Adding Insult to Injury Michael Chiarello Should Know Better

I was watching the Food Network the other day and Michael Chiarello really got my goat. He was allegedly making a big Cuban feast of ropa vieja, black beans and rice and fried plantains. The inflammatory comment came as the celebrity chef was preparing what he calls “twice fried plantains.” 

In actuality he was preparing “sweet plantains” or “maduros,”  and adding insult to injury, he had just blurted out that some people use the green plantains, but he preferred the sweet ones because the green plantains had very little flavor as opposed to the sweet.

Michael Chiarello needs to brush up on his plantains. These are green plantains and are used to make "tostones" also called "twice fried plantains."

Now, I have watched Michael Chiarello make French fried potatoes on his show many times and never has he referred to potatoes as lacking in flavor. But here he was talking about something that he obviously knows nothing about. If he knew that millions of Latin Americans eat green plantains daily just as millions of Americans eat French fries each day maybe he would reassess his comment.

"Maduros" -- made from green plantains that have ripened -- are not fried twice nor are they smashed. "Twice fried plantains" or "tostones" are made from green plantains.

In fact many Cubans as well as Puerto Ricans and even the Chinese eat what Latinos call “toston” with every meal.  For many Latin Americans tostones are their version of the French fry. Furthermore the natural progression from tostones to toston cups offers the uninitiated even more possibilities.

"Maduros" are fried once only.

Yum! "Maduros" or fried sweet plantains.

In case you’ve never been to a Cuban or Puerto Rican restaurant that serves tostones rellenos, it is simply twice fried green plantains. In between the frying the plantain is shaped into a cup and can be filled with many delectable fillings of seafood, pulled pork, ceviche and for the bold, dessert fillings can add a delightful twist on an old idea.

Tostobueno® Sweet Cherry Pie Toston Relleno.

I can recall first serving my apple pie tostones at an event to an audience of disbelievers. But one bite of the carmelized apples topped off with whip cream or vanilla ice cream, I was soon preaching to the converted. So my suggestion to all those Food Network chefs who are constantly project this aura of the know-it-all, get out and explore what real people are doing with the food and shy away from making comments that hint at a disrespect for other people food.

I mean, Mr Chiarello is there really anything with less flavor than Italian pasta without the sauces or seasoning.

THE SIMPLE CHEF®, CHEF DONCLARK

FOOTNOTE: The show The Simple Chef® refers to aired June 1st  2009 and was a repeat. Mr. Chiarello’s plantain confusion was brought up by viewers who commented on the Food Network’s website. The recipe in question is called  Double-Fried Plantain Rounds.

“And why didn’t you think of that . . . “

For a pictorial wrap-up of Tostobueno® @ Cuba Nostalgia click: Tostobueno® was the hit of the party!

“And why didn’t you think of that . . . “ said the woman to her husband as she looked and examined and “oohed and aahed” at the Tostobueno® on the table in front of her.  And her husband? — well, he kind of agreed. Actually, many South Floridians last week, during the mega-event Cuba Nostalgia wished they would have had The Simple Chef’s® “aha” moment. “Aha?” Yup. As in “aha, why don’t I just go ahead a build a better tostonera.” And he did.

It’s a great story. And, oh boy, did I tell that story at Cuba Nostalgia.

” . . . And yes. It all began in 2003 when we all flew down to Florida for a weekend of birthday celebrating.”

Cue the pictures. I point and continue.

“This is The Simple Chef®. Here is Ainsley, the birthday girl. We are three partners; a small business. That Saturday, stuffed plantains were served. The Chef LOVED them!, but watching the molding and the smashing, he figured there had to be a better way. “

Party over. Fast forward to Harlem, NY and the Chef starts prototyping and prototyping tostoneras until one day . . .

Pictures come out again. And I point.

“I’m sure you know Daisy Martinez of Daisy Cooks! She introduced the Tostobueno® at New York’s Williams-Sonoma during one of her demos. That was about three years ago, and here we are now, making our South Florida Tostobueno® debut.”

Latinos love a great story. It’s what keeps those telenovelas in business. And what  they love even more? Surprise endings: The Simple Chef® isn’t even Latino.

“Only in America. Only in America,” they kept saying, smiling and buying.

Wait! Let’s break for a red light. Before I continue, let’s get caught up on this Cuba Nostalgia for you non-South Floridians. Held on the Youth Fair grounds–where I learned all about elephant ears and corn dogs, Cuba Nostalgia, in its tenth year, is the premier Cuban event outside of Cuba. A journey back in time for those who remember the island’s glamorous times, and for those who never experienced them, Cuba Nostalgia has something for everyone.

