My simple and delicious recipe for making the tastiest fried ripe plantains. Fried ripe plantains are a traditional side dish for many Latin American meals.
Sometimes I feel like I don’t eat enough fried plantains, maybe it’s because I ate them almost every day when I lived in Ecuador. We had plantain trees on the farm. One of the typical breakfasts my mom would make for us was fried plantains with melted cheese.
I always tell my children that one of the first things I learned to cook on my own as a child was fried ripe plantains. And of course, how could I forget all those places (in the city, at the beach) that sold fried (or roasted) ripe plantains stuffed with a nice piece of cheese.
I could fill an entire book with all the plantain recipes. The amazing thing is that all the things you can cook with plantains are so different and delicious. I love the various recipes with green plantains and the recipes with ripe plantains, but I think the most well‑known and universal way to prepare plantains is this recipe for fried plantains.
They can be served as a side dish with a wide variety of Latin American food. Personally, one of my favorite ways to eat fried plantains is for breakfast with some cheese (melted on top of the plantains or on the side), a fried egg, and the ever‑present cup of brewed coffee or coffee with milk.
Fried ripe plantains are a great side dish for many meals, but they’re also excellent for breakfast or as an appetizer. They’re delicious on their own, but also with fresh cheese or other cheese. I like to add feta cheese because it’s slightly salty and contrasts nicely with the sweetness of the plantains.
I also love adding shredded cheese while they’re hot so it melts. Since I can’t find Ecuadorian fresh cheese here in the US, I use mozzarella, Monterey Jack, fontina, or some other fresh cheese sold at farmers’ markets.
How to Make Fried Ripe Plantains?
Dish: Side dish, Appetizer, Coffee drink, Snack
Cuisine: Caribbean, Ecuadorian, Latin, Mexican
Keywords: Fried plantains, Plantain, Ripe plantains, Fried ripe plantains
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yields: 12 fried plantain slices (about 6 per plantain)
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Ripe bananas (plantains) | 2 |
| Frying oil | as needed |
| Fresh cheese or queso fresco (optional) | to taste |
Optional note: If you can’t find fresh cheese or queso fresco, you can use feta cheese if you want a salty cheese, or grated cheese like mozzarella or another that melts well.
Preparation
- Peel the bananas and cut them; the best way to cut them is to make diagonal cuts, not too thick. You can also cut them into long pieces, but sometimes it’s easier to cook them when they are not very big.
- Heat the oil to a medium temperature in a frying pan, add the plantains when the oil is hot.
- Ripe plantains cook very quickly, it’s important to turn them over so they don’t burn; ideally, they should be golden brown on both sides.
- Serve the plantains hot. If you’re adding feta cheese, simply sprinkle it on top. If you’re using grated cheese, add it to the pan once the plantains are cooked but still in the pan. Remove the pan from the heat to prevent burning and let the cheese melt.