While the bananas are boiling, combine the sliced onions, olive oil, vinegar, bay leaves, black pepper corns, garlic, salad olives, “adobo”, and salt, in a small medium saucepan to make the “escabeche”. Leave it at a medium/low heat so that the mixture warms up but does not boil, for about 10- 15 minutes.
In other Latin American countries, “escabeche” means different things. But in Puerto Rico, it means this fantastic briny marinade. The main ingredient for this recipe is green bananas. Yes, unripened, green bananas. A lot of people do not use green bananas and are not familiar with it as an ingredient.
The instant brown rice is added near the end, to keep it from overcooking. Bacalao, salted dried codfish, is the defining ingredient in traditional Puerto Rican fish stew, but salt cod requires overnight soaking and several rinses in cool water before it can be used, so we opt for fresh fish in this quick version.
Escabeche is a flavorful oil and vinegar marinade infused with pickling spices like bay leaves and peppercorns. And it isn’t just for bananas. Though guineos en escabeche is a popular dish, this staple Puerto Rican concoction is usually associated with seafood dishes. However, in Puerto Rico many other foods are served escabeche style.