--- title: Saturday, October 19th, 2019. description: In this Daily, we talk about rediscovering ingredients in Costa Rica. Costa Rican fruits and Costa Rican vegetables are some of the most biodiverse on the planet, but the rise of groceries lead to fru image: https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/arracacha-1280x720-600x338-1.jpg --- # Saturday, October 19th, 2019. [mailto:?subject=I%20wanted%20you%20to%20see%20this%20site&body=https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-october-19th-2019](mailto:?subject=I%20wanted%20you%20to%20see%20this%20site&body=https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-october-19th-2019) [Book](https://www.lascatalinascr.com/section/booking) In this Daily: Rediscovering Ingredients in Costa Rica Per land area Costa Rica is among the most densely biodiverse regions on earth, which includes a wide variety of native fruits, vegetables, herbs, and plants some of which can be found nowhere else on the planet. Thanks to over [300 microclimates in the country,](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-28th-2019/) each part of Costa Rica had trees, shrubs, plants, and fruits that were hyper specific to the region. Historically, these local varieties of plants [were an integrated part of the Costa Rican diet](https://blog.santarenahotel.com/vegan-experiences-in-costa-rica). Products were limited to what could be grown or bought in the area, which meant each slightly different part of the country had its own unique plant-based ingredients.  The rise of large-scale farming and grocery stores by the late 20th century brought affordable, easily accessible products, but also helped generalize the diet in the country. The fruits and vegetables that could be easily grown, shipped, and produced dominated store shelves and restaurant ingredient lists, which meant there was less need to cultivate, collect, or sell the specific local plants. Many were simply forgotten. However, in the past decade or so, there has been a push by chefs and local farmers to rediscover and reintroduce these plants, which never really went anywhere, and integrate them back into artisan cuisine.  ![Beach Purslane, Artisanification of Ingredients, Costa Rican Fruits](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Screen-Shot-2019-10-18-at-1_49_14-PM-600x449-1.png?width=600&height=449&name=Screen-Shot-2019-10-18-at-1_49_14-PM-600x449-1.png) Beach Purslane, which can be found in Las Catalinas | PC: Commons ### The Artisanification of Ingredients in Costa Rica The standardization of production from grocery stores and large-scale farming came with lower cost ingredients and more convenience. The trade-off was that there was less of a need to forage and collect regional ingredients. These trees and plants were still growing strong, but they never made their way to supermarket shelves. As people became conditioned to what was widely available, these products lost popularity in farmers’ markets as well, and many local farmers stopped making the effort to cultivate them. Recently however, there’s been a push to rediscover these plants. The trees and plants are still thriving and growing just like they had been, but chefs and producers are starting [to seek out these regional plants](https://blog.santarenahotel.com/locally-sourced-ingredients-the-approachability-of-costa-rican-cuisine), some of which are endemic to Costa Rica and can’t be found anywhere else in the world. ‘ One such chef is Gilberto Briceño. After his travels to the kitchens of Europe and South America, he wanted to bring to life a cuisine unique to his home country. The ingredients of Costa Rica, especially these endemic local ingredients, are a fundamental piece of that vision, both for their flavor and what they mean to the culinary identity of Costa Rica. Chef Briceño talks about going to different farmer’s markets and asking for variations on specific ingredients, like the root of the *chayote*, or the *arracacha*. In the process, many farmers would often remember old family recipes, like a grandmother’s *chayote*-root tea, or a cooking sides of ground *arracacha*.  ![Arracacha, Artisanification of Ingredients, Costa Rican Fruits](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/arracacha-1280x720-600x338-1.jpg?width=600&height=338&name=arracacha-1280x720-600x338-1.jpg) Arracacha | PC: Commons Briceño and other chefs explore every aspect of Costa Rica’s products included the using flowers, stems, and roots of more well-known vegetables like *arracacha* and *cassava*, sourcing fruits like *sagú *and *jabuticaba*, and making prominent use of herbs like *purslane de playa*.  It’s a process that Briceño calls an “artisanification” of ingredients, which he points to as a process happening in many places around the world. As the world grows more connected, and products become easier and cheaper to acquire, there’s been a counter movement towards craft and artisan producers, to recapture local character and quality.  ### Tasting the Artisanification of Ingredients Bringing these old ingredients back to prominence is a reflection of this “artisanification” taking place across Costa Rica, as producers and chefs look to bring high-quality regional flavors back to the forefront.  The groceries and restaurants in Las Catalinas have prominent examples. Chef Saul Umaña of [Ponciana restaurant](http://santarenahotel.com/dining/ponciana) utilizes well-studied techniques from his travels to offer [a new perspective on regional products and favorites](https://blog.santarenahotel.com/a-look-at-ponciana). At the [Santarena Hotel](http://santarenahotel.com) you can also find products like [Jabuticaba wine](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-june-28th-2019/), and at [Copper & Stone Gourmet Grocery](http://www.copperandstonegourmet.com/shop/food) there’s artisan [Hacienda Sur beef](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-9th-2019/).  ![Local Products, Artisanification of Ingredients, Costa Rican Fruits](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/43560535_280384099261828_5087896020606703131_n-600x393-1.jpg?width=600&height=393&name=43560535_280384099261828_5087896020606703131_n-600x393-1.jpg) Chef Briceño at a local Finca Chef Briceño is also constantly in pursuit of new ingredients to add to his cooking, searching the tropical dry forests of Las Catalinas to forage for plants and herbs, and working with [local producers](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/sourcing-local-ingredients-with-gilberto-briceno/) to discover new plants he hasn’t tried yet. To try out the results of some of his work, schedule a private dinner with him in Las Catalinas, or join him on [a forage and prepare meal](https://news.lascatalinascr.com/foraging) out in the tropical dry forest reserve in town.  [maxbutton id="1" url="https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/4917861/6178ecf1-435d-470c-9cff-0aa6643611da" text="Book a Meal with Chef Gilberto" ] ## See related posts ## [Sunday, August 11th, 2019.](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-11th-2019) [In this Daily: Día de la Madre (Costa Rican Mother’s Day) and the Week Ahead](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-11th-2019) [Read more](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-11th-2019) ## [Monday, November 18th, 2019.](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-november-18th-2019) [In this Daily: The Pura Vida Ride Paddle Battle and the Intrepid Challenge](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-november-18th-2019) [Read more](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-november-18th-2019) ## [Wednesday, August 28th, 2019.](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-28th-2019) [In this Daily: A Look at the National Parks of Costa Rica](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-28th-2019) [Read more](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-august-28th-2019) ## [Monday, September 23rd, 2019.](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-september-23rd-2019) [In this Daily: The Monkeys of Guanacaste](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-september-23rd-2019) [Read more](https://thedaily.lascatalinascr.com/daily-september-23rd-2019) #### Subscribe to The Blog, The Daily, The Newsletter, and more Additionally you will receive our occasional newsletter. 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