Plantain is one the most traditional ingredients in Venezuelan cooking and these Plantain Boats with Roasted Vegetables and Melted Gooey Cheese takes this humble vegetables/fruit to another level that showcases its versatility as an ingredient.
One of the key thing in Venezuelan cooking is the combination of sweet and savoury flavours in one single dish, and this recipe does just that. The sweetness of the ripe plantain filled with roasted veggies and garlic topped with cheese and baked until the cheese has perfectly melted into a gooey crispy deliciousness.
This recipe can easily be prepared maximum 2 days in advance and baked just when you needed. Keep the plantain filled in the fridge in an air tight container or on a plate wrapped in kitchen plastic and just before baking add the cheese.
PRINT THE RECIPE
Sweet ripe plantain filled with roasted veggies and garlic topped with cheese and baked until the cheese has perfectly melted into a gooey crispy deliciousness.
- 5 Yellow plantains
- 1 Red pepper
- 1 Aubergine
- 5 Garlic cloves
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1 tsp Ground cumin
- Black pepper to taste
- A glug of olive oil
- 1 cup Cheese This can be grated or in slices. You can use cheddar, gruyer, gouda or any other easy meltable cheese
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Chop the pepper and aubergine in small squares. Place in a roasting tin with the unpeeled garlic cloves. Roast for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are soft and slightly chard. Once done set aside and leave to cool down.
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In the meantime boil the plantain in abundant water for 20 minutes or until a knife goes in without resistance. A good indication if its done when the skin opens. See video. When cooked remove from the water and set aside to cool down.
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Peel the plantain and with a knife slice in the middle to open a pocket. Try not to go all the way through to the other side to avoid the vegetables coming out from underneath.
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Fill the plantain with as much as the veggies as possible. If you're preparing this dish in advance, at this point wrap the plantain in kitchen plastic or place in an air tight container and keep in the fridge until needed.
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Add the cheese all over the length of the plantain and broil until the cheese has melted to a gooey perfection!
Recipe Video
- You can prepare this recipe 1 to 2 days in advance and broil just before serving.
These Plantain Boats with Roasted Vegetables and Melted Gooey Cheese are gluten free, vegetarian and if you swap the cheese for a vegan option it can also be a vegan dish.
WHY PLANTAIN
If you’ve never tried it I really encourage you to try it, its a delicious ingredient, very versatile, gluten free, vegan, healthy and depending if is green or yellow you can get 2 different flavours from it. Cook it green for a savoury flavour or ripe (yellow) for a sweet flavour.
I’ve got a series called “Plantain” where you can find all the recipes using this versatile ingredient. In there you’ll find recipes from the most basic like How to Make Sweet Fried Plantain to How to Make Fried Plantain Chips at Home in Less than 30 Minutes so do check it out!
You might think eating a vegetable/fruit with your savoury meal might be absolutely weird, but in all the time I’ve been cooking Venezuelan food in the UK I haven’t met anyone that hadn’t liked it. Of course everyone’s a bit apprehensive before trying, but once they do, they come back for more! And I’m not joking!!
As always if you like this recipe rate it and comment below! See you next time with another delicious recipe!
HAPPY COOKING! 🙂
