Food is life - Cuban Black Bean & Plantain Plates + Mango Salsa

Time for another unusual (to me) fruit. Wait, plantains are fruits right? Hey Google! Yep, he said they’re fruits. Wait, is google a guy or a gal? Google?……….. Omg, ROFL after that search. You should definitely look it up yourself though. Anyway, I’m really excited about this recipe today.

I’m still on this quest to discover all the tastes and uses for every kind of produce I can get my hands on. I wasn’t sure about this one though. Plantains have always seemed kind of odd to me and I always imagined that they’d taste like bitter bananas. That’s why I was so surprised when I made these baked ones because they’re so fricken good!

I’d say they’re something like a sweet potato with a fruity twang. I found myself just snacking on them by themselves before I’d even finished making this meal. That’s how much I liked them so don’t be surprised if they show up here again really soon.

Alright, let’s get to the point here. These “plates”, for lack of a better word, are so simple and fast to prep. I actually ate mine in a bowl, but you’re welcome to serve as you like. Now I realize that it’s more traditional in Cuban cuisine to serve this with rice. It’s just, I was already baking the plantains and I had some perfectly available sweet potatoes around. The mango salsa was a last minutes decision, but you know how I always like to keep adding extras in my recipes.

It’s something you should be able to buy from the store if you don’t want to make it. Otherwise you can simply use normal salsa or just skip it. I don’t recommend skipping it though because it’s the perfect condiment to finish off this dish. I’ve been having a major mango moment in case you haven’t noticed.

Cuban Black Bean & Plantain Plates + Mango Salsa
Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can black beans (about 1 1/2 cups), drained & rinsed
1 teaspoon taco seasoning
2 large sweet potatoes, sliced into fries
3-4 large plantains, peeled and sliced
1-2 medium avocados, sliced
sea salt & black pepper to taste
Mango Salsa:

1 large mango, peeled pitted and diced
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 small bunch green onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon sriracha
1/4 cup fresh cilantro finely chopped
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 C) and line 2 baking trays with foil. Place the sweet potatoes and plantains on two separate baking trays and season to taste with salt and pepper. Roast in oven for 25-35 minutes until tender-crisp and browned. (Flip halfway through cooking.)
To make the salsa. In a medium bowl, combine the mango, lime juice, green onion, bell pepper, garlic, sriracha, and cilantro. Toss to combine.
Toss the black beans with taco seasoning heat them in a small skillet or saucepan until warm. Serve with the sweet potatoes, plantains, mango salsa, and avocado.

Comment me upvote me if you like this post and share your opinion with me on steemit. Follow me @vuthanhtai
Thank you.