Fried Plantains with Mint Mojo

Plantains are stable foods in many tropical areas. It has more starch than the common banana and is not eaten raw. They can be fried, boiled, as a dough, and are the main ingredient in many dishes.

The herb mojo sauce is Puerto Rican.

Maduros con Mojo de Menta (Spanish)

Serves 4

2 large, very ripe organic plantains, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch (18 mm) disks on a slight bias

1/2 cup (15 g) mint leaves

1 cup (30 g) parsley leaves

2 organic minced garlic cloves

1/4 cup (30 g) capers, drained and rinsed

1 1/2 Tbs. (20 ml) organic lemon juice

1 tsp. (5 g) organic lemon zest

2 Tbs. (30 ml) juice from 1 sour orange (substitution: 1 1/2 tsp or 8 ml each-grapefruit, orange, lime juice and white vinegar)

1 small organic shallot, minced

1 pinch red pepper flakes

3/4 cup ( 180 ml) olive oil

1 cup (130 g) light olive, canola, or vegetable oil

salt and ground black pepper to taste

uno 1.  Mojo sauce (about a cup/240 ml)*

Process in a blender: mint and parsley leaves, garlic, capers, lemon juice and zest, shallots, pepper flakes, and the olive oil.

dos 2. Place in a bowl and season with black pepper to taste.

tres 3. Heat the cup (130 g) of oil over medium heat until shimmering.

cuatro 4.  Add the plantains in a single layer. The oil should come at least halfway up their sides.

cinco 5. Cook, shaking the pan a little, until lightly golden brown, about 2 minutes.

seis 6. Turn over and cook about a minute.

siete 7. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking until dark golden brown and caramelized, about 4 minutes more.

ocho 8. Transfer them to a paper towel.

nueve 9. Flip a few times to drain completely.

diez 10. Season with salt and black pepper.

once 11. Provide the mojo sauce on the side.

* Make more mojo and use it as a marinade for pork, beef, seafood, or as a condiment. Then, too, in anyway you like.

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Sweet Plantain and Spinach Pastelón

Original post from — karmafreecooking @ 5:07 pm

This is one of my favorite pastelónes ever!!! It’s sweet and savory all at the same time.

This pastelón is made with very ripe plantains… if you take a look at this picture, the plantain need to be like the one in the bottom or even with more spots than that. This will ensure the plantain is ripe indeed. The one on the middle is not fully ripe, even when it looks pretty and yellow.

SWEET PLANTAIN AND SPINACH PASTELON

1 sweet ripe plantain

1 cup (240 ml) frozen spinach

4 oz (120 ml) of cream cheese, at room temperature preferably

½ cup (125 ml) Parmesan Cheese, divided

1 Tbs. (15 ml) butter

Dash of milk, optional

Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1. First off, we need to boil the plantain. So we cut off the ends, make a slit from one end to the other of the plantain and then cut into 4 pieces. Do not remove the skin. Drop them into a pot with salted water and let it boil covered for about 20 minutes.
2. In the meantime, defrost the spinach and squeeze out as much water as possible. Mix in with the cream cheese and season with salt and pepper.
3. When the plantain is cooked, drain and remove skin, placing the skinless pieces of cooked plantains in a bowl. Mash the plantains with the butter and ½ of the parmesan cheese. Add the milk to the plantain mash now, if using.

1. Pre-heat oven to 350° F (175C).
2. In a glass baking dish sprayed with canola oil, spread ½ the plantain mixture in the bottom. Layer the spinach/cream cheese mixture and finish off with the remainder of the plantain mash. Top the pastelón with the rest of the parmesan cheese to form a nice crust.
3. Bake in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, until the cheese on top creates a crust and the flavors meld together.
4. Leave in the oven for 15 minutes more to allow setting.

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