Plantain Piononos | Photo © CiberCuba Cocina

Banana piononos

Name: Banana piononos
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Cuban

Kitchen, Additional dish

Kitchen, additional dish

Preparation Time:

Note:

Bananas are an ideal food for recovering energy after significant physical exertion. They are rich in potassium, magnesium, vitamin C, and folic acid. The color of the skin indicates the level of ripeness, and if you notice spots or dark marks, don’t discard them, as that doesn’t affect the quality of the fruit. There are many types of bananas, but they can be easily distinguished by their size, shape, and color. Each variety has its own flavor and different ways to eat or cook it. Generally, Cubans prepare green bananas in various ways, such as fufú, chicharritas, tostones, or by allowing them to ripen for frying. This recipe uses very ripe bananas. Piononos are very easy to make. In the book "Cocina al Minuto," Nitza Villapol prepares them with minced meat, rolling them up and frying them. However, this time we will make them with bacon and cheese and bake them instead, as the ingredients we use provide enough fat.

Ingredients:

2 ripe plantains
100 grams of sliced smoked bacon
100 grams of thinly sliced Emmental cheese
1 teaspoon of chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions:

Wash and peel the ripe plantains. Cut them lengthwise into thin slices, approximately five slices per plantain.

Bananas, bacon, and cheese / CiberCuba Cuisine

Cut the cheese into thin strips of similar size and thickness as the banana slices. Separate the strips of bacon to make the preparation quicker.

Preheat the oven to 220ºC (428ºF). Lightly grease a baking tray or muffin pans with vegetable oil.

Slices of the 3 ingredients arranged to make the roll / CiberCuba Kitchen

Place a strip of banana over a slice of bacon and then add a piece of cheese on top. In other words, it should be bacon, banana, and cheese. Roll them up as tightly as possible and place each roll in the mold. If you don't have a mold, secure the banana roll with a toothpick going all the way through to prevent it from unrolling while baking.

3 Banana Piononos threaded on a skewer for baking / CiberCuba Kitchen

Bake it at 220ºC (428ºF) for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove them from the oven, decorate them, and serve immediately.

Freshly baked Piononos / CiberCuba Kitchen

Another option for this recipe is to make them with ground meat. Cut the plantains into slices, fry them until they are golden brown, and let them cool. Spread 1 tablespoon of the ground meat on each plantain slice. Then roll it up and secure it with 1 or 2 toothpicks to keep it from unraveling. Dip the rolls in beaten egg with salt and fry them until they are golden brown.

Mature green plantain piononos with bacon and cheese / CiberCuba Cuisine

Serve hot. To garnish them, I recommend adding a touch of green with parsley or chives, but keep it light so that the sweetness of the banana piononos stands out.

Enjoy your meal!

Rations: