Tostones
Green plantain slices fried twice, flattened and salted, served with a punchy garlic and lime dipping sauce.
Photo : Jdvillalobos · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Method
- Make the sauce by mixing the garlic, olive oil, lime juice, coriander, chilli and a pinch of salt. Leave it to infuse while you cook.
- Trim the ends of the plantains, score the skin lengthways and peel it away. Cut the flesh into 3 cm chunks.
- Heat the oil to 160°C in a deep frying pan. Fry the chunks for 3 to 4 minutes a side until tender and barely golden. Drain.
- While still hot, flatten each chunk to about 1 cm thick with the base of a glass or a tostonera press.
- Raise the oil temperature to 180°C and fry the flattened rounds again for 2 minutes a side until golden and crisp.
- Drain on kitchen paper, salt immediately and serve hot with the garlic sauce.
The plantains must be properly green and firm; a yellow one gives soft, sweet tostones. A quick dip in salted garlic water between the two fryings makes them even crisper.
