bananaT

My Orinoco fruit finally ripened to perfection. Here's just some info, and notes on the flavor for anybody that may be interested in knowing.

The flag leaf appeared in the middle of may.
The stalk was around 9 feet tall.
The bell pushed out around may 21st, with the first female buds popping out a couple days latter.
I harvested the bunches on August 20Th. I did harvest them before they completely ripened on the stalk, but they were yellowing.
So it still works out to around three months, from flag leaf to harvest.

The mother plant was put in the ground as a sucker on April 27 2011.
I don't know if it has any bearing on the time to maturity, I believe it did, but during that year over a dozen suckers were removed from the growing corm.
All together it took around 15 months from sucker to ripe fruit for my Orinoco.

Now to the fruit!

In total there were 16 fruits in the 2 bunches. the weight was 10lbs and 4 oz.
While the fruits are supposedly very good cooked green, I prefer ripe bananas.

It took 6 days at room temp for the bananas to turn almost completely brown.
While they were brown outside, the inside was just perfect.
The peel is much thinner than I would have guessed, because it is very tough and fibrous, it protected the flesh nicely.

The color of the flesh was a nice pal yellow, streaked with dark yellow lines, that are visible in the picture.

It was near the firmness of a store banana that is still splotched with green.
So it holds a nice firmness, it doesn't get mushy when fully ripe.
The moisture content was a little lower too. Not much, but it lends itself to the fruit being more firm and holding up while ripe.

The sugar content was perfect in my opinion. Not over sweet with no flavor, like store bananas.
The flavor was definitely more than your store banana. It had no acidity, but I could pick up hints of grape. And it did have your classic banana taste notes as well.

Over all it was a very nice tasting banana. The flavors were there, but light. The flesh was nice and firm. It would definitely hold up well for cooking or drying.

Out of 10, 10 being the best. I would give it a 7 1/2.

Very much worth growing if you ask me. Not just because of the fruit, but the plant is tolerant of frost, with the stalk surviving cold snaps down to 27 degrees in my experience.


When they were green, over a week ago.


A couple days ago, almost ripe.


Ripe!!

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Darkman

I'm a bit north of you but have had the same experience. My Orinocos were more fruity tasting than store bought with a hint of blackberry flavor. I thought mine were a bit more moist as I view the store bought a bit on the dry side but it was not sloppy wet, very firm just right. Not having any other tasting to rate it at I leave it at significantly better than store bought.

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Darkman in Pensacola

AS ALWAYS IMHO AND YOUR MILEAGE MAY DIFFER!!!!!!!!

Life - Some assembly required, As is no warranty, Batteries not included, Instructions shipped separately and are frequently wrong!

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Statistics - Data that analyst twist to support the insane opinions of those that pay them.

LilRaverBoi

Thanks for the review! This is exciting because I just found some orinoco bananas at a Vietnamese grocery store today and came home to see this thread. Just makes me anticipate them getting to full ripeness even more!

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chipboy44

Hello there, I think I read that you tried your orinoco's fried but that you tried them while they were still green. If you liked them OMG you would be in for a TREAT if you waited until they are ripe. It is a fact that cooking bananas are usually best when cooked green. The cooking of them while green turns the starch to sugar and makes them very good. This banana is like an on the fence banana. I find that it can at times be a little not tough but like grisley with knots in them so I NEVER eat them raw. I on;ly cook an orinoco banana. The best thing about them is they are even better when held onthe counter until the are yellow and very ripe. If sliced diagionally not even a half in inch thick and then fried they become al,most like CANDY. When I was a kid growing up we ONLY ate the hog (orinoco) bananas fried and not till they are ripe. If you try this it will blow your socks off trust me. You will NEVER fry another green banana.
Sa;ute'
rick

d-lilly

so do you all put flour on the banana,or dip in egg then flour, and what oil is the best to fry in? uuummm its makin me hungry

bananaT

Blackberry, grape, without the acidity they are probably close in peoples minds, So I agree with you.

I may have picked up some dryness in mine, because they were dry, not watered, the week or so before I cut them down.

They definitely taste better than store bananas, too.
I think they would ship quite well. I don't know how common they are, but they should be distributed more widely, if they're not already.

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Dalmatiansoap

Hey T,
that first post is one of the best banana reviews on .org for some time now IMO.

keep on going

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RandyGHO

I agree, it is a great review filled with good information. I must say I have shied away from the Orinoco but after your detailed review it is back on my list.

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island cassie

BananaT - I agree with you and Orinoco is one of my favourites AS LONG AS IT IS FULLY RIPE and so huge that it is a fruit to share. I have been singing its praises for a long time now but for some reason folks have the wrong idea about it. Dominicans like to treat them as plantains, but we are slowly gaining converts for the ripe fruit.

