Choosing Bananas

It’s almost impossible to find a bad banana, unless it’s moldy, but these days there are more banana-buying choices than there used to be. Organic bananas are grown in Mexico, supposedly to California organic specifications. Political correctness aside, the ones I’ve had have been delicious, smaller and more aromatic than the conventional kind.

Fancy bananas: Supermarkets now often sell red bananas, and many gourmet stores stock at least one or two or the 300 or so named varieties known to banana experts. Many of the exotic types, including the red ones, have denser flesh than the standard, and if they are not completely ripe they will taste unpleasantly acrid. Many of them have clinging skins and must be peeled with a paring knife even when ripe.

Plantains: These are bananas that are more vegetable than fruit. Always served cooked, they are as starchy as potatoes when green or yellow, though as sweet or sweeter than winter squash once they ripen.