Plantain Canoes (Lunch April 25th)
Plantain Canoes (Lunch April 25th)
Originally uploaded by hugegoddess. Plantains are wonderful and very versatile. They (and potatoes) are the chameleon of vegetables. They can be eaten either green or ripe, and their taste is nfluenced by preparation and cooking method.
You can boil them, bake them, fry them, and they taste radically different. As you can tell, I <3 plantains!!!
I was lazy, so I just microwaved a ripe plantain (unpeeled) for a couple of minutes until soft (but NOT mushy). Be sure to cut a vent lenghtwise to avoid mishaps. I carefully peeled it and stuffed it with reconstituted and sauteed tvp. This was really satisfying! The best of two worlds: sweet and savory.
More plantain recipes:
Shredded Plantain Fritters or Plantain Spiders (arañitas de platano)
1 Green plantain
Salt to taste
Shred Plantain, season with salt to taste. In dip fryer drop spoonfuls of the shredded plantain and let it cook until it turns crunchy. Take them out and let them drain excess oil on paper towel before serving. Serve hot. Good for snacking.
Tostones (Green Plantain Chips)
1 green plantain
Salt
Garlic powder (optional)
Peel plantain, cut it into 1" thick (slice, or round ). Soak them for 15 minutes in salt (to taste) water and add garlic powder if you like. Take them out and dry them with paper towel . In frying pan heat, enough cooking oil and fry the plantains about 4 minutes on each side (should be soft inside). Take them out, flatten them and drop them in the hot oil until golden and crispy. Drain in paper towel and serve hot. You can make them and freeze them after you have flatten them and when you decide to serve them you can drop them in the frying oil.
Amarillos (Ripe Fried Plantain)
1 ripe plantain (the more ripe, the better)
oil
Peel plantain, cut any way you want. In frying pan, heat enough oi and fry the plantains until golden. They are very sweet. If you prefer, you can let them burn a bit, till they get cripsy.
Mofongo (Mashed plantain balls)
3 green plantain bananas
3 big garlic cloves
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tbsp sal
4 cups water
Peel plantains, cut diagonally into 1 inch pieces. Put them in a pan with 4 cup of water and one tablespoon of salt for 15 minutes. Drain well. Heat enough cooking oil in a frying pan to a temperature of 350 degrees. Add the plantains and fry slowly (lower temp to 300 degrees) around 15 minutes enough to cook, do not allow them to get crunchy.
Remove plantain slices and drain excess oil. In a mortar mash well the garlic and mix with olive oil, put mix in a bowl. In a mortar mash 3 pieces of the fried plantain, and some of the garlic mix. Put a spoonful in your hands and make ball with it. Do the same with the rest. Serve hot. Can be serve with soup or you can stuffed them with anything you like.
***Traditionally, people mash the plantain with chicharrones (crispy pork rind), but I don't include it in the ingredients because I am vegan.
Hopefully, the recipes will give you a taste for the incredible, palatable plantain!