage that you and man are im so hood and i got these golds up in my house and you get closer to my house than you no what im talking about im out the hood and if you feel me put hands up hood hood my hood *iger in this satnd up hood if you not from here you can walk it out than your not hood if you dont know what talking about im im im im im so hood im so h to the doubel o d............. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.44.140.129 (talk) 18:00, 6 February 2009 (UTC)

My experience with Gallo Pinto
I grew up in Nicaragua and lived a total of about 21 years in that country. When my family moved to Costa Rica and looking for work in that country I visited and worked there countless times.

All I can share is that every day in Nicaragua gallopinto is part of the daily fare of the majority of Nicaraguans, most often for breakfast. I've stayed at the home of Costa Ricans many times and eaten in more restaurants there that I can remember. Not one time was gallo pinto served in the homes of Costa Ricans I've stayed with nor can I recall ONE single time I saw gallo pinto being eaten in my presence. I never saw gallo-pinto in the menu restaurants in Costa Rica while in fact it is served at restaurants and hotels all over Nicaragua as part of a typical breakfast there. I also have tasted some of the other so-called equivalent recipes, such as "moros y cristianos" from Cuba, Spain, and Puerto Rico, and these "variations" taste nothing like I tasted in Nicaragua. (I can't compare it with Costa Rican gallo-pinto, as I never saw it!) Just because you mix rice and beans, you can't call that gallo pinto. In fact, many eateries in South Florida in the U.S. claim to offer gallo-pinto by doing just that and fail miserably at the attempt! This is from personal first-hand experience. 65.9.236.91 (talk) 00:04, 4 January 2010 (UTC)

Regarding Gallo Pinto and its Origins: hopefully ending the matter once and for all!
I am personally from Costa Rica and have heard that 'Gallo Pinto' is actually from Afro-Caribbean origins and I have know that the dish (basically rice and beans mixed together) is prepared with many variations in many other nations.

I write as a costa rican, but will be as neutral as possible.

I have gotten the following information from a magazine called : "Proa" which belongs to the same organization as "La Nación" newspaper of Costa Rica does : Proa

In Costa Rica, there is this urban legend (previously mentioned here before) about a wealthy farmer named Bernabé who in the 1930's told the townspeople of San Sebastián that he was going to kill a gallo pinto, or spotted rooster he had been fattening up until the celebrations in name of the town's patron. As such, he invited the townspeople over to his hacienda and to the big meal he was preparing. The legend continues on to say that the one rooster was not enough to feed the multitude that had shown up at Bernabé's hacienda. So, the cooks decided to mix in some rice and beans into a large pot in order to serve the multitude something to eat.

The townspeople, feeling deceived, jokingly asked among themselves if they had been present at Bernabé's 'gallo pinto'. And from then on, the population began referencing the same food served at Bernabé's as 'gallo pinto', referencing farmer's lack of 'spotted rooster' at his 'gathering' (if you will).

This, however, is an urban legend, and does not describe itself how the dish was created, just the way it supposedly got its current name in costa rica (at least). But the article goes on to state that it was previously known as detentempié.

The article referenced a survey carried out by Unimer, which uncovered that 92% of costa ricans consider the dish 'gallo pinto' an identifier of Costa Rica and its culture.

The article also references Patricia Vega Jiménez, a historian intent on discovering the origins and history of this food. According to her, beans (the ones composing Gallo Pinto) originate in the Americas, and as such, were a common Amerindian ingredient. At the start of la conquista, during the colonia and from then on, this ingredient's importance in latin american and caribbean nations was maintained and perhaps even augmented. It was also mostly consumed by the poorer people of these regions.

However, rice came via Europe (Spain), which to them came via the Moors, which in turn reached America via the Iberian colonizers (which used rice actively in their gastronomy) and tried their best to bring with them to the new world that important crop.

The first Costa Rican recipe book written by Juana Ramírez de Aragón in the late nineteenth century established that by then Costa Ricans liked to eat dried black beans accompanied with tortillas, Agua Dulce, or Coffee. It is apparent (states the article) that during that time period, the aforementioned food was what identified Costa Rican gastronomy.

Regarding rice, however, considering that at first it had to be imported from Spain (states the article) it was only accessible to the higher up social classes. Usually the white Spaniards who sought ways to differentiate themselves from the natives. They accompanied the rice with fish, meat or vegetables such as beans or lentils, depending on the area they settled.

As the Spanish born population and the natives mixed, so did their gastronomical differences. The article goes on stating that the mixed progeny received into their every-day diet the Spaniards' rice and the natives' beans and tortillas.

