This recipe for Arañitas de plátano will be one of your new favorites. They're crispy, tasty, easy to make, and perfect for almost every occasion. Take some minutes to make these lovely onion and plantain fritters, and surprise your guests with this wonderful plantain picadera.
By - Reviewed: . Original: Nov 8, 2016
Why we ❤️ it
I tried, I experimented, and here we are. It did work. Crispy, with a lovely onion taste arañitas de plátanos, or shredded plantains fritters, were pretty amazing, easy to make, and versatile.
If you love plantain (and who doesn't?!), then you'll love this unusual way to serve them, a fantastic vegan gluten-free, dairy-free side dish.
What are arañitas?
Arañitas in Spanish Caribbean food are fritters made by grating víveres with the coarse side of the grater box; they are then mixed with some other ingredients and deep fried. The result is fritters with threads sticking in all directions, giving them a spidery look.
There's also a recipe for arañitas de yuca on the blog.
Plantain and arañitas fritters.
How to serve
Serve with a dipping sauce (like our mayo ketchup sauce, this avocado dipping sauce), or this easy tartar sauce as a fantastic appetizer with a Caribbean vibe. Or - as many of our fritters - enjoy as a lovely side dish.
This is perfect with arroz blanco (white rice) and a bowl of habichuelas negras guisadas (stewed black beans).
Top tips
- Food processor: If your food processor has a grating attachment, you can save time by using it.
- Onion powder: For an easier preparation and milder onion flavor, you can substitute one tablespoon of onion powder for grated onions.
- Guineos: To make green banana fritters (guineos verdes), substitute the plantain for two bananas, but bear in mind these fritters won't turn out as crispy.
About this recipe
As I explain further down, while all the ingredients in this recipe are local, and with flavors we'd all recognize and love, the inspiration for this dish is a German potato fritter, from which I borrowed several of the methods, and which resulted in arañitas that are a little different from the Puerto Rican ones, with many flavors that that one doesn't have.
Try them; you will see why I liked them so much. The result is like a crispier fried plantain.
Video
Recipe
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Plantain Fritters [Video+Recipe] Arañitas de Plátano
Ingredients
- 2 plantain , (green, unripe)
- 1 red onion, [7.08 gr]
- 1 egg , (medium)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives, Plus extra to garnish
- 2 cup oil for frying
Instructions
1. Grating
Peel the plantains. Grate plantains and onions with the coarse side of the grater.
2. Combining
- In a mixing bowl, combine the grated plantain and onion. Add egg, salt, and chives and stir to combine.
3. Frying
- Heat the oil over medium-high heat 350 °F [177 °C] in a small frying pan or saucepan. Scoop two tablespoons of the plantain batter into the oil, fry 3 or 4 at a time so the oil doesn't get too cool. Once golden brown on one side, flip and fry until golden brown all over. Remove from the oil and rest on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Sprinkle with chives, and serve warm.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
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More plantain recipes
There's a wealth of plantain recipes in our blog, about half of which are green plantain recipes. The most popular are tostones, mangú, and mofongo, but you can find many more.
If you're looking for ripe plantain recipes, don't miss plátanos maduros fritos, sweet plantain slices we serve for lunch, or plátanos al caldero which we shallow fry in a large skillet and spice with cinnamon and cloves.
Puertorican arañitas de plátano
This all started with Kartoffelpuffer [1] (also known as Reibekuchen and Kartoffelpfannkuchen), a classic German dish that I tried atop the iconic TV Tower in Berlin. It reminded me of Latkes. And then I wondered... Could I make them with plantains instead of potatoes? I tried, experimented, and it did work.
And writing the introduction to the recipe, I discovered that a similar dish already exists in Puerto Rico [2]. So, there I was in the kitchen, reinventing the wheel.
The difference between these and the Puerto Rican arañitas is that this one contains several extra ingredients (like the dishes that inspired it). The ones from Puerto Rico are a bit simpler in their preparation.
References
- Kartoffelpuffer: German Potato Pancakes
- Arañitas de Puerto Rico
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