PastelÓn Sweet Plantain Lasagna Food

PASTELóN (SWEET PLANTAIN "LASAGNA")

Steps:

• Heat a large deep skillet add oil of choice, enough to generously cover the bottom of your pan. Fry the plantains till they are a golden and just a little crispy on both sides. Remove from pan and set aside on paper towel. Repeat until all are fried and slightly crispy.
• Add annatto oil to the same skillet add the ground meat of choice, garlic, onions, peppers, cilantro and or parsley, cooking over medium heat till meat is browned.
• Add adobo, oregano, cumin, vinegar, bay leaf, olives, raisins, and tomato sauce. Season with black pepper to taste and salt to taste. Simmer 20 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaf.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Butter or oil using the coconut oil from the fried plantains a 9x12 casserole pan.
• Place half the plantain in a single layer and press down on them to fill all gaps.
• Top with half the meat mixture.
• Sprinkle half the cheese over the meat mixture.
• Press the remaining plantains to flatten.
• Place the flattened plantains on the cheese, top with remained meat mixture then cheese.
• Mix the eggs with the milk. Pour the egg evenly over the the dish, let it sit for a few minutes allow the egg to soak inches.
• If you like cheese like i do go ahead and sprinkle additional cheese on top.
• Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
• Let rest 15-20 minutes before slicing.

PASTELóN RECIPE BY TASTY

Steps:

• To the bowl of a food processor, add the cilantro, culantro, onion, red and green bell peppers, garlic, oregano, and cumin. Pulse until combined. The sofrito should have the consistency of a tapenade.
• Heat ¼ cup (60 ml) of canola oil in a large pan over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the sofrito and fry, stirring constantly, until deepened in color but not brown, about 3 minutes. Add the olives to the pan and stir to combine.
• Add the ground beef to the pan and cook until no longer pink, about 7 minutes. Season with the ½ teaspoon salt.
• Add 1 teaspoon of adobo seasoning, the Sazón seasoning, and the tomato sauce and stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is absorbed into the meat, about 7 minutes. Transfer the beef mixture to a medium bowl with a slotted spoon, discarding any excess liquid. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel and set aside.
• Peel the plantains, cut in half crosswise, then slice each half lengthwise to get 4 thin slices.
• Heat the remaining cup of canola oil in the same pan over medium-high heat until the oil starts to shimmer. Test one plantain slice in the oil--if it bubbles and sizzles, the oil is ready.
• Fry the plantains in batches until they are lightly browned on the edges and tender in the centers, 4-5 minutes, turning occasionally with a fork. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Season on both sides with salt.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
• Arrange a single layer of plantains in the bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish. Using a slotted spoon, top with about half of the meat mixture. Sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella over the meat sauce. Repeat with more plantains, the remaining meat sauce, and another cup of mozzarella. Finish with the remaining plantains.
• In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the remaining teaspoon of adobo seasoning.
• Pour the egg mixture over the plantains, then cover the baking dish with foil.
• Bake the pastelón until the eggs are set and the cheese is bubbly, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and turn the oven to broil. Uncover the dish and sprinkle the remaining cup of mozzarella over the top. Broil for 5 minutes, or until cheese on top is golden brown. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
• Enjoy!

PASTELóN

Steps:

• Prepare the plantains: Line a sheet pan with paper towels; set aside. Cut off the ends of each plantain. With the tip of a knife, score plantains lengthwise and peel off the skin. Using a serrated knife or chef's knife, cut each plantain in half lengthwise, and then halve again lengthwise so you end up with 24 long slices. (If some of the slices break or are unevenly shaped, that's OK! Carry on.)
• In a large cast-iron or heavy skillet, heat 1 cup oil over medium-high to between 350 and 375 degrees. Working with 4 to 6 slices at a time, depending on what fits, fry plantains until deep golden brown, turning halfway through, about 6 minutes total. Transfer fried plantains to the prepared sheet pan and cook remaining plantains; set aside. (Let oil cool, then strain and reserve for another use.)
• Prepare the sofrito: Put onion, bell pepper, ají dulce chiles (if using), garlic, cilantro and culantro (if using), in a food processor; blend until it becomes a rough, wet purée. (You should have about 1 cup sofrito).
• Prepare the picadillo: In a large, heavy skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium until it shimmers. Add the sofrito and cook, stirring often, until purée thickens and starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the beef and stir in the salt, pepper, cumin, paprika and oregano. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is evenly cooked and no longer pink, about 8 minutes. Turn off heat. Push meat mixture to one side, and carefully tilt skillet so that the fat from the meat collects at the bottom of the tilted pan; spoon off and discard as much of this excess fat as you can.
• Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the chopped tomatoes, wine and tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes fall apart and the liquid starts to reduce, about 10 minutes. Turn off heat and stir in olives and raisins, if using. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Picadillo can be made up to 2 days in advance. Rewarm it in a pan on the stove before proceeding with recipe.)
• Prepare the pastelón: Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish with butter. Whisk the eggs with a pinch of salt and set aside.
• Lay half the fried plantain slices along the bottom of the baking dish crosswise, piecing any broken pieces together to form an even layer. (If there are small gaps in the plantain layer, this is OK.) Top with half the picadillo (about 2 cups), smoothing it into an even layer, then sprinkle half the cheese on top in an even layer. Repeat with another layer of plantains then the remaining picadillo. Pour the whisked eggs evenly over the picadillo layer and spread it so it settles down into the pastelón. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.
• Bake the pastelón until the egg is cooked, the cheese is melted and the layers are set, 20 to 30 minutes. Cut into squares and serve hot.

