One of the things that many people miss when they adopt a Paleo diet is crunch, especially the slightly salty crunch of crackers. There are a number of grain-free cracker recipes around (see www.elenaspantry.com for a great variety of cracker recipes), but of the ones I’ve tried, none really replicate that cracker crunch completely. Well, until now! The inspiration for these crackers came from this plantain tortilla chip recipe from www.kateshealthycupboard.com. The idea to use green plantains as a chip base was inspired! To create something more like a cracker than a chip required extensive experimentation with fat content and cooking temperature (I also played with adding various Paleo flours but abandoned that idea when they just didn’t taste as good as straight plantains).
These crackers are perfectly crunchy, sturdy, taste amazing, and even keep for a few days without going soft (as many other cracker recipes tend to do). They are super easy to make and require only three ingredients! My whole family is addicted to these crackers. The secret is to use very green plantains. When you find green plantains in the store (most grocery stores carry them close to the bananas; even my local Walmart has them!), you can take them home and pop them into the fridge, where they will ripen much more slowly (they might even yellow slightly but won’t really be as ripe as that same color would indicate if they were ripening at room temperature). Once they start to yellow substantially, plantains change in taste and get sweeter. For sweet plantain recipes, you really have to wait until they are completely black (which means they are ripe). If your plantains are in the fridge, just let them warm to room temperature for an hour or two before you start making these crackers.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 60-90 minutes
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients:
- 2 large green plantains (equivalent to about 2 cups pureed)
- ½ cup extra virgin coconut oil, melted (I also tried palm shortening, which worked but didn’t taste quite as good as the evco)
- ½ tsp salt, to taste
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (I use a 13”x18” “half sheet”-sized jelly roll pan but a small difference in size won’t make a big difference in your crackers). Make sure your parchment goes right up to each edge of the pan. Preheat oven to 300F.
- Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor (although a real food processor makes a HUGE difference and is really the way to go) and blend until a completely smooth puree is formed, about 2-4 minutes (it doesn’t matter if you don’t have exactly 2 cups of plantain puree as long as you are fairly close, say within ¼ cup). This blends easier if your plantains are at room temperature and your coconut oil is melted.
- Pour batter (it should look very much like hummus) onto the prepared baking sheet. Use a rubber spatula to smooth it out and cover the entire sheet uniformly (this might take a couple of minutes, but it doesn’t need to be perfect). The batter should be about 1/8” thick.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and score the cracker batter with a pastry wheel, pizza cutter, or pastry scraper (which is what I used). You can make whatever size cracker you like. The crackers will pull away from each other slightly while cooking and shrink up a bit, but not much. I like fairly small crackers, about 1½” squares, but these will work even for quite big crackers.
- Place back in the oven and bake for 50-80 minutes, until golden brown. The cooking time varies quite a a bit with both exactly how much volume of plantain you have in the recipe and how green the plantains are. Greener ones take longer to cook (and typically taste better too) as do batches made with slightly larger plantains. Keep an eye on them and don’t pull them out the oven until they are a nice medium shade of brown (you can always taste one to see if it’s crisp enough, until you get the hang of this recipe). Remove from oven and let cool slightly on the pan. Move to a cooling rack (you will probably be moving fairly big pieces of several crackers stuck together). Once completely cool, you can break apart any crackers that are stuck together.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy!
Watch this video from my YouTube Channel to learn more about green plantains:
Do I Have To Do the Full AIP?
Hi Sarah, these look great! The link you provided to the jelly roll pan actually points to a food processor. Do you have the pan link? I’ve been wanting to buy one for a while but there are way too many choices. Thank you.
Yes, I’ll fix that now.
Thanks! I made these today and they are SO good. I added a little garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika before blending. A few came out a little soft (probably areas I unintentionally spread a little thicker), so I put those back in for another 15 minutes and they were perfect!
Yay, finally a snack I can make my egg, nut, AND coconut allergic husband (as well as super picky)! Thank you, Sarah! Thanks!
Can’t wait to try these. Just slightly confused about the green-ness level. Are you supposed to use them as green as possible or put in the fridge until slightly yellow? Or are you saying they are still okay to use in the recipe even if they have gotten slightly yellow in the fridge? Sadly my plantains are currently in the super ripe phase so I have to find something else to do with them.
You are supposed to use them as green as possible. AND it’s okay if they got a little yellow in the fridge. Sorry for the confusion. 🙂
I’m not sure if I chose the wrong kind of plantains or what but they would not blend in a blender, nor would they purée in a food processor. I put them in my Ninja food processor and they just got chopped. They were incredibly hard (green and skin was stuck to the insides even though I attempted to peel as instructed in the tortilla chip recipe). I kept them in the food processor for about 15 minutes, stopping every minute or so to manually stir and there were still large chunks. I found it easier to make butter from nuts than to purée plantains. This is the first time I have worked with plantains… Did I miss part of the instructions or do you have any idea why it went to wrong? By the way, my EVCO was melted… Not sure if that makes a difference. Thanks for your help. -Katelyn
The only thing I can think of is that your plantain was much greener than any I’ve been able to buy. I would suggest throwing the chunks in the microwave to partially cook and then see if it softens enough to puree.
Fantastic!! Have you tried them with different savory spices or herbs?
Not yet, but I have plans… 🙂
Wow! I love the simplicity of the recipe. One of the things that led me to Paleo in the first place was the complicated baking recipes of gluten free items. Paleo recipes were easier – and then further research convinced me to adopt the whole lifestyle.
Plantain shopping tonight!
I just made these tonight and they are fantastic!! Thank you! I haven’t had crunch like that in a long, long time. Paleo mom, you rock!
