How to Make Tostones (Twice Fried Plantains)

Here is a step by step guide on how to make Tostones, a staple side dish in most Puerto Rican homes.

To make tostones you need really green plantains / platanos.

First thing you need to do is peel the platanos. (I will be referring to plantains as platanos, the Spanish way of saying it because it's what I prefer ;) If you store your platanos in the fridge, make sure that you bring them to room temperature first. It's a pain to peel when it's cold.  Run the platanos under warm water to help speed up the process.

To peel the platano, first cut off the ends: 

Then slice down the center of the platano:

Remove the peel by pulling from the area you just sliced:

Umm, try not to slice as deep as I did...lol!

Next start heating your oil.  You want it on medim high or about 375 degrees.  You don't want to set it too low or the oil will not be hot enough and your platanos will just suck up the oil and be greasy.  You want it to be as hot as if you were frying french fries. 

Now that you platano is completely peeled, cut it in about 3/4 inch pieces:

Make sure oil is hot. You can do this by dropping a tiny piece of your platano in (crum size), if it sizzles, it's hot enough. Now fry your pieces for about 2 1/2 minutes - 3 minutes on each side.  They should be golden and sort of soft. If they're not soft enough, you will not be able to smash them or they will sort of smash and fall apart :(  If you smash and this happens, just returned them to the pan and cook for a bit longer. 

When you remove the platanos place them on a paper towel to drain any excess oil. Make sure to do the next step fairly quickly because the longer you take the harder it will be to smash.  However, take care to handle the platanos, as they will be pretty hot! *You can allow them to cool off for about a minute, but no longer or they will become hard to smash. Okay, now I am just being redundant!

Now smash the platanos.  

Almost every Puerto Rican owns a tostonera.  Which is what we use to smash the platanos. 

See pics below:

If you don't have a tostonera you can use two plates to smash the platanos into tostones.  

Tip:  If you cut the end of your bread bag (if long enough), you can use it to nestle the platanos, 

so that they don't stick to the plate. 

Okay, back to the tostones.  Smash all the platanos:

Now you are ready to refry them.  Fry for about another 2 - 3 minutes.  

They should be a deeper golden color. 

Drain once more on a paper towel.  Sprinkle with salt and enjoy!  Or you can make a mojito sauce to dip them in.  That'll be on another post - children are acting up. Geesh, it's no wonder I hardly blog :P 

Serve as an appetizer 

or as a side item in a meal - preferably a delish Puerto Rican meal :) 

(Arroz con gandules, Puerto Rican rotisserie chicken and tostones!)

Cooking

I was cooking yesterday and thought to myself how I take my cooking for granted.  Cooking comes naturally to me.  I come from a large family where all of our gatherings revolve around great food and loud music :) I learned how to cook at an early age by watching my mother and my siblings and then by pitching in.  By the time I was seventeen I was cooking entire meals for my friends.

Cooking is something I enjoy and something that I've given little thought about.  It comes naturally. I am only conscious of being healthy, but not of technique.  That comes easily.  It's not until I hear someone say that they can't even boil water that I am blown away.  In most Latin household cooking is a must.  Una mujer buena cocina - a good woman cooks.  Although I am very open minded and consider myself non-judgmental, I must admit that somewhere deep down inside, I turn my nose up on women who don't know how to cook.  Sorry, but I guess I am a bit old fashion when it comes to certain roles.  To me cooking is a necessity, a way to save money, a way to be able to live on a budget whether you are young and single or have a large family.  Cooking is one of the ways that I show my family love. Fresh baked muffins and hot chocolate on a cold morning.  Buttermilk pancakes,  home style hashbrowns, and fresh fruit when my husband comes in from a 24 hour shift. It gives me so much joy that I can't imagine not being able to express myself with food.  My brother-in-law just graduated from Marine Corps bootcamp and my gift to him was a huge homemade meal - everything from spaghetti and meatballs, to fresh baked bread, oatmeal cranberry cookies, and bread pudding with warm toffee sauce.  It made my heart swell seeing him and our entire family who was visiting, enjoy a  meal that I made from scratch that I labored with love.

