Cooking banana

Cooking bananas are a group of fruit cultivars from the genus Musa. Unlike dessert bananas, these fruits are primarily used in cooking because they are very starchy.

While many people use the term plantain, botanists use that name only for true plantains. True plantains belong to the AAB group. Other starchy varieties belong to the AAA, ABB, or BBB groups. All these different groups are scientifically known as Musa × paradisiaca. These plants are a major food staple in West and Central Africa. They are also essential in the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South America.

The way these fruits are prepared depends on their ripeness and starch content. Green plantains are very starchy and have a neutral flavor. Their pulp is hard, and the peel is often so stiff that a knife is required to remove it.

As the fruit matures and turns yellow, some starch converts into sugar. This makes the pulp softer and sweeter. Yellow plantains can be peeled easily like dessert bananas. When fried, the sugars caramelize to create a golden-brown color. People can prepare these fruits by boiling, frying, baking, grilling, or even microwaving them.

There are many specific ways to cook these fruits across the globe. One common method for green plantains is making tostones. These are twice-fried fritters that are popular in many parts of the Western hemisphere.

First, long pieces are fried in oil. Next, the segments are smashed down to half their original height. Finally, they are fried a second time and seasoned with salt. In Haiti, these are called bannann peze and served with a cabbage-based condiment called pikliz. In Nicaragua, they are often served with fried cheese or refried beans.

Sweet preparations use ripe plantains to create different textures and flavors. In many Latin American countries, these sweet slices are called maduros or amarillos.

Some people bake these in the oven with cinnamon. In Puerto Rico, baked maduros are a common breakfast food served with eggs or bacon. Another unique dish is the Venezuelan yo-yo. This is a sandwich made of two fried ripe slices with soft white cheese in the middle. The whole sandwich is dipped in egg and fried again until the cheese melts.

Different cultures have developed highly specialized recipes for these fruits. In India, the state of Kerala produces a snack called pazham pori.

This involves dipping the plantain in a sweetened rice and white flour batter before frying. In Nigeria, the Yoruba people eat a dish called boli. This consists of roasted plantain served with roasted fish and ground peanuts. In Ghana, street vendors sell a spiced snack called kelewele. This version is often flavored with nutmeg, chili powder, ginger, and salt. In the Philippines, fried bananas are a defining part of arroz a la cubana.

Plantains are an incredibly important resource for human nutrition. They rank as the tenth most important staple food in the entire world.

Because the plants fruit all year, they provide a reliable food source. This is especially true in developing countries that lack advanced food storage or transportation. In Africa, plantains and bananas provide more than 25 percent of the caloric needs for over 70 million people. An average plantain provides significant food energy, potassium, and dietary fiber. However, the plants are vulnerable to hurricanes because they do not withstand high winds well.

The science behind these fruits involves complex hybridization. Originally, Carl Linnaeus classified them into two separate species. He named plantains Musa paradisiaca and dessert bananas Musa sapientum. We now know that both are actually hybrids. They result from a mix of two species: Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. The different combinations of these genomes create the various groups like AAB and AAA. This genetic diversity allows for the many different types of cooking bananas used by people today.