Ingredients
Plantain
- 4green plantains
- 60 mloil or 3 tbsp lard, for frying
- 1 tspsalt
Filling, choose one
- 200 gqueso fresco, crumbled
- 200 gchicharrón, finely chopped
To serve
- fried eggs
- ají criollo
- black coffee
Directions
- Peel the plantains by scoring the skin lengthways in three or four places with a knife and levering it off in strips. Green plantain skin does not peel like a banana and has to be cut.
- Cut the flesh into chunks about 3 cm thick.
- Fry the chunks in the oil over a medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning, until golden outside and tender all the way through when pierced. You are cooking them soft enough to mash, not crisping them, so keep the heat moderate.
- Lift them out and mash them at once, while still very hot, in a wooden mortar or with a heavy pestle, until you have a coarse, slightly sticky dough. Plantain sets hard as it cools and you have about two minutes before it stops binding.
- Work in the salt and two tablespoons of the frying fat, which is what keeps the mash from drying out and cracking.
- Take a handful, flatten it in your palm, put a spoonful of cheese or chicharrón in the middle, close the mash around it and roll it into a ball the size of an orange.
- Return the balls to the pan and fry, turning them, for 3 to 4 minutes until a thin crust forms all over.
- Serve straight away with a fried egg, ají on the side and strong coffee. This is a breakfast dish and it does not survive being made in advance.
Technique
- Green means green: hard, matte, and difficult to peel. A yellowing plantain is already sweet and will collapse into mush instead of forming a dough.
- Mash hot. This is the single point at which the recipe is usually lost.
- A little of the frying fat worked into the mash is the difference between a bolón and a dry ball of plantain.
Substitutions
- Mozzarella if queso fresco is unavailable, accepting that it melts and runs more.
- Chopped crisp bacon in place of chicharrón.
- Boiled rather than fried plantain for a lighter version, though it loses the toasted flavour.
Variations
- Manabí style, with the cheese mashed right through the plantain rather than hidden inside.
- With peanut butter worked into the mash, which is a Manabí habit.
- Tigrillo, the same mash scrambled loose with egg and cheese and eaten with a spoon.
History
Green plantain mashed with cheese or chicharron and rolled into a ball, the standard breakfast of Guayaquil and Manabi.
Frequently asked questions
What is Bolón de verde?
Bolón de verde is a breakfast from Ecuador: fried green-plantain ball packed with cheese or chicharrón. Green plantain mashed with cheese or chicharron and rolled into a ball, the standard breakfast of Guayaquil and Manabi.
How long does Bolón de verde take to make?
Bolón de verde takes 20 min of preparation and 20 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 bolones. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Bolón de verde?
Yes, within limits. Mozzarella if queso fresco is unavailable, accepting that it melts and runs more. Chopped crisp bacon in place of chicharrón. Boiled rather than fried plantain for a lighter version, though it loses the toasted flavour.
What is the most important thing to get right in Bolón de verde?
Green means green: hard, matte, and difficult to peel. A yellowing plantain is already sweet and will collapse into mush instead of forming a dough.
