Tostones again

bullet hole
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo

I know we have cooked fried plantains multiple times but here we go agagin.



the plantains are fried at a low temperature (325 deg) for 10 min then taken out to rest and flattend



in my house using the mortar

Making Tostones from Eugenio Monasterio on Vimeo.

then refried till crispy

Feeding women

beef sandwich fodder
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

My wife had a very impromptu gathering last night.
I made small beef sandwiches;
Flat iron steak seasoned in butter, garlic, pepper (a lot), salt, parsley, and worcestershire sauce





shrimp toast

I ground some small shrimp into a paste with basil, cilantro, egg, sesame seed oil, and fish sauce






I loaded a slice of baguette with the ground shrimp and a piece of shrimp



Then dipped them in sesame seeds and fried them.



tostones



and people brought more food ended up being very fun

Dinner with Friends

pernil
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

We had friends in from out of town last night, so we made a rather traditional puertorican meal, roast pork, rice and beans and tostones.

The beans started with a sofrito of onion, garlic, parsley, cilantro, oregano, bell pepper, and tomato paste, cumin bay leaf and annato (achiote). I had some pork bones from a previous pork roast and added these with homemade chicken stock. Diced butternut squash and then added canned beans and let cook for about an hour on low.



My wife bought a pork shoulder, but a ham or butt works just as well, I like it with the bone in. I cut crosshatche in the skin through the fat and I marinated the shoulder overnight in a rub of garlic, salt, pepper, annato seeds, oregano, lime juice



I picked off the annato seeds prior to roasting as they can be bitter.



The pork roasted at 350 degrees to an internal temp of 175 f



I took some green plantains... quick aside, in my opinion one cannot make tostones with ripe plantains. Ripe fried plantains I would call amarillos. Anyway...




I chopped them and put them in heavily salted water with some lime juice and granulated garlic for a few minutes.



I then dried them over paper towels and fried them at 325 deg till golden brown.



When cooled down a bit I mashed them (I use the bottom of my mortar with the plantain between two pieces of oiled waxpaper)



They are then fried again at 375 deg till firm and crunchy.



I usually salt them and serve with a little hot sauce optional on the side.

I made bread as well, it turned out tasty but not what I was shooting for. (I was hoping for a much lighter larger crumb but oh well)



We had great company and the food turned out great. Here's another shot of the pork for good measure.