Mangú con los tres golpes
Dominican mashed green plantain with pickled red onion, served with fried cheese, fried salami and eggs — the three hits.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Rest
- None
- Total
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Mangú is boiled green plantain mashed with butter and some of its cooking water until smooth and spoonable, then covered with red onions quickly pickled in vinegar. On its own it is breakfast. With los tres golpes, the three hits, it is the Dominican breakfast: a slab of fried white frying cheese, thick coins of fried Dominican salami, and fried eggs. The plantains need to be properly green and hard. Any yellow and they turn sweet and the mash goes wrong. This version mashes them with cold water, which is the trick for a mangú that stays soft instead of setting like cement.
What you'll need
11 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Ingredients
- Pickled onion
- Tres golpes
Ingredients
Ingredients
Pickled onion
- Red onion, sliced into thin rings1 large
- Vinegar, white44 ml
- Neutral oil15 ml
Tres golpes
- Melting cheese, queso de freír or halloumi, in 1 cm slices300 g
- Salami, Dominican salami or a dense cooked pork salami, in thick coins300 g
- Egg4 large
- Neutral oil, for frying44 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Put the plantain chunks in a pan with a teaspoon of salt, cover with water and boil until completely soft, 20 to 25 minutes. A knife should slide in with no resistance.
25 min
Step 2
Meanwhile heat the tablespoon of oil in a small pan, add the onion rings, cook 1 minute, then add the vinegar and a pinch of salt and take off the heat. Set aside.
3 min
Step 3
Drain the plantains and mash straight away with the butter, adding cold water a splash at a time until smooth, soft and slightly glossy. Season with salt.
5 min
Tip: Cold water, not hot. Hot water makes mangú that sets hard as it cools. Mash it fast, while the plantain is hot.
Step 4
Heat the frying oil in a large pan. Fry the salami coins until browned at the edges, then the cheese slices until golden on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes each. Keep warm.
8 min
Watch: Frying cheese spits. Dry the slices on kitchen paper first.
Step 5
Fry the eggs in the same pan to your liking. Pile mangú on each plate, spoon the pickled onions over, and add cheese, salami and an egg beside it.
5 min
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 1137 kcal
- Protein
- 44.7 g
- Carbs
- 87.8 g
- Fat
- 72.1 g
- Saturated fat
- 29.2 g
- Fibre
- 6.4 g
- Sugar
- 41.4 g
- Sodium
- 2946 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Milk
- Eggs
- Gluten-free
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 13 November.
Substitutions
Dominican salami → Thick-cut cooked ham or Spam
Not the same, but fried hard at the edges it does the same salty job.
Tips
- Buy plantains that are hard and fully green with no yellow patches. Peel them under running water if the sap bothers your hands.
- Leftover mangú is reheated by beating in a little hot water or milk and stirring over low heat.
- Avocado slices on the side are common and welcome.
History & culture
Mangú is eaten across the Dominican Republic for breakfast and dinner, at home, in comedores and at roadside stands. The full tres golpes plate is a weekend or holiday breakfast, or something for a visitor. Dominicans in New York and Boston keep it as a marker of home, and no Dominican argument about food gets far without someone mentioning it.
Mashed plantain dishes came to the Caribbean with enslaved West and Central Africans; fufu is the clear relative. The name is often said to come from a word in a West African language. Salami and frying cheese, the industrial partners on the plate, became everyday Dominican foods in the 20th century.
Traditional — Dominican salami and queso de freír are specific products. A firm frying cheese such as halloumi and a dense pork salami stand in without embarrassment.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Mangú con los tres golpes take?
45 min all in — 15 min prep, 30 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Easy.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Milk, Eggs. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free, Nut-free.
9 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Saucepan, Frying pan, Chef's knife.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 2 tsp.
How much vinegar?
3 tbsp (white) of Vinegar.
What can I use instead?
Dominican salami → Thick-cut cooked ham or Spam. Not the same, but fried hard at the edges it does the same salty job.
What should I watch for?
Frying cheese spits. Dry the slices on kitchen paper first.
Any tips from this recipe?
Buy plantains that are hard and fully green with no yellow patches. Peel them under running water if the sap bothers your hands. Leftover mangú is reheated by beating in a little hot water or milk and stirring over low heat. Avocado slices on the side are common and welcome.
Can I prepare this ahead?
Leftover mangú is reheated by beating in a little hot water or milk and stirring over low heat.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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