Dominican Main Dishes: La Bandera, Sancocho & More

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

Dominican Main Dish Recipes

La bandera at lunch, sancocho on Sunday, mangú with los tres golpes in the morning and pescado con coco on the coast: the Dominican table runs on rice, beans and plantain.

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14 dishes, each with a recipe ↓

📖 See the Full Roundup: Dominican Food: 35 Dishes You’ll Adore

Dominican cooking starts with la bandera, the flag: white rice, stewed beans and braised meat on one plate every day at noon. Around it are sancocho, the seven-meat stew of celebrations, pollo guisado and chivo guisado from the pot, pescado con coco from Samaná and locrio, the Dominican rice-and-chicken. Every recipe below is written for a home kitchen.

The Dominican Flag

La Bandera

White rice, habichuelas guisadas and pollo guisado or carne guisada, with tostones or avocado on the side. The lunch of every Dominican household.

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More Dominican Main Dishes to Cook

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Sancocho

Seven meats and every root vegetable in one pot, the national celebration stew.

Mangú con Los Tres Golpes

Mashed plantain with fried salami, fried cheese and eggs.

Pollo Guisado

Chicken braised in a sofrito, tomato and bitter orange sauce.

Pescado con Coco

Fish simmered in coconut milk and sofrito, the dish of Samaná.

Chivo Guisado

Goat stewed with oregano, sour orange and rum, from the northwest.

Pescado Frito

Whole fried fish with tostones on the beach at Boca Chica.

Pastelón de Plátano

Sweet plantain and beef casserole under melted cheese.

Locrio de Pollo

Rice cooked with chicken, sofrito and a little sugar for color.

Mondongo

Tripe stew with vegetables, a Saturday classic.

Bacalao Guisado

Salt cod stewed with tomato, onion and peppers, the Lent dish.

Pica Pollo

Oregano-and-lime marinated fried chicken.

Chicharrón de Cerdo

Crisp fried pork belly with lime and yuca.

Moro de Guandules

Rice with pigeon peas and coconut.

A Guide to Dominican Main Dishes

The Dominican day is built around la bandera, the midday plate of rice, beans and meat, and starts with mangú con los tres golpes. Braises dominate the pot: pollo guisado, chivo guisado from the northwest and bacalao in Lent. Weekends bring sancocho and mondongo, the coast brings pescado con coco and fried fish with tostones, and the ovens turn out pastelón and locrio.

Start with the roundup of 35 Dominican dishes, then keep going with Dominican sides, Dominican street foods and the full Dominican food hub.