637. Baked Turmeric Tostones

A Healthy Snack

   Its Monday and that means the #FoodieMonday #Bloghop group will have a theme decided on last week and the recipes are live on Mondays. For our #89th theme,our group decided on #raw bananas which was suggested by Kriti, food blogger at Krispy Kadhai.

   I'm not new to raw bananas, plantains or matoke as its called in East Africa. Matoke is a part of the staple diet for many Ugandans. They add it to stew, mash it, fry it, grill it in charcoal fire or boil it. Lets not confuse the normal sweet banana with the raw banana or plantain. Plantain is the cousin of the sweet banana. It has many nutritional values just like the sweet banana. However, you cannot consume plantains in the raw form. Many diet plans replace plantains to make tortillas, cakes, cookies, mash, pizza base etc.The charming thing about plantains is that they are available throughout the year.The reason plantains is a part of the staple diet for many African countries is because its high in carbohydrates, therefore provides the much needed energy, keeps on fuller for longer periods of time. Plantains are rich in potassium and fiber,rich in Vitamin C. 
 There are 3 type of raw bananas, plantains or matoke. 

• The pulp of the green ones is fairly hard and are starchy and not sweet. Usually one needs to peel them using a knife. The green ones are best for making  plantain chips.
• The yellow plantains are slightly sweet and mature.These plantains are usually fried,boiled, grilled and used in stews or to prepare mash.
• Black plantains in spite of the colour are still good to eat.At this stage they are the sweetest and softest.These are usually used for baking and desserts.

   I've grown up eating plantain chips or crisps as we call them in this part of the world. They are my favourite. So when I came across an unusual recipe (well, for me!) where the green plantain is baked but tastes similar to plantain chips, I decided to try out the recipe. 

   Tostones (pronounced as tos-toe-nays) are a popular snack dish in many Caribbean and Latin American parts of the world. The ones sold as street food are fried. Chunks of plantains are fried till just cooked. Then they are smashed and fried again. I was so tempted to fry them but then I remembered that this month I'm trying to keep away from fried goodies (difficult I must say!). So the hunt began for the baked ones. The baked ones tasted delicious but I would advise that have them as soon as they are ready. A few were left and they lost their crunchiness. I will try the fried ones at some point but till then the healthy version will have to do.

  

   Tostones are usually served with a garlic sauce called Mojo (pronounced as Mo-ho). I prepared the sauce but didn't like it. However, I will add the recipe for you to try. Next time my tostones will be served with mayonnaise sauce, chilli sauce,guacamole, salsa or the good old Indian green chutney :)

BAKED TOSTONES

Serves 4

Recipe source: Skinny Taste

3 green plantains

2 tbsp olive oil

½ tsp sea salt

¼ tsp turmeric powder (haldi)

For Mojo sauce:

3-4 cloves of garlic, minced

½ tsp oregano (dried)

¼ cup orange juice

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp olive oil

½ tsp coarse pepper powder

¼ tsp salt

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. If like me you've run out of parchment paper, then grease the tray lightly with oil.
2. Mix 1 tbsp oil, salt and turmeric powder in a big bowl.
3. First you need to peel the plantains. Cut a slit through the skin lengthwise. Using your fingers, peel away the skin.
4. Cut the plantains into ½ " chunks and put it in the bowl with the oil mixture.
5. Mix well till all the pieces are coated with oil.
6. Arrange the plantain pieces in the tray with the cut side facing up.
7. Bake for 10-15 minutes till they are slightly brown. Don't overcook them.
8. Remove the tray from the oven.
9. If you don't have a tostonera (a press) then you can use a glass or a small bowl.
10. Press each piece down. I would recommend that you do that on a chopping board or a plate and not on the hot tray as the tostones may get stuck.
11. Lightly oil the tray again.
12. Arrange the smashed plantain pieces on the baking tray.
13. Brush them lightly with olive oil.
14. Bake again for 15 minutes till they are light golden brown. Make sure half way you flip the tostones.
15. To prepare the mojo sauce, mix all the ingredients.
16. Serve immediately.

Tips:

• Can make this during the fasting or Ekadashi time, but don't serve it with the garlic sauce. A yogurt dip would go well with it.
• If during fasting you don't use turmeric powder, then omit it.
• To get a nice smashed piece make sure you don't slice the bananas too thin.
• For  more crispy tostones bake further for 5 minutes.

You may want to check out other plantain recipes:

raw banana and paneer kofta curry

raw banana paneer pattis

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