Anyway, thinking of cooking made me realize that maybe I should blog about certain dishes that I take for granted.  So within the next few days I will try to include some easy recipes that anyone can try and many will enjoy.  Buen Provecho!

Homemade French Toast Sticks

My children love "store bought" French Toast Sticks. I stopped buying them about 4 years ago when I dramatically changed our eating habits. I remember how easy it was to just pop a few in the oven for breakfast and how yummy they were.  And I have been tempted to buy a box, but when I read the ingredients, I just can't do it. 


I have always made French Toast from scratch, but never French Toast Sticks.  You would think it's the same thing except that sticks are cut into strips, but my kids would argue that they taste differently.  I must say that I agree with them.  There's just something about them darn "store" bought sticks.  I've been on a quest to find the right recipe and the right bread and by gosh I think I've got it!


Okay, I use Rudi's Organic Sourdough Bread, until I find a good sourdough recipe, and do the following:

Cut each slice of bread into 4 pieces to make the sticks. 

In a shallow dish whisk together:

1 cup milk
2 T pure maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs,

Melt half of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

Dip half of the bread slices into milk mixture, 

quickly turning to coat both sides.

Remove from the milk mixture 

and place the slices into the pan. 

Cook until each side is lightly browned, 

about 2 to 4 minutes per side.

Remove from the skillet 

and repeat with process with remaining butter, bread and the milk mixture.

Serve immediately or allow to cool, then cover and chill (freezes really well) until ready to serve.

When ready to serve, reheat in the oven or toaster oven.

Enjoy! Sprinkle with powder sugar if you wish. 

So yummy with a cup of coffee.  

Uh-oh, getting a craving!  Not good - it's 10:30 PM! 

Oh!  One more thing.  

I use the little plastic medicine cups that come 

with children's medicine as dipping cups (see 2nd to last pic).  

They work great for this purpose!  

Just make sure you wash them really well before use :) 

Platanos

I was at Cotsco the other day and was ecstatic to see that they had 3 lbs of green plantains (platanos) for $1.15! I repeat to all Boricuas reading this blog THREE POUNDS for a DOLLAR FIFTEEN!1!!

WOW!  In my area there aren't many Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, or Cubans, which makes platanos a rarity.  Buying ONE platano can run you anywhere from $.50 to even $1.00.  Sometimes it's annoying to pay that much for something I use to get in NYC for so cheap, eight for a dollar.  It's funny because most people over here don't even know what they are.  I was standing in front of the platanos with a huge smile on my face when this lady asked "What are those?  Are they bananas?"  I then went into a long explanation, which I don't think she wanted to here, but that I wanted to share all the same.  Ignorant Gringos (KIDDING).

So for all of you who don't know here is a platano or as non-hispanics might say plantains:

Platanos / plantains are a fruit, but considered a vegetable.  For argument's sake call it a vegetable unless you want to get into a heated argument with a Puerto Rican, Dominican, or Cuban.  Platanos are usually mistaken for a banana because they look and smell like bananas.  However, unlike a banana, a platano CANNOT be eaten raw and are hard to peel.  Platanos are used in many Hispanic dishes.

When the platano is green it acts like a starchy vegetable (like a Yucca Root or Potato).  When it's green it can be thinly cut and fried into a chip.  However, the most popular forms of the green platano is in mofongo (a yummy dish), pasteles (another yummy dish) and / or  tostones, a staple side dish in most Puerto Rican homes.

When the platano is ripen (yellow - black) it becomes more like a banana.  It is sweet and has a great aroma.  We, Hispanics, call ripe platanos Maduro or Amarillo.  You can use maduros / amarillos in desserts (like Pionoonos) or as a sweet side dish.

So, that is a crash course on Platano 101. I will introduce some recipes in later blogs.

The next time you want something delish to eat either as a snack, dessert, appetizer, or side dish consider using the versatile and yummy PLATANO.

Taco Seasoning

Why buy that nasty stuff that contains MSG, modified corn starch,gum arabic, food coloring, and other ingredients that are not good, when you can just make your own?

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Mix all together in a small bowl and store in an empty condiment / seasoning bottle.
I love to marinate chicken with a little vinegar, some sofrito, and this seasoning to make chicken enchiladas.