I tried making this recipe in 4 ways: with sugar and without, and sliced vs. quartered. I used canola oil and omitted the salt. The quartered with sugar tasted like one of my favorite restaurant dishes; when sliced, the sweetness of the sugar was overwhelming. Without sugar, quartered tasted like warm bananas. In conclusion, add sugar if you cut the plantains into bigger sections; omit the sugar if it is sliced more thinly.
Amazing! I prepared this ahead of time for convenience and put them into 2 quart-size zipper bags. By the time I wanted to sautee them, the sugar and the moisture from the plantains had turned into a caramel sauce. I used a non-stick pan and omitted the peanut oil. Absolutely delicious! I served with the Cuban Pork Roast and the Corn and Black Bean salad from this site, along with my mango salsa (warmed) to top the pork and some basic Cuban rice for a fabulous meal. Will definitely make again and again!
Delicious!! I was playing around with different methods and I wound up putting the sugar directly in the oil/butter, which worked ten times better. i also skipped salt, but they're awesome. i think getting the ripest ones you can is best, but if you can only get the green ones, don't fret, they're still tasty.
As far as slicing goes, don't slice them into circles - they're not supposed to be like that. Slice the plantain at an angle, a little over 1/2 an inch thick. This makes each slice longer than the width of the plantain. I made 1 plantain, and it really is about 1 tablespoon of brown sugar per plantain. I added the salt into the brown sugar before dipping the plantains, and found this to be better than adding salt afterwards. However, before putting the plantains onto the pan, I gently wiped off excess clumps of sugar. It should really be a thin gooey coat of brown sugar on each plantain prior to placing them on the pan. I kept the heat on medium, and cooked each side until it was very dark brown. As far as the completed texture - it should be soft, but not mushy - and the coat should be nice and gooey and slightly sweet / salty. Enjoy!
I made some changes and additions to this recipe. I used very ripe plantains. I bought them when they were yellow with slight black spots and let them sit on my counter for 2 weeks (yes, 2 weeks) until they were completely black and felt mushy. Then I cut off the ends and used a sharp knife to cut thru the skin and peel it back to take out the flesh. I sliced them lengthwise. I melted 2 TBS of butter and 2 TBS olive oil over medium low heat. I added the plantains and cooked them slowly for about 5 minutes then flipped them over. I let them cook about 3 minutes longer then sprinkled the plantains with 2 TSP cinnamon and about 2 TBS of the brown sugar. Let them cook about 1 minutes longer, flipped them one last time and immediately took them out and put them on a serving platter.
The taste was really good - and the texture of the plantains too. But I would not recommend draining on a paper towel, unless it is for 5 seconds max, because as the sugar cools it turns into a caramel and it sticks to the paper towel. I had to pick little paper bits out of my plantains. Maybe just use a slotted spoon and give them a good shake...
I took the advice of some others and mixed the sugar and salt into the melted butter (I used only butter), then I fried them over medium heat. Because so many people mentioned that these were sticking to paper towels, I sprayed a cooling rack with non-stick spray and placed that over paper towels and I let the plantains drip. I had no problems with sticking, and these were delicious!!!!
Nice and sweet. Did not use salt. Used a non-stick skillet with 1 Tbsp butter and a little canola oil.
Good but my plantains were not ripe enough. MAKE SURE YOUR PLANTAINS ARE VERY VERY RIPE!
i have no idea what i did wrong but these did NOT turn out like i expected. i didnt over cook them and they smell and look burnt there sticking to EVERYTHING. not going to be trying these again.. there goes my desire to try new things.
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