Recipe
🍳 BREAKFAST
Mangú
Silky mashed green plantains under pickled red onions, the Dominican breakfast that carries the day.
Dominican · easy · serves 3
prep 15 min · cook 25 min
~715 cal · 24g protein · 82g carbs · 35g fat · 6g fiber · 39g sugars · 21g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Mangu rules the Dominican morning, a smooth mound of mashed green that is the country's definitive breakfast. Green are boiled until soft and then mashed with some of their cooking water and, crucially, cold butter or oil beaten in, which keeps the mash silky rather than stiff.
Classically it is served as los tres golpes, "the three hits": the mangu flanked by fried Dominican salami, fried cheese, and eggs, a trio that turns it into a full and satisfying plate. The finishing touch Dominicans insist on is a tangle of red onions lightly pickled in vinegar, draped over the top to cut the richness.
Its ancestry is African, brought across the Atlantic with the itself, and it carries deep roots in the Cibao valley and beyond. Simple at its core but dressed with real care, mangu is the comforting, savoury start to a Dominican day.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten- and nut-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 3
4 green , peeled and halved
3 tbsp cold butter
1 red onion, sliced
3 tbsp white vinegar
6 oz frying cheese (part of "the three hits")
3 eggs (part of "the three hits")
8 oz Dominican salami, sliced (part of "the three hits")
Hard to find? a garlicky beef-and-pork cooking salami, or thick-cut kielbasa - Dominican brands fry up soft and garlicky rather than hard and cured, so kielbasa is honestly closer than a European deli salami
to taste salt
Instructions
1
Boil the plantains in well-salted water 20 minutes until completely tender.
2
Meanwhile, soften the onion rings 30 seconds in the vinegar with a pinch of salt, the pink crown of the dish.
3
Mash the plantains with the cold butter and enough of the boiling water to reach a smooth, spoonable mash.
4
Fry the Dominican salami slices until browned at the edges, griddle the cheese (or tofu) golden, and fry the eggs, if using.
5
Plate the mangú with the pickled onions over and the hits alongside. Breakfast solved until dinner.
Cibao valley breakfast tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Cibao. This valley is where the food comes from before anyone cooks it. The Cibao is the country's agricultural centre, growing rice, cacao, coffee, tobacco and plantains, and the midday bandera of rice, red beans and stewed meat is put together largely from what the valley itself grows.
🗺️
Dominican Republic. Sancocho is a Sunday and a celebration rather than a weeknight, and the ambitious version is sancocho de siete carnes, seven meats in one pot with yuca, yautia, ñame and plantain until the broth thickens on its own. La bandera, the everyday plate of rice, beans and stewed meat, takes its name from the flag.
🌍
North America. The most consequential technique on this continent is nixtamalisation, cooking maize with lime or wood ash. It loosens the skins, makes the dough that becomes tortillas and tamales, and frees up niacin the body cannot otherwise absorb, which is why maize spread around the world without the technique and took pellagra with it.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Dominican Republic
La Bandera DominicanaThe Dominican everyday plate: white rice, stewed red beans, and braised meat, often with fried plantain.
Chicharrón de PolloMarinated chicken pieces dredged and fried crisp, a Dominican favorite from colmado counters and family lunches.
Habichuelas con DulceA sweet, creamy pudding of blended red beans, coconut, and sweet potato, a uniquely Dominican Lenten dessert.
Browse all Dominican Republic recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Griddle or flat pan.
Storing it: Thickens as it sits. Reheat with extra water or milk to loosen, and keep 2 to 3 days refrigerated.
Make it a Dominican Republic meal
Morir SoñandoDrink
Habichuelas con DulceDessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Mangú?
Silky mashed green plantains under pickled red onions, the Dominican breakfast that carries the day.
Where does Mangú come from?
Mangú is a Dominican dish from Cibao, Dominican Republic.
Can Mangú be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Mangú recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Mangú safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Mangú take to make?
About 40 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 25 minutes cooking), serving 3.
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