View Full Version : dissapointed with mystery banana
delonix87
07-20-2013, 06:04 AM
Hi
This was my very first banana; I have grown it since I was 10. It was given to me by a family friend who described it as a 'finger banana'. Well, I never tried it before until yesterday. A single fruit on the bunch ripened. I pulled it down and noticed -
- It had no 'banana' smell; no odor at all
- the fruit was distinctly 'triangle' shaped
- The texture was very gooey, like gum
- Apart from being sweet, it had no real taste.
Does this sound like any particular variety? I'm guessing it is a primitive variety. We are in winter now (9 - 18 degrees daily) so I don't know if ripening in winter has caused this insipidness or it is naturally bland.
Any ideas?
The plant grows in a very open clump and stems lean 'out'. Not tight or tidy like Cavendish at all:
sunfish
07-20-2013, 08:08 AM
Hi
This was my very first banana; I have grown it since I was 10. It was given to me by a family friend who described it as a 'finger banana'. Well, I never tried it before until yesterday. A single fruit on the bunch ripened. I pulled it down and noticed -
- It had no 'banana' smell; no odor at all
- the fruit was distinctly 'triangle' shaped
- The texture was very gooey, like gum
- Apart from being sweet, it had no real taste.
Does this sound like any particular variety? I'm guessing it is a primitive variety. We are in winter now (9 - 18 degrees daily) so I don't know if ripening in winter has caused this insipidness or it is naturally bland.
Any ideas?
The plant grows in a very open clump and stems lean 'out'. Not tight or tidy like Cavendish at all:
Looks like M.Orinoco. Some people like them some don't :)
caliboy1994
07-20-2013, 02:36 PM
It's good for cooking. Makes excellent tostones.
delonix87
07-20-2013, 05:48 PM
It looks like orinocco, except it doesn't have a 'great taste' (no taste just sweet). Odd. Also it was found growing in an old, abandoned area of Australia - I don't know if Orinocco has been here that long
caliboy1994
07-20-2013, 05:50 PM
You have to let them get really ripe before they're even comparable to something like Cavendish.
venturabananas
07-21-2013, 01:22 AM
Yes, definitely a Bluggoe variety like Orinoco.
delonix87
07-22-2013, 04:21 PM
Yes, definitely a Bluggoe variety like Orinoco.
So I tried to cook them as plantains (which I have done with real plantains before). Total disaster; the fruit stayed hard as a rock after boiling for an eternity (even though it was nearing ripeness on the tree). Strange; I'll let the rest ripen on the tree and try again; if it still doesn't taste any better I'll be giving it away
caliboy1994
07-23-2013, 01:55 AM
Try slicing them up and then frying them while they're green.
shannondicorse
07-23-2013, 06:17 PM
- It had no 'banana' smell; no odor at all
- the fruit was distinctly 'triangle' shaped
- The texture was very gooey, like gum
- Apart from being sweet, it had no real taste.
Any ideas?
Delonix,
Based on the pic, I'd guess that this was a prematurely ripened fruit on a stressed bunch of ABB cooking bananas. It happens frequently. Such fruit are often cracked, fibrous, corky or gelatinous and uncharacteristic of the cultivar in general.
This group of bananas, while not epicurean delights as dessert fruit, are far from insipid when fully grown out and ripened.
Keep trying and don't dump the plant. It is considered, though, to be more of a cooking banana. In tropical lands they (like plantains) are always eaten cooked in various ways.
Not to say that many cooking bananas are not quite yummy ripened and raw!
shannon
shannon.di.corse@gmail.com
delonix87
07-28-2013, 04:35 PM
Delonix,
Based on the pic, I'd guess that this was a prematurely ripened fruit on a stressed bunch of ABB cooking bananas. It happens frequently. Such fruit are often cracked, fibrous, corky or gelatinous and uncharacteristic of the cultivar in general.
This group of bananas, while not epicurean delights as dessert fruit, are far from insipid when fully grown out and ripened.
Keep trying and don't dump the plant. It is considered, though, to be more of a cooking banana. In tropical lands they (like plantains) are always eaten cooked in various ways.
Not to say that many cooking bananas are not quite yummy ripened and raw!
shannon
shannon.di.corse@gmail.com
I believe you are correct. The fruit was split on one side and the rest of the bunch have stayed green. At least I have something to look forward to with the rest of the bunch
I will probably end up removing it anyway to make room for my Gros Michels
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