A Date with Plantain

If you don't know how easy it is to cook delicious dishes with plantain you may be in for a pleasant surprise. It's easy to find, quick to cook, nutritious and delicious. These 51 ways with plantain have something for everyone - smoothies, snacks, starters, salads, mains, desserts and tapas-style entertaining tips.

Why focus on plantain I hear you ask. I had so many positive comments about the plantain recipes in A Plate in the Sun that I planned a plantain chapter for my next book. Once I started talking through ideas with friends I quickly realised that this chapter was my next book. There's nothing complicated about cooking with plantain and I'm sure you will find it enjoyable. Is it the perfect ingredient?

One of the many exciting things about plantain is its versatility and ability to combine with other tastes and textures. Its distinct and subtle flavours across all stages of ripeness, from green to yellow to black, can bring variation and another layer to favourite recipes. I sometimes break with tradition and explore classic recipes to create fusions from around the world. From burgers to brownies, to chutneys to dim sums. From a simple grilled snack like "Kofi-Brokeman", to a Sunday special of plantain stuffed lamb, there's a lot to discover and enjoy - little wonder plantain is so popular across more than half the planet including Africa, the Caribbean, Asia and the Americas.

Foreword by Jean-Christophe Novelli:
Patti has once again out-done herself in her new book and provided the readers with such a fabulous explanation of how to incorporate readily available products in Europe into her wonderful style of flavour filled cooking.

Having known Patti for several years and valued her huge contribution to my Novelli Academy in Hertfordshire not only for corporate and individual events but also as a resident Chef in the Academy offering her own unique expression and passion for food, I know that you, your family and friends will enjoy using this inspiring recipe book.

This book not only explains successfully the health benefits of plantain but also its underestimated versatility that Patti has managed to explain in such an easy to follow method.

Bon appetit.

Foreword by Felice Tocchini:
I have always considered cooking as a form of art, after all you start with loads of ingredients of various textures, colours, smell and taste and you mix them together to create your work of art.... the plate is the frame, the cook the artist; so if you run with my idea the dishes that he /she create will have to reflect the mood, origins and passion of the person cooking.

Patti has managed to capture all of this in her book, and if you have never had the pleasure of meeting Patti in person you have only got to read through the book and cook some of the recipes to understand the kind of person she is.

I first met Patti on my first visit to the Novelli Academy some 3 years ago, and I have had the pleasure to work with her on a regular basis since. We often discuss the similarity between Italian and Ghanaian cuisine, the dishes her mother and grandmother prepared and how easy it is nowadays to find the same ingredients used back home in Ghana.

True to her Ghanaian origins, Patti cooks from the heart but she is not afraid to break the traditions of family dishes and make them hers by adding new ingredients here and there. In A Date with Plantain Patti takes a basic staple ingredient and creates an array of interesting, fun dishes packed full of exploding flavours.

Even traditional dishes have received the "Plantain Patti" makeover, go on give plantain a go!