The best part about eating food in Costa Rica is how fresh it is! At the center where I live, they have a garden and a greenhouse with fresh fruits and veggies. We also have a chicken coop where we collect our eggs. The cooks at our center use these ingredients to make fresh meals for the students every day. The meals here are balanced and centered around three main components: rice, beans and plantains.
I get to pick my own starfruit, mandarins and bananas, which grow right outside my dorm. I have also tried new fruits like granadilla (similar to passionfruit) and limón dulce (a type of lemon that tastes mild and sweet). A typical Costa Rican meal includes rice, beans, plantains and meat. However, I got to try a special dish on my beach trip last week called arroz con mariscos (rice with seafood) along with ceviche (fresh fish in citrus juice).
Trying all these new foods introduced me to new rich flavors. But some of it also reminded me of home-cooked meals. Costa Rican food is influenced by other countries in the Caribbean. Specifically, a lot of dishes here have coconut flavors which were brought from Jamaica. The cuisine here is a beautiful fusion of different cultures.
