Let's focus first on the most important question: Why are bananas curved? That's definitely not a stupid question. Bananas hang in a tree and want to grow upwards towards the light but they are also growing against gravity! If they were growing in a spaceship without gravity they would grow straight.
Bananas come from areas that are frost free or sub tropical climates, like Colombia, Costa Rica and Honduras.
Bananas are rich in various vitamins and minerals, but particularly contain high levels of vitamin B6 and Potassium.
How to prepare
Even a monkey can peel a banana, so you can do that too and just eat it! After peeling and chopping bananas the fruit can discolour quickly. This can easily be prevented by squeezing a little lemon juice over the fruit.
Buyer's and storage guide
- Avoid buying bananas with black spots on the skin (unless you want to make a banana cake or smoothie right away!) They are still edible, but the shelf-life will be shorter.
- Bananas don't like the cold, and it can harm the after-ripening process damaging the fruit. Therefore, do not store bananas in the refrigerator but in a cool place. Unripe bananas can ripen in the fruit bowl which depending on the ripening stage, may take a few days.
- During ripening, starch is transformed into sugar. Unripe bananas contain 20 times as much starch as sugar. After ripening, the ratio is reversed, causing the banana to get its sweet taste.
- The browner the skin, the riper, sweeter and softer the banana.
Serving
- Sliced or mashed on toast with a little honey
- Delicious added to fruit salads
- Sautéed in Indonesian dishes (Nasi or Bami Goreng)
- Sliced on bread with peanut butter (or whole in a hot dog bun)
- Make a banana milkshake or smoothie
