Original subtitles

MAYA RUDOLPH: The misty cloud forests of Costa Rica hold many treasures.

Oh, hey, handsome.

Besides our friends here,

the jungle is filled with magical ingredients

that make this tiny country one of the tastiest places on Earth.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

From branch to brunch,

bean to bon bon,

and river to platter.

Yes, drizzle that sauce.

Sure, you can come for the surf and sand,

but the real attraction...

lies in the kitchen.

[woman speaking foreign language]

[laughing]

MAYA: If it's not this fresh,

it's not making it to the table.

Ticos, AKA Costa Ricans, are proud of their backyard.

It's overflowing with vibrant fruits and veggies.

Really.

It's everywhere.

It can be sweet,

sour,

and everything in between,

but it's always drip‐down‐to‐your‐elbows good.

If you're in the capital, San Jose,

and not, say, I don't know,

trekking through the jungle with a machete...

‐ Wow.

MAYA: ... you're in luck,

because the best produce makes it to the farmer's market.

ADRIANA: The farmers that come here, they are key.

If you work on a kitchen and you don't go to farmer's markets,

you're a fake.

MAYA: Let me tell you something.

Adriana will call a mother [bleep] out for buying sub‐par fruit.

Besides practicing jujitsu,

Adriana is an aid worker and published writer,

and at her cafe Manos en la Masa,

she's not pulling any punches in the kitchen, either.

See what I did there?

‐ We make this galette tart to feature this local apple

It's very sour.

Food and food businesses should be about people

and the people around the food that you are producing and consuming.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

When you are not connected to food,

you are not connected to land.

You are not connected to the national reality of your country.

MAYA: Costa Rica's national mantra, "Pura Vida" means "pure life."

MAYA: A nd if to live well is to eat well,

you'd better damn well respect where your food comes from.

ADRIANA: These people, they have been doing this

generation to generation,

and we need to support them. [speaking foreign language]

‐ This fruit is very fishy on the texture.

MAYA: Guanábana , known to some as soursop,

has a custardy texture

with a flavor that's like banana meets pineapple and a twist of lemon.

‐ We use guanábana for sweet stuff.

MAYA: If you like ceviche,

but you want to taste the essence of sunshine instead of the sea,

you're in the right place.

ADRIANA: Onion, bell pepper, some cilantro.

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

So it actually looks like a ceviche, right?

But the taste is completely different .

MAYA: Jungle, please meet table.

ADRIANA: We take care of people by looking for the best ingredient,

by looking for the best source.

MAYA: Throughout the ages,

fruit has appeared in myths and superstitions

associated with goddesses of fertility and plenty,

a symbol of temptation,

indulgence, earthly pleasures.

At Bar Sylvatica, you can sum that all up in a sip.

‐ My philosophy about mixology and bartending

is using local ingredients

specifically that come from the jungle.

I like to call it jungle bartending.

[woman speaking foreign language]

MAYA: Has Liz ever created a cocktail?

Uh, I don't know. Does a two‐toed sloth doo‐doo in the jungle?

Yes, they do,

and, yes, Liz has.

‐ Oh, great!

MAYA: Liz is one of the top mixologists in Latin America

and a cocktail wizard with a long, skinny spoon as her magic wand.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

She conjures up all the best spots to get supplies for her beverage sorcery.

LIZ: Central Market in Costa Rica

is where everything from all over the country,

tons of different micro‐climates, gets shipped to.

Basically, it's paradise. [speaking foreign language]

LIZ: This is kina, the bark from quinine tree

that I use to make tonic water.

You won't see me buying pineapple. They're mass produced.

And I like to give protagonism to other fruits and herbs

and things like that that are available.

This is called cainito.

MAYA: When Liz concocts a drink,

she turns to tropical fruits like cainito, also known as star apple.

It's sweet, creamy, and refreshing,

especially when you shake it up with some Costa Rican rum.

[women speaking foreign language]

LIZ: This is cas fruit.

Right now it's in season, and you'll see this all over.

MAYA: Instead of over‐farmed pineapple,

Liz likes cas or sour guava.

‐ Ooh!

MAYA: Yeah, it's super tart.

That pop of acidity gets balanced by a swizzle of lime juice,

a dash of homemade orange liqueur,

and more local rum.

Tangy nectars meet fragrant botanicals...

LIZ: This is eucalyptus.

It's a really fun, fresh flavor to use.

MAYA: ...that she blends into potent elixirs.

LIZ: Chamomile. It's always really beautiful and fresh.

This is sour sugar cane.

MAYA: A riff on an old fashioned is an ode to that Costa Rican cane,

with rum in place of whiskey.

Mmm. Mmm. Mmm. Heavenly.

LIZ: That's my vision of sustainability,

'cause I‐‐ I want to protect the jungle that I'm sourcing these ingredients from,

and make sure that that jungle is gonna be there

for the next generation.

MAYA: Saving the planet?

Oh, I'll drink to that.

‐ Cheers.

MAYA: Bottom's up, baby.

[indistinct conversation]

[man speaking foreign language]

MAYA: In Costa Rica's tropical climate,

hot sun and lots of rain keep things growing all year round.

They even have 19 types of avocados.

So this bounty don't quit.

[speaking foreign language]

MAYA: Pablo is a chef and fruit aficionado.

MAYA: Yeah, this guy's feeling it.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

Pablo brings arazá and a whole bunch of other prized ingredients

back to his restaurant, Sikwa.

MAYA: At Sikwa, Pablo explores the roots of Costa Rican cuisine,

serving simple dishes with strong flavors.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

MAYA: Imagine roasted chestnuts crossed with a buttery baked potato,

and you have the delicious madness of pejibaye,

a starchy palm fruit that grows in the rain forest.

For this tamal, it's nestled with chicken in a banana leaf.

And boom, tamal de pejibaye.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

MAYA: Pablo's work with indigenous communities is ongoing,

and every few months he heads out on an adventure.

Farther out.

A little farther.

Just keep going.

Woop, there he is.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

[speaking foreign language]

MAYA: Down near the border with Panama is the Talamanca region,

Pablo's favorite place on Earth.

[Roger speaking foreign language]

MAYA: Meet Roger,

whose clan has been on this land for...

MAYA: ...just a little while.

MAYA: Pablo comes to Amubri to kick it with Roger...

and other old friends...

and to work on a new supply chain.

He's connecting chefs in San Jose with Bribri farmers

so they can get more of this jungle‐grown produce

into their restaurants.

[Roger speaking foreign language]

‐ Mmm.

[Roger speaking foreign language]

PABLO: Mmm.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

MAYA: One of the most important parts of any trip to Amubri

is hanging in the kitchen with Yami, Yomitla, and Doña Petra.

[Doña Petra speaking foreign language]

MAYA: Almost all the cooking is done over fire,

and techniques are passed down from generation to generation.

MAYA: Roger and his clan are considered guardians of this land,

and some of their OG farming practices are done without clearing fields.

He's been taking Pablo on hikes to check out

some of the fruits and vegetables

that are grown in and around the forest for years now.

So... navigating is a breeze.

[Roger speaking in English]

[laughs]

♪ dramatic drum beats ♪

MAYA: And now it's time to...

♪ game show music playing ♪

That last one isn't even edible.

Okay, we've got our contestants ready.

Toucan, you're up first.

This fruit has a distinctive shape

and a taste like a cross between a pineapple and a plum.

[clock ticking]

[squawks]

That's right, it's carambola.

All right, Búho , next question's for you. [owl hooting]

It's a funky cousin of coffee and the cure for what ails you.

[hoots]

Come on, you know this one.

[chirps]

[buzzer sounds]

Oh, sorry. The answer we're looking for is noni.

That means, Toucan, you've won.

[owl hooting]

Come on. No need to be a bad sport.

♪

♪ native song playing ♪

MAYA: Pablo brings that love and the flavors of Amubri back to Sikwa,

where he honors the recipes of his friend Doña Petra.

[device whirring]

MAYA: Hold up. I didn't see Doña Petra using one of those.

[laughing]

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

[Roger speaking foreign language]

MAYA: But this chicken might not be so lucky.

MAYA: Yeah, she definitely heard that.

[chicken clucking]

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

Of all things that grow high in the Costa Rican jungle,

only one is known as the fruit of the gods.

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

For Aztecs and Mayans,

cacao was used as medicine, money,

and, I don't know this for a fact,

but maybe to apologize to loved ones for doing some real dumb shit.

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

Today, beans from the Talamanca region

are brought here to make a seriously decadent dessert.

‐ I can‐‐ I can try this all day. I don't mind.

Mmm.

It just blows my mind.

You cannot find these in... Dubai.

I'm sorry, but this... here.

