International Cooking: Food from Nicaragua

I feel like it’s been a while since I cooked food from a Latin American country, though Mexico wasn’t really that long ago. I enjoy this type of cuisine so I was pretty excited to be cooking food from Nicaragua this week! I am having a few issues at this point in my challenge where I come across dishes I’ve already made for another country, but I’m doing my best to find something unique each week. I got some great suggestions from Nicaraguans on Reddit.

Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America and the third most populous. The region has been inhabited by various indigenous cultures for thousands of years, and much of today’s population can trace their lineage back to some of these people.

The Spanish Empire conquered the region in the 16th century, though the area known as the Mosquito Coast, along the eastern coast of present-day Nicaragua and Honduras, was colonized by the English during the 17th century. While Nicaragua gained independence from Spain in 1821, the Mosquito Coast remained under British rule until 1860. The northern section was transferred to Honduras in 1960.

Nicaragua has had a rough few centuries since independence, with periods of political unrest, dictatorships, occupation, and fiscal crisis. However, Nicaragua is also a beautiful country, biologically diverse and home to the second-largest rainforest of the Americas, the Bosawás Biosphere Reserve.

What Do People Eat in Nicaragua?

Food from Nicaragua shows a mixture of influences from Spain, the Caribbean, and Africa. There are also plenty of traditional dishes and techniques that come from the indigenous people. The western half of Nicaragua tends to use more typical Latin American ingredients while the eastern side, especially along the coast, includes a lot of seafood and coconut.

Corn, rice, and beans are staple foods in Nicaragua and at least one will show up during most meals. Other common ingredients include peanuts and locally grown fruits and vegetables, as well as herbs such as cilantro and oregano.

What I Made

• Gallo Pinto (Red Beans and Rice)
• Tajadas con Queso (Fried Plantain & Cheese with Cabbage Slaw)
• Indio Viejo (Beef and Corn Flour Stew)
• Repocheta (Quesadilla Taco)
• Quesillo (Tortilla with Pickled Onions and Cheese)

Scroll down to read about other popular Nicaraguan dishes I didn’t make!

Gallo Pinto (Red Beans and Rice)

Gallo pinto is a popular dish in a few Central American countries; I actually already made a version of it when I cooked food from Costa Rica. I enjoyed it then so I was happy to revisit it for Nicaragua, where it is considered the national dish. The recipe I followed this time was a little simpler than the Costa Rican version, and it includes red beans instead of black. There’s also another noticeable difference—Nicaraguan gallo pinto does not include Salsa Lizano, since that is a Costa Rican seasoning sauce.

I started by cooking some red beans, which I had soaked for a few hours. I also cooked some white rice separately.

Next, I grated some onion and sautéed it in oil. A few minutes later, I added some chopped green bell pepper. The recipe never said when to add this but I could see it in the dish later in the recipe video and it’s a common ingredient.

After a few more minutes, I seasoned with salt and pepper and added the cooked red beans. A few minutes after that I added the cooked rice. I stirred and let cook for a few more minutes before serving.

Gallo pinto is commonly served with eggs. There also may be many other additions, such as fried plantains, cabbage salad, and meat—in Nicaragua, there are places called ‘fritangas’ that specialize in serving plates like this. The dish itself can also be referred to as ‘fritanga’.

I served my gallo pinto with tajadas con queso, the next dish. I thought it was really good but I have to say, I did miss the flavor from the Salsa Lizano (sorry Nicaragua!)

The recipe I used is from Mimicita’s Kitchen on YouTube.

Tajadas con Queso (Fried Plantain & Cheese with Cabbage Slaw)

I thought this seemed like an interesting dish, yet also simple to make. Plantains are sliced thinly and fried to form chips, then topped with fried cheese and a cabbage slaw. The slaw, called ‘ensalada de repollo’, is a common side dish in Nicaragua.

I made the cabbage slaw first so that the flavors had time to develop. I combined shredded cabbage and carrots with diced onion and tomato, then tossed everything with a mixture of water, white vinegar, and lime juice. I seasoned the dish with salt and pepper and set the slaw aside.

Next, I cut the plantain into thin slices and fried them. In the recipe, the plantain was halved and then cut into thin slices vertically, but I didn’t think I could make nice slices like that without a mandolin.

I added some Mexican frying cheese to the oil next, and topped the plantain chips with it once cooked. Then I added some of the cabbage slaw on top and the dish was ready. I ate this with some of my gallo pinto (previous dish).

I thought this was really delicious. It was a nice combination of flavors and textures and I don’t think I’d made something quite like this before.