However, Vega (the aforementioned historian) is assured by her findings that today's gallo pinto as we know it, did not develop until at least 2 decades into the XX century. And Vega is certain this is thanks to the Afro-Caribbean population.

Marjorie Ross, states the article, had already proposed this theory (she is a latin american food investigator and writer).

At least in costa rica; the immigrant population of Chinese, Blacks, and Italians of the 1870's brought over to work in Costa Rica's railroad construction, made even more prominent the use of Rice and Beans as ingredients in food. The need or high demand for both ingredients also hints at their status as prominent basic ingredients. The article states that the Chinese population cooked their rice in large pots, the Italians used their rice as complement to their diets, and the Blacks tried to conjure up new ways of mixing both rice and beans (as was typical of the Black Caribbean culture since the XVIII century).

At that time, the majority of Afro-Caribbean workers were from Jamaica and surrounding islands. They were descendants of slaves and, therefore, had learned the recipe of their ancestors. During the sea voyage from the African coast to the Americas, their ancestors fed themselves with a mixture of rice and Angolan arverjas.

Arriving in the Americas, they discovered that the local beans could be a good substitute to their Angolan peas and so gave rise to the so-called rice and beans dish. Which was a low-cost food and was gradually generalized by the railway companies to support their employees food needs.

By 1930, the mixture of rice and beans was a fairly common practice in Costa Rica's banana plantations of the Atlantic. Carlos Luis Fallas (a prominent Costa Rican figure of that time), in his book, Mamita Yunai (Mother Uni - referencing the spanish pronunciation of the english word United, which in turn referenced the United Fruit Company and its banana production in Costa Rica's Limón province) describes a lavish breakfast for employees called famosaburra; consisting of "a bowl of oatmeal, lots of rice and roasted beans scrambled together, whom they referred to as gallo pinto, and boiled bananas. Then, a mug of black unsweetened coffee."

According to Vega, gallo pinto is definitely a copy or a derivative of African rice and beans. However, the men who worked in the banana plantations but that came from the Central Valley (San José) were who baptized it with the name "Gallo Pinto". They, on the one hand, missed the taste of tradicionalgallo (a tortilla wrap with minced meat) as prepared in their homes, and on the other, remember the popular black and white spotted rooster used in the usual cockfighting. Known to be the bravest of all and the most anticipated during competitions.

When they returned to their homes, they brought with them the recipe for this "gallo pinto", only that in the Central Valley it suffered a few modifications: coconut oil was replaced by lard, black beans won prominence over red beans, and to add more color, some seasonings and spices like onions, sweet peppers and cilantro were mixed.

Very practical and liked was this "pinto" dish that soon women began to prepare it almost daily and in turn it became the meal their husbands received to be taken to the field. "Maybe that's why the gallo pinto became part of Costa Rican breakfast, regardless of social status" says Vega, who is quick to clarify that, since always, the Ticos diet was characterized by large meals at the beginning of their day.

The article goes on to state that the question of when this dish became costa rica's 'national dish' is still somewhat a mystery. The aforementioned historian (Ms Vega) states that it must have happened a few decades back, in the most subtle of ways, since, in reality, no one has made official that dish as such.

What is undeniable, however, is that the gallo pinto dish identifies the Ticos as does the sausage to the Germans, the pasta to the Italians, and the sushi to the Japanese. Even international food chains like McDonald's and Subway have incorporated this dish to the local chain's respective menus.

Nevertheless, the article also states the 'conflict' that arises between the claiming of the origin of this dish by both Nicaraguans and Costa Ricans. However, the article, along with the heavily referenced Historian Vega and other such historians coincide that both Nicaragua and Costa Rica are right in claiming their dish's respective origin. The article states that one need only look at other latin american and even Spanish recipes to see that they are all basically the same with one ingredient more or one ingredient less or prepared a certain way instead of another, according to the nation and even to the regions within a certain nation that the dish is prepared.

'''What is certain, however, is that this dish's roots come from the afro-caribbeans themselves. It just morphed and developed into different versions as the people who visited the afro-caribbean populations went back to their respective homes along with the basics of this recipe.''' The article I referenced here makes allusion to the dish 'gallo pinto' and how it entered costa rica and morphed into the popular breakfast dish it is today only within Costa Rica. This information does not reference how the dish entered and developed and morphed into what it is today within Nicaragua, and as such, should not be discarded. It only references the version of Gallo Pinto which is enjoyed in Costa Rica; which is significantly different than the Gallo Pinto served in Nicaragua. Not only in how it is prepared, but in how it is served as well. With that said, I do not mean to state that the dishes are not related in any way whatsoever.

