Health Benefits of Plantains: The FuegoMundo Experience

Health Benefits of…PLANTAINS

Plaintains, rice, and beans.

One medium plantain is low in sodium, low in calories, zero fat, high in potassium and has 2 grams of protein. It also meets 40% of the RDA for vitamin A, 50% RDA for vitamin C  and 15% for magnesium. Plantains are a good source of fiber (4 g).

Plantains resemble bananas but they are longer in length, thicker skinned, and starchier in flavor.  In South America plantains are used more like a vegetable than a fruit, and are eaten with rice at almost every meal. They are not suitable for eating raw unless very ripe, where the color has turned almost completely black.

This versatile fruit has three unique stages of ripeness:

GREEN PLANTAINS…Taste more like a potato with a starchy texture. At this stage, the interior is yellowish or slightly pink. The fruit is firm and is often used as side dishes like Tostones, Patacones, and Chips.  At FuegoMundo the famous “Fuego Chip” are made from green plantains.

YELLOW PLANTAINS…are the middle stage of the fruit. These plantains can have some brownish-black spots. Their role now is both vegetable and fruit and is used in dishes that request for a slightly sweet taste and firm texture, like the Sweet Plantains.

BLACK PLANTAINS…are very ripe and are typically found in sweeter recipes. These plantains are all black or spotty black and are soft. Black plantains can be eaten without being cooked.

Plantains are found in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia, and are often called cooking bananas.