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
This sound great but I don’t think we can get plantains in australia. Have you tried any substitutes for plantains? I was thinking of trying banannas but unfortunately no one really likes the flavor in my house.
If you can find really green bananas, I think they would be worth a try (I don’t think they’d taste much like banana)
Really green bananas do NOT taste like banana at all and have a very starchy feel in your mouth. I had the unfortunate experience of biting into one recently.
Green plantains taste just as bad until they’re cooked.
I cannot thank you enough for coming up with so many amazing recipes!!! I have a leaky guy I am working on correcting and all your AI recipes are incredibly helpful and give me a sense of indulgence when i need it. I also have a two year old that loves his crackers, muffins, breads etc…he has easily moved into Paleo and accepts the new recipes happily which makes me a happy mom. It makes me happy to pack him a lunch that will be full of great food but make him feel like he is like the other kids until he is old enough to understand. I also absolutely love your podcasts! Thank You for always being so real with us 🙂
Thank you!!!!
Autoimmuner here chiming in with a concern. I loved the taste of crunchy green plantains too, but they destroyed my poor intestines every time I tried them. Interested to know if any others have an issue with them.
Plantains are high starch, which might be a problem if you have SIBO. I have to be careful with starches. Even 8 months in to the autoimmune protocol, I can only handle small amounts (but at the beginning, I couldn’t handle any, so it is progress!).
I made these last night, gave a few to my kids & husband, put them in a container, and went to bed. I was going to take a photo in the morning and post it on Facebook but they were all gone! Apparently my husband sneaked back in the kitchen last night and ate them all! Oops! Probably shouldn’t be consumed all at once but all my edges burned so I didn’t have that many anyway. Thanks! I need to go get some more green plantains!
Not really sure what happened to mine, they had great flavor but were chewy, not cracker like. I put them on a lined pan, like yours…maybe I should put them higher up in my oven? I even tried baking them longer, thinking that’d take the chewiness away and dry them but nope. Help?
It definitely sounds like they needed to cook longer. I bake mine in the middle of my oven.
My husband found these a bit astringent. Also, they were a bit oily. Why wouldn’t riper plantains work?
I’m sorry you didn’t like them. Riper plantains would definitely change the flavor. I was looking for a more generic cracker, which is why I suggest green plantains.
Oh, I liked them! Wish the rest of my family were easier to please. I’m going to try the plantain pancakes with slightly ripe plantains.
Mine were pretty oily too, I had to put them on a paper towel after. They taste ok, but I can only eat a couple of them at a time. Which I guess is a good thing 🙂
Have made these several times and love them as do my kids. One batch was a little thicker in the middle and my son commented he liked the chewy factor & it tasted like pizza dough. SO…I made another batch, used olive oil and some spices, spread it thicker and cooked about 50 minutes and voila, yummy, yummy FLATBREAD!! Feeling very thankful for you and plantains about now!
Did you use olive oil instead of coconut oil or just rub olive oil on top?
I replaced the coconut oil with olive oil in the mix because I wanted that flavor but plain coconut oil would work too to keep it savory. Although the olive oil worked well in regards to flavor and texture.
Thanks for the clarification. I am wanting to make these wo having to make a trip to Costco.
Thank you for another wonderful recipie. I just took mine out of the oven, yum! They really remind me of what I remember Wheat Thins tasting like.
Do you think these would work using butter instead of coconut oil?
I think so. If you try it, comment back and let everyone know how it works!
Made these last night and they are awesome! I was a little skeptical if they would come out okay (since the oil was ponding around the edges of the crackers while baking), but they came out nice and crispy! I will be trying with some different herb combos next time I make them.
I found myself blotting the excess oil off the top every ten minutes, edges cooked quicker.. removed them and put baked for ten more.. stuck to parchment paper too.. but crunch was awesome. Will try again adding a few spices next time…also don’t try the blended.. food processor was a must…
Love, love, love! Thank you for this recipe. So happy to have a little crunch back in our lives. A bit more laborious than opening a bag of crackers but worth it knowing exactly what you’re getting. I will definitely make these with Paleo dips for the holidays.
I made these yesterday and they turned out great, except for sticking to the parchment paper. I spent about 25 minutes picking it off of them, and did some of it while still warm, but thought maybe it would be better after they cooled, but that did not help either. Any tricks for removing the parchment paper? I did use wax paper, does that matter? Thanks!
I use parchment paper, which is different from wax paper. It doesn’t stick at all with parchment paper.
I made these today and I LOVE them. I miss corn tortilla chips so much! These taste enough like corn chips to make me very happy. I totally have a girl crush on you right now…. Thank you!
How do they turn out with less oil?
P.S. – I purchased 2 mugs with your logo from Cafe Press. One for me and one for my sister who is struggling to go back to Paleo. Can’t wait until they get here.
Adine
P.P.S. Using a large angled frosting spatula to spread the mixture makes it effortless.
I just made these — they turned out very oily — also, not salty enough. If I make these again I’ll try less coconut oil and double the salt.
Well, I took the oiliest crackers and put them on a couple layers of paper towel and stuck them in the dehydrator overnight. What an improvement! The crackers came out crispy and dry — the paper towels had really soaked up the oil. So — as I said in the comment above — next time I’ll experiment with less oil (may 1/4 – 1/3 cup per recipe?).
Okay — I made another batch. This time I used 1/3 cup coconut oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon onion powder with the two green plantains. They turned out much better!
Just made these. Mmmmmmm
So excited to make these! I’m wondering if it could be done in a dehydrator. Have you tried that yet? Thanks again!
I haven’t. In part because it’s not that long in the oven and impart becauce I think they’re easier to cut them on the cookie sheet.
I baked them and they were still not crunchy so I dehydrated and they became VERY stiff. I would say stick with baking.
