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In Cuban cooking we have dishes for ANY stage of ripeness of a plantain, recipes for preparing green one's, yellow one's both solid yellow and with black spots, as well as the dead ripe one's.
The Plantains are just something to be loved :) The recipe I am posting is a very HOME-style dish that is very comforting and simple, I am sure many Cubans will recall some good ol' Platano Sancochado, these simple comfort foods are the stuff you'll probably never find at a Cuban restaurant but you will in people's home's, although not commonly but I'm sure once in a blue moon someone will get the craving for it (I haven't had Platano Sancochado in months!) If a Cuban doesn't like Plantains of any kind nor any type of Banana something is wrong with them... just saying... haha...
NOW READ THIS IS IMPORTANT BEFORE DOING THIS SIMPLE NO BRAINER RECIPE:
The boiled Plantain can be served several way's here are the following:
(1)Just boiled or steamed eaten plain straight with peel removed.
(2)Just peeled with some butter on top.
(3)Topped and smothered in garlicky pungent "Mojo de Ajo" (Cuban Garlic Lime Sauce)
Ingredients:
-Yellow Plantains (it's okay if they have a few black specks)
-waterDirections:
(1)Cut ends off plantain and throw away, now cut plantain LEAVING THE PEEL ON into thick rounds. Add plantains with water enough to cover about to submerge 3/4's of plantains and bring to a boil, cover and simmer on medium.
(2)The plantains will be done when they get SWOLLEN they will slightly outgrow their peel and some of the peels will pop open like a crack that opens. About 30 minutes. They should look like the picture below fat and swollen. Test with a knife if desired but the whole "plantains getting fat and poping the peel" trick always works to know it's very well done.
(3)Drain and eat plain or with butter or smothered with "Mojo de Ajo", this can be eaten as a side with any Cuban dish, typically rice, beans, meat (particularily the one's in tomato based sauces) and the boiled plantains on the side. Also makes a good snack with butter and a glass of milk :)
NOTE:
-I didn't give "proportions" because you can cook as many plantains as you want to eat and just use as much water as neseccary to boil pretty common sense ANYONE is capable of :)
P.S. I really love this simple dish especially with Mojo the plantains are so plump, starchy yet slightly sweet and with butter it feels so rich and comforting and also with pungent sour garlicky mojo it's just a unique contrast the pungent acidic sauce with the hot mildly sweet soft plantain I LOVE IT! By itself good to :)
6 comments:
I love these 'escabeche' with a little vinaigrette.
Hi Nathan,
These are my favorite, well, you know, after Tostones =)
I see you are being a very busy cook lately.
Great cooking!
Feliz Navidad!
Hola Nathan: You are absolutely right...there are a lot of Cuban comfort foods that don't show up in restaurants. Cuban style mashed potatoes, for example, are made by many Cubans with olive oil (without deleting the milk or butter). Back in Havana restaurants and homes would often serve mashed potatoes, especially with breaded filet of fish.
California Cuban restaurants usually don't even offer mashed potatoes, and in Florida Cuban restaurants they are often made with margarine--yikes! Platanos sancochados should be a no-brainer for Cuban restaurants--they would appeal to people who need to cut back on fried foods.
Foodalogue,
I love "Escabeche" type things to, especially stuff like sword fish, sardines or shark in "Escabeche"
Marilyn,
Ah yes the wonderful Tostones. My most favorite thing to eat that uses Plantains is "Fufu de Platano" =). Oh and "Feliz Navidad" to you to and thanks.
Mamey,
Uuugh Margarine the want to be butter ha ha. Mmmm... potatoes I need to make some simple mash potatoes even though there's so many elaborate more complicated way's to make Mash potatoes the best is always the simple mashed potatoes with butter, milk, and good olive oil.
And your right I wonder why many of the Cuban places here in Cali don't serve Platanos Sancochados, I mean it's so easy and probably appealing since many none Plantain eating cultures may see it as "exotic" or interesting and then be given the option (with mojo, or butter, or plain) that sounds like a great idea.
That is so exotic to me! Los plátanos no, I love them... always eat them "the old way" like monkeys do ;D. Peeling and bite :D.
I have now started to use them in my baking lab. But think that your recipe is so interesting!
I always thought that the translation for plátanos was bananas... and we also have bananas here, so now I see that I always eat plantains.
Nuria,
Glad to see you dropped by :) I never eat Plantains raw only Bananas. You know I call the bananas "Platano" in Spanish also but some other Spanish speaking cultures will still call it "Banana" even in Spanish. The way we know we are talking about Plantains it'll be like "Platano Maduro" (ripe) or "Platano Pinton "(Yellow) and "Platano Verde" (Green) Mexicans will say "Platano Macho" (for Plantain)
If you haven't cooked with Plantains at all you really need to try them the various way's Cubans and other Latin American nations make them they are wonderful I have some of the basics one's on my blog beside this one:
Platano Frito:
http://nathanscomida.blogspot.com/search?q=Platano+Frito
Tostones:
http://nathanscomida.blogspot.com/2008/09/platano-puetazos-o-tostonestwice-fried.html
and baked is my "Platanos en Tentacion":
http://nathanscomida.blogspot.com/2008/12/platanos-en-tentacion-plantains.html
If you have never had "Platano Frito" (really ripe fried plantains) you should really have them they are a must try for anyone and you'll quickly fall in love they are very food with sour cream and black refried beans Salvadorian style or the Cuban way plain with a meal.
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