Thread: What to do with Plantain

On 9/17/2010 6:44 AM, [email protected] wrote:
> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
> how do I know when it's ripe?
>
> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
> (simple only, I'm no chef).
>

One of the easiest is to just peel it, slice it and saute in butter
until soft.

[email protected] wrote:
> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
> how do I know when it's ripe?
>
> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
> (simple only, I'm no chef).

One could look this up - I didn't - but my memory is that frying is
traditional in cultures where plantains are popular. I don't think
they're just cut up and fried, though - some prep first, don't remember
what.

-S-

[email protected] wrote:
>
>I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
>a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
>it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
>how do I know when it's ripe?
>
>Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
>(simple only, I'm no chef).

Pick, choose, refuse:
http://www.elboricua.com/recipes.html

On 17/09/2010 7:34 AM, George wrote:
> On 9/17/2010 6:44 AM, [email protected] wrote:
>> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
>> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
>> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
>> how do I know when it's ripe?
>>
>> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
>> (simple only, I'm no chef).
>>
>
> One of the easiest is to just peel it, slice it and saute in butter
> until soft.

I have seen a couple cooking shows where they sliced it, deep fried it,
flattened the sliced pieces and then fried them again.

On 17-Sep-2010, [email protected] wrote:

> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?

Ingredients
plantains
vegetable oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Peel and cut plantains 1-inch thick pieces
Heat enough oil to cover plaintain pieces in a pan until hot, just below
smoke point. Drop the plantain rounds into the hot oil a few at a time and
cook until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and drain.
Set each fried plantain on a flat side and squash it as flat as you can with
hand/pan/whatever. It should still be round, but thinner.
Return the flattened plantain sections to the hot oil and cook until the
entire surface is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove from oil, drain, and
season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

--
Change Cujo to Juno in email address.

The traditional Latino way is similar to the two step cooking process
for French fries.

Cut plantain into 1/4-1/2 inch slices. Deep fry in corn oil at 300
degrees for about 6-8 minutes. Remove. Mash each "coin" with something
that will help flatten them out (I use a cleaver, like I'm mashing
garlic cloves to get the skin off), boost the temp in the fryer to 350
and throw them back in for 8-10 minutes. Hard to get used to fries after
you've plantained.

I noticed the Puerto Ricans in my old neighborhood liked to bake them. I
like this, but have not tried to emulate the process.




--
Gorio

On 9/17/2010 7:34 AM, George wrote:
> On 9/17/2010 6:44 AM, [email protected] wrote:
>> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
>> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
>> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
>> how do I know when it's ripe?
>>
>> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
>> (simple only, I'm no chef).
>>
>
> One of the easiest is to just peel it, slice it and saute in butter
> until soft.

I would add to make sure the outside gets nice and brown and then
I like to salt and pepper it lightly and splash a bit of hot sauce
on the slices as I eat them. Yum!

Kate

--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?
mailto:[email protected]

On 9/17/2010 10:12 AM, Dave Smith wrote:
> On 17/09/2010 7:34 AM, George wrote:
>> On 9/17/2010 6:44 AM, [email protected] wrote:
>>> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
>>> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
>>> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
>>> how do I know when it's ripe?
>>>
>>> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
>>> (simple only, I'm no chef).
>>>
>>
>> One of the easiest is to just peel it, slice it and saute in butter
>> until soft.
>
> I have seen a couple cooking shows where they sliced it, deep fried it,
> flattened the sliced pieces and then fried them again.

Yes, those are called "tostones" in Caribbean cuisine.
They're wonderful. I think I've seen African recipes for
something similar. Not surprising.
Kate

--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?
mailto:[email protected]

On Sep 17, 3:44 am, j...@myplace.com wrote:
> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
> how do I know when it's ripe?
>
> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
> (simple only, I'm no chef).

Simplest is this. Slice it on the diagonal into 1" pieces. Melt some
butter and olive oil (the combination can get hotter than butter alone
without burning) in a pan over medium heat. Add the plaintain and fry
about 4 minutes on each side, moving the slices around occasionally to
prevent sticking. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with lemon juice
and salt, eat as a side to your Cuban meal.

If you like it, next time buy six of them on purpose. Really ripe
ones, brownish-black. Fry them as above, then after you've removed
them to drain, add 1/4 cup each of dark brown sugar and dark rum to
the pan. Stir while the sugar dissolves and the mixture bubbles and
thickens. When it's the thickness you want, after 5 - 8 minutes, add
the plaintains back to warm, stir to coat, serve on a platter for
dessert. -aem

On Fri, 17 Sep 2010 15:17:04 +0000, Gorio
<[email protected]> wrote:

>
>The traditional Latino way is similar to the two step cooking process
>for French fries.
>
>Cut plantain into 1/4-1/2 inch slices. Deep fry in corn oil at 300
>degrees for about 6-8 minutes. Remove. Mash each "coin" with something
>that will help flatten them out (I use a cleaver, like I'm mashing
>garlic cloves to get the skin off), boost the temp in the fryer to 350
>and throw them back in for 8-10 minutes. Hard to get used to fries after
>you've plantained.
>
>I noticed the Puerto Ricans in my old neighborhood liked to bake them. I
>like this, but have not tried to emulate the process.