I absolutely loved these. I didn’t have any green plantains and I used yellow ones that were really ripe and they tasted great! The ones in the center never really got crunchy, but I thought they were fine chewy. I miss wheat thins so much and these are a great Paleo alternative.
I am so excited to try these. If I have stomach cramping with bananas, will plantains necessarily affect me in the same way? Is is worth the experiment?
They might and they might not.
Just made these, and they got the whole family’s approval, really lovely go-to Paleo cracker. I will say that next time I’ll use the food processor, it took a very long time to get my blender (just a regular one) to get it to hummus-like texture, but I added boiling water and that helped move it along. Other than that, recipe was perfect, thanks!
Thank you for this recipe! We are on GAPS, so this is a bit of a stretch for us, but I figured it would be fun to try them. I thought your directions were great. It did look so much like hummus when it was ready to spread on the tray, and I just kept checking them until they were the right color so I would know they were ready to take out. I had a little too much for one pan (I guess my plantains must have been big ones – the oil seemed like the perfect amount for the 2 plantains I had), so I spread the extra on a second tray for a tiny batch, and I sprinkled that with organic garlic salt. Those were ready before the big batch, and we ate them all right away, they were so yummy. The big batch was a little disappointing and green-plantain-y tasting after the garlic salt batch, so I think I will make them all with garlic salt next time. They crunch beautifully, thank you so much for the recipe!
I love these crackers so much! My dad is really impressed with them as well, but he is worried about the carbs and sugar amounts because he has type 2 diabetes. Can you please tell me the amount of carbs and about how many grams of sugar they have. Thank you.
YUM. Can’t stop eating them! Thanks and no thanks!
LOL! I feel the same way every time I make them!
Looks great!! will try..
Wow! I made these today with two plaintains that were yellow (all I had,) and the full 1/2 cup of coconut oil. I *might* make them with slightly less oil, next time, but maybe not (I love oil!) My husband says they’re definitely not crackers, but delicious, like edges of piecrust. I’m still looking for a Paleo cracker to take the place of my husband and daughter’s pita or tortilla chips (to dip into salsa.) Love the piecrust edges!
it was probably because of the oil and the Yellow. perhaps longer cooking.
So yummy! Just took them out of the oven and had to try one right away 🙂 These are like some of the whole grain crackers I’ve eaten and much better than any gluten free cracker! Thanks for the delicious recipe. It will be a staple here! I’m having them tonight with an avocado soup…made with coconut milk, cilantro, sauteed onion and garlic.
Thank you for this recipe! I made these for my AIP daughter and she said they tasted like graham crackers….this girl has not had cookie, cracker, bread anything in months! She was so happy and will try making with cinnamon next 🙂 It has been hard to find anything AIP without coconut (coconut sensitive), this made her month!
Finally made these after buying the plantains about 3 wks ago. (Sure glad they keep well in the frig.) The crackers turned out great! They are wonderful with salsa or almond butter. I have really missed crunchy snacks since going Paleo 6 mos ago. Thank you!
Thank you for this, and all your plantain recipes. I have finally found some Paleo success with my extremely picky eater! 🙂 I have also tried pureeing my plantains and freezing them. So far this has worked out great.
Just wanted to say these turned out better than any other Paleo cracker recipe that I have tried. I really like them and so does my youngest. My husband and my oldest think they are so so….but those two are REALLY picky. These have great crunch and last nicely in a tupperware container. Crisp even after a couple of days and really have a cracker consistency which has been hard to achieve using other recipes. Thank you so much for sharing. Having replacements for snacks is really helping make the grain free transition easier for both the little and the big people in our house.
I just made these and they taste really good, however mine did not turn out crunchy. Only the outer edge of crackers were crunchy but they were burnt and the inner crackers were soft. i thought if i left them in any longer they all would burned. the only thing i did differently was i cut the recipe in half because i only had one plantain on hand. any ideas what went wrong?
What size pan did you use? I would normally say keep cooking, but not if they were burnt on the outside, so I’m wondering if the batter was spread thicker in the middle compared to the edges?
If I don’t have parchment paper will these work?
Hello! I have a question….is plaintain allowed in AIP? Thank you very much! xx
yes… just be careful with how much you eat at a given time because it’s very carb dense.
ohh I thought it wasnt. I am new and just starting AIP…and reading your blog and all your great recommendations. 😉
This is a great recipe! Thanks Sarah *Thumbs Up*
haven’t made them yet, but wonder if anybody has used a silicone baking mat instead of parchment paper?
I actually do all the time now (I didn’t own one when I developed the recipe). Works great!
wondering if anyone else has had to make a second batch because they ate the entire first batch in a day?! ha ha. These are so good and incredibly addictive after weeks of not having anything crunchy.
Thank you again for a wonderful recipe 🙂
Thank you Paleo Mom! Love this recipe!! I made a batch yesterday and they are so yummy! I made a second batch with cocoa and coconut nectar and they were pretty good. I think the possibilities are endless… already thinking of more flavors using your original as a base.
I made these this evening. They’re not as pretty as yours, but they’re pretty tasty. They just might do the trick. I followed your recipe exactly, but I can see where a little garlic, onion, or chive would go far in the flavor. My plantains were blackened, so they weren’t super sweet. I’ve never even touched a plantain before! Thanks for the recipe and great directions.
Thanks so much! I really enjoyed these! The batter had a banana aroma, but I didn’t notice it in the finished crackers. I didn’t get them quite thin enough in the middle so only the edge ones were really crispy, but I’ll do better next time.and next time I will make a double batch! Any suggestions for herbs to use for variety? Maybe basil or garlic?
could you use olive oil instead of coconut oil?
