It’s very difficult for many people to tell that the sweetness of bananas vary. People commonly feel that all bananas are the same and have similar taste. It doesn’t require a lot of digging online to realize that some bananas are more sugary than others. For those who are not lucky enough to live in a banana-growing climate, such banana varieties may seem to be scenic to you.
There are unique features that vary from one banana to another. Bananas fruits differ in terms of sweetness, size, color, maturity, and maturity. Meanwhile, all bananas have a common feature of a fairly starchy texture. They also have the characteristic of ripening even after they have been detached from the mother plant.
Let us consider banana fruits in terms of sweetness.
The Sweetest Banana
The ladyfingers variety is the sweetest banana today. Ladyfingers bananas are the most delicious and best-tasting of all bananas in the world. They are also known as sugar bananas, date bananas, or fig bananas.
Though there is no reliable idea to find out which kind you are interested in, you can try out some tasty trial and error. Despite resembling the cultivar Latundan banana, it must not be confused because they are different. Latundan banana has a sweet sour taste and it’s a bit larger.
Ladyfinger banana is considered ripe if and only if the skin is a deep brown. A sweet ripe ladyfinger banana is also distinguished by a dark streak on the skin. You will probably say that a standard and perfect banana to eat is the sweet ladyfinger banana. When you consume such a banana, you are sure to reap all the benefits.
Unlike other common bananas, ladyfinger bananas have a sweeter flavor. They can grow up to 12.7 centimeters long and are approximately 1.27 centimeters in diameter. Their skins are thin and bright yellow. However, the skins develop dark streaks when fully ripe.
Ladyfinger banana plant can grow up to a height of 750 centimeters. Its stem is thin with reddish-brown streaks. The ladyfinger plant has a high resistance to wind damage since it has an established heavy root system. It is also resistant to Black weevil and drought, yet, can be susceptible to Sigatoka disease.
It flowers during summer and is known to be monocarpic. The plant’s propagation is asexual. Each hand of a ladyfinger banana can bear 12-20 fingers. A banana bunch is comprised of 10-14 hands.
Other Types of Bananas and their Tastes?
Bananas are basic fruits that do not require complicated knowledge to grow. Farmers obtain relatively high profits when they grow such a type of fruit.
There exist up to one hundred varieties of bananas. However, only a few varieties are found in groceries and supermarkets. Most of the varieties are grown in wild tropical areas so they are not familiar.
Apart from Ladyfinger bananas, the common types of bananas are the following;
1). Cavendish Bananas.
Cavendish bananas were first grown in 1835 by William Cavendish. They are the world’s main commercial crop. They have a quality of resistance to diseases. The Cavendish variety is present in many groceries and they are known for their creamy texture and slightly sweet taste.
Depending on their stage of ripening, Cavendish bananas can be green, yellow, or yellow with dark flecks. The bananas can be consumed raw, used as fruit salads, or as complementing ingredients.
2). Apple bananas.
These bananas are also named Candy apple bananas because of their sweet taste. They are mainly grown in the tropical rainforest of Hawaii. Apple bananas have a firm texture and a light-pink coloring.
The fruits are used as snacks in arid areas because of their sweet taste and high water content .unlike other varieties, apple bananas don’t turn brown rapidly. They are therefore suitable for fruit salads.
Apple bananas are grown in small-scale production, so they are known in the regions where they are mostly grown.
3). Red bananas.
The fruits are ripe and ready for consumption when their peels turn red. Although they have an unusual color, red, they are sweet tasting.
Red bananas were grown in India and Southeast Asia in the past. Today, they have found their way to Australia, South Africa, Pacific Islands, and New Zealand.
These bananas can be consumed raw or baked in any kind of tasty dish. Red bananas are the best alternatives to the yellow varieties in countries across the world.
4). Burro Bananas.
Burro bananas are small and flatter compared to other common types. They have a weak tangy citrus and are generally soft.
Burro bananas can help in the stimulation of hemoglobin in case an individual is suffering from severe anemia.
These bananas can be eaten raw or prepared in other forms.
5). Blue Java Bananas
These bananas can also be called ice cream bananas because they taste like vanilla ice cream. Their peels are bluish-silvery but turn yellow when ripe.
Blue Java Bananas have an interesting appearance which makes them suitable for decoration. So, they are grown for raw consumption and decoration.
Other types of bananas are; Praying Hands Bananas and Rhino Horn Bananas.
Why bananas are generally sweet fruits?
As bananas ripen, the rate at which starch inside the banana is converted to simple sugars is high. The amount of sucrose, glucose, and sucrose in a ripe banana fruit makes it tastier and sweeter.
Moreover, moisture is lost in the fruit as it ripens. Loss of moisture means that the sugars inside a banana become more concentrated and scented.
Ripe bananas are sweeter than green bananas because of the variation in starch and sugar content. Green bananas are rich in starch and therefore lack a sweet taste. Ripe bananas are rich in simple sugars and therefore they taste sugary.
An average banana contains approximately 12 grams of simple sugar