Tostobueno The UItimate Tostonera® a BIG hit at Miami’s Cuba Nostalgia.

Day 1 @ Cuba Nostalgia: One Tostobueno® left on the table. A demo, and my neighbor already had dibs on the unit. Why only one? All my product had sold out before 5pm that day. As for the neighbor who was buying the last one? I should have just given it to him as a prize for having predicted when I would sell out. To the hour! From there on he nicknamed me “sold-out lady.”

All I can say is thank God for broadband. I just started taking order after order after order.

I’ve never seen anything like the ultimate plantain smasher.

And for this well organized and very entertaining event we have Leslie Pantin Jr. and Emilio Calleja–President and VP respectively–to thank for, followed by Leslie’s son Leslie and Lucia their executive assistant.

AND WHAT ELSE WENT AROUND THE TOSTO TABLE

1)  The Simple Chef’s® Sweet Cherry Pie Toston recipe got a few thinking about The Ultimate Cuban brunch, with one idea, so “rico” it deserves special praise. How’s this: guava and “queso de crema” aka cream cheese stuffed on a toston cup! Some cafe con leche and . . . well does one need anything else? I don’t think so.

Have you ever seen anything like this before?

2) Everyone impressed with how easy the bamboo is to clean. Just a wet cloth and a little soap.

3) Not a comment but a movement. Petition started to get The Food Network higher ups to get the Tostobueno® on ANY show. They would stop. Look and then the Cuban light bulb would go on: “They would love this on The Food Network. You should try to get it on,” they said.  “I have tried. Up and down the TFN corporate ladder.” I said.

4) One older Cuban wanted to set the record straight. Apparently “tostones rellenos” is a misnomer, it’s really “tostones cubierto” or covered tostones. “And how you would like your tostones covered today?” Doesn’t sound yummy. I let it go. Dad taught me never to argue with my elders.

5) More than one person call the rellenos “campanitos” or bells. I ask: “bells?” Explain. Please. Apparently toston relleno originated at La Casona (“The Big House”) a now defunct Miami restaurant. At La Casona, campanitas rellenos or stuffed little bells was the name du jour. Others placed the birth of the relleno squarely on the isla of Puerto Rico. Funny, in NY the argument is always about who  first “discovered’ the plantain: Dominicans or Cubans. I usually step in at the bottom of the ninth, and knock it out of the ballpark with: “neither. Try Africa.”

6) And finally: Target is loved in South Florida. LOVED! How do I know? ‘Cause everyone told me so. I made sure to show everyone our Target.com page. And that’s all anyone needed. One person: “Target is a great corporation to be involved with.” Another:”I’m so happy for you, Target is my store.” Others: “Target loves Hispanics!”

There were four days of buying and chatting and South Florida getting to know what New Yorkers have known for awhile now: the Tostobueno® is THE essential cookware for anyone who smashes plantains. Yup, and that’s why we called it The Ultimate Tostonera® — cause, there’s nothing better out there!

For a pictorial wrap-up of Tostobuen® @ Cuba Nostalgia click: Tostobueno® was the hit of the party!

Oh, btw, our Tostobuenos were bought in bunches. As Christmas presents. Oops, did I spoil the surprise?

Annette from Cuba Nostalgia

New York Consumers ask for Tostobueno®, the BEST dual purpose plantain smasher & LeBron Restaurant Equipment Supplies Delivers

Yes you can. New Yorkers can now drive down to LeBron Restaurant Equipment Supplies in The Bronx and buy a Tostobueno, the Ultimate Tostonera®.

Customer demand prompted the LeBron owners to call us for details. The details were quickly worked out. And now any New Yorker with the desire to make perfectly rounded “tostones rellenos” for stuffing, or tostones up to six at a time — get’s the cook to the dinner table quicker — just drive or walk to Lebron, 3835 9th Ave. @ 205 st.

LeBron Restaurant Equipment Supplies now carries Tostobueno, The Ultimate Tostonera®

A Marriage Made in Twitter

I met Carrie on Twitter. I’m Cuban. She’s Cuban. She’s a former reporter. I worked at WNBC as a news editor. (FYI – There is no such thing as a former reporter. Once a reporter . . . always a reporter.)

And most importantly: We both are Latino entrepreneurs with, what I describe as, “our line of culturally significant products.”

I’m sure every Latino knows the feeling of having to explain to their non-Latin friends that Taco Bell is not indicative of Mexican food but of fast food. Or that Desi Arnaz was one hell of a businessman (Google him!) and not just the Ricky that was always bailing out Lucy.

My favorite: the Tony Award winning In The Heights. To make a LONG story short, so many years after West Side Story, and Latino are still dancing in the “hood.”

