Plantain home fries are a sweet Caribbean twist on traditional potato home fries. This mouthwatering mash up of sweet plantains, fresh herbs, and aromatics, is a quick breakfast or side dish.
Sweet Plantain Home Fries
There are so many ways to prepare plantains: plantain chips, plantain hash, and even plantain fries. But as a Guyanese person, it is a rite of passage to eat plantain and eggs for breakfast.
I’ve had too many fried plantains (green, ripe, half-ripe, you name it) and scrambled egg combinations to count. This plantain dish is made with ripe or yellow plantains and is a great substitute for traditional American home fries and a great option for Guyanese boil and fried plantains.
Why You’ll Love This Sweet Plantain Home Fries Recipe
- A Delicious Breakfast: Getting bored with cereal and oatmeal? Plantain home fries are a tasty way to start your day. The sweetness of the plantains and the crunchiness of the green onions and bell peppers were the perfect combination.
- Versatile: Serve this for breakfast or use it as a side at dinner. I served it family style, directly from the skillet and my family really enjoyed it. I served this as a dinner side with chicken stew and had the leftovers with eggs the next morning.
- Easy to Make: You’re just a simple sauté away from a plate full of sweet plantains! The prep time is just 10 minutes with another 20 minutes of cooking time.
Ingredients for Plantain Home Fries
Keep this recipe simple by using fresh ingredients already stocked in your fridge.
- Yellow plantains: These ripe plantains are soft, sweet, and starchy. When cooked, yellow plantains develop a caramelized exterior while maintaining a creamy center, like Yukon gold potatoes or russet potatoes.
- Yellow onion: When cooked, yellow onions have a sweet, mellow flavor.
- Green onions: Finely chopped with white and green parts separated.
- Baby bell peppers: Add this to the mix for a pop color and a welcome crispy crunch. Cut them into circles.
- Cloves of garlic: Use freshly grated or crushed garlic.
- Sprigs of thyme leaves: Thyme leaves have an earthy, slightly minty, and lemony flavor, adding a savory depth to dishes. Remove the stems.
- Tomato: This adds fresh flavor.
- Oil: Use an oil with high smoke point for the sauté.
- Seasoning: Season with salt and black pepper.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Plantain Home Fries
For this dish I peeled 4 ripe/yellow plantains and cut them into one inch cubes. I put the diced plantains into a pot, covered with water, added some salt and cooked it on medium heat until it was soft. This took about 10 minutes, so keep an eye on it so that the plantains don’t overcook.
Next, I sautéed some diced tomatoes, yellow onions, green onions (the white parts or head only), baby bell peppers and crushed garlic (not pictured) in olive oil. I added a pinch of salt and black pepper and let it cook until the tomatoes were really mushy. I used baby bell peppers because I love cutting them into little circles.
Then, I added the cooked plantains and sautéed for a few minutes. I tossed the plantains around every few seconds to avoid burning.
Finally, I topped the dish off with the chopped stems of the green onions (the green part) and some fresh thyme leaves. It was unbelievably yummy.
Storage
Store leftover sweet plantain home fries in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat leftovers in the microwave or over medium-low heat on the stove.
Tips for the Best Plantain Home Fries
- If you need to accelerate the ripening of the plantains, store them in a brown paper bag for 2-3 days. Alternatively, unpeel and bake them for about 20 minutes at 300ºF.
- Cut the plantains into even slices to ensure uniform cooking.
- Do not skip the parboil. The plantains cook much faster when boiled for 10 minutes.
- Do not overcook the sweet plantains. If the plantains overcook, the dish will be mushy.
- Enjoy the sautéed sweet plantains immediately while they are warm for the best flavor and texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Home fries are typically diced or cubed potatoes that are seasoned and cooked on a stovetop, with onions and peppers. Hash browns, on the other hand, are grated or shredded potatoes that are pan-fried or baked until crispy.
“Sweet plantains” and “regular plantains” are the same thing, with just varying degrees of ripeness. Yellow and black plantains are sweeter than their green counterparts.
Plantains are an excellent source of fiber, which supports gut health. It’s also rich in antioxidants, including vitamins A and C, which boosts immune health.
Sweet Plantain Home Fries
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Large Skillet
Ingredients
- 4 ripe yellow plantains
- 1/2 yellow onion diced
- 4 heads of green onions finely chopped with white and green parts separated
- 3 baby bell peppers cut into circles
- 2 cloves of garlic grated or crushed
- 3 sprigs of thyme leaves removed from the stems
- 1 large tomato diced
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp plus a pinch of salt
- a small pinch of black pepper
Instructions
- Peel and dice plantains into 1 inch pieces.
- Add plantains to a pot suitable for boiling and cover with water. Add 1 tsp salt and boil on medium heat until cooked (about 10 minutes)
- Next, warm the oil in a large skillet on medium heat, then cook onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and the white parts of the green onions. Add a pinch of salt and black pepper to the seasoning as they cook.
- When the tomatoes cook down and are mushy, add the garlic, followed by the cooked plantains.
- Sauté for 5 minutes constantly turning to avoid burning
- Then add the green parts of the green onions and the fresh thyme leaves.
- Toss and serve.
Notes
- If your plantains are really ripe keep an eye on them while boiling or they will get too soft.
- Boil plantains uncovered to keep it from boiling over and causing a huge mess.
- I used baby bell peppers in this dish because I like to cut them into tiny circles but you can use regular bell peppers.
- I don’t add the garlic in with all of the seasoning in the beginning because I don’t want it to burn.
- If using a cast iron skillet, always use medium heat or you will burn the plantains.
Nutrition
The information listed in the recipe card is an estimate provided by an online nutrition tool. The tool evaluates ingredient names and amounts then makes calculations based on the number of servings listed for the recipe. It is provided as a general guideline and not as a precise calculation. For precise nutrition information please feel free to add the ingredients to your preferred nutrition calculator or consult a doctor or licensed nutritionist.
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