23 Jul Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice
This Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice has a texture that’s on point and a very subtle tropical flavor which offsets spicy foods perfectly. Gluten free, grain free. Serve it under or alongside everything you love or alone with fresh cilantro and lime juice.
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Can you believe it’s almost time for school to go back in session? This makes me so sad. I feel like I completely missed out on summer this year somehow, and I’m not ready for nightly homework and super hectic mornings again.
I try my best to have dinner planned out before I head off to work in the mornings. If I don’t, I come home with a fried brain and no motivation to prepare anything from scratch. Thankfully, I can usually raid the freezer and find something tasty and nutritious.
I double a lot of the Paleo and Whole30 recipes I make so I can freeze half for later, specifically for these nights. Some of may favorite freezable dinners are Paleo and Whole30 Cabbage Beef Soup, Easy 8-Ingredient Paleo and Whole30 Chili, Paleo and Whole30 Pulled BBQ Chicken and Paleo and Whole30 Buffalo Chicken Meatballs.
They’re tasty alone, alongside a small salad or (my favorite) served over this yummy Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice. I never got on board with cauliflower rice. Mine always turned out mushy, and it just doesn’t have the right texture in my opinion. This Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice, though. Oh my. It has the right texture and an almost-but-not-quite-sweet, very subtle tropical flavor which offsets all of my spicy foods perfectly.
I first heard about Plantain Rice on Half Baked Harvest. Although her stuff isn’t usually Paleo- and Whole30-friendly, Tieghan’s creative recipes and gorgeously messy food pics are some of my faves. I read about her Jamaican Jerk Fish Tacos with Plantain Fried Rice and Pineapple Salsa in my inbox and knew it would be amazing and so much better than cauliflower rice.
The trick to this Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice is using plantains with a hint of green left in them. You do not want to use ripe plantains here. They will turn to mush in the blender, and you will end up with Paleo and Whole30 Turkey Taco Bowls with Mashed Plantains instead. (Mashed plantains are amazing as well-but not what we’re going for here.) When you make Plantain Rice, use plantains that are turning yellow but still have streaks of green on them.
Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice
Ingredients
- 4 large greenish plantains, peeled and chopped roughly
- 2 tbsp. coconut oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Add the plantains to a high-powered food processor, and pulse until finely chopped. The plantains should now resemble rice.
- Melt the coconut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. This large nonstick skillet is oven safe and has a lid and, IMO, is a great investment for cooking nutritiously.
- Add the plantain rice, and fry until golden and crisp, about 3-5 minutes. Make sure each individual plantain rice "kernel" turns gold in color, or it will taste starchy. Use a wooden spatula or mix 'n' chop (or comparable knockoff) to keep the tiny pieces separated. I have more than my fair share of kitchen gadgets (just ask my hubby), but my mix 'n' chop is used daily, as are my beech wood cooking utensils.
- Stir in the cilantro, if desired.
This Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice is shown served with Creamy Cilantro Lime Chicken. I took Sally’s Skillet Chicken with Creamy Cilantro Lime Sauce recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction and made a few tweaks to make it Paleo- and Whole30-friendly.
Oh yeah… Look at all that steam.
Serve this Paleo and Whole30 Plantain Rice under everything you love, and don’t forget to Pin the recipe for later!
If you’re new to the Whole30, make sure to check out my Ten Must-Have Whole30 Convenience Products and 10 Best Kitchen Gadgets for Your Whole30 posts!
I’ve gotten a lot of questions about what foods are Whole30-compliant and why some aren’t. I’m so happy to help, but I would definitely recommend reading the Whole30 books if you haven’t already. Knowledge really is power, especially when you’re just trying to make it through the work day and that 3pm chocolate bar craving hits. You’ll know why you’re feeling the way you are and what you can do to squash it.
If you’re like me, a busy working mom with too much to do to sit down and stop everything to read a book, you should definitely check out Amazon’s Audible program. That’s how I found time to read It Starts With Food, by having it read to me. I love, love Audible. I just recently purchased Food Freedom Forever with one of my monthly credits, and it’s another winner so far. I listen to it in the car to and from work and also while I’m cooking and doing chores.
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