I got to meet Jason, the ever lovable mastermind behind Pili Hunters Pili Nuts, at PaleoFX last year. I was already a big fan and loved eating pili nuts, and after meeting Jason in person, it was a done deal! Pili Nut Lover for Life!! Nicest guy ever!!! If you’ve never tasted them…you, my friends, are missing out! One of my older daughters tasted them for the first time last week and she said “um, it’s like I’m eating crunchy butter” ~~ they are such a buttery nut, and yet somehow seem to just melt in your mouth.
Pili (peel-y) nuts are a tree nut wild harvested from the rainforests of the Philippines. They are a sprouted nut and are beloved for not only their unique taste, but also for their high fat, low carb content…more so than any other nut!
This is the first in a series of recipes we’ll be posting using this tasty little nut as well as the nut butter that is also available. Get some ordered and hang on to your taste buds…because they’re going to be dancing!
In this first recipe, I thought it’d be fun to have the pili nut featured as a garnish on a pretty plain vessel so it could stand out. Enter the tostones…fried green plantains, which are simply perfect for the creamy tomatillo dipping sauce and pili nut gremolata. Don’t worry, that’s just a fancy word for chopped nuts and herbs…you can make it!
pili nut tostones
not your average tostones
Credit: backporchpaleo.com
Ingredients
- pili nut gremelata
- ½ c Pili Hunters pili nuts
- ¼-½ c cilantro (small handful)
- pinch of Redmond Real Salt
- pinch of chipotle chili powder (optional)
- zest of 1 lime pili nut butter dipping sauce
- ½ c our creamy tomatillo dressing
- 3 tbls Pili Hunters pili nut butter
- juice of 1 lime
- extra lime for garnish tostones
- 2-3 green plantains
- Coconut oil for frying (or healthy fat of choice)
- Redmond Real Salt
Directions
- Prepare gremelata by placing pili nuts & cilantro on a cutting board together and start finely dicing them. Add the sprinkle of salt, cilantro and lime zest and continue dicing until well incorporated. Taste and add additional salt if necessary, place in serving bowl and set aside.
- Combine the creamy tomatillo dressing, pili nut butter and lime juice in a small food processor and whirl up until well combined. Taste and add additional salt or lime juice if desired, place in serving bowl and set aside.
- Begin heating up the coconut oil, you will want about 1½” of hot oil. We try ours up in a 10″ cast iron pan. Cast iron provides a great, even heat.
- Prepare green plantains by peeling* and then cutting into 1″ sections.
- Once oil is up to around 325° – carefully add about 5-6 slices of the plantains and fry until golden brown. Remove carefully to a plate lined with paper towels. Repeat with remaining slices.
- Next step is to flatten out those fried slices, which you can do while they’re still warm. Place one slice in between two pieces of parchment paper and flatten with a plate by pressing straight down on top of the slice or you can even use a tortilla press. I like to flatten out 3-4 and then fry them up until they’re a lovely golden brown. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels and sprinkle immediately with salt. It’s important to salt them while they’re warm and still sizzling, this way the salt can adhere to them and give them the brightness they need. Repeat with remaining slices until all of them are fried.
- Serve warm with the dipping sauce, gremelata and extra lime wedges for squeezing on top. We like to dip them in the sauce, sprinkle a generous amount of the gremelata on top and then squeeze a bit of lime on top. Flavor explosion in your mouth! *here’s a great video from @thepaleomom – Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, PhD I watched to learn about peeling those green plantains!
