Tostones – Fried smashed Plantains is my all time fave side dish. Nothing tastes better than a lightly salted freshly fried tostone!

Tostones are made with green plantains. Plantains look like bananas but they aren’t bananas so please don’t peal them and eat as is. Plantains are starchier and must be cooked. There are 2 types of plantains. Green and ripe. The green ones are green and not sweet. The ripe ones were green but now are sweet and the skin is yellow… best used when they have black spots all over. A tostone is a twice fried smashed/flattened plantain. This recipe uses the green ones. The sweet plantains have their place and this is not it.. well at least not for me 😉

fried smashed plantain circles on a wire rack on a copper sheet pan and a small bowl with salt in the top right of the sheet pan
peeled and sliced plantains on a warm sandstone surface

Platanos (plantains) reign supreme in my house and just about every other Dominican household. Its insane how much we love us some plantains!! We eat them for any meal, any time of day, as a side dish, an app or a main. They can be boiled, roasted (ripe ones) or smashed with butter or olive oil (mangu). My fave though, is fried and salted as soon as its out the fryer… ahhh divine!

sliced and smashed fried plantains on a cutting board with part of a white bowl on the top left corner
white plate with fried plantain circles on a warm sandstone surface and a small bowl with salt on the top left corner

Tostones – Fried Smashed Plantains are super easy to make. The perfect tostone is both crispy and soft and never greasy. A greasy tostone is a sad tostone 🙁 and we don’t want sad tostones. In order to avoid greasy plantains, we have to make sure the oil is hot enough to fry both times. The first fry parcooks the plantain and the second fry is where the magic happens 🙂 Finish with salt and serve with just about anything, like this green curry buttermilk roast chicken or even some guac.

fried smashed plantain circles on a wire rack on a copper sheet pan and a small bowl with salt in the top right of the sheet pan

Tostones - Fried Smashed Plantains

Yield: 1
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Tostones - Fried Smashed Plantains are super easy to make. The perfect tostone is both crispy and soft and never greasy.

Ingredients

  • Green Plantains
  • Vegetable oil 
  • Kosher salt 

Instructions

  1. Place a pot on the stove and add at least 2 inches of oil (no more than 3), turn the heat on to medium high.
  2. Peel the plantains, easiest way is to lay them on your cutting board, cut the ends first, then hold the plantain in your hands and carefully with your knife, slit the peel along the length of the plantain, try not to cut through to the flesh. Use your thumb to slide under the peel and remove the peel.
  3. Slice each plantain into 1 inch circles.
  4. Test the oil to see if its hot enough, nick a little piece off of one of the sliced plantains and add it to the oil , if it sinks to the bottom and starts to bubble then rises, your oil is ready for frying.
  5. Fry the plantains in batches until they start to yellow in color and try to rise to the top of the pan. remove them with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined sheet pan
  6. Smash the fried circles with your tostenera, plate, pan or mug
  7. Fry the smashed plantains in batches until they are golden yellow and float to the top, remove them with a slotted spoon, transfer them to paper towel lined sheet pan or plate or over a wire rack and immediately salt them.
  8. Enjoy!

Notes

will need paper towels and/or a wire rack and a flat surface like a plate,bottom of a mug or pan to smash the plantains

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 1 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 399

nutrition information is not always accurate

© Angie
Cuisine: Dominican / Category: Siriusly Dominican