These Fried Plantain Chips are crispy, gluten free, vegan and ready in less than 30 minutes. They are great as a side dish, snack, appetizer or meal starter.
I remember every time we went to the beach stopping in one of the many beach shacks or restaurants to eat ultra fresh fried fish with tostones (how we call these chips), salad and hallaquitas (small polenta parcels). It was something that everyone did, especially if you came from Caracas.
We also had them as snacks whilst on the beach, topped with coleslaw, grated white cheese or ketchup and mayonnaise, not my favourite! served in those traditional food shack plastic plates. It might sound naf, but boy how delicious they were and how many memories does this brings me.
There are many variations to Fried Plantain Chips, some people cut the plantain in rounds and other lengthwise, but is the same flavour, texture and crispness, is just a matter of personal taste.
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These Fried Plantain Chips are crispy, gluten free, vegan and ready in less than 30 minutes. They are great as a side dish, snack, appetizer or meal starter.
- 1 Green plantain
- Pinch Salt
- Pinch Garlic powder
- 2 cups Vegetable oil
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Peel the green plantain using the same techniques I showed on my Sweet Fried Plantain recipe
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Slice the plantain in slices of 0.5cm thick
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In a pan add the 2 cups of vegetable oil and warm up at a medium temperature
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Add the plantain slices and cook for 2 to 3 minutes so they soften. Place the slices on a kitchen paper to absorb excess oil
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On a chopping board or work service sprinkle salt and garlic powder. Using an object with flat bottom squash each slice gently but firm. You want the borders of the slices to "open" or "spread" as this is what's going to give the crispness. See video recipe. Repeat the process for all slices
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Once all slices are squashed, fry them again until they are crispy, approx 6 to 7 minutes depending on how hot your oil is. Remove from the oil and place on kitchen paper to absorb excess oil.
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Sprinkle salt over the fried chips and serve!
- You can eat the chips as they come out, ie. just with salt.
- Other serving options are topping them with coleslaw, Feta cheese, ketchup and mayonnaise or mustard.
- Plantain chips are better when eaten just made, the longer they are kept they will loose their crispness and become chewy and dry.
- If you have left-over chips sometimes we re-fry them. Of course their not as good as when just made, but they are eatable.
VIDEO HOW TO MAKE FRIED PLANTAIN CHIPS
(VE EL VIDEO EN ESPAÑOL)
WHAT ARE FRIED PLANTAIN CHIPS
Fried Plantain Chips or Tostones as we call them are a traditional Venezuelan dish from the coast and are an integral part of our traditional beach food.
Authentic fried plantain chips are only made using green plantain as the unripe texture of the fruit is what gives the crispness the chips are known for.
These chips cannot be made with yellow plantain as the ripe texture of the fruit will make them soft and sweet, contrary of what an authentic plantain chip is.
HOW TO MAKE FRIED PLANTAIN CHIPS CRISPY
The key to making fried plantain chips crispy is how green the plantain is, how much you squash the pieces and how hot and how long you fried them for as I show in my step – by -step video recipe.
The yellow the plantain is the softer and sweeter it will be and you’ll be making Sweet Fried Plantains like in my previous recipe instead of fried plantain chips. Hence it is very important to use a green plantain that has no yellowness to it, like the one I’m showing in the picture below.
HOW TO PRESERVE FRIED PLANTAIN CHIPS
Plantain chips do not keep very well and should be eaten straight away, the longer they are left they become starchy, heavy and chewy. This has to do with the nature of the fruit, the greener the plantain the more dry it is, and this will translate to the cold plantain chips.
Sometimes in Venezuela when we have to many chips left over from the day before we re-fried them, and although they are eatable they are by no means the crispy fresh chips they were when freshly made.
WHAT OTHER RECIPES CAN YOU MAKE WITH GREEN PLANTAIN
In Venezuela we use green plantain for two main dishes, one these plantain chips and as a substitute to potatoes in fish soup. Unfortunately the nature of green plantain doesn’t lend to many dishes, at least in our cuisine.
For the rest plantain is mainly use in its yellow or ripe state because is soft and sweet, like in my Sweet Fried Plantain with Cheese and Coriander recipe, a good introductory dish.
However, if you feel a bit more adventurous and want to try more plantain recipes, then my Venezuelan Plantain Balls are a good recipe for tasting how versatile this amazing fruit is.
And of course as always, all my recipes come with step – by – step video so you’ll see first hand how I cook these recipes.
So guys and girls I hope you’ve enjoyed this post and was useful in knowing a little bit more about this amazing ingredient.
Made this recipe? Leave your comment below and rated! See you next week with another yummy recipe
HAPPY COOKING 🙂
