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Tostones are a twice-cooked preparation of unripe plantains native to Latin American cuisine. Unlike ripe plantains which cook quickly and are sweet, an unripe plantain is savory and requires two rounds of cooking. High in microbiome-friendly fiber, tostones are a delicious snack food or side dish to a South of the Border feast.
I used to pass over unripe green plantains until the day our local Mexican market was out of the yellow-black ripe ones. Thinking I would give the unripe plantains a try, I sought advice from the store clerk who conferred the wise tradition of soaking unripe plantain slices in salt water prior to cooking, a technique omitted from recipes you’ll read online.
Ingredients
- Green, unripe plantain
- Coconut oil
- Unrefined Salt
Instructions
1. Green plantains are tough to peel and cut, so use a sharp knife and a firm cutting board to cut one-inch chunks after peeling. Cover in salt water and soak for 3-4 hours. Drain, then arrange the chunks on a stainless baking pan and bake at 375°F until soft, about 45 minutes. The cooking time will vary depending on the firmness of the plantain.
2. Let the plantain chunks cool slightly until they are comfortable to handle and flatten each piece between two plates or with a kitchen press until they are about 1/2 inch thick, or leave smaller pieces unflattened. On the stovetop, heat a thin layer of coconut oil in a sauté pan on medium heat and wait until the oil is hot before transferring plantain pieces to the pan.
3. After one minute, nudge each piece with a fork to prevent sticking and cook for 4-5 minutes until golden brown before flipping each piece to cook on the other side. Plate, salt to taste, and serve with guacamole.
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Sounds yummy. What is the dip in the picture?
guacamole
Tostones are delicious! My husband is Puerto Rican, and we eat a lot of Tostones in Puerto RIco. Much of Puerto Rican cuisine is based on green plantains. In fact, they actually call only the green plantains “plátanos”, or plantains, whereas the ripe ones are called “amarillos” or yellows. They also make some dishes out of unripe bananas. And you are right, my mother in law always soaks the unripe plantains or bananas first. I had been wondering about this, whether I was getting more antinutrients eating the green ones. So that explains it! So cool!
Just a tip, at least in Puerto Rico, the tostones are more flat than the ones in your picture. They are completely squashed and not round anymore. You can also use a tortilla press to do it, which is what my in laws do. This allows them to get deliciously crispy with just a small soft layer on the inside.
Also, we eat them with mayo ketchup, which is just ketchup and mayonnaise mixed together with minced garlic. If you can find some seed oil free mayonnaise and ketchup, I recommend it!