Breakfast Adventures: Hoppin' John the Painted Rooster

Do you remember about a week and half ago when I unveiled my new adventure with breakfasts from around the world? I decided to dream of tropical locations and took my family on a morning vacation(with a quick stop in the American south) and whipped up some  Gallo Pinto (the unofficial dish of Costa Rica).

Gallo Pinto is a hearty combination of black beans (or kidney), rice, onion, and garlic. It's typically served with eggs and perhaps a tortilla or some other sort of bread. (I have never been to Costa Rica and can't speak from experience, though the pictures sure do look nice!)

It's a fairly simple recipe:

Gallo Pinto Recipe

2 cans black beans
1 small or medium onion, minced
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 cups chicken broth or water
2 cups white rice
½ teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1-3 Tablespoon oil to fry the Gallo Pinto

My own additions:
Bacon, crumbled
1 small can green chiles

Add 1 Tablespoon oil to a large pan and sauté the dry rice for 2 minutes over medium high flame then add half of the chopped onion and garlic and sauté another 2 minutes. Add water or chicken broth, bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to simmer until rice is tender (20-35 minutes). This is also the recipe for Tico rice used in other favorites like tamales. Add beans and sautee with oil 2 to 3 minutes.
By adding the bacon, I tiptoed into the deep, rich culture of the American south and their own concoction, Hoppin' John (typically a similar dish made with bacon, rice, and black-eyed peas and often eaten on New Year's morning for good luck.) I thought bacon would make the dish a little more "breakfasty" and less likely to be snubbed by my guinea pigs (it's happened, trust me).

The result.

We had this breakfast before the weekend and, my friends, I think my body is still trying to digest it.

Talk about a dense, hearty breakfast. Perhaps too hearty for my family and I? P could hardly plow through his fried eggs, let alone the mountain of gallo pinto I piled on his plate. The boys saw beans on their breakfast plates and gave me the "WTH?" look before clamoring for their cereal and milk. Loudly.

 I certain this dish originated back in a time where people had one good meal to get them started on a day of hard, phsyical work--not my butt-numbing eight hours in front a computer. It was a bit too much for us, but the flavors were delicious and it's definitely a recipe worth trying...perhaps on the morning of a big hike or ski trip?

But you've been warned...don't try to consume mass quantities of bacon and carbs and expect to sit peacefully in your cubicle for a few hours. Not gonna happen!