BANANA AND PLANTAIN - Tropical Fruits - page 220

fruit can also be cut into round or long slices that are deep fried and eaten as a
snack. In some cases, thick slices about 10 mm wide are cut, partially fried and
then expanded by pounding them, after which the frying is completed; these
slices, called 'patacones' or 'tostones', are very popular in Latin America and
are eaten as a side order with meat and other food preparations. Plantains are
also left to ripen completely until their peel turns black, at this point they are
usually sweet (Fig. 8.8); after this they are peeled and sliced or halved and fried
or baked to be eaten with the main course. Alternatively, the ripe fruits are
baked as a very nice dessert with added sugar, cream or butter, and cinnamon.
Corms, shoots and male buds are also eaten as a starch source or
vegetable. Immediately after harvest, the pseudostem still has considerable
starch reserves. The male bud, with the outer fi brous bracts removed, is boiled
in South-east Asia and eaten as a vegetable, after several changes of water to
remove astringency. Banana leaves are used as food wrappers for steaming.
FURTHER READING
Gowen, S. (ed.) (1995) Bananas and Plantains . Chapman and Hall, London.
Hassan. A. and Pantastico, F.B. (eds) (1990) Banana - Fruit Development, Postharvest
Physiology, Handling and Marketing in ASEAN . ASEAN Food Handling Bureau,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Robinson, J.C. (1996) Bananas and Plantains . Crop Production Science in Horticulture,
CAB International, Wallingford, UK.
Simmonds, N.W. (1982) Bananas , 2nd edition. Tropical Agricultural Series, Longman,
London.
Soto, M.S. (1992) Bananos (in Spanish). Lithography Imprenta LIL, San José, Costa
Rica.
Turner, D.W. (1994) Bananas and plantains. In: Schaf er, B. and Andersen, P.C. (eds)
Handbook of Environmental Physiology of Fruit Crops. Vol. II, Subtropical and Tropical
Crops . CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, pp. 37-64.
Turner, D.W. (1997) Bananas and plantains. In: Mitra, S.K. (ed.) Postharvest Physiology
and Storage of Tropical and Subtropical Fruits . CAB International, Wallingford. UK,
pp. 47-83.