Sweet Plantain Salad

Step 1

Trim off both ends of the plantains, and then make a slit along the length of it. Don’t peel or remove the skin—the slit will make it easier to remove once cooked. Cut into 3 or 4 pieces.

Step 2

Place the plantains in a medium saucepan with enough water to cover with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for about 10 to 15 minutes or until plantains are soft enough to allow a fork or tip of a sharp knife pass through with ease. Once cooked, drain the plantains and set aside to cool.

Step 3

Make the dressing by whisking the oil, lime juice, salt and pepper together or shake together in a jar. Taste and adjust.

Step 4

Once the plantains are cool, remove the skins and seeds. Slice each piece in half lengthways and slice each half again so you have four slices in total. Finally, cut across to make the dice.

Step 5

Combine with the cucumber, onions, cilantro and peppers, then pour the dressing on top. Stir well and let rest for half an hour at room temperature so the flavors marry together.

Serve and enjoy!

**Tips: Ripe plantains will cook faster than green ones and will be much sweeter too. Use them if you can find them—they 'make' the dish.

If you’d like to make the salad in advance, you can do this up to 24 hours ahead—keep covered. Once ready to serve, stir well.

**Recipe Variations: You can roast the plantains—dice, grease, and salt lightly and put on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 180 C for 15 to 20 minutes, tossing now and again. Let them cool before adding to the other ingredients.

Tomatoes and zucchini pair well with the roasted plantain version of this salad.

You can use an herb sauce instead of the vinaigrette—parsley works well.

Cut all the ingredients smaller, skip the lettuce, and serve this as a salsa.