Actually that’s somewhat of an exaggeration since of the ten different ways you can use parts of a banana tree only four involve eating them. Having said that it is remarkable just how many uses there are for this common tropical tree. While everyone reading this will have eaten the yellow fruit I doubt that many will have consumed the other three parts of the tree. To discover which these are and the other ways that the trees are used read this article by Violette Rose which I found over on the Dengarden website.
Bananas are produced in tall plants, which are often mistaken as trees. They actually have pseudo stems formed from leaf sheaths. Apart from producing sweet fruits, the plants have many different uses. In fact, almost all the parts of a banana plant are useful. In America, I have seen mostly the soft and sweet bananas that usually have brown spots on them when they ripe. But in South India, there are many different varieties of bananas you can find, including those with red skin.
Whatever the variety of the fruit, all the parts of a banana plant have some use. Here you can read about 10 uses of banana plants.1. Edible Sweet Bananas
Of course, the first use is definitely the sweet and healthy fruits from the plants, which you can eat raw as a delicious dessert, or use to cook or bake. The addition of bananas in cakes and desserts give them a rich, moist texture and add the natural sweetness, thus reducing the need for additional, artificial white sugar.
Bananas are rich in potassium, thus including them daily in your diet can help you control your blood pressure naturally.
Below you can see gluten free and healthy banana flour made from dried bananas, available to buy from Amazon. The flour is made from green bananas, so it is grain free and so it is paleo diet friendly too.
In India, homemade banana flour is usually used to prepare baby food.
You can try using banana flour as a replacement in many baking recipes, if you are allergic to gluten. Gluten free pancakes, cakes and muffins can be made from banana flour, which is also rich in potassium and other vitamins and minerals.2. Edible Banana Fruit Peels
Banana peels are edible. Most of us may not like the idea of eating them, but they are a great, natural and healthy food loved by cows. You can feed the cattle with the banana peels, or you can use them as a natural fertilizer in your garden. The nutrients in the peel enrich the soil, making it more fertile and suitable for the growth of plants.
And you can use the peels for cooking too, as they are tasty and healthy.
Please note that we do not usually use the peels of ripe bananas for cooking, but we often use the green peels of bananas that are about to ripe soon.
If you ever use plantains, a variety of cooking bananas, save the peels for a stir fry. The edible peels of raw plantains are the most perfect to be used in a stir fry. Just don’t overcook the peels, but saut? them in the pan for a few minutes along with salt and your favourite spices, and you have got a healthy, nutrient rich and tasty side dish for lunch! This is a popular dish in many parts of South India.3. Edible Stem
Banana plant stems are edible, healthy and rich in fibres. Drinking juice made of banana plant stems are thought to control the blood sugar levels, and so it is great for those who have diabetes. But you don’t have to cut your banana plant for that. Many of the plants naturally fall off after a while, mainly as a result of rain and winds. In that case, you don’t have to throw away the stem, but use them for food.
If you don’t like the idea of juicing the stems of banana plants, here is another traditional recipe. Remove the outer skins, so you get the white stem inside. Cut them into round slices, remove the fibres that project out. Chop the slices very finely, mix with grated coconut and stir fry along with turmeric and salt. This dish is full of fibres and it is so healthy for anyone who eats them. The only thing you may find difficult is the process of removing the extra fibres from the slices. But once that is done, cooking is really easy and the addition of grated coconut makes the recipe really tasty.
See more at Dengarden