My son's girlfriend likes to bake them in a brown sugar/cloves/butter
mixture, she's from Portugal.

On Sep 17, 6:44*am, j...@myplace.com wrote:
> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. *But there is
> a sticker on it that says plantain. *I looked on the web and it said
> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. *But
> how do I know when it's ripe? *
>
> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
> (simple only, I'm no chef).

Plantain is ripe when the skins get Black and soft and you're sure
they are rotten. We always slice them 1/3" thick and then fry them in
butter until they are browned and slightly black in spots. This is
done in an iron skillet. No second cooking. Yummmmy. Our Mom was
raised in Honduras, and there was always a bunch of plantain hanging
right outside the kitchen door. They tell me I wanted it 3 times a day
as a 4 yr old....and I still love it that much. Hard to find places to
get it where it is not rock hard and will never ripen enough to eat
it. I've found a Spanish Grocery that handles them at the right
ripeness. Good Luck, Enjoy. Nan in DE.

On 9/17/2010 12:25 PM, Kate Connally wrote:
> On 9/17/2010 7:34 AM, George wrote:
>> On 9/17/2010 6:44 AM, [email protected] wrote:
>>> I bought a plantain thinking it was just a huge banana. But there is
>>> a sticker on it that says plantain. I looked on the web and it said
>>> it should be cooked, but said it can be eaten raw when it's ripe. But
>>> how do I know when it's ripe?
>>>
>>> Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
>>> (simple only, I'm no chef).
>>>
>>
>> One of the easiest is to just peel it, slice it and saute in butter
>> until soft.
>
> I would add to make sure the outside gets nice and brown and then
> I like to salt and pepper it lightly and splash a bit of hot sauce
> on the slices as I eat them. Yum!
>
> Kate
>
Yes, and I think that works best for green plantains. I think the yellow
ones go better with butter/brown sugar/cinnamon/nutmeg

George wrote:

> Yes, and I think that works best for green plantains. I think the yellow
> ones go better with butter/brown sugar/cinnamon/nutmeg

A friend of mine makes a dessert using yellow plantains with cashews fried
in a spring-roll wrapper with a lime-caramel sauce. I'm not sure whether I
have the recipe anywhere or not.

Bob

On Sep 18, 7:50*pm, "Bob Terwilliger" <virtualgoth@die_spammer.biz>
wrote:
> George wrote:
> > Yes, and I think that works best for green plantains. I think the yellow
> > ones go better with butter/brown sugar/cinnamon/nutmeg
>
> A friend of mine makes a dessert using yellow plantains with cashews fried
> in a spring-roll wrapper with a lime-caramel sauce. I'm not sure whether I
> have the recipe anywhere or not.
>
> Bob

==
People eat plantain? Would this be the same plantain that we have as a
weed and can't get rid of? What grows in our garden is a miserable
weed that I have battled for years.
==

Roy wrote:

> People eat plantain? Would this be the same plantain that we have as a
> weed and can't get rid of? What grows in our garden is a miserable weed
> that I have battled for years.

It's a different plant altogether. The plantain under discussion here is a
tropical fruit closely related to a banana.

Bob

<[email protected]> wrote:

>Just for the heck of it, what would be a simple method to cook it?
>(simple only, I'm no chef).

Pan fry plantain slices in olive oil, salt them, and top
with your choice of sour cream, yogurt, soy yogurt or vanilla
ice cream. For the first three of these choices, I mix
in a little sugar.

Steve

On Sat, 18 Sep 2010 22:08:58 -0700 (PDT), Roy <[email protected]>
wrote:


>> George wrote:
>> > Yes, and I think that works best for green plantains. I think the yellow
>> > ones go better with butter/brown sugar/cinnamon/nutmeg
>
>People eat plantain? Would this be the same plantain that we have as a
>weed and can't get rid of? What grows in our garden is a miserable
>weed that I have battled for years.

Very different botanical... the plantain folks eat as a food is the
name for the fruit, not the name of the plant... the plantain you
refer to is a weed in a turf lawn and flower beds, in a meadow and
other naturalized locations it is very desireable.
http://www.examiner.com/gardening-in...-miracle-plant