and scotch bonnet peppers. In Nicaragua, tostones are typically served with fried cheese (Tostones con queso) and sometimes with refried beans. While the name tostones is used to describe this food when prepared at home, in some South American countries the word also describes plantain chips, which are typically purchased from a store. In western Venezuela, much of Colombia and the Peruvian Amazon, patacones are a frequently seen variation of tostones. Plantains are sliced in long pieces and fried in oil, then used to make sandwiches with pork, beef, chicken, vegetables and ketchup. They can be made with unripe patacon verde or ripe patacon amarillo plantains. Tostones in the Dominican Republic are only fried once and are thicker than chips. Although there are local names for tostones in almost every Latin country, they are still commonly called tostones in all of Latin America. Chifles is the Spanish term used in Peru and Ecuador for fried green plantains sliced ( thick); it is also used to describe plantain chips which are sliced thinner. In Honduras, Venezuela and Central Colombia, fried ripened plantain slices are known as tajadas. They are customary in most typical meals, such as the Venezuelan pabellón criollo. The host or waiter may also offer them as barandas (guard rails), in common slang, as the long slices are typically placed on the sides of a full dish, and therefore look as such. Some variations include adding honey or sugar and frying the slices in butter, to obtain a golden caramel; the result has a sweeter taste and a characteristic pleasant smell. The same slices are known as amarillos and fritos maduros in Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic respectively. In Panama, tajadas are eaten daily together with steamed rice, meat and beans, thus making up an essential part of the Panamanian diet, as with Honduras. By contrast, in Nicaragua, tajadas are fried unripened plantain slices, and are traditionally served at a fritanga, with fried pork or carne asada, or on their own on green banana leaves, either with a cabbage salad or fresh or fried cheese. On Colombia's Caribbean coast, tajadas of fried green plantain are consumed along with grilled meats, and are the dietary equivalent of the French-fried potatoes/chips of Europe and North America. After removing the skin, maduro can be sliced (between thick) and pan-fried in oil until golden brown or according to preference. In the