As I shared in my last post, there’s no better side dish to accompany my Black Beans and Rice than homemade Sweet Fried Plantains.
Now don’t be intimidated by this dish. The combination of frying and plantains may throw some of you into culinary orbit. Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of cooking fried food, but this dish isn’t hard at all. And since it uses olive oil or avocado oil, I think it’s a lot healthier than traditional “deep-fried” foods. And have I mentioned how amazing it tastes?!?!? 🙂
Probably the hardest part about making Sweet Fried Plantains is finding plantains that are ripe and ready to cook. A lot of stores sell plantains these days, but usually what you’ll find are green plantains. Here’s a photograph of the difference between green and ripe plantains:
If you can’t find ripe plantains, buy some green plantains but plan on them taking as long as 2-3 weeks to ripen. The plantains will be ready when they’ve turned mostly brown but are still firm to the touch.
I hope you’ll give this special recipe a try. Fried plantains are an amazing way to complement Black Beans and Rice as well as so many other tropical inspired dishes.
Cheers!
Bruce
Sweet Fried Plantains
- Total Time: 13 minutes
- Yield: 4 -6 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 2–3 firm (ripe plantains)
- olive oil or avocado oil
- seasoned salt or salt and pepper
Instructions
- Peel the plantains and discard the skins. Slice the plantains diagonally into oval discs that are about 1/2-inch thick. Lightly season the plantains with seasoned salt or salt and pepper.
- In a large skillet warm about 1/2-inch of oil over medium heat. If using a deep-fry thermometer, it should read 340 degrees F. You can also test the oil with a small piece of plantain. The oil is ready when the plantain bubbles in the oil.
- Place the plantains in the oil. Cook them for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until the fried plantains are a rich golden brown. When ready transfer plantains to a large plate lined with paper towels or parchment paper.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
We recommend using organic ingredients when possible.
If you’re making several batches in the same skillet, make sure to add a little oil between batches. Let the oil warm up before cooking the next batch.
To keep warm place cooked plantains on a parchment paper lined baking sheet in a 225 degree F oven.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 8 minutes
- Category: Salads & Sides
Kitchen Tips and Resources:
- A cast iron skillet is a great option for frying up a couple batches of sweet plantains.
- I prefer using avocado oil for frying up these plantains. Not only does avocado oil have a higher smoke point than olive oil, it also has a rich buttery taste.
2 Responses
Thx for sharing this recipe, Bruce. I just this and the black beans recipe and boy are they delicious! I’m wondering though. What type of seasoning salt do you use? We just used salt and pepper and the plantains tasted great, but if there’s a seasoning salt you recommend, I’d love to try it!
Thanks for all the great work you do!
J
Hi J!
I make my own homemade blend of seasoning salt. Since you asked, I’ll try to post the recipe for it sometime soon. As you noted, salt and pepper works just fine for this recipe. In general, however, I prefer to use seasoning salt since you get a whole lot more flavor from the herbs blended into the salt AND you reduce the amount of salt you consume. A WIN WIN in my book!
Thanks for your comment and trying out our recipes! It’s always great to see return visitors commenting. =)
Cheers!
Bruce