Dominican Fritos

Since I'm The Hungry Gringa, I'm going to try my best to share my favorite Dominican food. It's also taken me over a year to understand the concept of making the perfect Dominican habichuela (beans). It is much harder than it sounds! So, let's start with the basics - Tostones. These are basically a type of "french fry" that are the perfect side with every Dominican dish. They are a MUST at the dinner table. Check your local Latin market or Wholefoods for plantains. They look very similar to bananas, but have the consistency of a potato. Below is a picture of one.

Ingredients:

• 2 plantains
• Vegetable Oil
• Salt

The first time I tried to peel a plantain, I ended up with painful, cut fingernails. Apparently there is a certain way to peel and cut. I assumed you peeled it like a banana! Definitely not. First cut both ends of the plantain off and slice from the top to the bottom. Then peel off the skin. When it is all peeled, cut the plantain like you would a banana in small pieces. Put the oil in a pan and heat on high. Throw in the plantains and let them fry and get brown. Once they have cooked, take them out and put on a cutting board.  Turn off the stove. Use something round to flatten the plantains one at a time. (I used a mason jar, but you can use something similar.) Once you have flattened the plantains like a potato chip, turn on the stove and throw them back in to re-fry them til they are browned.

Once done, put on paper towel and sprinkle salt over.