Puerto Rican Tostones (Fried Plantains)

Tostones are a very famous Latin American and Carribean side dish, It made from raw Plantains which others knowns as raw bananas. tostones are the word derived from the Spanish word that means "to toast:. The term is also used for 50 cent coin in "Honduras". The origin of the dish is quite mystifying as some belief it a dish from Latin American where some take it as a Caribbean dish. Whatever the origins its a double-fried plantain that goes perfectly for any side or snack.

Unlike the yellow ripe bananas that are eaten raw, plantains are made for cooking and can be steamed, boiled, grilled, fried or baked. When green plantains are twice-fried, they are called Tostones, when the sweet plantains are fried only once they are called Maduros. We will share that recipe shortly.

Cooked plantains are nutritionally very similar to a potato, calorie-wise, but contain more of some vitamins and minerals. They are a rich source of fiber, vitamins A, C and B-6, and the minerals magnesium and potassium.

To peel off the skin, first cut the plantains in 1 inches circle and then take out the skin.




Ingredients : 

2 raw Plantains
1/4 cup oil
Sea salt to taste

Chipotle sauce for dipping

Method:

Cut the plantains in 1-inch thickness, take out the skin.







Heat the oil in a deep frying pan.

When the oil is hot, add few plantains and fry till golden brown. Take out on a paper towel.

Finish with all plantains.


Take a wooden spoon, from the back of the spoon, take out plantain and press it and make it flatten.

Fry all the flattened plantains, till its golden.

Take it out and sprinkle with sea salt and enjoy with chipotle sauce.

Mix mayo and chipotle and make a sauce, or with any favorite sauce of yours.

Easy and Quick Egg Biryani

Give me any biryani and I am good with it. My kids also know my love for biryani. In today's recipe I have used eggs but in the same way, you can make it for vegetables, mutton, chicken, fish, shrimp, tofu, paneer birayni also. Just the cooking time in masala will vary bu the flavors will be the same.

To make any biryani , you need good long grain rice. Soak them up for one hour and then cook and while its cooking doesn't stir too much. Let it cook without disturbing and you will end up having nice long grain rice.

For the topping, you can also make birista, aka fried onion to go on top, fried nuts like cashews, raisins, chopped almonds, you can keep it aside chopped coriander leaves too.



Ingredients for Masala : 

4 Boiled eggs
2 tbsp ghee /oil
1 big onion sliced
1 tomato sliced
1 tbsp ginger, garlic paste
2 green chilies slit in the middle
2 tbsp cumin-coriander powder
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp red chili powder or as per taste
salt as per taste
1 tbsp biryani masala
1/2 cup yogurt
few stings of mint and coriander
Whole garam masala - cloves, black cardamom, cinnamon sticks, jeera

For Rice

2 cups soaked basmati rice
4 cups of water
1 tbsp oil
half lime juice
salt as per taste
2-3 green cardamom

1/4 cup warm milk with saffron in it


For garnish: I forgot to add chopped coriander but you can add it if you want fried onions, nuts

Method : 


In one big pot, make rice, add enough water to cook, then add oil, lime juice, salt, cardamom and cook it on medium flame till its 100% done.

While rice is cooking, let's make the masala.

In a  pan, add oil in it.

Add whole spices and jeera in it.

When jeera changes its color, add onion and cook it till its brown.

After that add tomato and along with ginger garlic paste and green chilies.

Add in all powder masala and yogurt in it and cook for a minute.

With the fork prick the eggs so the masala goes inside too. Do not make a big hole in it, just small sizes.

Add those in masala and cook it till masala coats to eggs. Your masala should not be dry, it has to be little runny consistency.



At this point, add hand-chopped mint and coriander leaves.

By now your rice should be done, take out the extra water and cardamom.

Now in a heavy bottom pan, add half masala, then rice, again masala and rice.

Cover and cook it for 5 minutes on low to medium flame.

Shut off the gas and add saffron milk, coriander, fried onions, nuts and let it cool it down for 5 minutes so the flavors will develop.  Before serving mix gently so the rice grain don't break.

After that serve it along with plain onion tomato kachumber or your favorite raita.

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Vegan Dan Dan Noodles

I had my eye on this for so long but didn't get a chance to make it and when I got it, Made it and it was perfect on the first try so I had to share it. Here I made it with soy crumbles, but you can make it with tofu and mushroom combo or just the mushroom or vegan chorizo works too.  Typically it made with pork so if you are a meat-eater, you can make it with pork, beef, chicken mince and enjoy it. It sounds and looks like a lot of preparation but its nothing, the dish has all different components in it but when you put together, it becomes a wholesome dish.

