11 October, 2021
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The Itabo flower is a small shrub that produces white flowers similar to a bell. It is a traditional flower in Costa Rica that has been part of Costa Rican culture for hundreds of years. Currently, its most common use is ornamental, but it is also used in typical dishes of Costa Rican cuisine.
Costa Ricans have known how to make the most of all parts of this plant; they make mats, belts, and bags with the fiber extracted from the leaves. The flowers are a magical ingredient in many dishes, and the leaves are prepared to tie the products made by gardeners.
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Its great popularity is due to its use in building fences to mark lands and landslide areas, because the roots of this type of plant are strong and provide stability to the land. When discussing the nutritional properties of the Itabo flower, it is acknowledged as a superfood due to its high fiber, mineral, and vitamin content.
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The use of the Itabo flower in Costa Rican cuisine is very varied; you often see it in recipes with eggs, desserts, salads, stews, in some tamales, and in cajetas. It is advised that to reduce the characteristic bitterness of the flower, you should only use the petals because the green part is very bitter and can ruin your dishes.
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From March to June, Costa Rican tables are adorned in white with the beautiful Itabo flowers that perfume the tables and give traditional dishes their characteristic flavor.
