Tostones are an absolute staple of the Puerto Rican diet and if we are talking snacks, it really doesn’t get much better than this. Tostones perfectly sum up the Puerto Rican kitchen and that is an overland of flavor mad using very simple ingredients and methods. Today we are going to have a look at how you can make your very own to tostones in the house, to give you that flavor of Puerto Rico in your own home.
To make
this dish you will need green plantains, some vegetable oil for frying, a touch of butter cold water and some salt, garlic and lime for flavor, that is all. Once you have your ingredients, here is how to make the dish.
Plantain Prep
First up we need to peel the plantain and slice them into equal slices. You can go thin or thick with the slices but the key here is consistency, you want them all to be the same size as one another. Once you have done this, take 5 tablespoons of cold oil and add to a bowl, mixed with salt, lime and some garlic powder. Place the slices in cold oil and leave for 10 minutes. It is important not to touch the slices whilst they are marinating. Entertain yourself with a book, play some slots at casimba.com or call a friend to help you avoid temptation of touching or turning the plantains, they have to stay still.
Cooking Up
T
ransfer the oil to the skillet and add a further 2 tablespoons to top it up, dab the plantains with kitchen paper to remove the excess grease. Turn the heat to high and wait until that oil is piping hot before you then place the slices in to cook. Be very careful with this oil because it can hurt a lot of you get any on your skin. To help you here, try to use tongs or a slotted spoon with a long handle so that you don’t need to get too close.
Serve and Flavor
Whilst the plantains are frying, it is time to prepare some lime and garlic water which we can dip the fritters into. Take 1 cup of cold water and add a teaspoon of garlic powder and the juice of 4 limes. Now, one by one, take each plantain fritter out of the oil and dip straight into the cold water. This will not only add flavor, but the cold water will ensure that the crispy batter remains that way after taking it out of the oil.
After each dip, place the fritter onto paper towel until they are all out, and then put them back in the oil again to fry a second time. Leave them in the oil for 3 minutes and then take out and once again place on paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
Finally serve the plantains with a good sprinkle of salt and some guacamole for a delicious Puerto Rican snack.
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