Patacones Panameños

In Panama, Patacónes are a staple side dish to almost every meal. Every time I eat Patacones, I get a nostalgic feeling inside. I can remember all the times my family and I were at the beach, and we would eat Patacones while staring at the beautiful beach. It is a feeling of happiness for me that can’t be topped.

The Patacón, comes from the banana family. It is made of a green plantain which is very commonly found in tropical areas of Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. The name “Patacón” was given to this dish because it resembled various colonial era Spanish and Portuguese silver coins.

There is a unique and certain way to prepare Patacónes. First, you need to find a plantain which is not conjoined with another plantain. This type of plantains are very common and often sold as one unit. They are not suitable for making Patacónes due to the lack of roundness. Once you find the correct plantain, you have to cut it crosswise into rounds, fry them in oil fro a couple of minutes, take them out of the oil and press them down flat, then finally frying them again to get them to crispy perfection.