Plantain is a delicious and dense "distant relative" of bananas, it can also be used to make salty and sweet foods. Ripe plantains that are black or brown in color can be peeled just like regular bananas, but green plantains must be peeled with a knife or steamed first.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Peeling Raw Green Plantains
Step 1. Cut both ends of the plantain
Place the plantains on a cutting board, then use a paring knife to cut off the top and bottom of the banana.
Step 2. Cut the skin at the edges of the fruit
If you look at the fruit, you will notice that the skin is thin and elongated. Use a knife to cut the skin along the fruit. Don't cut too deep to avoid damaging the fruit; Cut just enough so that the skin can be peeled off.
Step 3. Remove the pieces of skin with your hands and a knife
Peel off the plantain peel from top to bottom with your finger. Use a knife to loosen the skin, then continue until the skin comes off. Continue the stripping process in the same way.
Step 4. Remove the remaining skin
Unripe plantains may not peel with bears, so you may find skin residue sticking to the flesh. Use a knife to cut and remove any remaining skin. The flesh of the fruit is now ready to use.
Method 2 of 3: Steaming and Peeling
Step 1. Cut both ends of the plantain
Place the plantains on a cutting board, then use a paring knife to cut off the top and bottom of the banana.
Step 2. Cut the skin on the periphery of the fruit
Use a paring knife to cut the skin. Don't cut too deep to avoid damaging the fruit; Cut just enough so that the skin can be peeled off.
If your recipe requires you to use plantain slices, you can cut the bananas by section instead of cutting the edges
Step 3. Steam the plantains
Place the bananas in a container or steamer with 1.25 cm of boiling water. Cover the steamer or container and steam the bananas for 8-10 minutes, then remove the bananas with tongs. Your bananas will be softer to the touch.
If you like, you can also boil the bananas instead of steaming them. Fill the container with water so that the bananas are submerged, then bring the water to a boil. Place the bananas in boiling water for 15 minutes until the skin starts to peel off
Step 4. Peel the bananas
Once the bananas have started to cool, you can easily peel them. Use your fingers to peel the banana, and use a knife if needed.
Method 3 of 3: Peeling Ripe Plantains
Step 1. Grasp the top of the plantain with one hand and the bottom of the plantain with the other, like holding a regular banana
When the bananas are fully ripe and brown, the skins can be easily peeled off.
Step 2. Pull off the top of the plantain
The banana peel will begin to peel off lengthwise. Remove the first piece of skin with your hands.
Step 3. Peel off the remaining skin
Once the first skin is peeled off, the rest will peel off easily. Pull and throw away the remaining banana peel, and the banana is ready to use.
Step 4. Done
Tips
- Grilled or fried plantains can be served with salt -- they're delicious.
- Plantain slices can be an additional ingredient to fresh corn soup.
- Choose plantains according to the recipe. Ripe plantains are easy to peel and sweet in taste, but are not suitable for some recipes. Raw plantains are green and firm, and are great for recipes such as mofongo (deep fried raw plantains) or tostones (thick double-fried plantain slices). Ripe plantains will be softer and yellow in color, and very ripe plantains will be very soft and dark yellow in color. The darker the skin color and the softer the flesh, the more ripe the plantain will be.
- Caramelized plantains are very popular in South America. Once peeled, cut the bananas into 1cm thick circles diagonally. Pour enough oil into the frying pan and turn on the high heat. Fry several bananas at the same time, turning them over after 1 1/2 minutes (or turning them when they are dark brown). Drain the oil with paper towels on a plate, and serve with salt and pepper.
- For plantain chips, use a potato peeler to chop, and follow the second peeling method. Make the slices as thin as possible.
- Maduro plantains are high quality plantains.
Warning
- Don't eat unripe plantains. Regular bananas can be eaten raw, but plantains must be cooked so as not to cause stomach upset.
- Be careful when handling the knife.
