Chef Soraya Cuban Beans and Rice With Plantain Chips

You truly have not lived until you’ve had fried plantain chips. Add fried plantains to a serving of rice and beans and you’ll have yourself an entire delicious meal. If you’ve never seen a plantain before, you would probably think that you were looking at an oversized banana. However, these are most certainly not bananas! Plantains are starchier, less sweet, and firm. Because of these qualities you’ll find that the two fruits also behave very differently when cooked.

Plantains have their own health benefits as well! They are rich in vitamin B6 and their fiber can help your body lower its cholesterol levels. Plantains can be found in many tropical zones like central and south America but are also a staple of many meals in Cuba. Lucky for us, plantains are also found plentifully in most grocery stores! Once you have located the plantains you may wonder, how do I pick the right one? Unlike bananas, plantains are at peak ripeness when they are yellow with patches of black or almost completely black! Fortunately, since you are frying plantains in this recipe, it isn’t totally essential that your plantains are 100% ripe.

Once you have the perfect plantain in your possession, it’s time to get your Chef Soraya Cuban Bowl ready! Plantains pair perfectly with our Cuban Black Beans and Rice Bowl because of its tropical flavor profile! The Cuban Bowl includes coconut milk powder, banana powder and cilantro along with a blend of delicious savory spices! To prepare, simply peel back the plastic, pour in boiling water up to the fill line, give it a stir, and cover! That’s it! In about ten minutes when you’re finished frying up your plantain chips, your Cuban Bowl will be warm and ready to go!

Now for frying up those beautiful plantains. Start by peeling the plantains. Then you’ll be ready to slice them diagonally at about a quarter inch of thickness to maximize your surface area. Next, heat your frying pan to medium/high heat. We chose to use coconut oil to fry up our plantains, but you can use whatever oil you have on hand. Once the oil is nice and hot, throw in your plantains to begin caramelizing them. Caramelizing simply means you fry them on either side, making sure both sides are thoroughly browned, and the plantain chip is cooked through. Now that you’re all finished, sprinkle them with salt, and you have the perfect plantain chip to dip into your Chef Soraya Cuban Bowl! Enjoy!