Fruity Friday…The Red Banana

33 Replies

Red Bananas (2)

Banana trees are everywhere here in gardens, growing on wasteland, by the side of the road everywhere… Sometimes I can’t even give them away…

They can be frozen, used in fruit shakes and smoothies or banana bread…Banana pancakes are very popular here and we have a little stall just down the road from us.

The kids love them but they are too sweet for me and an occasional treat for them as they pour condensed milk all over them.

You will also see BBQ’S by the side of the road grilling them and serving with some sweet syrup or fried bananas, banana balls which are one of my favourites when I go to market but you name it you can get the banana any which way…

They range from tiny little bananas to fair sized one not sold by the kilo as in western countries but by the hand as bananas are freely available here and very prolific crops.

The red banana I was given as a gift by one of my neighbours they are very nice and so pretty… it has a balanced sweet taste and can be used as a cooking banana even though it isn’t plantain but we just enjoyed eating them just as they were.

Red Bananas (2)

The leaves of the red banana, however, cannot be used to cook, wrap or serve food on. The red banana is not so popular as other bananas as it is harder to grow they also require more water and the skins tend to crack so I think I got a bit of a treat as I hadn’t seen them before. and the skins on these were lovely and smooth so they obviously were well watered.

More so unusual because when I was showing a friend she told me that some red bananas sold as a sweet dish here are not a special variety that is naturally red like mine but rather, the bananas are soaked in red coloured hydrolyzed lime water, made with a lime powder obtained from fossilized shells dissolved in water. The soaking hardens the bananas so that they don’t fall apart when later boiled in syrup. These “Red ” bananas may be eaten on their own or served in sweetened coconut milk.

That was an interesting piece of info not sure if I would like to eat them but I will certainly be keeping my eyes out and have asked my friend to get me some if she sees them…I will now be investigating this fossilized shells they use.

You learn something every day don’t you??? Have you seen this dessert or tried it???

Healthwise the red banana is high on potassium and is alkaline in nature. Since it is red in colour, it has a high content of anthocyanin which acts like an antioxidant. It is also high on fibre and vitamin C.

Even though the basic constitutes of all varieties of bananas are the same, the red bananas are high in all the vitamins and minerals and is a great antioxidant-rich food.

Just a little tip… I was told that Red bananas are great for your skin when made into a paste… To prepare an easy and effective face mask mix powered oats, mashed red banana and few drops of honey to make a paste. Apply it on your face an let it dry and then wash it off.

Not only do they make a great face mask but they are good for your hair…

You can mash the banana with coconut, sesame or almond oil to moisturize your hair and to relieve problems like dandruff, hair fall and dry hair. Add few teaspoons of lemon in the mask and apply it all over your hair. Leave it on for 30 minutes and then wash off for bouncy and shiny hair.

I hope you enjoyed this post about my gift of red bananas…

If you did please hit the share buttons …xxx

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Thank you  for reading and have a lovely weekend x

 

33 thoughts on “Fruity Friday…The Red Banana”

  1. Pingback: Fruity Friday – PurpleSlob InRecovery

  3. Pingback: What is Lime water? Nam Pboon Sai | Retired? No one told me!

    1. Carol Post author

      You are very welcome, Debby… I found some cool things yesterday which I will share..I love finding new fruits and veggies..Have a lovely weekend 🙂 xx

      Liked by 1 person

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  9. Pingback: Retired No One Told Me! Weekly Roundup…Pork Crackling, Red Bananas and Noodles… | Retired? No one told me!

    1. Carol Post author

      I never knew until I was given some which is what I love about living here I discover so many fruits and veggies I never knew existed or that you could eat… Thank you for popping by 🙂 x

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      Reply ↓
  13. susieshy45

    Red bananas. In my home place, they say they have medicinal value and yes, they are not so widely available as the yellow ones- they are called kadali pazham in our local parlance.

    Do you have plantains too ?
    Susie

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

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