Start with a family tamaleada: wrapping tamales is part of the celebration as well as the cooking. Build the Christmas Eve menu around tamales or roast pork, then finish with queque navideño and rompope. Our Christmas guide explains the traditions; the cards below take you to each dish or its guide.
Christmas Tamales
Banana-leaf parcels prepared in batches and shared with family during the Christmas season.
Explore Christmas Tamales →More Costa Rican Dishes for Your Table
Rompope
Creamy eggnog with warming spices for the Christmas table.
Read the guide →
Queque Navideño
Fruitcake with dried fruit and rum, served through the holiday season.
Read the guide →
Pierna de Cerdo
Roast pork leg as the centerpiece of a festive family dinner.
Read the guide →
Salsa Lizano
The familiar Tico condiment to serve alongside Christmas tamales.
Read the guide →A Guide to Costa Rican Christmas Food
In Costa Rica, December means the tamaleada, when the whole family gathers to make tamales. The masa is filled with pork, rice and vegetables, wrapped in plantain leaves and tied in pairs called piñas. Tamales are eaten all month, and neighbors trade them.
Christmas dinner centers on a slow-roasted pierna de cerdo, served with rompope, the country’s eggnog, and queque navideño, a dark fruitcake soaked in rum. A bottle of Salsa Lizano is never far away. Read more in Costa Rican Christmas foods and our guide to tamales, then compare tables across the region in our Latin Christmas foods hub.
