Platanos Maduros

This delicious treat is very simple and quite effortless. It includes two ingredients: plantain, yellow bananas aka platanos and oil.

Ingredients:

• Plantains (yellow large bananas that come from the Tropics, not to be confused with regular yellow bananas. These plantains are larger and thicker than regular bananas. They can be purchased as green bananas, but must ripen.)
• Olive Oil (or you can use any oil you prefer)

Directions:

• The plantain bananas MUST be blackening on the outside before beginning this recipe. Don't try this when the bananas are green or you've got a whole different dish. 
• pour 1/3 cup of oil into pan
• let pan heat, so that oil is hot
• slice the bananas to desired thickness and place them in the pan
• make sure the flame is low, as you don't want the plantains to burn
• after a few minutes (approx. 7-10) check the bottoms of the plantains. They should be golden to golden brown before you flip them.
• flip the slices once they are golden brown
• in the next 7-10 mins, check on the plantains again
• once they are golden brown, remove them from heat
• place the ready plantains on a paper towel in order to soak up the excess oil

Commentary: Platanos maduros are also known as sweet, soft bananas. Once they are cooked they have a sweet and savory banana flavor. I find that I can accompany this dish with anything I eat. It allows me to add a bit of sweetness to any meal. When I made this dish, I also whipped up an easy chicken and spinach meal to go along with it. I like to add a little bit of seasoning and flavors, so my chicken had some sazon (Goya) flavoring, which added the hint of latino. I had my platanos on the side, as I would eat rice or potatoes. It's definitely a mouth pleaser and a treat. You can also save any extra platanos in some foil and just fry them another day. But don't wait too long or they won't be ripe anymore. I also let my platanos sit for a while until they are truly blackened, just so that I can be absolutely sure that they are SWEET!! You can also make a dessert dish out of these platanos by simply adding ice cream! (Maybe I'll make that one for you too) So, get a fryin'...and remember that platanos aren't just for Latinos. They are for the Latinos in all of us!! Buen provecho!