Plantain Soup with Corn and Chili

Many of you may have the same question about plantains as I did. "What do you do with them"? I see a lot of recipes for frying them, but thats all. I have read that they are more like a potato, then a banana. So! I gave this a try and liked it. A fusion between Native American and Caribbean. I used Hatch Chilies, and for those of you that like it hot, may do the same. For very mild, use Pablanos. Medium, use Anaheim s. And of course, use fresh corn when you can. Frozen will work.

2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped fine
1 garlic clove, crushed
10 ounces (yellow) plantain, peeled,and sliced about 3/4"
1 tomato, peeled, seeded, chopped
1 cup corn
1 teaspoon tarragon, dried
 3 3/4 cup chicken stock.
1 to 2 green chilies, roasted, seeded and chopped
pinch nutmeg, fresh grated
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste


In a deep 10" Dutch oven, over 10 to 12 charcoals, melt butter. add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is soft. Add the plantains, tomato and corn and cook for 5 minutes. Add chicken stock and tarragon, chilies and salt and pepper, and simmer for 10 minutes more or until plantains are tender. Stir in nutmeg and serve hot.

To roast chillies, Place them under the broiler, until black on one side. Turn and blacken the other side. Place in a paper bag for 3 to 5 minutes to steam. The peel will slip right off. Pull off stem and chop.