Plantain Problem.

[andytoy]

Hi Guys,

I'm writing on behalf of my Dad. He's tried to make a Puerto Rican dish called Pastelon de Maduros about twice now. But when he prepares the plantains, they don't become sticky and mushy, yet it seems as tho when they come out of the oil, they are dry and a bit tough. Is he buying the wrong type of plantain (I know they're not regular bananas)? Don't get me wrong, it still tastes good, but the texture is way off. Should he wait till it ripens so much that its almost completely black? He always buys or waits until its yellow with streaks of black. Can you guys please help me? My dad is a fabulous cook, and it'd make him delighted if he can fix this small issue. Oh, and btw, he is not baking them, he is frying them on a pan with a small amount of oil. Where can we buy the "right plantains"? I remember when I visited Peru once, it seemed as tho any plantain we bought always ended up soft and mushy after getting out of the pan. It's sad how we just can't enjoy the delicacy at home, and must always wait until we go out to eat to a brazilian restaurant to have the right plantains or prepared correctly. I live in the Los Angeles, CA area, if any of you can recommend any markets as well. Thank you guys so much!

[Kitchen Witch]

This is from my notes - I hope it helps -

Plantains are a staple food in many Caribbean and Hispanic cultures. Frying is the most common way to prepare them.


Choose your flavor. Plantains can be eaten at any stage of ripeness. However, each stage has a different taste. Green plantains have a starchy, rich flavor. Yellow plantains are sweeter, and dark brown almost black plantains are the sweetest. Fry a plantain at any stage for a treat.

Peel the plantain. The riper the plantain, the easier it is to peel. Cut off both ends and slice the peel along the curved edge. Pull back the sides and remove the plantain from the peel. If the plantain is green, you may have to cut remnants of the peel from the exposed plantain.

Cut the plantain into slices. Start at the tip and make even, diagonal incisions. You'll get a smoother fry from pieces without jagged edges.

Preheat the skillet to a medium heat. Use a nonstick pan whenever possible. Lightly coat the bottom of the pan with oil. If you use delicate oil, like olive oil, coat the plantain slices with the oil instead. Delicate oils break down in high temperatures.

Place slices in heated pan. If the skillet is coated, wait for the oil to bubble before inserting the plantains. Otherwise, make sure the pan is evenly heated before inserting the oil-coated slices.

Fry the plantains evenly on both sides. They should turn golden brown. Lightly dust with salt, if desired, and serve hot. Enjoy.



Plantain and Chicken Curry

1 very ripe plantain (yellow skin with black spots) -- cubed
1 chicken breast -- cubed
1 sliced onion
1/2 stick butter
1 medium apple -- peeled and cut into cubes
2 teaspoons flaked coconut
3 teaspoons curry powder
1/4 pint heavy cream
3 tablespoons flour

Boil chicken pieces until tender in about 2 cups of water. Remove from heat, strain chicken and save broth. Cut chicken into bite size cubes. In a sauce pan, saute onions and apples in butter. Add bay leaf, coconut flakes, and curry powder. Sprinkle with flour and saute for 3 minutes. While stirring, add reserved broth (should be about 1 1/2 cups). When sauce is smooth, add salt and pepper to taste. Add Cream, plantain and chicken. Simmer for 10 minutes. Serve over a bed of rice and garnish with coconut flakes.

I got these from a friend:

Pastelon

first you will need to have at least 6 very ripe plantains almost black so they are sweet

peel off skins cut them up length wise, then carmelize them in hot oil'
remove them and set aside on paper towels

you will need 1 and a half lbs of hamburger meat 85%
cook this together with 2 tbls spoon of adobe
1 envlope of goya sazon
1 chicken bullion cube
2 tbls sofrito
2 tbls of garlic powder
2 tbls of onion powder

make your own favorite sauce or you can buy Del monte onion and garlic sauce in the can
cook this until hot then line a loaf pan with some sauce on the bottom keep adding layers of plantain along with sauce and meat mixture at the top of your loaf add 2 well beaten eggs then bake in the oven at 325 degrees until eggs are cook.

Pastelon de Platano


(1)
3 garlic cloves
1/2 cup pitted olives, pepper or onion-stuffed
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
3 bay leaves
2 tbsp cooking wine

(2)
1/2 lb lean ground meat
1/3 cup raisins

(3)
6 plantains, ripe but not overripe
2 tbsp olive oil

(4) 3 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

Pour the olive oil in a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients included in (A). Sauté for about five minutes.
Stir the ground meat into the ingredients already in the saucepan. Cook for about ten minutes. Add the raisins. Continue to cook for another ten minutes or until the meat is cooked but not dry. You may want to remove the bay leaves at this time.
Slice the plantains lengthwise. Use a separate saucepan to fry the plantain slices over medium heat in two tablespoonfuls of olive oil. Remove from the saucepan. Wipe excess oil with paper napkins.
Use a deep square baking pan. Grease thoroughly with about half of the melted butter. Cover the bottom of the pan with a row of plantains. Add enough of the cooked meat to make a layer, following the style for preparing lasagna. Alternate rows of plantains and meat until both are used up.
Pour the remaining melted butter over the pie. Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for about twenty minutes.