Have you ever wondered what to do with those enormous green bananas called plantains that are popping up in grocery stores everywhere? You can't eat them raw like a regular banana, and they don't look very appealing being so green, either. Well, here's what to do with them, especially if you are related to Rick, Tyler, Kyle, and probably even Crystel, as platanos fritos are
most likely a large part of thier diets right now, and they will love you for knowing how to make them when they get home. Buy the plantains and let them sit on your counter for a few days. They will start to turn black and ugly. That is how you want them. In many Latin American countries, anything short of platanos "maduros" or mature (really ripe),are not fit for eating. The plantains on the left of the picture are freshly bought
macho (manly!)plantians, the middle ones are just about ready for cooking and eating, and the ones on the right are a smaller variety whose name will come to me later as I rack my brain for the spanish word. So, once the plantains are nice and black, warm a skillet with about 1/4 inch of coconut oil and peel and slice the
plantains lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices and add them to the pan. Fry them until they are a lovely golden brown, and turn them over and brown the other side. Serve warm with sour cream or queso crema Salvadoran style, which I found at a latin market, and frijoles, (mashed black beans) or just salted or mashed, rolled into a ball, and rolled in sugar or cinnamon and sugar.
Have you ever wondered what to do with those enormous green bananas called plantains that are popping up in grocery stores everywhere? You can't eat them raw like a regular banana, and they don't look very appealing being so green, either. Well, here's what to do with them, especially if you are related to Rick, Tyler, Kyle, and probably even Crystel, as platanos fritos are 
most likely a large part of thier diets right now, and they will love you for knowing how to make them when they get home. Buy the plantains and let them sit on your counter for a few days. They will start to turn black and ugly. That is how you want them. In many Latin American countries, anything short of platanos "maduros" or mature (really ripe),are not fit for eating. The plantains on the left of the picture are freshly bought macho (manly!)plantians, the middle ones are just about ready for cooking and eating, and the ones on the right are a smaller variety whose name will come to me later as I rack my brain for the spanish word. So, once the plantains are nice and black, warm a skillet with about 1/4 inch of coconut oil and peel and slice the 
plantains lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices and add them to the pan. Fry them until they are a lovely golden brown, and turn them over and brown the other side. Serve warm with sour cream or queso crema Salvadoran style, which I found at a latin market, and frijoles, (mashed black beans) or just salted or mashed, rolled into a ball, and rolled in sugar or cinnamon and sugar.
You can use any kind of oil to fry these in, but to remove all guilt from eating as many as you want, use coconut oil as it is actually good for you, (many people eat it by the tablespoon as a daily supplement!) and it adds that perfect tropical sweetness as well. After using coconut oil, I'll never go back to the other stuff!
ReplyDeleteDoes Spencer eat these? Because you have a whole lot of plantains on your hands...
ReplyDeleteSpencer doesn't get a chance to eat them because he is always at work when I make them and the girls and I have them devoured within 15 minutes from the frying pan. They're that good.
ReplyDelete