Patacones or Tostones are made from green plantains peeled and cut cross-wise. Patacones are fried twice. Patacones are served in restaurants all over Colombia as a side dish for fish dishes or as an appetizer with guacamole, hogao (tomato and onion sauce) or ají (hot salsa).
INGREDIENTS
(8 patacones)
2 Large green plantains
Vegetable oil for frying
Salt to taste
DIRECTIONS
1. Peel the plantains and cut cross-wise into 1/2” slices
2. In a medium heavy pot, add enough vegetable oil to cover the plantain slices and heat the oil over medium high heat.
3. Add the plantain slices to the heated oil in a single layer. Fry for about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Carefully remove the plantains with a slotted spoon, and place them on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb excess oil.
4. Let the patacones cool for 3 minutes. Then, place the plantains on a piece of plastic wrap and cover with another piece of plastic wrap. With a flat pot cover, press well on the pieces of plantain, flattening them to ¼” thickness.
5. Dip each slice in salted water. Then using tongs add them back in the hot oil in a single layer (you may need to work in batches) and fry for an additional 3 minutes on each side. Be careful when you fry the soaked plantains, as droplets of water will cause the oil to splatter.
6. Remove the patacones with slotted spoon and transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb oil, sprinkle with salt, to taste, transfer to a serving plate and serve hot with guacamole, tomato sauce or salsa.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
This looks delicious! I’ve had plantains before in Asia, but they were nothing like what you share here. What kind of fish dishes does this recipe go well with? And can you get the same kinds of plantains where you live now, or are they a different variety from what you had in Colombia? I’ve never heard of hogao or aji, though the latter is probably familiar to me. Thanks for sharing this!
Thank you for your comment. This recipe can be served with many kinds of seafood: fish stew, fried fish, grilled fish, shrimp in coconut sauce and many more and you can find really good plantains in the United States too.
I love plantains. This Puerto Rican woman I knew years ago introduced me to them. She prepared them a bit different that you explain here. I’m going to try this sometime.
I love plantains and this is an interetsing way of eating it..
Hi, my mom dips them in salted water as well but adds minced garlic to the water..
Hi Roberto,
Thank you very much for your comment!
That sounds delicious.
My mom in Medellin add garlic to the water too.
What a great, fast and easy dish? I’m replicating this dish for my next dinner party. Love the fact that you just need plantain, salt and pepper. Need to make a bunch side condiments and all is good
Love it is great, i remember back in Colombia ace muchos anos los patacones con chorizo huevos para el desayuno en fines de semana sabados e domingos toda la familia. Good job u r great love your recipies.
Thanks
Jorge
make sure the water for dipping the plantin is warm and salt, minced garlic and cuming for the perfect taste.
Man I am loving your site Erica, I was just explaining how to make these in another post! LOL Fried twice, OMG I can’t believe I didn’t think of that! I knew something i was doing was wrong but didn’t know what, I only remember watching my aunt make them never realized till now she fried them twice.
Erica,
We returned back to Sweden in september after having adopted a 4 year old girl from Cali, Colombia. We were in Colombia for six weeks and really liked the food culture and all the nice people we met. Back home we almost immidiately missed the patacones and the empanadas snacks, so we were really happy when we found your blog and all the fantastic recipies. Now we have a “colombian afterwork” every friday with patacones and aji – and our daugeter loves it!! This friday we will try the empanadas recipie for the first time – after finally finding the masarepa in our local special grocery store.
Thanks / Peter
Patacones are my favorite! I am from Colombia too, but at home my mom usually dips the slices in garlic salted water. That makes the patacones taste much better!
Hello:
I love your recipes, thank you. I live in AZ, my mom (colombian) lives in NY and my abuelita lives in Colombia, so I don’t have anyone out here to show me the recipes I love and remember, so thank you!
I do remember my mom making patacones and instead of dipping them in salted water, she would smash them on garlic salt and fry them, it definitely avoids the oil splatter. Thank you.