Shake up taco night with this fun Whole30 take on a tostada! Not only are these Whole30 Tostone Tostadas gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, egg-free and nut-free, they are so fun and endlessly versatile. They’re an easy weeknight dinner and a family favorite, especially because you can eat them with your hands.
What is a Tostada?
A tostada is a popular Mexican dish consisting of a fried tortilla with a hearty serving of toppings. (The word tostada means “toasted” in Spanish.) Tostadas traditionally use a fried corn tortilla as their base. During your the Whole30 elimination, tortillas made with alternative flour are not compatible, per The Pancake Rule. However, our plantain tostadas have only one ingredient, which make them the perfect base for your meat, veggies, and a dressing or sauce.
We made the plantains into large tostones as a tostada shell. Tostones are twice-cooked green plantains and are common to Latin American and Caribbean cultures. They are crispy and flat, making them a great Whole30 tostada base.
What do you put on a tostada? The options are as endless as taco toppings. Make it your own with your favorites! We used guacamole, ground beef seasoned with our Homemade Taco Seasoning, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, with a drizzle of ranch and a pinch of fresh chopped cilantro.
About Plantains
Plantains are a starchy, tropical fruit related to the bananas. In fact, they look like large straight bananas. They are starchy when green and sweet when yellow with brown spots, similar to a banana. For this recipe, you will want your plantains green. If they aren’t green, they won’t get crispy and hard enough to build on like a tostada shell. Plantains are found in the produce section. They are often located close to the bananas.
Tips for making plantain tostadas:
- Be sure not to cut your plantain pieces too big and to cook them on medium-low heat. Raw green plantains are dense and take a long time to cook through, so you don’t want to cook on too high of heat. Low and slow is the way to go!
- Plantains are a nice golden yellow color when cooked. Flip or rotate them in the pan until all sides are golden. Avoid letting them get brown, as that will make them too crunchy to flatten well.
- If your plantains break apart or have a hard time smashing flat, they weren’t cooked long enough.
Ingredients
- 3 large green plantains peeled and cut into 1 ½” tall coin-shaped pieces
- high-heat cooking oil, like avocado or coconut oil
- salt
- 1 lb ground meat of choice
- 1 packet or 2.5 tbsp taco seasoning
- 1 head lettuce shredded
- 2 cups guacamole
- 2 cups pico de gallo
Optional toppings
- compatible ranch, chopped cilantro, jalapenos
Instructions
- MAKE the tostone tostada shells by heating a shallow amount of oil (about ¼”) in a medium saucepan. Cook the plantain slices until golden all over, rotating as necessary to get all sides golden. Try to avoid them getting brown. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to do this in batches.
- SMASH the cooked plantains while still hot with a kitchen mallet or the flat bottom of a mug until flat and thin. Cook again in the shallow oil over medium-low heat, about 3 minutes on each side until crispy. You will need to do this 2-3 at a time, depending on the size of your pan. Sprinkle tostone with salt immediately after cooking.
- COOK the ground meat, sprinkled with taco seasoning, in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until browned through.
- BUILD your tostada by layering on top of the tostone with guacamole, taco meat, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo and other toppings of choice, such as a drizzle of ranch, chopped cilantro, and jalapeños.
- SERVE and enjoy!