MAYA: Santiago's culinary journey led him to kitchens in Dubai,

Spain, and Australia.

Now he's back home running his own place, Silvestre.

The restaurant is an old manor house that he transformed.

‐ So this is the dungeon of the restaurant.

MAYA: The what now?

‐ You can come in. Please.

MAYA: Oh, a fun dungeon.

A fungeon!

Yeah, this guy's all about the devilish details.

SANTIAGO: It's called the pisuica.

It's a reminder to us to behave well.

I always put the devil on the table.

I've been cooking for 18 years or so,

and I realized most chefs that I admire,

they are honest to their roots.

So I thought, "Man, I should do that,"

and I decided just to open up a Costa Rican restaurant.

We're just using what's in season, what we think is high quality,

and we are going to be serving Costa Rican food.

We like to be more of a restaurant that serve an experience.

This is the longest dessert name you'll find in the market.

Human Heritage Spheres from Osa. That's what's the name.

MAYA: This dessert is over a millennium in the making.

The spheres of Osa are kind of like Costa Rica's Stonehenge,

mysterious rocks arranged by the extinct Diquís culture.

SANTIAGO: They have been calling the attention of everyone

since they arrived.

It has been hard for us to really put the finger

on what their purpose was.

So there's a theory that they were representations of the stars on Earth

so we knew when to take care of our crops.

White chocolate. We use that to mix with our cocoa bean.

[speaking foreign language]

[in English] You take that mold, fill them up.

It's not rocket science here at all.

Cashew nut and honey butter, that's the filling.

We set it in the fridge.

We need to get these guys together

so they look like an authentic stone from Osa.

[in English] A little bit of cocoa powder

just to make it look like real soil.

And then we put this Sphere of Osa in the middle,

musk on the top, and that's it.

Con permiso. [woman speaking foreign language]

MAYA: This Spaniards never found what they were looking for,

but you won't be nearly as disappointed

when you bite into Santiago's creamy, chocolatey spheres.

‐ The first rule, bring something different or something new

into the Costa Rican food scene.

Is personality, right?

Is your character, is what people's going to be talking about

from the experience in the restaurant. [woman speaking foreign language]

‐ Mmm.

MAYA: Explosive flavors.

That will get people talking.

[Albertina speaking foreign language]

[laughs]

[laughing]

MAYA: Albertina here,

and her husband Luciano,

they share a lot.

More than just this sick, little XR‐150...

and this cool little boat.

No, dear friends, they also share a love for each other,

the rivers of Guanacaste

and all the fresh seafood they provide.

♪ upbeat music playing ♪

Mm‐hmm. [Luciano speaking foreign language]

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

MAYA: The fish from these waters have kept their family going strong.

MAYA: See, I told you.

Albertina and Luciana share a lot.

[Albertina speaking foreign language]

MAYA: Chef Luciano is taking that fresh snapper stash

to use on the menu tonight at Playa Negra,

in Costa Rica's iconic dish, casado.

[Luciano speaking foreign language]

MAYA: The snapper is grilled until it's golden brown and crispy

and then smoked outside on the parrilla for added flavor.

MAYA: The fish is joined in frijole matrimony

with a side of rice and beans,

and don't forget the fried plantains.

Casado is a quintessential part

of the fresh and local approach to eating here,

unfussy,

very tasty,

and a source of almost supernatural longevity.

MAYA: Spring chicken Doña Maria is 95 years young

and proof that if you eat enough casado, you can live...

MAYA: ...almost forever.

So, yeah, she knows exactly what she wants for dinner.

MAYA: Here in Guanacaste,

more people make it to 100 years old than almost anywhere else in the world.

It's all about keeping it moving,

getting lots of sun,

and of course, healthy and delicious food.

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

♪ pleasant music playing ♪

MAYA: Keep it up, Doña Maria.

May you have many more meals to look forward to.

♪ marimba music playing ♪

♪ music continues ♪

In Costa Rica,

every meal offers up a chance to taste the wonders of the jungle,

by sip or by stone.

WOMAN: Mmm.

MAYA: You just have to know where to look

and how to treat it with respect.

Uh, grate that thing.

♪

Yes!

The jungle fuels creativity,

support livelihoods,

provides a connection with traditions

and people's past,

or it can just be a chill place to kick back with your friends and family.

Pura vida, baby.

Pura vida indeed.

Take us away, fellas.

♪ marimba music playing ♪

Okay! Check you out with that marimba.

Yes!