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These tostone carnitas nachos are a delicious grain-free alternative to nachos! They’re paleo, gluten-free, and AIP-friendly.

Plantain Carnitas Nachos

Plantain Carnitas Nachos

My husband is a big nacho guy! We always have chips in our house for him to make nachos. Of course, traditional chips are the obvious choice for nachos, but I love to uplevel them even more with plantain tostones! Yes, tostone nachos.

Tostones are totally grain-free, and all of the ingredients for this recipe are paleo, and AIP-friendly. This nacho dish is the perfect hearty comfort food for when you want a restaurant-quality dish at home!

The Ingredients You Need for the Tostone Carnitas Nachos

  • Green plantains
  • Carnitas
  • Red onion, black olives, and cilantro
  • Avocado

How to Make Tostone Carnitas Nachos

Make the tostones:

  • Using a large, deep skillet heat the avocado oil over medium heat. Add the green plantain slices in small batches, being careful to not overcrowd the pan. Lightly salt. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until softened.
  • Use tongs to carefully remove the plantain slices from the heat. Smash the plantains down with the bottom of a glass cup, flattening them thin. Add back to the oil, (adding more if needed) and crisp for 2-3 minutes on each side or until crispy. Repeat with all of the plantains and set aside.

Build the nachos:

  • To make the avocado topping, add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth, adding more avocado oil if needed. Set aside. Top the tostones with the remainder of the toppings and drizzle with avocado topping. Serve fresh.

Tostone Nachos

What are plantains? And what are tostones?

Plantains are like a cousin of the banana, but more starchy. You can cook them and serve them more like a starch rather than eat them as a fruit.

Tostones are essentially fried green plantains! They’re thin, crispy, and basically the best plantain “chip” you’ll ever have.

Tostones

Where do you buy plantains? Can you use yellow ones instead?

I have the most luck buying plantains at Latin grocery stores, like Fiesta. I also find them at Sprouts, but of course, this varies by region.

As for the color, green plantains are more starchy and firm, and yellow are sweeter and softer. For this particular recipe, you definitely want to use green plantains!

Can you use plantain chips instead of tostones?

Sure! This recipe is a lot more hearty with the homemade tostones for sure, but if you don’t have access to fresh plantains, plantain chips would work as well.

Can you use something other than carnitas?

If you don’t want to use carnitas, you can for sure use something like shredded chicken or ground beef!

What should you top these nachos with?

I used red onion, black olives, cilantro, and a creamy avocado topping. However, you can totally mix it up and add more toppings of your choice such as…

  • Japaleno (if tolerated)
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Tomato (if tolerated)
  • etc…

Tostone Nachos

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Tostone Carnitas Nachos

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 5 reviews
  • Author: Michelle
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Cook Time: 30
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
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Description

These tostone carnitas nachos are a delicious grain-free alternative to nachos! They’re paleo, and AIP-friendly.

Ingredients

Scale

For the tostones

  • 3 tbsp avocado oil
  • 2 large green plantains, sliced
  • 1 tsp garlic powder

For the avocado topping

  • 2 small avocados (sub 1 large)
  • 1/3 cup avocado oil
  • Juice of one lime
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper (omit for AIP)

To top the nachos

  • 10–12 oz pork carnitas , prepared
  • 1/4 cup red onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup black olives, sliced
  • 3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
  • Juice of 1/2 small lime

Instructions

For the tostones

  1. Using a large, deep skillet heat the avocado oil over medium heat. Add the green plantain slices in small batches, being careful to not overcrowd the pan. Lightly salt. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until softened.
  2. Use tongs to carefully remove the plantain slices from the heat. Smash the plantains down with the bottom of a glass cup, flattening them thin. Add back to the oil, (adding more if needed) and crisp for 2-3 minutes on each side or until crispy. Repeat with all of the plantains and set aside on a large serving plate (or two-three small plates) when done.

For the nachos

  1. To make the avocado topping, add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth, adding more avocado oil if needed. Set aside.
  2. Top the tostones with the remainder of the toppings and drizzle with avocado topping. Serve fresh.

Notes

All nutritional information are estimations and will vary. Estimations do not include optional ingredients.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 serving
  • Calories: 531
  • Fat: 37.6g
  • Carbohydrates: 35.2g
  • Fiber: 5g
  • Protein: 18.2g

Tostone Nachos

This post originally appeared on Unbound Wellness in June 2017 and was updated in 2020.