Growing up, my best friend was Cuban. We were inseparable and needless to say, we spent a lot of time with each other’s families. I always laugh when I remember going over to her house on the weekends, and her grandmother (abuelita as we lovingly called her) would always answer the door. Her greeting to me was never “hello” but always, “are you hungry?”
Honestly, I had some very memorable meals at her home…they really knew how to cook, and my friend Mireya became an excellent cook in her own right. One snack we loved to eat were empanadas with tostones. For those of you that have never tried Cuban food, I highly recommend it. The food can be dressed up or down, but it is always delicious and satisfying. Tostones are green plantains that are fried twice and served as a starch instead of bread or rice. Tostones make great appetizers especially when they are served with the traditional mojo dipping sauce.
Many friends were stopping by to visit this week, and I wanted to have a selection of different appetizers that I could put on the table for everyone to enjoy, since I did not really have a lot of time to cook an entire meal. I must say, that these tostones are always a crowd pleaser.
Tostones are fried twice, and you need something called a tostonera to flatten the tostones after the first fry. If you are like me and don’t make them often or simply don’t want another gadget hanging around your kitchen, you can get really creative. I take a large piece of foil and fold it over several times until it’s quite thick. Once I fry the tostones the first time, I remove them from the oil and let them cool completely. I fold the foil in half, put a piece of the plantain on the bottom piece of the foil, cover it with the top piece and press until the plantain is completely flat.
Once you have flattened all of the pieces, heat your oil again and fry them a second time. Make sure to salt them well when they come out of the fryer. These are so addictive and the accompanying dipping sauce is so delicious. Mireya’s husband is Puerto Rican, and when he makes his version of mojo, he adds some chopped cilantro, which is not used in the traditional Cuban version. I opted for some fresh chopped parsley since that was what I had on hand. When you make the sauce, make sure to poach the whole garlic in the olive oil on very low heat until it softens and gets very sweet….this should take about 25 minutes or so. Add the other ingredients and adjust the sauce to your taste. I prefer mine more acidic, so I go a little heavier on the lime juice.
Tostones and Garlicky Mojo Dipping Sauce
1 dozen large garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half
1/3 cup olive oil
S&P to taste
2/3 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons orange juice (sour orange is traditional)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley or cilantro **optional
First make your sauce and set aside. To start, peel all of your garlic cloves and cut them in half lengthwise. Add them to the olive oil in a small pot and cook them until tender on a very low heat, about 20-25 minutes. When they are ready, remove them with a slotted spoon (save the oil) and either put them into a food processor or use your mortar and pestle to smash the garlic into a paste. Slowly add the oil, and then the lime/orange juice along with the salt and pepper until you have created an emulsion. Make this as thick or as thin as you would like. Once all of the oil and lime/orange juice has been incorporated, add the cumin and adjust for salt and pepper. Set this aside until the plantains are fried.
Peel and slice the plantain into thick pieces and then fry in hot oil until golden brown on both sides, then remove from fryer and allow to cool completely. Using your tostonera or a piece of folded foil, flatten out each piece of plantain and fry for a second time. Remove onto a paper lined or onto a wire rack to maintain crispness. Add salt and pepper and serve warm with dipping sauce.
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