Banana lessons: how to eat, peel, store, fry, and dry bananas?

There is probably no country whose residents do not like or eat bananas. However, everywhere they do it differently - in some places they prefer to eat them raw, in others they prepare a lot of delicious desserts. We have prepared for you the best recipes, as well as information on eating bananas according to the rules of etiquette and a selection of interesting facts about these bright yellow fruits.

How to eat a banana correctly?

The easiest way to eat a banana at home is “monkey style” - hold the fruit in your hand and take a bite out of it. But in a restaurant you will have to follow the rules of etiquette.

If the bananas were served whole, proceed as follows:

1. Take one fruit and place it on your dessert plate.
2. Using a dessert knife, cut off the stem and the opposite tip of the banana, then, holding it with a fork, move these parts to the far edge of the plate.
3. Cut off the top of the peel to create a “lid.” Cut away from you, holding the top of the banana with a fork to prevent it from sliding on the plate.
4. Push the cut top back with a fork until it covers the side of the banana away from you.
5. Holding the knife in your right hand and the fork in your left, eat the fruit, cutting off a piece of it.
6. When you finish eating, place the parts of the banana that you cut off at the very beginning (the stem and the tip) inside the empty peel. Cover with a “lid” on top. Perform all manipulations using cutlery.

It should also be remembered that bananas contain a lot of fast carbohydrates - up to 26 g per 100 g of product. For this reason, nutritionists recommend eating them in the first half of the day, or at least no later than 6 pm. If you regularly feast on these fruits before bed, the calories that were not used by the body will turn into extra pounds on the sides, stomach and other “vulnerable” places.

Sometimes bananas are recommended to be used instead of sleeping pills, indicating that they contain melatonin, a hormone that “turns on sleep patterns” in the human body. Unfortunately, the amount of melatonin in these fruits is negligible - only 0.000035 mg per 100 g. For comparison, the minimum dose of melatonin recommended by doctors for a single dose is 1 mg.

How to properly store bananas so they don't spoil?

In an attempt to preserve bananas for as long as possible, people put them in the refrigerator. Most likely, you also made this mistake, and then were surprised to see that the fruits turned black overnight, although they were absolutely fresh. The fact is that bananas, like other fruits that grow in the tropics, are very sensitive to cold. The temperature in the main chamber of a household refrigerator ranges from 4 to 7 °C - this is enough for the cells containing phenolic compounds (they are responsible for the bright yellow color of the peel) to die.Phenols literally break free and react with another substance - polyphenol oxidase. As a result, melanin pigment is formed - it is what gives the skin its dark brown color. These processes do not affect the pulp, so it can still be eaten, but the shelf life of blackened fruits is significantly reduced. If you don't eat them within a day or two, they will begin to rot.

Another common mistake is storing bananas in a plastic bag. These fruits produce huge amounts of ethylene, a gas that activates the ripening process. When it accumulates in an enclosed space, the life cycle of the fruit rapidly accelerates; Even being green, they fully ripen in a few hours, and then become overripe, after which they begin to rot.

Summarizing the above, we come to the following conclusion on how to store bananas:

• at room temperature,
• in a clean, dry, well-ventilated place.

A little-known life hack: to extend the shelf life of bananas, you need to tightly wrap the place where they connect to each other with food foil.

From the “tail” or from the “butt” - how to open a banana correctly?

According to etiquette, a banana is supposed to be peeled by cutting off both the stem and the “butt”, and it doesn’t matter in what order. This method can be considered the most correct, but few people are armed with a knife and fork at home - most often people open the fruit using only their own fingers. Someone breaks off the “tail” with a delicious crunch, while others tear the peel, starting from the opposite end, which is why disputes regularly arise.

If you look at the situation from a scientific point of view, it makes no difference how the banana was peeled - the amount of vitamins, minerals and other components in it does not change, as well as the taste. Therefore, the question of correctness flows into a question of personal preference and convenience.

An interesting fact is that in the world of monkeys, who are considered avid banana lovers, there is also no unanimity. For example, gorillas and chimpanzees prefer to open fruits from the butt. And orangutans, in order to avoid unnecessary philosophical reflections, eat these fruits along with the peel.

How to fry bananas correctly: recipes from chefs

Not all bananas are suitable for frying - only bright yellow ones, moderately sweet, with dense flesh. Too ripe ones fall apart when exposed to high temperatures, and green ones have too much starch and have a “soapy” taste. In Asian countries, varieties with small fruits and very aromatic pulp are most often used - Chuoi Su and Pisang Awak. In our latitudes, you don’t have to choose: what you bring to the store is what goes into use.

Asian style deep fried bananas

This dish in appearance - and in taste too - resembles small sweet pies. It's very quick and easy to prepare.

All you need:

• deep and not very wide deep-frying container;
• refined vegetable oil;
• two sheets of parchment;
• paper towels;
• a brush of baby bananas (you can also take regular ones);
• 100 g rice flour;
• 2 teaspoons of wheat flour (heaped);
• 1 teaspoon of sugar (you can use two or three, but no more: firstly, the taste of the batter will become cloying, and secondly, instead of golden bananas, the bananas will turn out too “tanned”);
• ¼ teaspoon salt;
• 60 ml water.