This matter is very similar to the common latin american food : Tamale. although its roots are understood to a certain degree, almost every nation in Latin America has its own version, its own history and origin. One way of preparing it is not superior than another. They are all unique within their respective nations and can identify the populations of said nations.

I have written what is above this signature within this section: JosepaXD (talk) 19:01, 5 January 2013 (UTC)

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"Rice and beans"
" In countries near or in the Caribbean, these dishes are simply known as rice and beans, in which the dish is cooked in coconut milk." Are they really known by that English phrase, or by the Spanish equivalent? If the latter, it should be used in the article instead of the English. 71.235.184.247 (talk) 15:20, 10 May 2019 (UTC)

Unnecessary changes to this page needs to Stop
I have done a large revision to this wikipedia page and I have left it alone for a while; lots of things have been changed and updated which is great! But the amount of unregistered users who come into this page and edit the information of where gallo pinto is eaten or from needs to stop. It goes from Nicaragua to Costa Rica and back to Nicaragua, and so forth. This has been ongoing for a while, since long before I registered as a user.

As of right now, gallo pinto is eaten primarily in Central America with a concentration in BOTH Nicaragua and Costa Rica. While I'm not here to talk about where it originates, at least where it is eaten is in those countries primarily. I'm not sure what can be done but the amount of times someone has gone on and change small aspects to fit a personal belief over rice and beans is a bit rediculous.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to not allow unregistered users or have certain aspects of the page to not be edited by short term or unregistered users? Is this a good idea? Macuilmiquiztli (talk) 05:01, 25 May 2019 (UTC)


 * I added citations from academic studies that support the Costa Rican origin, I looked for similar studies for Nicaragua but wasn't able to find any. I left the reference to Nicaragua in case other editors are able to find an appropriate article, assuming it truly originated in both countries, otherwise this should be removed. --212.230.145.222 (talk) 16:18, 31 October 2019 (UTC)


 * It appears that this page has been consistently vandalized for many years now. Any time someone adds the origin from Costa Rica, even including sources, some time later it is removed without any explanation. This is clearly not done in accordance to Wikipedia's code nor with intellectual honesty, but more as an attempt to only credit one country. I agree something needs to be done to avoid these changes from happening over and over, but not sure what are the tools available to us. Alf10087 (talk) 22:57, 18 November 2019 (UTC)

This has gone on way too long. Clearly the exact place of origin is hotly disputed, and most sources reflect and discuss that. Wikipedia should therefore do similar. I have listed both countries, and added a paragraph on this dispute, as being notable according to sources. Attempts to continue edit warring to assign it to solely one or other country will be treated as disruptive. However, if anyone has an excellent, authoritative source that clearly assigns it to either country, without doubt or hint of simple nationalist favouritism, I'm happy to read of it here. -- Escape Orbit (Talk) 15:40, 9 July 2020 (UTC)


 * There already were such sources, from scholarly articles. But you removed them and replaced them with blog posts which should not be taken as reliable sources. The articles in question are . I hope these are added back since it's real research and not a blog post from some random tourist. Rosbela (talk) 16:01, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I didn't add blogs, however they can always be improved on. The second of your cites leads to this article, which says; "Additionally, informants explain that Nicaraguans also eat pinto and cite their consumption of the food as added evidence that the food originated in northern Costa Rica. I propose, however, that Nicaraguan foodways may have followed a path similar to those of Costa Rica."  So it supports what the article now says.  I will add it.  I'm afraid I cannot see what the other cite says.  Do you have a quote?  Thanks. -- Escape Orbit  (Talk) 12:39, 10 July 2020 (UTC)
 * The "Culture Trip" one looks like a blog. Another one is just a recipe and the third one is an article by a travel company. My point isn't on the content of the article but in using these sources when much better ones were provided. When I originally added these sources months ago, it still said "Costa Rica and Nicaragua". It's too bad you can't find access to the first source since it's a history of the dish. If you want a specific quote, the most relevant one for this discussion I can find is:
 * "The distinction that has been conferred on the mixture of white rice and black beans as a component of national culinary culture among Costa Ricans has provoked a reaction in neighboring countries. Nicaraguans claim the dish as their own, use the same name, and have likewise elevated it to the rank of national dish. Indeed, rice and beans have become the common foundation of diets in various Latin American countries, including Cuba, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, in addition to Nicaragua and some regions of Mexico and Panama. The rituals and forms of preparing and serving them, and the times at which they are consumed, vary from one country to the next. Yet these countries have a common heritage. In all of them, frijoles derive from pre-Hispanic cultures, and were eaten accompanied by maize— in the form of tortillas or on the cob. Rice, by contrast, was carried to America in the early days of the Spanish conquest." -- Rosbela (talk) 23:00, 11 July 2020 (UTC)