Chifles, fried plantain chips, are a

side dish A side dish, sometimes referred to as a side order, side item, or simply a side, is a food item that accompanies the entrée or main course at a meal.snack food A snack is a small portion of Human food, food generally Eating, eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including Food packaging, packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at ho ...

, or

finger food Finger foods are small, individual portions of food that are eaten out of hand. They are often served at social events. The ideal finger food usually does not create any mess (such as crumbs or drips), but this criterion is often overlooked in o ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, and

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

In Ecuador

The cuisine of

is based on different uses of fried bananas, such as the chifle, which serves as a companion in the Ecuadorian breakfast. The chifle is consumed in soups such as encebollado and in cold dishes such as

ceviche Ceviche, cebiche, sebiche, or seviche () is a cold dish consisting of fish or shellfish marinated in citrus and seasonings. Different versions of ceviche are part of the culinary cultures of various Latin American countries along the Pacific O ...

. In Ecuador there is the salt and sweet chifle with Banchis as main brands for the city of

Quito Quito (; ), officially San Francisco de Quito, is the capital city, capital and second-largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its metropolitan area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha Province, P ...

and Tortolines de inalecsa that covers the

Guayaquil Guayaquil (), officially Santiago de Guayaquil, is the largest city in Ecuador and also the nation's economic capital and main port. The city is the capital (political), capital of Guayas Province and the seat of Guayaquil Canton. The city is ...

market consuming many of other brands throughout the country.

Process

An incision is made in the peel the full length of the plantain, and the peel is removed by hand. The plantains are immediately placed in salt water. Then the plantain is cut into thin slices, either across (round slices, like chips), or lengthwise (strips). The plantain slices are cooked in hot oil until golden and crispy. Then they are seasoned with salt. A more crispy variety of chifle is prepared and packaged in factories. This includes sweet, savory, and spicy varieties. The commercial production and export of chifle was a product of the fact that Southamerican travelers were interested in the uses of plantains. Early 19th-century travelers on ships entering and leaving the port of

were served chifle (instead of bread) with meals, including breakfast, and discovered its use as a snack food.

In Peru

chifle is typical of the

Piura Region Piura () is a coastal department and region in northwestern Peru. The region's capital is Piura and its largest port cities, Paita and Talara, are also among the most important in Peru. The area is known for its tropical and dry beaches. It i ...

. It consists of fried slices or strips of either ripe or green plantains seasoned with salt to taste. In the region of Piura, chifle is traditionally fried in wood-burning stoves with wood of the ''algorrobo blanco'' (a species of mesquite tree), which gives chifle a special aroma and taste. Depending on the type of plantain (ripe or green) the flavor can be sweet or savory. Sometimes it is served with ''cancha serrana'' (pan-roasted :maize) or shredded ''cecina'' (pork

jerky Jerky is lean trimmed meat strips which are Food drying, dehydrated to prevent Food spoilage, spoilage and seasoned to varying degrees. Normally, this drying includes the addition of salt to prevent Microorganism, microbial growth through o ...

). At present, the ''Asociación de Productores de Chifles Piuranos'' (APROCHIP, English: Piura Chifle Producers Association) has initiated the process to declare chifle as a ''producto de bandera nacional'' (English: flagship product) of Peru. APROCHIP of Piura is an agglomeration of 14 local commercial chifle producers.

Etymology

The word "chifle" is of unknown origin and does not appear in the dictionary of the Spanish language. In the rural social environment of the Ecuadorian coast, principally in the provinces of "Montubio" cultural origin, "chiflar" was a vulgar and colloquial term that means to "whistle" with the mouth in a notably sharp sound by pinching the bottom lip and pushing air out from the lungs, resulting in a strong sound (sometimes pleasant or unpleasant) to catch the listener's attention. In the Montubia ethnic culture of the coast of

, this sound was popularly used to call family or close kinsmen from long distances. According to Peruvian historians, the term "chifle" most likely comes from the Arabic "chofre", which in Medieval Spain was used to refer to the blade of the sword, lending the name to the snack food of fried plantains sliced into circles with the blade of a sword. Another view is that "chifle" means horn (or antler) and the term was used because of the resemblance between the two. A third view suggests that the term originates from the whistling sound made while eating the snack.

Similar preparations in other countries

Every tropical country where the plantain is in high consumption has its local version of this snack. It is known as ''chipilo'' in

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

; ''plataninas'' in

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

; ''nenthrakayyi varuthathu'' or ''plantain chips'' in

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, South India; ''mariquitas'' (English: lady bugs) in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

; in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

''platanutres'', ''platanitos'' in the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

and

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

, and '' tostones'' or ''tostoncitos'' in

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

. More recently, both ordinary and specially flavoured chifles have entered the European market as "plantain chips", produced and distributed by Fyffes of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

.Fyffes Plantain Chips product website
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References

External links

{{Bananas and plantains Bolivian cuisine Ecuadorian cuisine Latin American cuisine Peruvian cuisine Deep fried foods Plantain dishes Snack foods