Mofongo Dominicano

Mofongo dominicano has a documented roasted-plantain form distinct from the fried version now also popular in the Dominican Republic. Clara Gonzalez’s selected old-style version oven-roasts unpeeled green plantains, then mashes them with garlic, salt, supplied pork cracklings and olive oil, serving them with her beef broth.

For the broth, olive oil heats in a large saucepan and beef bones are browned. Supplied mashed garlic and halved red onion are added and stirred, followed by water, cilantro, selected optional culantro and dried ground oregano. The broth boils gently, with water replenished to maintain its level.

Salt seasons the broth before it passes through a sieve and the solids are removed. The selected optional black-pepper finish follows the author’s note. Meanwhile, the unpeeled plantains are wrapped in aluminium foil and baked in the oven. After a short cooling stage, they are peeled.

A pilón, or mortar and pestle, crushes garlic with salt. The roasted plantains are added and mashed, then supplied minced pork cracklings are crushed through the mixture. Olive oil is mixed into this roasted-plantain branch.

The dense mixture is shaped into balls, placed in small bowls and transferred to serving plates. The prepared broth is poured over the balls to moisten them. The fried-plantain, air-fryer and other broth alternatives are separate choices.