Crisp plantain chips with sea salt

Name: Crisp plantain chips with sea salt
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Nigerian
Ingredients: 2 green (unripe) plantains; About 500ml vegetable oil, for frying; Half a teaspoon fine sea salt; A pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)

Thin, glassy crisps of green plantain fried until they snap, with a pinch of salt and, if you like, a little cayenne. Sold by the bag on Nigerian streets, and easy to make at home.

AI-generated photograph: A loose tumble of thin golden plantain chips in a small brass bowl lined with brown paper, flakes of sea salt and a dusting of red cayenne on top

30 minutes
Prep 10 minutes
Cook 20 minutes
Serves 4

Our own recipe. The photograph is AI-generated.

Vegan
Vegetarian
Gluten free
Dairy free

Ingredients

2 green (unripe) plantains
About 500ml vegetable oil, for frying
Half a teaspoon fine sea salt
A pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)

Let's cook

Cut the ends off the plantains. Green plantain skin is tough: cut a shallow slit down the length of each, then lever the skin off with your thumb or a spoon handle.
Slice the plantains as thinly as you can, about 2mm, into rounds or long slanting ovals. A mandoline or the slicing side of a box grater makes this quick; keep your fingers well away from the blade.
Pour the oil into a deep, heavy pan so it is no more than a third full. Heat it on a medium heat to 170C, or until a slice dropped in sizzles at once.
Fry the slices in small batches for 3 to 4 minutes, separating them with a slotted spoon, until they are pale golden and the bubbling has slowed down.
Lift them out onto a tray lined with kitchen paper and sprinkle with salt, and the cayenne if using, straight away. They crisp up further as they cool.
Leave to cool completely before serving or storing.

Tips

Use truly green plantains. Ripe ones are too sweet and soft to crisp.
Never leave hot oil alone, and let it cool fully before pouring it away.
Kept in an airtight jar, the chips stay crisp for a week.

Swaps

Sweet and salty: use plantains that are just turning yellow and skip the cayenne.
Baked: toss the slices with 1 tablespoon of oil and bake in one layer at 200C (180C fan) for 15 to 20 minutes, turning once and watching closely.

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2 green plantains
½ tsp cayenne pepper

Left off, as most kitchens have them: vegetable oil, salt.

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