Mofongo Recipe
A halal-friendly mofongo recipe made with fried green plantains mashed with garlic, olive oil, and warm broth, no pork required.
Equipment
- Deep skillet or pot for frying
- pilón (wooden mortar and pestle) or sturdy bowl with a potato masher
- Tongs
- small bowl for shaping
Ingredients
- 3 green plantains
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 6 garlic cloves peeled
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup warm chicken or vegetable broth plus extra for serving
- ¼ cup crispy fried chicken skin cracklings crushed (optional, from halal chicken)
- Fresh parsley or cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
Prepare the Plantains
- Cut both ends off each plantain, score the skin lengthwise, and pry the peel away in sections, since green plantain skin is much tougher than a banana peel.
- Cut the peeled plantains into pieces about 1 inch thick.
- Heat about 1.5 inches of vegetable oil in a deep skillet or pot to 325°F (165°C). Fry the plantain pieces in batches for 5-6 minutes, turning occasionally, until they are golden on the outside and tender enough to pierce easily with a fork.
Fry the Plantains
- Remove with tongs and drain briefly on a paper towel-lined plate. Keep them warm, since the mash works much better while the plantains are still hot.
- In a pilón or a sturdy bowl, crush the garlic cloves with the salt until they form a rough paste. Stir in the olive oil until the mixture is well combined.
- Add the crushed chicken cracklings to the garlic paste if you're using them, and mix briefly.
Mash the Mofongo
- Add a few pieces of hot fried plantain to the garlic paste and mash firmly with the pestle or a potato masher until mostly broken down, drizzling in a splash of warm broth to help the mash come together. Continue adding plantain pieces in batches, mashing between each addition, until everything is combined into a dense, slightly chunky mixture.
Shape and Serve
- Pack the warm mash into a small, lightly oiled bowl or cup, pressing firmly, then flip it onto a plate to form a rounded mound. Garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro and serve immediately with extra warm broth on the side.
Notes
- Green, unripe plantains are essential for this recipe, since ripe plantains are too sweet and won't hold together as a savory mash.
- Mashing the plantains while they're still hot is genuinely important, because they become much harder to work with as they cool and turn stiff and dry.
- Crushing the garlic with salt first, instead of just mincing it, releases far more flavor and helps the garlic distribute evenly through the mash.
- Add the warm broth a little at a time, since too much makes the mofongo mushy while too little leaves it dry and crumbly.
- This recipe leaves out pork entirely, and if you want the salty crunch that chicharrón usually adds, crispy cracklings made from halal chicken skin are a good substitute.
- Mofongo is best eaten right after shaping, since it firms up and dries out as it sits.