Grab a banana!

You want a healthy kickstart to your day? Have a banana! 

Have an upset stomach…you guessed right, have a banana! 

Well, you don’t need a reason to eat a banana. Just eat it, we say.  

The most common fruit to be found anywhere in the world, there are numerous kinds of bananas available. Sweet and soft, firm and starchy, this fruit is versatile and can be consumed in any form – raw or ripe. What’s more, the ash of this fruit can be used to make soap and beer can be made from some variety of this fruit too. They are called the beer banana. In the agricultural world banana tree often provides shade when cultivating cocoa, coffee, nutmeg or black pepper. 

India is known for its banana production due to the ideal weather: humidity and tropical weather.  It is the largest herbaceous flowering plant and resembles a tree. The leaves grow spirally with the banana fruit hanging in clusters. Hence, it is also called a bunch or banana stem. There can be as many as twenty tiers in a bunch. A bunch usually weighs more than 40 kilograms. Each banana has a protective outer skin and both, the skin and inner part (flesh,) can be eaten. Each banana has many strings that run between the skin and the inner flesh. When most bananas are ripe, they turn yellow or, sometimes, red. 

Robusta

This type is of a banana cultivar belonging to the Cavendish subgroup hence, also called Cavendish banana. They are mostly cultivated in Central America. In India, this variety is mostly produced in Tamilnadu. It is commercially grown, easily available and most consumed. These bananas are naturally ripened which gives this fruit a nice flavour and a creamy texture. Therefore, Robusta is the common choice when preparing a smoothie or a delicious dessert for its sweet taste or simply to satisfy hunger pangs.  

Red bananas

This type of banana cultivar i.e., a variety of bananas, boasts of attractive reddish-purple skin. Naturally luring, the flesh of this type turns from cream to light pink when ripe.  Simply wow, they are soft and sweet and have a hint of sour raspberry flavour. As it is packed with more health and goodness than any other type of banana, it is sought-after, especially in Mexico and other Central American countries.   

Elaichi/Yelakki

Again, loaded with nutrients and good for health it is mainly found in Central and South India. It is also known to induce good sleep. So, if you are suffering from insomnia an elaichi banana, apart from a warm glass of milk, could help. Elaichi banana’s sugar content is balanced with fibre hence, it helps to maintain a healthy blood glucose level.  

Nendran

Hailing from Kerala, it is also called Changalikodan as this type is cultivated in the village called Chengazhikodu. Planted in October, this type is grown organically with organic fertilizers to get its unique colour and texture. Manure derived from green leaf, cow dung, ash and such is used to foster growth. It needs great care at each stage of farming.  This variety is considered one of the sacred fruits hence, offered in many temples and other religious practices. It is also used to make banana chips. 

Karpuravalli (Madras banana)

Enjoy it when hunger pangs hit you…sweet to taste this awesome variety is soft when ripe.  Yes, it is the sweetest fruit among other bananas. It is grown in medium-rich soil and is soft and round when ripe. It has an eye-catching ash colour that stands out from other bananas.    

Hunger pangs, eat your banana 

Bananas are good for health. With hordes of benefits, it offers a lot. This is perhaps one fruit that is commonly seen on our breakfast table. With a little more than 80 calories, it is a guilt-free delicacy with everything to gain and nothing to lose. It is packed with potassium which is essential for heart health because of its role in normalising blood pressure. Bananas contain a lot of vitamin B6 and vitamin C.  

Sinful desserts to delectable subzi 

In India, especially in the South, we eat both the skin and the inside cooked. Here, a banana has more than a culinary status. A staple offering to the Gods, this is truly nature’s gift. With ripe bananas, you can make halwa, wafers, cake or banana bread.  

The raw fruit too can be cut into small thin slices for pakodas, subzis, and even kebabs. Go to Kerala to enjoy Kalan or Avial. Travel northeast to taste their breakfast fare Jolpan. 

There are many fares, whether sweet or savoury, you can make with banana, but here is what we recommend. 

Fresho Signature Tea Cake – Banana Walnut 

Made from finely chopped bananas, roasted walnuts and a dash of brown sugar this moist cake is a perfect accompaniment with tea.  Made with premium quality ingredients, it will pamper your taste buds.  

Theobroma Banana Cake 

Tea-time snack for the whole family, this soft, moist cakey bread is made with the sweetness of freshly mashed ripe bananas. You can also pack it in your child’s tiffin for a healthy natural meal. 

Trivia 

Elaichi banana is a sleep inducer. Its fibre content balances out the sugar content thus, making it safe to be consumed when on a medical diet.  However, a doctor’s approval is always necessary. 

Red banana is believed to be an aphrodisiac and is supposed to boost fertility.