Scobad

How are we frying? Are we basically cutting to coin or thicker and sautéing them?

bananaT

I like to cut them a bit thick, and fry them crunchy on the outside.
I eat them every morning with eggs and salsa

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Davey

This is a bit on the late side for this thread....but better late than never, right? Just found out, from y'all, the correct i.d. of my established clump of Orinoco, and, that they are a popular cooking banana. So......in the spirit of experimentation, today Sept. 25, I harvested right off the living stalk, a single, green, full-sized fruit today. My live-in chef, hubby Rex, peeled it, sliced it in 1/4" rounds, and fried it in butter in a hot iron skillet. Our impression: Raw, this fruit is so astringent and bitter it's a like a green persimmon in your mouth. Pucker city. But fried.....I dare any given blindfolded American to tell it's not a French-fried potato. Pretty identical flavor. I can see why it's popular prepared this way. But for us, we prefer a sweeter, more sweet potato-like fried chip or round, for inclusion in a burrito. So we'll keep experimenting, with different stages of ripeness, cooked pretty much the same way. Hope this post was helpful!

Miriam and Rex, Baton Rouge LA

Darkman

Have eaten a dozen or so ripe this year and I still find a blackberry taste with a lemon finish. The knots mentioned in an earlier thread have been absent this year. For my location they are the only reliable banana. This year is looking good though and I have Saba, Tall Namwah and Dwarf Cavendish hanging too. Good year for bananas!

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Darkman in Pensacola

AS ALWAYS IMHO AND YOUR MILEAGE MAY DIFFER!!!!!!!!

Life - Some assembly required, As is no warranty, Batteries not included, Instructions shipped separately and are frequently wrong!

Kentucky Bourbon - It may not solve the problem but it helps to make it tolerable!

Statistics - Data that analyst twist to support the insane opinions of those that pay them.

bananaT

They are my, and in general a very reliable banana.
They tastes great and can take a beating. If you take care of them the
bunch size gets larger as well.
It's a very common "wild" banana found all over the south for a reason.
I wish we could find out the history of how this variety got to the Americas.

If anyone is interested in getting one it's $30 shipped for a nice size growing corm.

paypal.me/Tfarms

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Botanical_Bryce

Came in the 1500s by the Spanish from central America. There are several Orinoco varieties as well

Island Brah

That's cool info. I was given a Tall and dwarf Orinoco, how do you know which variety and how many varieties of Orinoco are there? The Tall Orinoco I have is the fastest growing plant I've ever had. 3 feet in about a month in a 5 gallon pot!

I also have some other varieties I'd like to learn more history about if you know a good source for info. I tried Google but only came up with bit of info.

I know you're probably not a banana history major lol, but I wanted to ask anyways.

Thanks!

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Growing: Basjoo, Blue Java (The Real One), FHIA-01 American Goldfinger, Manzano, Tall Orinoco, Raja Puri (USDA TARS), Veinte Cohol (USDA TARS), Patupi, & SH-3640 High Noon (USDA TARS)

Paulzie32

Actually, Bryce has a LOT of knowledge on Orinocos :-) He also has several different varieties. I believe there is another thread on here with some history.
But I'll let Bryce come back and tell you more ;-)

As for Orinocos, My sister has one and when I've had one that was at the Yellowness I eat store bought cavendish at, it was Far too starchy and not so good. But Bryce brought me one that had more brown on it than I typically eat a store bought cavendish and it was PERFECT! Absolutely Delicious and FAR better than any store bought cavendish! It made me a Convert and a Lover of Orinocos now.

As for how they're good cooked, Bryce suggested to me to slice and fry the "coins" in Coconut Oil. I did toss them with Cinnamon and sugar with a few drops of vanilla mixed in! AWESOME!!! I can't wait for the Orinoco I got from Bryce to flower and fruit! Hoping next year!

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Have: Mysore, Pisang Klotek, Rajapuri, a Pineapple flavored type (Pisang Raja?), Manzano, Veinte Cohol, Gros Michel, Gran Nain, Double Mahoi, Enano Gigante, Dwarf Cavendish, SDC, TT, SH3640, FHIA-18, a NOT FHIA-18 (?), FHIA 01, Pitogo, Blue Java, Dwarf Red, Dwarf Namwah, Tall Namwah, Orinoco (from 3 locations), Dwarf Orinoco, Cali Gold, Hua Moa, (Red?) Iholena, Dwarf Iholene, Dwarf Puerto Rican, Velutina and growing

The Frugal Hugel Gardener

I also have plenty of Orinoco Banana plants that fruit quit well, and I love the size and taste. here is a recent pic os a rack.

all43

What a lovely picture!

The Frugal Hugel Gardener

Thanks, I wanted to post a smaller photo, not sure why it is so large.
any suggestions for posting pics?
Thanks
Sam