As a Cubana, I grew up eating fried sweet plantains (platanos maduros fritos) with pretty much every meal. I’ve also had plenty of tostones and plantain chips in my life, but I never thought that plantains had more to give than that. I mean, aren’t they just funny shaped bananas? (They’re not). As I learned to cook, however, I discovered that there is a whole world of recipes out there that utilize the humble plantain as a vehicle for many different types of dishes.

Plantains are typically sweet, so you might assume that all of the recipes on this list are going to be sweet too, but that’s just not true. There is plenty that you can do to plantain dishes that actually makes them savory or, in some cases, a mix of sweet and savory. Take, for example, the plantain gnocchi or plantain lasagna. If you’re curious and want to know how to make plantain tortillas for

Taco Tuesday or a plantain-infused brownie (yes, really!), here are 20 plantain recipes you didn’t know you needed. But trust me, you SO need these.