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plantains


edwardsboi

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I'm trying to cook a dish that includes plantains, so I left them outside for about a week to get the plantains black as that's supposed to be a sign that the plantains are sweet. But, now, there's all this mold all over the skin which I'm assuming is not safe to eat. When a recipe talks about waiting till the skin of the plantain is black, how black are they supposed to get? Was I supposed to store them in the fridge while I waited for it to turn black?

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I'm not an expert on plantains by any means, but I've used some with the same kind of mold you describe. Seems to always happen about the time the peels turn black. As long as the mold is only on the outside I usually will still use them, and it's always been fine.

But I'd prolly wait for someone with a little more experience to weigh in.

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I'm trying to cook a dish that includes plantains, so I left them outside for about a week to get the plantains black as that's supposed to be a sign that the plantains are sweet. But, now, there's all this mold all over the skin which I'm assuming is not safe to eat. When a recipe talks about waiting till the skin of the plantain is black, how black are they supposed to get? Was I supposed to store them in the fridge while I waited for it to turn black?

First, don't use the moldy ones. I always use them fried. I never see them sold ripe because I think they are always used pre-ripe. They will not be as sweet as a regular banana and they have more starch, so you don't eat them out of hand. Just a different application. Look at some South American recipes. Crema goes with them well.

John S.

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I never see them sold ripe because I think they are always used pre-ripe. They will not be as sweet as a regular banana and they have more starch, so you don't eat them out of hand. Just a different application.

It's true that they aren't eaten out of hand, but that they are always used pre-ripe is most definitely NOT true. They are most certainly eaten ripe. In Cuba they make fried tostones with underripe plantains and maduros (meaning ripe) with the ripe blackened and sweet plantains. They are definitely as sweet as a regular banana when allowed to turn spotted or totally black. They can also be boiled and mashed and eaten as a starchy side dish.

I've never had a problem with the mold, but I usually eat them before they turn completely black.

Katie M. Loeb
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Ripe plantains are wonderfully sweet; I've eaten some 'out of hand' as well as sliced and fried, or baked with orange juice.

Did the mold penetrate that tough skin? If not, don't fret about it.

Plantains ripen at room temp; don't refrigerate.

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I never see them sold ripe because I think they are always used pre-ripe. They will not be as sweet as a regular banana and they have more starch, so you don't eat them out of hand. Just a different application.

It's true that they aren't eaten out of hand, but that they are always used pre-ripe is most definitely NOT true.

In Surinamese stores in The Netherlands, you will usually find 3, or even 4, boxes of plantains next to eachother, in various states of ripeness - from hard and green to soft and black.

Edited by Chufi (log)
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I really cannot think of any better side to a nice Cuban brined roasted pork shoulder than some super-ripe fried platanos, graced with lime, chili salt and cumin. Sweet, caramely, silky, salty, spicy, tangy. I like basic tostones, too, the fried unripe kind, but the really meltingly ripe plantains are special.

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