A crispy, crunchy tostones recipe is a tasty way to enjoy green, unripe plantains. If you like French fries, or tator tots, or waffle fries or any kind of fried potato, then you’ll want to give tostones a try. Ripe plantains are sweet just like dessert bananas, but unripe plantains are more like starchy potatoes. Green plantains are super savory, in fact, you can boil and mash them to make a dish similar to mashed potatoes. Tostones are a staple snack in latin American cuisine and easy to prepare, and especially tasty with a creamy dipping sauce. Tostones are twice-fried and not health nut friendly. For a healthier plantain recipe, stick to a plantain mash, but for a faux fry fix, try this crispy tostones recipe.
What you need for this Tostones Recipe
unripe, green PLANTAINS
OIL for frying
SALT
PEPPER
GARLIC POWDER
and a DIPPING SAUCE
…any sauce you enjoy with with fried potatoes will work with tostones,
a creamy AIOLI is great, or just RANCH dressing if you’re feeling lazy.
For my SEMI-AIOLI dressing I use:
1-2 cloves raw GARLIC minced
1 cup MAYONNAISE
1 Tbsp LEMON JUICE
How to Make Tostones
- Choose firm, green, unripe plantains.
- Slice off the very tips of the plantain.
- Green plantains can be hard to peel. You can cut the peel lengthwise into thin strips and pull the peeling strips away, or slice the length of the peel and then work the peel away from the plantain using your thumbs or a spoon.
- Cut the peeled plantain into discs about ¼ to ½ an inch thick. I prefer thinner slices, about ¼ inch thick.
- Heat a skillet and oil on medium heat. If you prefer deep frying, check current prices for a counter top Deep Fryer on Amazon.
- Add in the sliced plantains.
- Season the plantains in the skillet.
- Fry 1-2 minutes and turn and fry 1-2 minutes more.
- Remove plantains from skillet and drain on a paper towel.
- Place on a flat surface and smash flat to desired thickness. There is no wrong size, whatever size you like is the right size. I prefer my tostones to be about the size and thickness of a silver dollar.
- Return flattened plantains to the oil and fry until golden brown.
- Remove and drain on a paper towel, salt to taste, and serve with a dipping sauce.
- To make the dipping sauce, just combine aioli ingredients and mix well; the sauce, like any sauce, will be better if you make it a little ahead of time.
- Enjoy!
Unripe green plantains are a terrific ingredient that you can use in all kinds of savory, starchy dishes. For another unripe plantain dish, try this MASHED PLANTAINS RECIPE. And for a sweeter option, try FRIED RIPE PLANTAINS. But no matter how you prepare them, pick up plantains at the grocery and give them a try; plantains are a great value and very versatile.
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