Discovering New Flavors in Puerto Rico - Part II

In continuing with my recent travels to Puerto Rico, I wanted to mention two foods that I ate excessively - plantains and cassava.  Cassava is a tubular, dark brown, root vegetable that can be prepared different ways. The taste is similar to that of a potato and very rich in calcium and vitamin C. If you soft boil it, it has a delicate flavor and can be used in purees, dumplings, soups, stews and gravies.  One night Danny and I went to Platos, a restaurant and bar in the Isla Verde area of San Juan.  I ordered 
Filete de Salmón al horno - a oven roasted salmon fillet with boiled and mashed cassava. 

The day we took a trip to Old San Juan, we stopped in at a restaurant called Raices where we had an appetizer called Typical Festival - which included cod fish fritters, root vegetable stuffed with meat, fried plantains, crab meat turnovers and mashed cassava. The cassava was fried in one of the appetizers and used mashed in another. 

Raices Restaurant - Old San Juan, Puerto Rico

Eating Plantains is either a love or hate relationship - I have found anyway - a soft, sweet banana the structure of the plantain though is much different than a regular banana. They are not only firmer but lower in sugar content. They are a good source of dietary fiber and potassium. With bananas they are almost eaten raw whereas plantains are cooked or processed - and used ripe, unripe or overripe.  Mofongo is a popular dish in Puerto Rico served in many restaurants.  A fried green plantain dish usually stuffed with meat, seafood, chicken or pork.  A sauce (garlic or tomato based) is poured over the top or cooked with the meat. When Danny and I went to Raices in Old San Juan we decided to have the Chicken Stuffed Mofongo with Garlic Sauce.  

Mofongo is usually served in a bowl or wood cup - the fried and mashed plaintains are placed first in the inside of the bowl and molded around the cup then the meat and sauce is placed on top of the plantains. I found it easier to eat when I took it out of the bowl and placed on a plate.

I think Plantains are better in Puerto Rico than I have tried in any other restaurant in L.A. The flavor profile is different - so I sort of liked them - but I found I got tired of them fairly quickly.  I am not fond of them fried as "chips" but I rather liked them better when they were mashed as in a Mofongo.   


Check out my other blog and Part I of my travels to Puerto Rico - The Dutiful Baker. 

A street in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico