The plantain is a staple in Latin American cuisine. Sometimes referred to as the macho banana, it’s a member of the banana family, but quite different from the ubiquitous sweet yellow Cavendish most common in North American grocery stores. (Fun fact: There are more than 1,000 varieties of bananas.) Besides tending to be bigger, the plantain has a thicker skin and starchier, firmer, and less sweet flesh. But it all depends on how and when you cook it. They can be almost dessert-like when fully ripe (maduro) and caramelized in slices in a frying pan. For example, plátanos maduros are a common breakfast side in Guatemala. But when they are still quite green (plátanos verdes), they function more like a starchy potato, and throughout the Caribbean and Latin America, they are prepared similarly: fried. The resulting pieces, resembling medallions, often come alongside a main dish in the same way French …