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The following history of the banana is
adapted from The Complete
Book of Bananas, by W.O. Lessard, a renowned
banana expert now residing in Miami.
Bananas have been with us for most of
our recorded history. Around the time of the birth of Christ,
the Roman natural historian Pliny wrote of a yellow fruit,
seen centuries before by Alexander the Great, that was eaten
by the sages of India. In fact the botanical name for the
cultivated banana, Musa sapientum, means fruit of the wise
men.
On the other side of the world, an ancient
legend of Burma tells of how man first realized by observing
the birds eating them they could also eat bananas. To this
day the generic name for bananas in Burma is hnget pyaw meaning
"The birds told."
Echoing Pliny and the Burmese legend,
most authorities today agree the banana originated in Asia,
either in Southern China or Indochina and the Malay Archipelago.
It is here that most of the primitive wild bananas are still
found today. It is also here that two wild species, the Musa
acuminata and the Musa bulbisiana, began to evolve into the
seedless edible bananas that we know today.
Bananas were carried from their
sites of origin and distributed throughout the world
by explorers, settlers and missionaries. They were introduced
into the Western hemisphere in the 16th century by a
Spanish priest. Today there are about 500 known edible
bananas identified so far - and there are more varieties,
found mostly in the South Pacific and East Africa, that
have yet to be thoroughly classified.
Nutrition
Facts
- Fat free
- Sodium free
- Cholesterol free
- Good source of fiber, vitamin C, vitamin
B6, and potassium.
Availability
Bananas are available year round.
Stages of ripeness
Bananas are ordered by level of ripeness.
There are seven stages of ripeness. Bananas are picked from
the plant green and shipped refrigerated to wholesalers. Wholesalers
ripen the fruit for about four days before shipping to the
consumer. The ripening process cannot be accelerated at this
stage or quality may be sacrificed.
Ripening rooms must be used to closely
control the heat from respiration during ripening process.
The fruit must be ripened at 58-64 pulp temperature range.
Ethylene gas, which is a natural by product of bananas, is
used to obtain uniform ripening.
Selection
Choose bananas according to the skin color and
ripeness desired. Use green bananas for cooking, boiling or
eating at a later date. Full-yellow bananas are good for immediate
eating, in salads, cereals, fruit cocktails or simply as a
snack. Fully ripe bananas, with speckles on the skin are perfect
for baking, smoothies or any recipe with mashed bananas.
Storage
Store bananas at room temperature. To
accelerate ripening, place them in a brown paper bag with
an apple. To slow ripening, refrigerate. The skin will turn
black but the fruit will stay fresh.
Peeled bananas can be frozen and stored
in a freezer bag with a little bit of fresh lemon juice to
reduce browning.
Usage tips
When using bananas in salads, toss them
in lemon juice or pineapple juice to prevent banana from browning.
When green bananas are boiled with the
skin, prevent the latex on the skin from staining your pots
by adding the juice from one-half of a lime into the water.
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