Latin AmericanPlated meal

Gallo Pinto With Avocado

Costa Rican and Nicaraguan-inspired rice and black beans fried through pepper-onion sofrito, plated with lime, coriander and avocado.

Eat nowMake-aheadContains gluten, soy
Hands-on20 minTotal time20 minEnergy789 kcalProtein34g
Recipe details
PortableHeartyEasy-going

Equipment: Hob

Keep chilled after cooking

Gallo Pinto with Avocado
Servings1 standard portionAdjust

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Standard portions

About 700 kcal per adult reference portion

Making 1 standard portion. Ingredients, instructions and Cooking Mode update together.

Doubling up barely adds effort and covers another mealtime.

Ingredients

Base

Sofrito

Seasoning

Finish

Now we make

Method

Do the night before

  1. 1
    Defrost 225g cooked brown rice (cold if possible) overnight in the fridge if using frozen
  2. 2
    Defrost 210g cooked black beans overnight in the fridge if using frozen

These steps sit outside the cooking-day clock.

20 min hands-on 20 min altogether
  1. 3
    Toast 16g pumpkin seeds in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant; let it cool before using
    πŸ– 3 min
  2. 4
    Warm 7ml olive oil in a wide pan. Cook ΒΌ finely diced red onion and 105g finely diced bell pepper for 4-5 minutes until softened, then add 1Β½ clove minced garlic, 1ΒΌ tsp tomato paste, ΒΎ tsp cumin and ΒΎ tsp smoked paprika and stir for 45 seconds
    πŸ– 6 min
  3. 5
    Add black beans and 1ΒΌ tsp soy sauce. Mash a spoonful of beans into the pan so they lightly coat the rice later, but leave most beans whole
    πŸ– 3 min
  4. 6
    Fold in brown rice and cook for 4-5 minutes, turning and pressing lightly, until the grains are hot and stained with the beans and sofrito
    πŸ– 5 min
  5. 7
    Plate the gallo pinto and finish with 20ml lime juice, 13g roughly chopped coriander leaf, 65g diced avocado, pumpkin seeds and ΒΎ tsp hot sauce.
    πŸ– 3 min

Look under the lid

Nutrition details

Nutrition is shown for one standard portion, not the whole batch selected above.

Explore full nutrition

Nutrition summary

At a glance

Higher inVitamin CPhosphorusFolate
Lower inCalciumCholineVitamin A

Calories

789kcal

38%
Top contributors
Brown Rice Β· 33%Black Beans Β· 27%Avocado Β· 13%
17% cal

Protein

34.3g

54%
Top contributors
Black Beans Β· 54%Brown Rice Β· 18%Pumpkin Seeds Β· 14%
50% cal

Carbs

98.5g

Top contributors
Brown Rice Β· 44%Black Beans Β· 38%Bell Pepper Β· 5%
33% cal

Fat

28.7g

41%
Top contributors
Avocado Β· 35%Pumpkin Seeds Β· 27%Olive Oil Β· 22%

Small numbers, big impact

Everyday essentials

Fibre31.56g
107%
Top contributors
Black Beans Β· 58%Avocado Β· 14%Brown Rice Β· 11%
Vitamin B120.00ΞΌg
0%
Vitamin D0.00ΞΌg
0%
Iodine0.00ΞΌg
0%
Iron10.31mg
57%
Top contributors
Black Beans Β· 43%Pumpkin Seeds Β· 14%Cumin Β· 12%
Zinc6.27mg
57%
Top contributors
Black Beans Β· 38%Brown Rice Β· 25%Pumpkin Seeds Β· 20%
Calcium135.35mg
14%
Top contributors
Black Beans Β· 42%Cumin Β· 13%Coriander Leaf Β· 6%

Nutrients food alone won't reliably cover

These three are commonly under-consumed across all diets, not just plant-based ones - the difference is mainly B12, which has no whole plant food source at all.

  • Vitamin B12: is absent from whole plant foods entirely - the number above only reflects fortified ingredients (nutritional yeast, fortified soy milk). A reliable B12 supplement or fortified source is the standard recommendation for a fully plant-based diet, regardless of what any single day's total shows.
  • Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): most people fall short here regardless of diet - the typical omnivore diet doesn't include much oily fish either. This app only tracks ALA, the plant form (flax, walnuts, hemp, chia). The body converts some ALA to EPA and very little to DHA - the forms most directly used by the brain, eyes and heart - and that conversion is inefficient. An algae-oil supplement is the usual plant-based way to get EPA/DHA directly; it won't show up as an ingredient in any recipe here.
  • Vitamin D: deficiency is widespread across all diets, not just plant-based ones - it's mostly absent from whole plant foods here, and even the fortified soy milk and yogurt tracked don't cover the full target from food alone. Reasonable sun exposure or a D2/D3 supplement is the standard recommendation.

Not medical advice - if you're eating fully plant-based long-term, it's worth a conversation with a GP or dietitian, and a blood test is the reliable way to check where you actually stand.

See the full supplement guide (incl. creatine) β†’
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