Having prepared all the ingredients, proceed to the next stage - culinary:

1. Prepare the batter - combine both types of flour, sugar, salt and water and mix the mixture thoroughly with a whisk to break up any lumps. Leave the resulting dough for 30 minutes, during which time the flour will swell and the batter will become homogeneous.
2. Peel the bananas. If using regular ones, cut them crosswise into two or three pieces.
3. Place one baby banana or one piece of regular fruit between sheets of parchment and flatten with any heavy, flat object to about 1 cm thick. Do the same with all the remaining bananas. Then spread the blanks on parchment and put them in the freezer for 15 minutes.
4. After the specified time has passed, pour oil into the deep-frying container and place on the stove to heat up.
5. When the oil is hot, remove the bananas from the freezer. Dip each piece in turn into the batter and immediately fry. The most convenient way to do this is with chopsticks.
6. Turn the bananas over as they fry to ensure they cook evenly. Those “pies” that have changed color to golden brown and have acquired a hard, crispy crust, immediately remove and place on a paper towel.

Deep-fried bananas are good both as a separate dish and as an addition to tea.

Banana flambé

The name flambé refers to the method of preparing this dish, and it comes from the French word for “flame.” Flambéed bananas are one of the most popular restaurant-quality desserts, but you can make them at home in just 10-15 minutes.

First prepare:

• frying pan;
• several bananas (they should fit freely in the frying pan);
• 4 tablespoons of rum or good cognac;
• 40 g sweet butter;
• 120 g brown sugar;
• some almond petals for decoration;
• ice cream for serving.

Next, follow the step-by-step recipe:

1. Gently peel the bananas and cut them in half lengthwise. They should not wrinkle or fall apart.
2. Melt the butter in a frying pan and add sugar. Mix both ingredients and prepare the brown caramel - to prevent it from burning, do not forget to stir it and turn the heat to medium.
3. Place the bananas in the caramel and fry for 1.5–2 minutes, turning occasionally with a spatula.
4. Pour alcohol into the frying pan and, after letting it warm up for 2-3 seconds, set it on fire. Be careful - the flame will shoot up sharply, so do not lean over the frying pan, and also make sure that there are no flammable surfaces above or near it (curtains, wooden cabinets).
5. When the fire goes out, place the bananas on a plate and serve - pour caramel, sprinkle with almond petals. Place a scoop of ice cream next to it.

During flambéing, all the alcohol burns away - only a pleasant aroma remains from the rum or cognac, so you can treat children with these bananas. But if you wish, you can prepare a separate portion for younger family members without alcohol, using cinnamon, vanilla, orange juice or zest as a flavoring.

How to properly dry bananas at home?

At home, you can not only fry bananas, but also dry them. You are unlikely to get chips as beautiful and smooth as those on the shelf in the store, but imperfect appearance does not spoil the taste of the product.

Ripe, hard, aromatic and sweet fruits are suitable for drying. They should be peeled, cut into thin slices (1–2 mm thick) and placed in water acidified with lemon juice or citric acid for 30 seconds.This will prevent the bananas from browning, but will give them a slight sourness. If you want sweet chips without the sour taste, you have to sacrifice a beautiful color.

For sun-drying, it is better to cut bananas not into circles, but into strips 1 cm thick.

In the microwave

A microwave oven is the fastest way to dry bananas at home. The whole process takes about 6-7 minutes, but you cannot process a lot of raw materials and stock up on goodies - there is a risk that the microwave will break down.

To treat yourself to healthy banana chips, follow these steps:

1. Line a porcelain or glass plate with siliconized parchment.
2. Place banana slices on it in a single layer.
3. Place in the microwave oven, then turn it on for 5 minutes at 600 Watts.
4. After the specified time has passed, check how dry the slices are and turn on the microwave for another 1-2 minutes.

When hot, the finished chips are more like dried banana, but as they cool, they harden a little. Remove them from the parchment and transfer to a plate, sprinkle with powdered sugar and cinnamon if desired.

In the oven

Cooking in the oven takes 2–3 hours. Line a baking sheet with siliconized parchment, place banana slices on it in a single layer and place in a preheated oven. Leave the door ajar to allow moisture evaporating from the fruit to escape. The optimal temperature is 50 °C; at higher values, a completely different process will begin - baking.

In an electric dryer

If you have a special device - an electric dryer - it is enough to spread the banana slices on mesh trays and dry for 10-12 hours at 30 °C. You should not use parchment: it will interfere with air circulation.

If the finished chips “stick” to the trays, remove them by slightly prying them with a knife or the edge of a spoon.

In the sun

You can wilt bananas naturally, but it will take a lot of time - about a week. Place banana slices on any flat surface (baking sheet, metal mesh, board), cover with gauze on top and take out into the open air. It is necessary that the fruits are blown by the wind and at the same time exposed to direct sunlight.

After sunset, take the baking sheet into a dry, ventilated area. Take it back outside towards noon, when the dew has gone off. Turn the slices once or twice a day to ensure they wilt evenly.

Store dried bananas in the refrigerator in a glass jar, sprinkle the slices with powdered sugar. Depending on the degree of dehydration, the period Storage ranges from one week to two months.

Doctors recommend eating bananas for both children and adults, because they are an excellent source of potassium and a good mood.But don’t forget about the calorie content of these fruits - in pursuit of “joy hormones” you can gain a couple of extra pounds.