Categorized | Desserts, Vegetarian
The simplicity and splendor of fry plantains.
Posted on 02 November 2009
Dad it’s getting black! Yup that’s what I heard the last 2 times I purchased plantains with the intention of sharing the simple recipe for fry plantains. I grew up eating fry plantains as a side to many dishes, but my absolute favourite was making sandwiches with these as the filler. I still recall my mom waiting just until the plantains would be so ripe they’d be very close to going black before she cook them. We were told that the more ripe (or quale) they went, the more sweet they would be. So this is exactly what I was trying to achieve, except with my rather busy schedule I tend to forget about them. Not until one of our girls point them out or when those pesky fruit flies appears, do I remember what I was trying to achieve.
For best results allow your ripe plantains to go a bit dark (it will look discoloured) before frying. In the pic below you’ll notice that the plantains I used were ripe, but were only just starting to go “quale” or discoloured.
You’ll Need..
1-2 ripe plantains
1-2 cups of vegetable oil for frying.
salt – optional
brown sugar – optional
Start by peeling the plantains. Do so by cutting off the ends and then cutting the plantain itself in the middle (as in the picture below).Discard the ends and get ready to peel off the skin and slice for frying.
Then using a small knife, cut through the skin along the length of the 2 pieces. Don’t go too deep as you only want to cut through the skin. Then peel back the skin and discard. Now cut thin strips (about 1/2 cm or little less than 1/4 inch) along the length of the piece of plantain.
The final step is to fry the pieces of sliced plantain. Heat the oil in a frying pan and gently place the pieces away from you to avoid hot oil splashing onto you. Allow to cook for about 5-7 minutes on each side (medium heat) or until it gets to the colour you like (use a fork to flip them over). The darker you allow it to go, it seems to also enhance the natural sugars in it. You’ll also notice that it floats when cooked through.
This is not a dish for the health conscious, since even though you pat dry on paper towels, the plantain tends to soak up a lot of the oil.
I usually sprinkle a little salt over mine and I know people who does the same with brown sugar… but you can enjoy these just the way they are when they cool a bit.
If you’ve ever purchased a rice dish at a Caribbean restaurant in North America you should have come across fried plantains served on the side. The Jamaican spot where I go for my jerk chicken with rice and peas, knows to give me a good potion of fry plantains with my takeout order.
Remember to leave me your comments below.
Happy Cooking.
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17 Responses to “The simplicity and splendor of fry plantains.”
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interesting…….. Never thought you can put fried plantains in a sandwich ? ! Do you put anything else with it?
.-= peanutts´s last blog ..Banana flower curry ( boashi riha) =-.
Peanuts, thanks for commenting. When the plantain is fried (providing it’s fully ripe) it’s very sweet and savory, so the sandwich is almost like having a jam sandwich. I make the sandwiches with fry bake, sada roti, buns and/or even sliced bread.
happy cooking
chris
.-= Chris De La Rosa´s last blog ..El Yucateco Salsa Picante De Chile Habanero Green Hot Sauce Review. =-.
Hi Chris, This is a side dish i have to have with just about everything. I also love the sandwich this is not new to me…i love them fried, baked, boiled and lately a friend gave me a recepie for get this…plantain lasagna yum!! i will share it with u later.
i´d like to try your lasagna with banana, sound richi, please send us your recipie. don;t forget.
Yes fried plantains are brilliant. I lived in Conakry (Guinea) for a while and a variation on this is fried plantains cut in slices (across) and fried with hot peppers. Sold in the street and bought and wrapped in square pieces of brown paper. Oooo that is so good — and hot!!
Here in Haiti the plantains are boiled whole and eaten without much in the way of condiments. No where near as good in my opinion.
Is that all? Does it have to be done with vegetable oil? Would olive oil work?
This is a recipe for ripe plantains. Have you tried the fried green plantains? If you want the recipe, please let me know.
Pilar
I toss the ripe plantains in a flour dredge combined with cinnamon and then fry them, gives them a really nice flavour.
My mother use to fry plantain alot we use to make sandwiches with it to.
Here in Suriname, ripe plantains are fried as well in a batter (mixture of flour, soda, salt) and then fried indivually. it's served hot with a spicey peanut sauce (sambal). We got it from the indonesian influence.
I never thought of having it with a sandwich though:)
i love platanos with breakfast and dinner
Plantains are delicious, great with every meal
Thick slice, fry for a min. Pull out and let sit. Put between wax paper. Pound flat. Refry. Excellent!
Ditto then I sprinkle fine sea salt n pepper n garlic powder omg going to the store now mouth watering lmao
yes I had some last night for dinner. Sweet ones with some salt…..in puerto rico we eat them with eggs in morning or for dinner with rice and beans …
love fried platano(plantain), and patacones. have you ever had picadillo de platano? It's very good and very popular here in Costa Rica, but I haven't come across a recipe nor had someone explain slowly & clearly for me to understand!
Hot bake or sada roti, FRY PLANTAIN with a dash of shadon beni and pepper sauce ……delicious!!!!