How To Make Fried Plantains (Cooking Video!)

How to make fried plantains has been my most requested cooking video EVER, so I’m extra stoked to have the opportunity to share this with all of you, while I teach my hubby, Mike, how to make them!

I’ve made dozens (or maybe more like hundreds) of batches of plantains, so I’ve learned tons of lessons along the way, all of which I’m sharing with you today!

First up, let’s get to the questions that you asked, along with my answers for how to make fried plantains

1. WHERE DO YOU FIND PLANTAINS?

I typically find them right next to the bananas in most grocery stores. My local Whole Foods always has them on hand, and if I don’t see them out, I just ask and they usually have some stored in the back! Asian markets usually have them as well, along with Safeway, Sprouts, etc. If you don’t live near a major grocery store, I’d check with any local market to see if they’d be willing to order them for you!

2. WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE IN GREEN, YELLOW, AND DARK PLANTAINS?

Besides the fact that all 3 obviously make great weapons, green plantains are super starchy, and more like a potato. They’re also going to be the crispiest/driest plantain variety, and they make great tostones. While they don’t have a ton of flavor, they’re delicious when dipped into my Chipotle Aioli! Green plantains are most often used to make plantain chips, and my super easy Plantain Pancakes.

The more yellow to dark a plantain is, the sweeter and softer it’ll become – much like a banana, but they don’t actually taste anything like a banana. Most people who can’t stand bananas still love plantains!

My personal favorite plantains are fully yellow with a good amount of dark spots. This means that they’ll still be firm, but also slightly sweet, and not crunchy.

Fully black plantains will be very sweet, and are more like a dessert.

The more ripe your plantain is, the easier it’ll be to peel! Here’s a video on how to peel green plantains, cause those can be a lil tough.

3. WHAT TYPES OF OIL SHOULD I USE TO COOK PLANTAINS?

I personally love using either coconut oil or avocado oil, due to their higher smoke point. Ghee is also a great option. You don’t need a ton of oil, just a good coating on the bottom of your pan works great!

4. WHAT TEMPERATURE SHOULD I USE TO COOK PLANTAINS?

This is the number one question that I get, as the main issue most people run into with plantains is that the outside burns before the inside ever has a chance to cook. I cook my plantains over medium-low heat, for exactly this reason.

Any higher and they tend to burn too quickly, and the oil will begin to smoke. The riper your plantain is, the faster it’ll cook. You’ll definitely want to keep a close eye on them as they cook, as they’re quick to burn – trust that I’ve learned this the hard way through LOTS of experience.

How long they’ll take to cook is totally dependent on your stove and how evenly it cooks food – but mine typically take 2-3 minutes until they’re nicely browned and ready to flip over. You can always turn up the heat, if needed!

5. WHAT TYPE OF COOKWARE IS BEST?

I personally love and use a ceramic pan to cook my plantains. It’s non-stick, making them much easier to flip!

6. HOW DO I EAT PLANTAINS?

This totally depends on how ripe your plantains are, but here’s some of my favorite ways to enjoy them:

Green plantains: Think savory – like dipping in my Chipotle Aioli, Jalapeño Ranch, or guacamole.

Yellow Plantains: I love having these with breakfast, along side salads (especially taco salads) or topped with a little ghee, sea salt and cinnamon. Yellow plantains with lots of dark spots are going to be pretty flavorful on their own, so I don’t find that they need much. It’s all personal preference!

Dark Plantains: I rarely eat completely dark plantains, but they do make a delicious dessert and would be great served with ice cream or coconut whipped cream!

7. HOW DO I STORE PLANTAINS?

Super easy! I just store them in a sealed container in my fridge for up to a week, although they never, ever last that long! I use glass storage containers, but anything that seals well will work.

To keep plantains from getting soggy, simply make sure that they’re completely cool, or at least mostly cool before sealing the container.

8. HOW DO I REHEAT PLANTAINS?

I prefer reheating my plantains in my convection oven, at 400 degrees for 5-6ish minutes, just until they’re warmed through. I’ll usually just toss the glass container in the oven to make it easy. Any sort of toaster oven/regular oven will work great!

You could also reheat plantains in a small amount of coconut oil/avocado oil/ghee, over the stove, but I kinda find this to be a waste of time and dishes…and I feel like I might as well just make a fresh batch at this point.

I no longer have a microwave, so I haven’t tried reheating them this way, although I don’t personally think that they’d turn out great. I’ve heard from others that this tends to dry them out or makes them soggy.

Now let’s get to the how-to video, along with a printed recipe below! If you like being entertained, make sure you watch til the end. 😉

HOW TO MAKE PLANTAINS:

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