And the list goes on . . .

So in this Twitter world two Latinos with the same goal meet: To spread the word that we are more than our stereotype.

Carrie’s is all about spreading Latino fun and culture via her well-made and witty T-shirts: Los Pollitos Dicen (The Little Chicks Say) and ChíChí&Flaco.

FROM HER WEBSITE: Los Pollitos Dicen is the premier line of Spanish children’s gift tees and ChíChí&Flaco offers the same wonderful quality and cultural celebration for babies, big kids and adults… niños of all ages! Expect fun, bold and super-fabuloso color and designs for everyone.

I spoke to Carrie last week, and I lost myself in her attention to every detail of her manufacturing and creative process for her Ts. Go to her site and you can see “the love.”

Our Tostobueno, the Ultimate Tostonera® is all about spreading Latino deliciousness with our top-of-the-line kitchen gadget. Not only is our tostonera eco-friendly, but it’s beautiful. The Executive Chef for Chesapeake Bay Gourmet has called the Tostobueno® a “work of art.” Target.com carries us. And we are just about to launch in South Florida.

And our twain met via the plantain.

Tostoneras shape the plantain that is then twice-fried to become a toston or the Latin American version of the American French Fry. You might need to read that sentence again, but it makes delicious sense. Or flip our tostonera over and create plantain cups waiting to be topped with anything . . . only limited by your imagination.

Latinos eat LOTS of plantains; I would venture to guess even more than Americans enjoy French fries. And I say this based on my non-scientific survey that tostones are made at home, from scratch, two, three maybe four times a week for lunch or dinner. French fries are a fast food phenomenon.

So as I’m checking Carrie’s e-store out, I see that she has a T that celebrates Latinos love of the fruit. Yes plantains are considered fruit! So I twittered her: Her T-shirt and our Tosto should meet.

Well we did, and we have fallen in Twitter Love. We have spoken since, and we are both on the same page. Spreading the Latino culture in a positive way.

Annette E Alvarez

Chef DonClark
Ainsley Williams
Annette E Alvarz
Owners/Partners
Tostobueno® LLC

Certified a Minority Business NY & NJ Minority Supplier Development Council Minority Business Enterprise

Twitter With Us

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Our Smashing Tostobueno® Smashes into Sunny South Florida & You Get a To$to Break

And in celebration of our South Florida Tosto roll-out, our Trio has been specially priced: 24.95 from 29.95 at our events. And that’s not just in South Florida. Stop by any Tostobueno® event in New York . . . buy one, two or perhaps a Trio of Trios and pay ONLY 24.95 EACH. The Tosto-Chicks™ will be serving up some Tosto-fun at the Latino Expo, March 21st-22nd at Connecticut Expo Center in Hartford, CT. Come and sample a Toston Amuse Bouche, and leave with our specially priced Trio in honor of our South Florida roll-out! And FYI: look out for us during Viernes Culturales or Cultural Fridays always on the last Fridays of every month in the heart of Miami’s Little Havana.

From the site: Cultural Fridays is targeted to all those who enjoy arts and culture, from community members to visitors from all over the world. Our audience is multicultural and represents the ethnic diversity of our South Florida community.

Tostobueno, The Ultimate Tostonera® Now Sold on Target.com

Tostobueno, The Ultimate Tostonera®, the new, modern, easy-to-use kitchen appliance for making both tostones (plantain chips; see below top) a staple in Latino households worldwide and tostones rellenos (stuffed plantain cups; see below bottom) is now available on Target.com

The Dual Purpose Plantain Smasher “DOBLE” can mold two elegant plantain cups at once; turn it over and the same amount of plantain chips can be prepared. The “TRIO” prepares three at once. The “TRIO” is pictured below.

Manufacturer Tostobueno® LLC is the first company to manufacture high-end, Hispanic kitchenware in eco-friendly bamboo.

National Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (NMSDC) certifies TOSTOBUENO® LLC, OWNED BY THE SIMPLE CHEF™, PARTNERS

On Sept. 16th, 2008 Tostobueno LLC was certifed as a bona fide minority owned and operated business company by the National Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (NMSDC)

From The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. website: The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (The Council), established in 1973 is a vital link between major corporations and minority business enterprises (MBEs). The Council encourages its membership of Fortune 500 companies, government agencies and educational institutions, to include MBEs as their regular suppliers of products, goods and services.

Enjoy the Tostobueno® Craftsmanship

Congratulations Chef DonClark, About.com gives the Tostobueno® 4.5 out of 5 stars

For all the spectacular details from Hector Rodriguez, Latin Caribbean Food Guide, CLICK HERE