Since I was previously following GAPS, Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends that all fruit be ripe before eating. Unripe fruit is harder to digest. This concerned me when using green plantains. What is you understanding? BTW, these came out great!!
Green plantains are very high in resistant starch, classified as a highly fermentable insoluble fiber. There’s quite a move toward including more resistant starch in the diet due to a variety of health effects (all probably attributable to its fermentable property). GAPS removes almost all foods that have the ability to feed bacteria, which is why there’s a disconnect. I think GAPS is great for overgrowth corrections over the short term, but does not provide enough food for gut bacteria to support normal levels and variety over the long term.
A little off-topic, but: If plantains cause constipation (badly) but bananas do not, could that be due to overgrowth/fermentation issues? Might GAPS be a good thing to try?
It probably has something to do with higher resistant starch in plantains (especialy green) and higher starch density. I’d just suggest keeping your portions small enough that you don’t have issues (there’s balance, and I think that cutting out all starches can lead to undergrowths).
Just made these last night. i love them! i love the crunch and the brown-ness that adds to the flavor. only bad thing is that i could eat these all day long 🙁
Wow these are so easy and fantastic. My son couldn’t get enough of them. Thanks!
Thank you for this recipe! My wonderful mother in law gave me a vitamix for birthday/Christmas this year, and the kids and I have been playing with variations. We’ve done olive oil and onion/basil/garlic with salt sprinkled on top, we’ve used that version as a pizza crust, and we’ve made sweet ones with ripe plantains, coconut oil, salt, and cinnamon. Their latest successful attempt was coconut oil, nutmeg and cinnamon and a bit of maple syrup and we spooned them into molded cookie pans, small shallow shapes, and they baked into thin muffins. The kids have a lot of food allergies and I am not a skilled baker, so these have been great!
Thanks for the recipe! Bringing these to a friend who has almond allergy. Mine came out crunchy, but also super oily. Cooling them off on paper towels helped.
Update: these were so good and crunchy! They reminded me of these rye crackers I used to eat http://www.finncrisp.com
Another winner! Rookie mistake in that it was a little thick in the middle but an awesome cracker. The batter came together in a minute in the Vitamix and I used a Silpat to bake them on.
Wow – Thank, this looks so simple, i have to try these! Could i replace the coconut with refined tallow as our boy’s eczema reacts to coconut?
I’ve used lard and palm shortening before and they both worked, so I think so.
these are totally delicious! Great way to eat an appetizer with guacomole!
These are the best! So nice to have something crunchy. Looking forward to your book.
Hope you are doing well.
I must be doing something wrong. My batches always end with a pool of oil and very rubbery cracker wannabees… ive tried reducing the oil but then it makes the plantains almost impossible to process. help?
Are your plantains green? You might need to bake them longer.
You’re not alone. My plantains weren’t very green because I couldn’t find any that were and my crackers didn’t get crisp until they were too dark to taste good. Ruined project. 🙁
I found plantains at my local supermarket and I just made this recipe today! Love it! Based on the concerns people expressed in their comments, I only used a bit over 1/3 cup of oil, and it was a mix of coconut and olive oil, for more flavor. I also added garlic salt, onion powder and ground dried rosemary for more savory flavor. The first taste is very good, and it’s crispy and I’m looking forward to eating some! I can also see how this recipe could also be easily adapted to make a crust as a base for something sweet too. Thank you so much for coming up with this crunchy little bit of heaven for us AIPers. We need all the support we can get!
I’ve made these twice now, and I have two questions: First, both time I’ve ended up with crackers that are just swimming in oil as they cook and the oll leeches out. I’ve actually had to blot them while cooking. Is this typical? And this leads into the second question. In the ingredients list, you say to end up with about two cups of plantain puree. Does that INCLUDE the half cup of oil, in which case it would mean a half cup of oil and 1 1/2 cups of puree for a total of two cups, or 2 cups of plantain PLUS the half cup of oil? The instructions say to blend it all together, so there’s no way to measure the puree without the oil. Imay be short on puree and long on oil. Once cooked, they seem fine, but I’m still not sure I have the proportions right.
Id say 2 cups puree plus 1/2 c of oil
Has anyone made these into teething biscuits? I have a 6 month old that has a milk protein allergy and I don’t want to try grains on him. Last night I was eating one and he demanded a taste and he really liked it. I am thinking of making them thicker and seeing if I could make it into more of a easy to eat biscuit. Has anyone tried this? How long did it have to cook for?
I made this recipe for the first time today, and oh my! Delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe, Sarah. I found that the outer crackers cooked faster than the center ones. So I simply checked the crackers every 5 minutes from 50-70 minutes cooking time and removed the ones that were done each time, until they were all done. I had been making simple green plantain chips, but these are so much more flavorful.
Can you use some other fruit/vegetables instead of plantains? I’m not sure if my local store has them, I’ve never seen them before.
I do not believe this recipe can be made with something other than plantains. Sometimes an international market will have them. We have them at all major grocery stores. They are usually next to the sweet potatoes and potatoes, or next to the bananas. You can also ask someone in the produce department at your local store, they may be abe to order them for you. — Tamar, Sarah’s assistant
Thank You so very much for taking the time to create these amazing crackers, and sharing the recipe with us. Even though I’ve been gluten-free for over a year, and strictly Paleo for almost a month now, I still miss crackers and chips and crave them more than anything else. You’ve helped me to maintain my sanity for a while longer! Thanks again.
Just made these! I love them! Exactly what I needed. They are crunchy and filling, Awesome! Thank you so much!