I used two recipes from Nata Knows Best: here is the tajadas con queso recipe and here is the ensalada de repollo recipe.

Indio Viejo (Beef and Corn Flour Stew)

This popular stew is made from shredded beef, vegetables, and enough corn flour to make it very thick. I thought it sounded like a fun and unique dish to try.

I started by sautéing onion in oil. The recipe called for lard, but that isn’t really something I use so I didn’t have it on hand (though I am not opposed to trying it some time). After a few minutes, I stirred in some minced garlic, followed by green bell pepper and tomatoes. Next, I added some cilantro and mint—the latter was ‘Hierba Buena’ in the recipe and from what I could tell, that’s mint or something similar.

I added shredded beef, which I had cooked the night before using the recipe from Pura Vida Moms since I enjoyed it so much when I made it for Costa Rica week. It’s simply seasoned with onion, garlic, bell pepper, cilantro, and Salsa Lizano…which I did include, mostly because it adds a lot of flavor and I knew I was going to have plenty leftover, which I planned on using for tacos for lunch throughout the week.

Next, I added masa harina mixed with water. I’m not 100% sure masa harina is the type of cornmeal/corn flour being called for here but it seemed to work well. I definitely didn’t want to add coarse cornmeal. I added some beef stock (using Better Than Bouillon), achiote (I crushed the seeds and soaked them in water, then strained it into the soup), and a mixture of orange and lemon juice to replace sour orange juice. Finally, I added more cilantro and mint before serving.

I thought this was pretty good; it had a tortilla-like taste and I think the flavor of the cilantro and mint combined with the corn flour was pretty good. I do feel like the beef got kind of tough, even though it didn’t cook long in the stew and was perfect before I added it.

This recipe is from Maria Esther – NicaSazón on YouTube.

Repocheta (Quesadilla Taco)

I couldn’t resist making one or two tortilla-based street foods this week and I started with repochetas. These are made by first making a quesadilla out of two tortillas, then folding it over a cabbage mixture like a taco.

First, I made the cabbage slaw by combining shredded cabbage with vinegar and sugar. I set it aside to marinate while I made the quesadillas.

I added a corn tortilla to a hot skillet and topped it with shredded Oaxaca cheese, then another tortilla. I cooked it on both sides until beginning to brown, then removed it from the pan. I topped it with the cabbage, as well as some crema and cilantro. Then I folded over the quesadilla and my repocheta was ready.

I really liked this; it may have been simple but it tasted really good!

This recipe is from Bitchin’ Camero.

Quesillo (Tortilla with Pickled Onions and Cheese)

Here’s another tortilla dish, which I included since according to Nicaraguans on Reddit, this is extremely popular, including among foreigners. It’s even simpler than the last dish.

First, I blanched some chopped onion in boiling water for a few minutes. Then I drained it and combined it with black vinegar and a pinch of salt. Before this, I had only seen black vinegar used in Asian recipes. I love the flavor so I was happy to find a use for it here.

I let the onion pickle for a few minutes before moving onto the tortillas. I warmed them over the stove and topped them with shredded mozzarella, then added some of the pickled onion and a drizzle of crema. That was it!

I thought these were great. I liked the combination of the pickled onion and cheese. Next time I’d probably skip blanching the onion and just pickle it longer. I’d also try and find the right cheese—Oaxaca would have been close, but I’d run out, so I resorted to some pre-shredded mozzarella I had in the fridge.

This recipe is from Nata Knows Best.

Other Popular Nicaraguan Dishes

• Pescado a la Tipitapa – fish, typically whole, cooked with garlic, lemon juice, tomato, and onion, and usually served with rice, tostones (fried plantain chips), and salsa.
• Baho – also spelled ‘vaho’, this is a mixture of meat, green plantain, and yuca/cassava cooked in banana leaves.
• Vigorón – consists of cabbage salad, boiled yuca/cassava, and chicharrones (fried pork rinds), wrapped in a banana leaf for serving.
• Tres leches cake – a sponge cake soaked in three kinds of milk after baking: evaporated milk, condensed milk, and whole milk. This is commonly associated with Mexico, but it may actually have originated in Nicaragua.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed returning to Latin American cuisine this week! My favorite dish was the tajadas con queso—I thought it was unique compared to other dishes I’ve tried and I really enjoyed it. The quesillo would also be hard to beat, especially since it’s so simple.

I’m taking a break next week since I was too busy and just haven’t got around to doing the research needed, but I will be back soon cooking food from Niger.