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These Paleo Tostones (twice-fried plantains) are cooked in coconut oil and served with a Whole30 friendly Avocado Ranch Dip that no one will guess is Paleo! Crispy, savory, and out of this world delicious!
It’s day 2 of my crispy carbs + dipping weekend. Not clever, I realize. I couldn’t wait to finally share the tostone recipe I’ve been making constantly lately though!
I admit that I was waiting for the perfect dip-idea to come along, because somehow just sharing the tostone recipe felt unoriginal.
There are tons of great how-to-make-tostone recipes on the internet, which is (DUH!) how I came to develop my own in the first place. When it comes to plantains, I’m all about experimenting to figure out the PERFECT texture, flavor, etc. I love plantains. Love them and live on them, or at least sometimes it feels that way.
I mean, I’ve been known to whip up a few of these tostones as a random after school snack before heading out to the kids’ activities. I’ve been known to make them all hours of the day just because I feel like it. Once you get the hang of peeling plantains, they’re easy-peasy and flipping delicious. TOO delicious, I think sometimes.
And by “too delicious” I mean that I’m sometimes tempted to forgo all other carb sources just to eat plantains all the time. BIG LOVE! Plantains are the new…bagels? I used to live on bagels.
If you’re not used to peeling green plantains, it will seem strange at first. As you can see in the photo with the green peel, I chop off the ends and score the sides all the way down. That makes it easy to dig your thumb between the peel and plantain and slide it down to remove each section of the peel. Sounds complex, but once you’ve done it, the entire process takes just 30 seconds. BOOM!
My ideal tostones start out in about 1.5 inch chunks. You fry those chunks for about 5-7 minutes in coconut oil to soften them, until they look just like the photo below.
Then it’s time to smash! For a long time I simply smashed them slowly and carefully underneath a large wide serving spoon, but I now have this fancy schmancy – yet only $10 – tostonera which I love so much. Believe it or not, I wound up finally getting one after a cashier at my grocery store convinced me THAT I NEED ONE! I swear, I have more conversations about the plantains I’m buying when I check out than about anything else that enters my cart.
I always smash between two sheets of parchment to avoid any sticking, and subsequent crying on my part. Actually, if you happen to mess up a “smash” you can be like me and just fry the little bits at a later point. I don’t like waste!
If all goes well with smashing, you fry them again, drain on paper towels, and they wind up looking like the magical little disks above. YUMMY! And then comes the dip 🙂
Since I have a major ranch dressing obsession, I decided to make an avocado ranch to go with my tostones. It’s basically just my homemade ranch dressing recipe blended with an avocado, plus some added lime and cilantro for fun. This dip is seriously a lot of fun, trust me!
Just as with my chipotle ranch dip, this avocado ranch is good for basically anything – burgers, topping a taco salad, chicken, roasted veggies, raw veggies, and really whatever else your little heart desires. It’s good stuff, and I can’t wait for you to try it out! I hope you have a couple a plantains around because things are about to get really crispy around here if you do. In a good way, a very crispy, dippy good time. Let’s get started!
Paleo Tostones with Avocado Ranch Dip {Whole30}
Paleo Tostones with Avocado Ranch Dip {Whole30}
These Paleo Tostones (twice-fried plantains) are cooked in coconut oil and served with a Whole30 friendly Avocado Ranch Dip that no one will guess is Paleo! Crispy, savory, and out of this world delicious! Prep Time: 10 minutesCook Time: 15 minutesTotal Time: 25 minutesCourse:Side dish/appetizerCuisine:Paleo &, Whole30Servings: 4 servings
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Ingredients
For the Avocado ranch
1med ripe avocado1cuphomemade mayo or store bought Paleo Mayo1tbspplus 1 tsp lime juice1tsponion powder1tspgarlic powder2tspdried chives1tspwater to thin out if neededA squeeze more lime and salt to taste
For the Tostones:
2green plantains3/4 – 1cupcoconut oildividedCoarse sea salt to taste
Instructions
For the Avocado Ranch:
You can use a traditional blender or an immersion blender – if using an immersion blender, place all ingredients in a tall container and blend until creamy. For a traditional blender, simply add all ingredients to the blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Scrape all the dip into a lidded container and store in the refrigerator until read to serve.
For the Tostones:
Begin with smooth, green, unblemished plantains.Cut both ends off the plantains and score the sides of the peel from top to bottom, 2 or 3 times around the plantains. Get your thumb underneath the peel and slide it down to neatly remove the peel.Cut the plantains into 1.5 inch chunks as shown in the above photo. Heat a large deep skillet over medium heat and add 3/4 cup coconut oil. Once the coconut oil begins to sizzle, add the plantain chunks to the skillet.Fry the plantain pieces in the coconut oil, turning to evenly coat, over med heat (adjusting to avoid browning) until bright yellow and just beginning to turn light brown – about 5-7 mins. Remove from pan and turn the heat off.Drain on paper towels, and allow to cool enough to handle. Then smash between 2 sheets parchment paper using a flat surface (such as a glass or large serving spoon) – or with a tostonera – slowly to about 1/4 thickness.Heat coconut oil again adding a bit more if you need to, over med heat until it sizzles.Fry the smashed plantains (tostones) until first side is golden brown, then flip and repeat – about 2-3 minutes for each side.Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Serve hot with the avocado ranch dip as an appetizer or side dish. Enjoy!
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What I Used to Make My Paleo Tostones and Avocado Ranch Dip:
Crispy Coconut Oil Tostones with Avocado Ranch Dip #paleo #whole30
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Want more plantain recipes? Try one of these!
Crispy Plantain Bacon Kale Skillet
Plantain Apple Bacon Breakfast Hash
Crispy Soft Sweet Plantains
Easy Plantain Chips
On the web:
Epic Duck Fat Paleo Tostones
Tostones (Twice Fried Plantains)
Tell Me!
Have you tried cooking green plantains?
Favorite plantain recipe that you’ve tried?
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