I made these and they were initially hard and crunchy. I put them in an airtight container when cold and when I went back to get them today they had gone soft and chewy! How do I stop that then, did I do something wrong? Also made sweet potato chips with my new dehydrator and the same thing happened. Am I leaving them out too long to cool or something do you think? V frustrating! The containers are glass with very tight lids so are sealed.
I have never had that happen with either these crackers or sweet potato chips. Is your house really humid?
Yep these haven’t even made it off the baking sheet! I decided to go on the lighter side of the coconut oil with a 1/3 cup based on the reviews and on a whim sprinkled some sesame seeds and cracked black pepper on top. Our 4 year old keeps running into the kitchen to get another then she went mission impossible and crawled in on her belly at which point I have her a bowl and told her to share with her sisters. They are amazing with my chicken liver pate I just need to stop our I’ll eat them all! Thanks!
Thanks for this recipe, Sarah! Mine came out too hard and crunchy…almost like break-your-teeth-crunchy! I’m assuming they aren’t supposed to be that hard & crunchy? I think I probably over baked them. I’m thinking of just running my crackers through the food processor to make “breadcrumbs” and use it as a filler for meatballs, meatloaf, etc, or maybe “breading” for chicken fingers/nuggets. Can’t wait to try this cracker recipe again though. Thanks again!
I really love this recipe. Coupled with guacamole it’s a great safe cheat! 🙂
Thanks!
Are these AIP friendly?
Yes, but due to the high starch content some may need to limit these to a small serving. — Tamar, Sarah’s assistant
Do you think this recipe would work to make a pie crust for a savory pie? Would ripe plantains work maybe for a sweet crust? My office likes to have food contests for office parties and we have a pie contest coming up next. I have been discourage by the large amount of recipes needing nuts or nut flours. I am likely a month or more away from adding those back in for AIP and this seemed like a doable option that would actually taste good and have the right texture.
No, I think it would be too crunchy.
I am interested to try these! I’m also going to see how they work with plantain flour (because sometimes I just don’t want to pull out the blender). And FWIW, once plantains are no longer green you don’t necessarily *have* to wait until they turn black to use them — just throw them in soup! My in-laws are from Puerto Rico and they taught me the beauty of using plantains in a bone broth soup 🙂 In fact, I made a pot of (AIP-friendly) sancocho tonight using plantains that were no longer green enough for tostones and not yet black enough for maduros 🙂
My friend made these for me on Tuesday. She has been making them frequently for her family, only this time her plantains had gotten a bit ripe. She made them anyway and with ripe plantains, they turned out flakey and sweet like pie crust. I liked the texture so much I rushed to the store this week and bought green plantains. I just made them and WOW! With green plantains they taste and have a texture like wheat thins, without the wheat or any weird grain replacement ingredients. I LOVE IT!!! My crackers also had a lot of oil swimming around them, but we like coconut oil and find that it is a healthful food, so I didn’t mind. (My friend’s crackers did not have as much oil, so I may ask her to compare notes with me, but I suspect it might just be something that happens depending on the individual plantains.) You could blot the oil off to store them if you wanted. I’m not sure my crackers will last all that long with my hungry and eager family. Already scheduled to be a staple recipe for our family.
Although these turned out quite well, I also had a good tablespoon of oil leach out during the baking process. Also the crackers remain oily and leave a residue on the fingers even after blotting.
Could it be that I simply used too much coconut oil?
What about adding a 1/4 teaspoon of mustard powder to the mix to emsulify the mixture and hopefully prevent the oil from separating out?
Yes, it’s possible you had too much oil. Did you use EVCO? Sarah recommends following the recipes exactly for best results, and using a different type of coconut oil could also have been a problem. You can try the mustard powder, but I haven’t tried it, so can’t say how it would work. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
I was very apprehensive to try these crackers, as I’ve never tried a plantain before because I have a serious aversion to bananas. I tried it today, and I’m so glad I did! Thanks for posting, I’m glad to have a cracker in the house again, I was missing the crunch.
Oh YUM! Just made these and used Nutiva Extra Virgin coconut oil from Costco, but I had the same problem with lots of oil oozing out. Other than that these were amazingly tasty. I sprinklied nutrtional yest on them and it was to die for!! Kids love them 😉
I just made a batch of these and they were amazing!! I removed the crackers on the edge as they started to crisp up and that worked out well. I think I’m going to eat the whole batch because they are so good! I’ve been gluten free for about 6 months and have just started transitioning to pale for my autoimmune disease. Thanks for a fantastic recipe and I love your site!
Hi how long would they stay edible for in an air tight container ?
About a week. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Thanks, they are fantastic by the way, can’t stop nibbeling
Just made them and loved them but had to throw them out as the grease proof paper wouldn’t come off the back
I recommend a silicone baking liner to prevent sticking in the future: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00629K4YK?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B00629K4YK&linkCode=xm2&tag=wwwthePaleomo-20 – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
is palm shortening Paleo? do ppl with leaky gut or adrenal fatigue tend to have probs with it? would one have aprob with it if they have a prob with palm olein?
Palm shortening is fine, unless you are sensitive to palm products. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
ok..what if we are sensitive to palm olein but not palm oil? woud shortening still be fine then?
Yes. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
so coconut palm sugar is actually Paleo right? but if someone has ibs then they should avoid it becasue it is a fodmap right? will one with ibs ever be able to enjoy it w/o symptoms in ur experience?
Sarah does not recommend coconut palm sugar except in very small doses and only if you have a healthy gut: https://www.thePaleomom.com/2012/03/is-sugar-Paleo.html. I do believe you may be able to tolerate small amounts once your guyt has healed. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
thanks! would that include coconut syrup too? leave that out til have healthy gut?
Yes. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
How long do recipes made with plantains last? Mainly these crackers and the pancakes you mention in the video.