You have to prepare egg noodles and keep it aside. Make the sauce for this and keep it aside. Boiled the green vegetable (your choice) and keep it aside. Make "meat " filing and keep it aside. At the end of the bowl, you mix everything and enjoy the spicy bowl of noodles which is called Dan Dan noodles.  This dish originally from the Sichuan region in China and there they love to eat spicy food. But you can adjust the level of spice as per your liking.



Ingredients : 

Vegan Soy Crumble topping : 

1 cup soy crumbles
3 Green onions chopped
2 cloves of garlic chopped
1 1/2 tbsp tamari sauce or soy sauce
2 tbsp rice wine  vinegar
1 tbsp oil

Noddle sauce : 

4 tbsp Peanut butter
4 tbsp Tamari sauce
4 tbsp vinegar
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3 green onions finely chopped
1 tbsp Agave or sugar
1/3 to 1 cup Chili oil with flakes - Depend upon your taste buds

To assemble : 

10 oz Egg noodles or fresh noodles or spaghetti, vegan noodles
Any leafy greens, spinach, bok choi, swiss chard


Method : 

Sauce : 

Whisk peanut butter and tamari then add vinegar. Stir till it mixes it nicely. Then add garlic, onions, agave. Add chili oil spoon by spoon and taste it and as per your liking add less or more. The sauce should not be runny. Keep it aside.


for Topping : 

Heat a pan, add oil in it. add garlic and saute for a minute. Add green onion along with soy crumbles. Cook for 2 minutes.

Add sauces and mix it again. Turn off the flame and keep it pan.

Cook the noodles as per the instruction. Blanch the vegetable you are using.


To serve :

Take a bowl. add noodles first. Then add sauce on top then soy crumbles on top of it and on side put the vegetable. Mix well and enjoy hot or cold.

Arepas with Re fried beans and Guacomole

So the first question comes in mind is what is Arepas? Arepas is a flat, round, unleavened patty of soaked, ground kernels of maize or corn but nowadays its maize meal or flour and you can grilled, baked, fried.

Traditionally, arepas are made by soaking and pounding dried corn in a large mortar and pestle. The moist pounded dough would then be shaped into cakes and cooked. These days, people buy pre-cooked, dehydrated masarepa - Arepa four, which just needs to be mixed with water and salt to form a dough.

Arepas are Latin American food, Mostly Columbia and Venezuela have this one while Columbian areas are made with sweet corn and thin and mostly with cheese as studding, while Venezuelan is more like sandwiches, anything you can fill it up.

Here I am showing you basic stuffing, you can go crazy with your ideas from chicken to pork to lamb to all vegetables. Instead of cover with half of the arepa, you can make it as open sandwich also.

Ingredients for Arepas 

2 cups Flour, I have used this one
1 tsp Salt
2 1/2 cup water

 Ingredients Refried beans : 

1 can refried beans
1 tsp taco seasoning
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 seedless Jalapeno chopped
few drops of Tabasco
1 tsp oil

For the Pico De Gallo 

1 Diced tomato
1/4 cup diced red onion
1 tsp diced jalapenos
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
salt as per taste

Guacamole 

Method : 

Pico de gallo

Chop all the vegetables and add together in a small container, mix well and place the container in the fridge until ready to use. 

Refried beans : 

In a small pan, add oil.
Add garlic and jalapenos and saute till you get a nice aroma, for a minute or so.
Add refried beans, seasoning and little water to lose the mixture.
Stir it nicely and cover it and cook for 5 minutes on slow flame.

Arepas : 

Take the flour in a big bowl, add salt and water and then mixing with your hand and kneading until you have a soft dough. 

Roll the arepas into 2 inch balls, and flatten to cook.

In a pan, add a bit of oil and cook the arepas on medium heat until they are golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. 

Don't rush the process by putting on high flame, you need it to cook from inside also.

Once the arepas are done the cooking, it’s time for plating!

Half-open each arepa, and add a layer of refried beans, guacamole, pico de gallo, and top with queso fresco if you are using it.

Server together with the rest of the guacamole and arepa, and enjoy!

I had it with the side of leftover Mexican rice. 

You can have this for snack, meal or appetizer or snack. Make it with your favorite ingredients and top it with cheese, gauc, beans but not too much, its tiny to hold lot of things and you have to use it warm once its get cold , it become hard and you have reheat it.