difference???

Question

what is the main difference between a banana and a plantain??? and why do plantain need to be cooked and bananas dont???

Answer 1

Plantains are a member of the banana family. They are a starchy, low in sugar variety that is cooked before serving as it is unsuitable raw. It is used in many savory dishes somewhat like a potato would be used and is very popular in Western Africa and the Caribbean countries. It is usually fried or baked. It's such a versatile fruit, yet it is so misunderstood. And while most people think it looks like an ugly banana, it is really much, much more.

The plantain is the only fruit that can be used at all stages of ripeness, (green, yellow and black) and it has distinct and delicious flavor at all stages. While the plantain is a fruit, it is not eaten raw like any other fruit but is treated more like a vegetable and served fried, baked, mashed, sautéed, stuffed, or even micro-waved.

The versatile plantain can be used to create enticing appetizers, satisfying entrées or tempting desserts. And, because it's usable at all stages of ripeness, the plantain has almost no waste. The main difference between a banana and a plantain is moisture content. The plantain averages about 65% moisture content and the banana averages about 83% moisture content. Since hydrolysis, the process by which starches are converted to sugars, acts fastest in fruit of higher moisture content it converts starches to sugars faster in bananas than it does in plantains. A banana is ready to eat when the skin is yellow whereas a plantain is not ready to eat "out of hand" until hydrolysis has progressed to the point where the skin is almost black.

Good source of plantain information:
http://www.turbana.com/

http://commhum.mccneb.edu/fstdatabase/htm_files/Fruit/plantain.htm

Answer 2

Plantains are bananas that are generally used for cooking, as contrasted with the soft, sweet banana varieties (which are sometimes called dessert bananas). Plantains tend to be firmer and lower in sugar content than dessert bananas and are commonly used when green or underripe and therefore starchy. Plantains are a staple food in the tropical regions of the world, treated in much the same way as potatoes and with a similar neutral flavour and texture when unripe. They are grown as far north as Florida, the Caribbean, the Canary Islands, Madeira, Egypt, and southern Japan or Taiwan and as far south as KwaZulu-Natal and southern Brazil. It is assumed that the Portuguese Franciscan monks were responsible for the introduction of plantains to the Caribbean islands and other parts of the Americas. The Spaniards, who saw a similarity to the plane tree that grows in Spain, gave the plantain its Spanish name, platano. It is also commonly known as Ribwort in western herbal medicine.

Answer 3

Check out foodnetwork.com


Very different fruit.

and it must be made differently.

good luck

Answer 4

the way it's grown