If they’re well-dehydrated or frozen, weeks. If your crackers are still a little wet or you aren’t freezing the pancakes, I’d eat them within 2-3 days. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Never mind my first question! I made these today and there is no way we will ever find out how long they take to go bad! I almost ate every last one of them by myself. So good! You are a genius!
Hi. I am following the AI Protocol diet since Feb 2014 as I have an auto-immune disease (rheumatoid arthritis). This diet is a life saver as I am feeling much better since I switched to AIP ;-). Yesterday, it was my birthday and I wanted to enjoy this special day with exciting new recipes. I have tried some of your recipes. For the 1st time, I had the feeling that I could eat like before even though the recipe ingredients were completely different then traditional ones. Thank you so much for your time, hard work, dedication and for sharing all those recipes…It is definitively a huge help for people like me! Thanks again Maryline
Are there any substitutes for the green plantains? Would bananas work instead? I am unable to get plantains where I live. If I can, it is very seasonally like 1-2 months out of the year. Thank you!
Very green bananas may work. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Could you use plantain flour? i have a bag and don’t know what to do with it! 🙂
I think so, but haven’t tried it. You’d have to mix it with water to get the right consistency. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Hi I live in South Africa, have never seen plantains here, can I use green bananas instead? Thank you
Very green bananas may work. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
refined or unrefined evco? unrefined doesnt sound right for a salty cracker?
Sarah uses unrefined, but I have made it with both with good results. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Made these today, they were swimming in oil as they baked. Took them out blotted them put them back in the oven and they are still real oily and not crisp at all…The plantains were green I don’t know what happened. Any suggestions?
If you made the recipe exactly as written, I would simply use less oil next time. I have had good results using 1/2 as much in different ovens. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
My whole family adores these crackers … I’ve made them a dozen times or more and I’m never able to store them because I never have any left that long! They’re fantastic with guac and hummus, but we mainly love them solo.
I’ve also seen a great deal of “leakage” of the coconut oil, but never had a problem with that … I figure that just lowers the calories left in the crackers themselves, right? I did try reducing the oil, but the resulting crackers weren’t as crispy … and, really? It’s simple to transfer them to paper towels immediately after cooking to soak up any extra oil.
I have recently started separating the batter and spreading it over 2 separate baking sheets because I tend to like the really thin, crispy ones best and that works quite well. I have a double oven, but it might be possible to periodically switch the sheets from top to bottom racks in a single oven as well.
I did make them once with some plantains that were just turning yellow. They were more chewy than crispy, but my husband raved over the flavor. The new plantain pizza crust recipe on this site calls for yellow plantains, and I can recommend that recipe as well if you let the plantains go past the green stage before you get around to making something with them 🙂
And one other note — I thought baking them on my oven’s convection setting would be better for crispiness, but I’ve found that the regular bake setting works best.
I live in Mexico and the only plantains I have been able to find here are already very ripe (yellow and black). Is there another alternative food I can use when a recipe calls for green plantains?
Very green bananas may work. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Okay, thank you. I will give it a try.
I love these crackers! Does anyone know if they can be frozen?
These have been a savior in my AIP diet. I really needed something with a crunch.
Just made a batch, they turned out super oily with tonnes leaking out, but yummy, Would it work well with butter? If so, how much? Thanks
OMG! I know now I screwed up the recipe by using slightly ripe (yellow with some black) plantains instead of green ones, and so they came out almost black instead of golden-brown, but they’re still good! Slightly sweet, massively crunchy (except for the one or two that were golden-brown and chewy because they were thicker. I may have to really hunt for the green ones @ Kroger, try Tom Thumb, or risk a trip to Whole Paycheck. I can also check the 2 natural food stores the next city over…..
I found fairly green plantains at our local Asian grocery, in case you have one nearby!
I have made the plantain cracker recipe twice and both times have been a failure. I don’t think I’m a total failure as a cook since I have the new cookbook and I’ve made numerous recipes from it with success – but this one I can’t seem to get to work. I’ve used yellow plantains b/c I can’t find the green ones. I’ve followed the recipe exactly, used a food processor, the correct measurements, temperature, pan, parchment paper. Both times all the crackers around the edge turned brown/black and the ones in the middle end up soft and not crispy. I don’t understand what I’m doing wrong 🙁
Ripe plantains are sweeter, gummier, and burn faster than green ones. This recipe works best with green plantains. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Thank you! My brother found some really green plantains in the store yesterday, so I tried the recipe for a third time and it WORKED! So happy I can finally enjoy these yummy crackers!
The recipe works perfectly with green plantains. The yellowish ones didn’t work for me at all. That’s the key.
i think the thickness counts a lot for this recipe. i did mine and made them pretty tick so in the end baked them for 70 min, they are so hard to bite that i think im going to trash them and try again. You must even the batter up so there is not ticker in the bottom and thiner at
the edges
Hi there!
I’ve been making these for the last couple of weeks and they are so yummy to have with my sardines.
However, today I got my IgG food sensitivity test results and it says that I’m severely intolerant to bananas …. I’m devastated because I love these crackers!
Is there any substitute that I could use for plantains???
Thank you in advance for your response!! Finding a substitute would be a life saver 🙂
I think yuca might work.
My last couple of batches have either been soggy or very hard…..any suggestions?
first time i made them, the bottom is crunchy, a bit hard i would say and the top not very crunchy, more soggy, I think the thickness of the batter counts a lot, mine are more than 1/8″ compared to the pic she posted….maybe put them in the 2nd rack of the oven, im sure that counts too..
I made the crackers, I like them but I can’t take the paper off. Mabe is the quality of the paper, or do I have to grease the paper first?
Yes, it was the paper. I now use unbleached parchment paper and works great. My family loves the crackers (I use red palm oil).
