Yummy, right??  My dear friend Nadia is a Creole girl from Haiti.  And boy, does this woman know how to cook!  Using all local ingredients (local to the Caribbean that is, Saint Martin does not grow a lot of vegetables!)  More on that topic later.  Let’s move into how to make this delicious, fresh, divinely-textured treat.

It starts, of course, with fresh ingredients. Here’s what we used. If you’re missing something, find something else! Cooking is all about working with what you’ve got and making the most of it.
 

For the Sauce Creole

 

1 red bell pepper, diced
1 orange bell pepper, diced
a handful of scallions/green onions, chopped
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic diced/sliced
a handful of fresh basil, coarsely chopped
a handful of fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
1 big bottle of Olive Oil
1 bottle of Vinegar (we used lemon infused vinegar, because that’s what we had)
several hearty shakes of lemon-herb mix. There is a great local brand, but again, use what you’ve got.

 

For the Fried, Smashed Plantains

 

3 large, ripe plantains. Not too ripe. We want these to have some body to them and not to be too sticky.
Table salt
1 chicken bullion cube
1 bowl of water

 

Nadia’s Sauce Creole

 

Chop it all up and put it in a big pot or a bowl
 

 
Shake in your seasonings
Pour in a hearty bit of vinegar, to taste.
 

 
Drench with oil. Don’t be shy here. You’ll not waste anything and you’ll end up with an infused oil that can be used on so many things. I keep this as a base for salads, I sautee some up before cooking eggs, making omelets and frittatas, braising or roasting meats, served as a salsa with grilled bread, scooped up with chips, etc. Are you understanding how versatile and amazing this stuff is?
 

 

I highly recommend you invest in some hermetically sealed glass jars, mason jars or something of the sort. You’ll only be using a small amount of this sauce for today’s recipe and storing the rest for later. I end up using about this much over a week.
 

Nadia’s Smashed Fried Plantains

 
Prepare a stainless steel frying pan with a vegetable based oil. Put over a high flame or on high heat to heat the oil rapidly.
 

 
You will be working in batches, so as not to overcrowd your pan. Unless, of course, you’re using a large pan…
 
As the oil is heating, prepare the plantains as follows:
 

 
Slice the ends off the plantain, then score the peel with a knife.
Peel the plantain
 

 

Chop the plantains into large chunks, and place CAREFULLY in the hot oil
 

 
Let them sit for a bit, gently nudging them around so that the chunks don’t get stuck to the bottom. I asked Nadia how long she cooks them. Her reply “Until they’re done!”
 
I love this method of cooking. It gets you into a mode of using your senses not just rules and regulations.
 
She showed me how to tell if they are done. If you want a softer plantain, just let it caramelize a little bit. Remember, these are not the same as regular fried plantains, where you want them mushy and over ripe and well cooked.
 
Here’s what she saw as just about right:
 

 
When they’ve reached the desired consistency, remove from the oil and let sit for a moment while you prepare the next part.
 
Remove pan from heat, but keep the oil in the pan.
 
Fill a bowl with water. Pour in a generous portion of table salt, crumble one chicken bullion cube (this isn’t totally necessary, but it adds another punch of flavor) and mix until dissolved.
 
Here’s the fun part.
 
Take each chunk and press down firmly upon it with something flat. We used a plate. You can use a pan, a wine bottle, whatever you have available.
 

 
The softened plantains smoosh easily into a little patty. Pile up a bundle of those, grab your bowl of salted water and head back over to the stove.
 
Reheat the oil on a high heat. Make sure the pan’s lid is nearby.
 
Prepare a plate with a paper towel to receive the finished product.
 
One by one, slide the patties gently into the salted water, then gently into the hot oil. Be CAREFUL here, as the old saying goes “water and oil don’t mix…” The oil will bubble ferociously, so immediately place the lid over the pan.
 

Brown them just a bit. If you want them hard like chips, cook them longer. If you want them tender like chewy pancakes, cook them less.
 
Remove when you think they’re done, carefully taking each from the pan to the paper covered plate.
 

Serve four or 5 onto a clean plate, spoon a bit of the Sauce Creole over the top and… Voila! A delicious, fresh treat, full of flavor and happy Caribbean color.

Enjoy!