PASTELóN (SWEET PLANTAIN 'LASAGNA') WITH RADISH SALSA RECIPE

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to lower middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Return dutch oven to medium-high heat until oil is shimmering. Add onion, bell pepper, half of jalapeño pepper, half of garlic, and half of cilantro and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to sweat but do not brown, about 4 minutes. Add cumin, coriander, oregano, and chipotles and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add kidney beans, tomato sauce, water, bay leaf, raisins, olives, and radish greens. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Simmer beans until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes. Season to taste.
• While pastelón bakes, make radish salsa. Combine chopped radishes, remaining chopped garlic, jalapeño, cilantro, and vinegar in a small both and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Cut pastelón into squares and serve with radish salsa.

PUERTO RICAN PLANTAIN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Coat a large baking pan with cooking spray.
• Arrange cut plantains into a single layer. Lightly salt and coat with cooking spray. The salt will bring out the sweet flavor of the plantains.
• Bake for 7 minutes on each side, or until plantains are golden brown and very tender.
• Once done, set aside to be used later to layer the lasagna.
• Lower the oven temperature to 350°F.
• Heat oil in a large saucepot over a medium high flame. Add onions; sauté until onions are tender. Add pepper and stir for another few minutes until peppers soften.
• Add the Soy Chorizo and 1-cup tomato sauce to the mixture and stir well. Reduce heat to a medium flame and simmer covered for another 5-7 minutes.
• To assemble Pastelon: In a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan, spread remaining ¼ cup tomato sauce. Then layer with plantains. Spread chorizo mixture on top of plantains. Layer with a handful of cheese. Repeat layers until the last layer is cheese. You will most likely get three layers.
• In a separate bowl, thoroughly beat eggs with milk. Pour evenly over the Pastelón. Let sit for a minute allowing the egg mixture to soak inches Top off with just a bit more cheese.
• Cover and bake for 20 minutes. Remove cover and let bake another 7 minutes.

PLANTAIN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Peel plantains then cut each one across into 4 slices.
• Place oil in a large frying pan up to 1 inch and heat up for about 6 minutes. Place the plantain slices flat into the oil and fry on each side for about 2-3 minutes. Note: I fried my plantains in 4 batches.
• In another pan, place 1 teaspoon of oil and heat up. Add the onion and garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the ground beef and cook while breaking up with a wooden spoon. Once the beef is all broken up, and brown, add the tomatoes, salt, bouillon powder (or stock cubes) and white pepper. Cook until the tomato slightly wilts - about 5 minutes. Add the green onions and chopped bell pepper and mix. Turn off the heat.
• Rub some oil all over an 8 by 11 baking pan. Cover the bottom of the pan with half of the plantains making sure to cover the entire bottom of the pan. Cover the plantains with half of the meat sauce making sure to spread the meat sauce evenly and press down. Then cover the meat sauce with half of the cheese. Press the cheese down well. Repeat the process - plantains, meat then cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) until the cheese is melty and bubbly - about 15 minutes. Serve warm.

SWEET PLANTAIN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Heat just enough cooking oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat so that it will cover the plantains. Once water sizzles when sprinkled over the oil, add the plantains so that they are not touching. You will need to work in batches. Cook until they turn brighter yellow and are lightly browned. Remove to a paper towel lined plate. Set aside.
• Drain all but 1 tablespoon of the oil out of the pan and return to the stovetop. Add the diced onion and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add the ground beef, adobo, cumin, and oregano. Cook until the beef is no longer pink. Stir in the sauce, cilantro and golden raisins. Taste and adjust seasoning, as needed.
• Place a layer of plantains in the bottom of a large baking dish. The one that I use is 12.5 x 8.5-inches. There may be some space between them and that's okay but you can also mash them some, if you'd like.
• Top the plantains with half of the beef mixture.
• Top the beef with 1 1/2 cups of the cheese.
• Add another layer of plantains, the remaining beef and another 1 1/2 cups of cheese. Top with a final layer of plantains and 1 cup of cheese.
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until heated throughout.
• Top with minced fresh basil and serve hot.