Is there a modification available using plantain flour rather than fresh plantains?
Do you think this recipe would work with olive oil?? Have you tried it? I thought I might try making a savory cracker w/rosemary……..
I would be concerned that the olive oil would burn at this temperature. Other cooking fats like palm shortening might be a better substitute. – Christina, Sarah’s assistant
Thank you, Christina! I thought that was a really good question to consider. So I looked up the smoke points of all three oils, and it turns out that palm has the highest @ 446 degrees F, then coconut @ 350 degrees F. Olive is kind of interesting because it depends on the type, i.e evoo (extra virgin olive oil) is 320 degrees F, but voo (virgin olive oil) is 420 degrees F. Either way, it still works since the recipe calls for a 300 degree F oven. I think I’ll give it a try and I’ll post here if it’s a success!
Thanks again for the great recipe!
Has anyone ever tried mixing some almond flour into the plantain batter to see what would happen?
We have had great luck with these crackers. Definately the greener the plaintain, the faster the crackers crispen. I had to finish the black plaintain crackers in the Excalibur. Too long in the oven results in a crispy and Delish cracker, but very dark. Today I am going to make a batch using my compound pig butter and green plantains for our NY get-together.
Also, I cut a couple dozen rounds the size of communion wafers out of the batch I made a few weeks ago to use as – communion wafers! I just take it to the priest during communion and stick out my hand and he blesses it – no questions asked. It’s yummy and better than the rancid ones you pick up on the way to the altar. I am highly allergic to rice, which also cross reacts with gluten, so I can’t use the standard gf wafer.
I hope someone will respond, but like others, I found that the coconut oil “leaked” out of the crackers onto the parchment paper. This also happens WHENEVER I bake anything with coconut oil! Does anyone know why this happens- is it due to the lack of an emulsifer? I feel like I waste ingredients and my valuable coconut oil!
Any help is appreciated! Thanks!
Just made my first batch. I spread the batter quite thin, but perhaps not thin enough. Because the crackers turned out so hard, I’m afraid they will crack my teeth! Anyone else have that problem? Should I try spreading even thinner? I really want to like these!!
I’ve found it takes 2-3 times making these to get your preferences right.
For me, I’ve found I like them a little softer, like bread almost.
I take about 4-6 somewhat green plantains. Blend them with about 1 cup of melted coconut oil. I spread the batter out on 4 baking sheets, about the thickness of 2 pennies together. Put them in the oven at 300 for ten mins then score them(just like the recipe states). But then I usually set it for about 30-40 mins to check them and they come out a little softer. Either way they are great though.
I only have a Magic Bullet and will be trying this recipe his week. I’m skeptical of being able to blend up the plantains without any liquid. Should the coconut oil be melted? Thank you!
Do you use organic plantains? I don’t have access to organic plantains and wonder if they, like bananas, are very bad to eat non organic or if they are “cleaner” so it’s okay to eat anyway?
I love your page and recipes by the way!
Thanks for the recipe! I was lucky enough to find plantain flour, and was wondering how much flour to use in such a recipe to make plantain crackers? Thanks!
Can a person use olive oil or avocado oil instead of coconut oil?
I just burnt a whole tray of these! UGH Need more plantains to try again! I did brave it and tried them…crunch was great…burnt taste not so much! LOL Thinking I need to cut the baking time 5 minutes or so or drop the temp with my oven.
I’ve just made these & they turned out perfect thanks! How long will they keep in an airtight container & can they be frozen please?
Could this work in place of plantains, for this and other recipes, for those of us that do not have ready access to plantains?
http://www.vitacost.com/wedo-all-natural-gluten-free-banana-flour-16-oz-1
Sarah, I just have to say that these crackers are one of my all time favourite snack foods now! They’re so easy and very versatile. I’ve done a couple of different things with your recipe and the last time I made these I did half coconut oil and half bacon fat and they were so so yummy! I also add garlic powder and some Italian seasonings for a more savoury snack and serve with pate. I just love them, I could sit and eat the whole batch myself quite easily!
I just tried making these, but I wanted more of a graham cracker than a savory cracker, so I added cinnamon, molasses, and a little maple syrup. I baked them for over an hour, but they were still kind of leathery, so I put them in the dehydrator to finish crisping up. The flavor is great though! Not quite like graham crackers, but very tasty still.
Hi. Greetings from a UK fan.
I make these regularly and wanted to share a tip (apologies if this has already been suggested). I don’t spread the mixture with a spatula. Instead I pop it in the fridge or freezer to chill for a few mins, not too long or the outside of the mixture would start going brown, but long enough to make the coconut oil return to its solid state. I then roll it out between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper/baking parchment. It makes it SO much easier to get crackers of an even thickness. If you can’t roll it out on your baking tray because it has a lip, just cut the 2 sheets of paper to fit and do the rolling on a worktop. Once you’ve rolled it you just pick it up and pop it on the tray. If you’re doing more than one batch on trays of the same size, you can reuse the top sheet of paper.
If you don’t chill the mixture first, you will find that you lose quite a bit of the oil where it comes off onto the paper. I use a wooden rolling pin (which doesn’t need to be washed afterwards because it doesn’t touch the mixture – bonus!) and I find that the weight of the pin is just enough to make the crackers thin enough to be wonderfully crispy :o)
Wow!!! I just made these, substituting homemade cultured ghee for the coconut oil. So good!!! It was hard to get a completely even thickness, so when a few crackers started to get crispy before the rest, I just took those few out and let the rest continue to cook. I also found them really rich– which was awesome, but I might try using a little less oil next time (hopefully that won’t negatively affect the consistency?). All in all, a delicious and simple recipe! I served it with some crab dip made with homemade AIP mayo 😀 definitely going to make again as soon as these are gone!
