Pastelón – Sweet Plantain Lasagna

While most of the world enjoys the classic lasagna, I feast on Pastelón – the Puerto Rican Sweet Plantain Lasagna.

Thinly sliced plantains strips deliciously nestled between layers of sofrito seasoned beef and cheese, this recipe is a BANGER!

Pastelón vs Lasagna

Arguably, the most important part of making Pastelón is choosing ripe sweet plantains. It’s important that the plantains be sufficiently ripe otherwise the Pastelón will turn out dry and almost bland.

In comparison to traditional lasagna, Pastelón replaces the pasta sheets with the extreme sweetness of the plantains. Contrasting the savory meat is what makes this recipe so addicting.

Ripe plantains often look spoiled because of the black spots on their yellow skin. Don’t worry though, they taste amazing and they’re differently not spoiled.

Prepare the Sweet Plantains

For this recipe, you’ll need about 4 medium/large sized plantains. Peel the sweet plantains and slice them horizontally in thin strips – think pasta sheets.

They should be easier to peel, compared to their unripe brother – the green plantain, since by nature they are softer in texture. Next, shallow fry them until golden caramel or for a a healthy alternative you can bake them in an air-fryer.

Prepare the Picadillo (Ground Beef)

Now that we’ve covered our sweet element, let’s talk about the savory picadillo in the Pastelón. You want to use a lean ground beef, preferably an 80/20 or 90/10 mix.

Even with a lean mix, it’s important to remember to drain the meat. Since the sweet plantains are fried, you want to limit any excess grease.

Seasonings

The key to making an authentic and delicious Pastelón is to use the tried and true seasonings and ingredients. Starting with the picadillo, we must flavor our meat with:

• Homemade sofrito
• Tomato sauce
• Ground cumin
• Homemade sazon
• Dried oregano
• Adobo seasoning
• Black pepper
• Spanish olives (optional)

Assembly

Creating the Pastelón is super simple and straight-forward. Just like any other lasagna, start with a layer of carbs (in this case, sweet plantain NOT pasta).

Make sure to cover the base evenly, leaving no gaps. Then, top the plantain strips with a few scoops of the picadillo. Smooth it out and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese.

To hold the Pastelón together, whisk 2 eggs with some whole milk and pour half over the bottom half of the Pastelón. Repeat the layers of plantain, meat and cheese and then pour the remaining egg mixture on top.

The egg mixture serves the role of a glue. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the Pastelón and bake that baby!

Serve with white rice, salad or some delicious Arroz con Gandules and ENJOY!

Pastelón – Puerto Rican Sweet Plantain Lasagna

Pastelón is the Puerto Rican version of lasagna, but instead of pasta, we use thinly sliced sweet plantains, layered with savory meat cooked in sofrito and tomato sauce. Then topped with bubbly cheese. It's the perfect sweet and savory dish!

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 50 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Course Casserole, Dinner, Recipes

Cuisine Puerto Rican Cuisine

Servings 8 servings

Calories 300 kcal

Ingredients

  

• 4 ripe sweet plantains
• 1 pound of ground beef (oil drained)
• 2 cups of mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 cup of homemade sofrito
• 1 packet of sazon with achiote
• 1 tablespoon of adobo all purpose seasoning
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of black pepper
• 5 stuffed-spanish olives (optional)
• 1 cup of tomato sauce
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon of whole milk

Instructions

 

Cook the Sweet Plantains

• Prepare your sweet plantains by scoring the skins, peeling them off and cutting the plantain in half.
• Then cut thin slices from each halve. These slices will be your “lasagna sheets”.
• Based on preference, shallow fry the plantains until golden caramel color (7 minutes each side) or you may bake them.
• Rest the plantains on a paper-towel lined plate to absorb the excess oil.

Prepare the Picadillo

• Add sofrito to a medium-high heat pan with some olive oil.
• Cook sofrito until aromatic and then add ground beef.
• Add seasoning, stuffed olives (optional) and tomato sauce.
• Reduce heat and simmer until all extra liquid evaporates.
• Drain any excess oil.

Assembly the Pastelón

• When all components are complete, begin to layer them into a lightly greased pan.
• Begin with the plantain layer. Lay plantain slices side-by-side until bottom of dish is mostly covered.
• Add and smooth picadillo over plantain layer.
• Sprinkle half of cheese amount over ground beef and beat eggs with milk. Pour half the egg mixture over the pastelon.
• Repeat the layers and pour the remaining egg mixture on top.
• Bake for 25 minutes and enjoy!

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