Comments on: Just Plantain Crazy

By: Nicole

Nicole — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 16:57:03 +0000

Nadine: I’m a little confused, too! I’ve never tried eating a ripe plantains raw, but I have had them cooked. They are very sweet, but still not sure if it’s common to eat them raw like regular banana when they are ripe. Maybe someone else will chime in!

By: Nadine

Nadine — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:40:19 +0000

I’m confused so you grill, boil, fry, cook plantains when they are green l;ike a vegetable, but when they are yellow or black you can eat them raw like a fruit?

By: Hermes

Hermes — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 11:06:11 +0000

Javier, you’ve got it all wrong. I am from the Canary Islands and I can tell you that “plantains” as it is stated in this website is NOT the same as “plátanos de Canarias”. In Spanish there are several ways to call bananas, in Spain we use “plátanos” but in Latin America are called “bananas” or “cambures”. They are all the same fruit even if some people prefer some varieties. In the Caribbean and Central America, there is a cousin of the bananas that coincidently is also called “plátanos” (plantains) but that they are not the same as what we calle “plátanos” in Spain. Plantains are delicious and you are supposed to eat them grilled, fried, boiled, baked, you name it, but never raw, as you would eat a banana. This recipe is called in Colombia: “Patacones pisados” because you have to smash them. You can also buy an industrial version that looks pretty much like potato chips that is good also.

By: Nicole

Nicole — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 15:31:02 +0000

Elle: Thanks for stopping by and adding to the conversation! Also, thanks for the Cuban Food Market link!

By: elle

elle — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:19:14 +0000

The Cuban version of platanos maduros is cooked and is served as a side dish, not dessert. For tostones, my mom’s easy smashing method is to use a tostonera, which you can get for cheap online — http://www.cubanfoodmarket.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=TKACC_PROD&Store_Code=CFM&Product_Code=TOSPLAS&Category_Code=20203

Love the blog!

By: Dee

Dee — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 22:57:22 +0000

Just a quick note that the very green plantains are actually very, well, “green” (non-ripe). A great addition to tostones is some fresh ground garlic sauce.

By: nika

nika — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 12:19:07 +0000

Aaron: Platanos Maduros are cooked (atleast Colombian ones are) and are heaven on earth. Javier above talks about eating RAW platanos, blows my mind, never seen that done.

I love mature platanos deepfried in batter with queso blanco nestled inside.. super yum. Or you could just roast them in foil with sugar in the oven (or grill)

By: Aaron

Aaron — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 23:55:56 +0000

You are definitely missing out on sweet plantains. I work in Providence, RI and there is a little restaurant there called Cuban Revolution. They make the best sweet plantains (maduros), I usually have them aside ropa vieja, but they can be a dessert as well.

By: Javier

Javier — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 14:43:08 +0000

In Spain, bananas are not as popular as plantains, since the majority of the european crops are in the Canary Islands. Plantains turn yellow with dark brown spots, and are sweeter than bananas when both fruits turn mature (yellow), and in my opinion, plantains are tastier, that’s why in Spain fried plantains are usually imported bananas from South America.
Another popular dish involving plantains (or bananas, both are useful) is Cuban-style rice (Arroz a la cubana): Rice, fried eggs and fried bananas or plantains.

Try a Banana Split with mature (yellow) plantains and you’ll know what you’ve been missing. Or just smash a mature plantain, put some fresh lemon juice on it and eat it…have fun…adios

By: Connie

Connie — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 22:22:29 +0000

Fried plantains are sooo good and look like they make a great addition to a satisfying meal!