I made these today, very good. I wanted to ask how to keep it from sticking to the wax paper?
Thanks
You do not use wax paper, that melts when it gets hot. Be sure to use PARCHMENT paper
I have just scored them after baking for 10 minutes. I ate a corner and it is delicious. Just like polenta. My question is: Is it good to digest after only 10 minutes of cooking? Is it okay to eat? Because this would make a perfect polenta type crust for a pizza. Or even just to eat it plain soft like this after only ten minutes of baking. What do you think? Thanks.
Just made these and they’re awesome. I need to perfect my spreading technique, but I love the way they turned out. I added a half tsp garlic powder. I had to use 6 plantains to get 2 cups because the only ones I could find really green were so small. Thanks for your awesome recipes.
Once I abandoned the tools and used my hands to spread, it got a lot easier!
I’m making the plantain crackers for the 2nd time and the result is not a pourable batter. I added 2T oil an
and it is still very thick. Not as thin as hummus. Am I doing this right?
Thanks!
I made the plantain crackers but when I eat coconut oil I get inflammation and pain so I used grapeseed oil in them. They turned out kind of hard. Would they have been better with a saturated fat in them like coconut oil? Is my reaction to coconut oil something to do with my auto-immune and will it go away when I’ve been eating Paleo for awhile?
Sounds like you allergic to coconut oil. I do get the same way. I become inflammed everytime I eat anything coconut or tropical. I do know that based on my blood-type, I am allergic to coconut. You should check out D’Adamo’s website to see if you are as well.
I have an allergy to coconut/palm. I was wondering if you had any success with a different type of oil.
Avocado oil should work as well.
I found these quite easy to make – thank you for the excellent directions! They have the taste and consistency of a rye chip, in my opinion. There is absolutely NO weird Paleo taste (although admittedly, I used refined coconut oil, so if you use virgin you may end up with a coconut oil taste). I ate them with guacamole and loved then. Other non-Paleo members of my family had them and didn’t realize they were grain-free. I’d call this a huge success and I’ll be making them again with added goodies like garlic powder, cracked pepper, maybe some smoke paprika, etc. Thanks!
To continue my thoughts – I’ve made these a bunch of times and take them to parties. Everyones loves them! I can now cook them to a less crunchy consistency than a rye crisp, which I like better, but either way is great according to taste. I really love them!
These are so good!!!! The “unripe/green banana” smell is a little off-putting, but the end result is terrific!!! I’m trying them with some seasoning this time.
I’ve used this recipe as a base to make tortillas (I use 1/3 a cup of oil per 400 grams of raw green plantain & just do them a little thicker on the pan & cook til they are done & pliable) & flatbread (I do these again with the same ratio, adding 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar + 1/4 tsp of baking soda for every 400g of plantain, piling up 600g to 800g worth on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and baking for 20-30 minutes, or until just browned along the edges… so delicious). Today, I successfully made cinnamon raisin bread… I did 800g of raw green plantain, 2/3 cup of butter (you can use coconut oil, but I am allergic) blended in the Vitamix. I then poured it out into a bowl & used a mixer to blend in 2 tbs of cinnamon, 1 tsp molasses (totally optional for flavor), 1 tsp vanilla (glycerin type), 1/2 tsp sea salt & stevia to taste, then mixed in 1 tsp of cream of tartar & 1/2 tsp of baking soda & folded in a couple handfuls of raisins. I spread it on a parchment paper lined baking sheet & baked at 350 for 30 minutes. Delicious. I am going to figure out how to do swirls next.
Once, I added a little frozen cauliflower which was about 1/4 of the total weight, in place of plantain, and it ended up tasting like a spring roll, but maybe that’s just me.
I have so many food allergies that even many of the AIP recipes are a no go (I can’t have tapioca, arrowroot or coconut flour), so this has been a lifesaver for me. Thank you! (Feel free to perfect my various bread recipes & post them for others. I just want other people to have happy, bready goodness, too!)
Made this today, and its fantastic!! I added 1 tbsp. of arrowroot powder because it was a bit runny and I dont know why, but it turned out great! Thank you for 🙂
Please address the issue of Latex allergy and sensitivities with cross-reaction to plantains,avocados and possibly bananas especially unripe plantains. 3 weeks into strict adherence to the AIP autoimmune protocol I gave the plantain crackers a try. Horrible reaction, asthma and arthritis flare requiring Prednisone and many respiratory rescue drugs. I learned what happened a little late from the Asthma Allergy Foundation. Please do a little research and pass it on. I will continue on the AIP protocol as I am out of options and have tried many alternative diets and treatments over the years that have brought little success and sometimes I’ve been in worse condition than before I began. thank-you Hope this info helps someone out there with a latex allergy.
Love these crackers! Quick question… how long do they keep for before going bad? And can I freeze them? 🙂
They should keep for a few days. I’ve never tried freezing them, but I would imagine it would work. It may dry them out a bit though. -Kiersten
I tried this recipe in two batches, one with coconut oil and one with palm shortening. Everyone preferred the palm shortening ones. The coconut oil ones tasted good but were hard as rocks. The palm shortening ones had a much flakier texture.
I was wondering if you could suggest any other oil for Coconut oil replacement (can’t have anything coconut). Could I use oils like olive or walnut (I know they are liquid) as the crackers will be baked anyway? Thank you
I haven’t tried it, but I would imagine olive oil or avocado oil would work well.
After being on AIP for a week, these were Wonderful! Crunchy. The plantains were mostly yellow, but not soft, and the crackers had a sweet edge to them. Still great. The ones that were the darkest brown tasted the best.