Pan-Fried Plantains & Basil Chimichurri

My head is about to explode.

I’m only about a month into a nutritional biochemistry class for my Masters program in Nutrition, and this sh*t is HARD.

Somebody help me. I barely have enough brain power to read a few pages of the textbook at a time before my head starts spinning. Coming from someone who majored in political science (not actual science, duh) and french in college, this is throwing me for a whirl.

I think it’s translating to my meals too. Studying this stuff all day is zapping my creativity in the kitchen. Basically every time I get hungry (unless I’m going out to eat, which isn’t a lot these days), it goes a little like this:

1) Open refrigerator to see what leftovers we have.

2) Stare blankly. how am I supposed to combine foods again? what do I even feel like eating?

3) Realize the refrigerator has been open for like 5 minutes and I still haven’t decided what to eat.

4) Pull out random foods, put them on a plate, and hope they taste good together. don’t even bother warming them up because I am way too lazy to wait the minute or so they would take in the microwave.

Luckily nothing too weird has come out of this yet. But I swear the only way I’m making (relatively normal) meals out of this is by having some kicka** leftovers in the fridge and super easy, go-to meals that I know require minimal effort and creative brainpower. Kind of like these…

Pan-Fried Plantains with Chimichurri.

If you’ve never tried plantains before, you’re in for an awesome, flavor-explosion ride. And guaranteed, you’ve never tried them with MY chimichurri sauce. Holy WOW. I never get tired of eating these, and neither do my friends or family who have all tried and loved not been able to stop gushing about them.  Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack…I’d eat these all day every day.

Pan-Fried Plantains & Basil Chimichurri Sauce

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Dana: Real Food with Dana

Serves: 2-4 servings

Ingredients

For the Plantains

• 2 yellow plantains
• 2-4 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1 pinch of salt
• ¼ tsp garlic powder

For the Chimichurri

• 2 tsp fresh minced garlic, (about 2 cloves)
• 2 packed cups fresh basil leaves
• 1 packed cup fresh parsley leaves (can substitute fresh mint)
• 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ tsp fresh ground black pepper, to taste (optional - AIP omit)
• 2 Tbsp water, plus more as needed to thin out

Directions

1. Make the chimichurri sauce: Blend all ingredients in a food processor just until combined. Don’t over-process it too much, you don’t want to pulverize the crap out of it! Set aside until ready to serve.
2. Peel and slice plantains on a slight diagonal into about ½-inch pieces.
3. Heat a skillet on medium heat with 2-4 Tbsp coconut oil, enough for a thin layer on the bottom of the pan. Start with 2 Tbsp and let it melt. If it's not enough to cover the bottom of the pan, add 1 Tbsp at a time until it does. Let the oil heat up for about 2 minutes.
4. When the oil is hot, add the plantains in a single layer. You can do this without burning yourself by sliding them down the side of the pan, them moving them over with a fork or spatula. Add a sprinkle of sea salt and garlic.
5. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side, until lightly browned. If they have less brown spots/are mostly yellow, they may need to go a little longer so they cook all the way through. Carefully flip with a small metal spatula or fork. Watch them closely so they don’t burn!
6. Serve (devour) with chimichurri sauce.

Notes

*The less brown the plantains are, the longer they will take to cook. If you have totally brown plantains (which are sweeter), you could also make them with cinnamon instead of garlic. These are delicious on their own! (But would probably be a little odd with chimichurri).

After cooking, yellow plantains don't keep very well as leftovers, and taste pretty weird after being stored in the fridge. So don't feel bad about eating them all 🙂 Brown or (yellow with lots of brown spots) plantains DO keep well in the fridge, and taste delicious cold!

Chimichurri is also great on steak, eggs, chicken, pork, or just about any vegetable/salad. The sauce will keep for several days in the refrigerator.

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