Mofongo

Step 1: Crush 6 cloves garlic with ¾ tsp salt in the pilón (wooden mortar) or a sturdy bowl until you have a wet paste. Scrape it into a small pan with 5 tbsp olive oil.

Step 2: Warm the garlic oil over a low heat for 3–4 minutes, until it sizzles gently and smells sweet and nutty but the garlic is still pale. Take it off the heat; it must not brown.

Step 3: Cut the ends off 3 green plantains, slit the skin lengthways along the ridges and peel it off under running water. Cut the flesh into 2.5 cm chunks.

Step 4: Heat 3 ¼ cups vegetable oil in a deep pan to 325°F (medium heat; a chunk of plantain should bubble steadily but not fiercely). Fry the plantain in two batches for 8–10 minutes, turning, until golden yellow outside and soft right through when pierced with a knife. A common mistake is frying too hot: the outside goes brown and hard while the middle stays chalky, and the mofongo will never come together.

Step 5: Drain the chunks on kitchen paper for a few seconds only. Work fast now, while they are still very hot.

Step 6: Put a third of the hot plantain into the pilón with a third of the garlic oil and a splash of ½ cup hot vegetable stock. Pound and turn for about a minute, until it forms a rough, sticky mass with a few small lumps.

Step 7: Press the mash into a small bowl or cup to shape it, then turn it out onto a plate as a dome. Repeat with the rest, making 3–4 domes. If it feels dry and crumbly, pound in a little more stock.

Step 8: Make a dent in the top of each dome. Serve at once with 2 cups hot vegetable caldo or stock in a cup for pouring over, sprinkled with 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley or cilantro. For meat eaters, the classic version pounds a handful of crumbled chicharrón (pork crackling) in with each batch.