Pressed double-fried plantains: because you are worth it.

If versatility is a quality that I especially appreciate in human beings, it is even more so true with food ingredients. This blog will be filled with plantain-based recipes which are all mouth-watering…, but I have to admit that if I had to live on a plantain-only diet for a week, banan pese (Haiti) or Patacon (Latin America) would be my pick. Served either as a side dish or as a basis for the confection of “gourmet” sandwiches or sophisticated hors-d’oeuvre, pressed double-fried bananas are not to be eaten worrying about calories and fat but are rather to treat yourself with a delicious goody from time to time. Besides, it is an excellent recipe to bring the whole family together in the kitchen as I remember how much fun I had using the plantain smasher when I was a kid. Enjoy the cooking and the tasting!

Pressed double-fried plantains (Banan Pese, Patacon)

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Serves	2-4
Prep time	25 minutes
Cook time	30 minutes
Total time	55 minutes
Meal type	Side Dish

Ingredients

• 2 to 4 plantains (either green or green-yellowish)
• 1 plantain smasher (e.g. tostonera) or 1 rolling pin
• Cooking oil
• 1 cup of hot water
• Salt (to taste)

Directions

1.	Peel the plantains and cut them in more or less big chunks (depending on the diameter of banan pese that you want to obtain)
2.	Fry the pieces of plantain in hot oil for 5 minutes on each side or until lightly brown; then remove the plantains and place them on paper towels to remove excess oil.
3.	Mix hot water and salt.
4.	Flatten the plantain chunks using either a plantain smasher or a rolling pin, soak them in the water-salt mixture for 2-3 seconds and reserve for a few minutes.
5.	Fry the flattened plantains until crispy and golden brown; place on paper towels (again) to remove excess oil.

Note

The two “final dish” pictures show the different results obtained while using different types of plantains (green versus yellowish) and different sizes of plantain chunks (hence the different banan pese with different diameters).

The two “final dish” pictures show the different results obtained while using different types of plantains (green versus yellowish) and different sizes of plantain chunks (hence the different banan pese with different diameters).

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