Banana (Musa sp.) is one of the most common and widely grown fruit crops in the Philippines. It is also one of the country’s major dollar earners, and banana has consistently ranked next to coconut oil and prawns in terms of value earning during the last five years.
Banana has many uses. The ripe fruit is pureed, candied, and preserved in various forms when not eaten fresh. Its extract is used in the manufacture of catsup, vinegar, and wine. The unripe fruit is powdered and chipped. Among the more popular varieties are the Bungulan, Lacatan, Latundan, Saba, and Cavendish.
BANANA PROCESSING
Banana Chips
• Sweetened or salted banana chips are prepared from hard, green Saba or Cavendish.
• Prepare Brix syrup or “arnibal” for sweetened chips by mixing three parts sugar to every one part water.
• Clean, peel and slice the bananas to about .05 to 1.0 mm thick. Soak in cooking oil, turning frequently to prevent sticking.
• Place the banana chips in a strainer, allowing the oil to drip while heating cooking oil in a pan. Dip and fry the chips in the cooking pan without removing them from the strainer. Turn until yellowish brown, the lift the strainer and allow the oil to drip.
• Soak the fried chips in “arnibal” for two to three minutes. Let the syrup drip, then fry again until the chips become shiny.
• Let cool before packing or placing in bottles, cans or plastic bags.
For salted banana chips, use salt instead of refined sugar and soak in salt solution instead of “arnibal”.
Pastillas De Saging
• Boil ripe Saba, then peel and slice to 3-cm thick.
• Prepare half a cup of water for every two cups of sliced banana
and 300 grams sugar for every kilo of the same. Mix and mash the ingredients and cook in low heat while mixing until the ingredients become uniform, shiny and no longer stick to the pan.
• Transfer the mixture to a kneading board covered with, wax paper and with sugar sprinkled over it. Press with a rolling pin until the mixture becomes 1-cm thick, then add butter and sugar according to taste. Slice to pieces 4 cm x 4 cm thick. Let cool before packing in candy wrappers.
Banana Wine
• Peel ripe bananas and slice thinly.
• Measure. To every one part sliced bananas, add one-and-a-half parts water.
• Boil for 30 minutes or longer depending upon the quality of the pulp.
• Strain.
• Add sugar to the extract (one part sugar to every three parts extract).
• Stir and boil to dissolve the sugar. Sugar content should be 22-24 degrees. Brix.
• Allow to cool.
• Place in clean glass containers or demi johns.
• Inoculate with yeast (one tablespoon Red Star yeast to every 40 liters of boiled sweetened juice).
• Plug mouth of demi john a clean piece of paper to protect from dust.
• Ferment for a month.
• Siphon out the clear fermented liquid.
• Filter and transfer to a sterilized oak barrel for aging.
• Cover hole with a wooden plug and seal with melted paraffin.
• Age for two years or longer.
• Clarify the wine with eggwhites (eight eggwhites for every 30 liters of wine by heating the aged wine in steam bath or a double boiler to a temperature of 55-60 degrees Celsius while adding the well-beaten eggwhites.
• Stir for 15-20 minutes to maintain the temperature.
• Cool.
• Filter the wine by siphoning into clear and sterilized bottles.
Banana Vinegar
Materials
One part peeled ripe bananas (25 pieces, medium-sized)
Two parts water
¼ part sugar
Procedures
• Wash ripe bananas.
• Peel and cut into pieces.
• Add water and boil for five minutes.
• Cool.
• Strain.
• Add sugar and heat again.
• Cool again.
• Pour into suitable containers.
• Add one teaspoon yeast for every kilo of fruit used.
• Plug mouth of container with a piece of paper to protect it from dust.
• Ferment for two to three weeks.
• Siphon out clear, fermented liquid into a sterilized container.
• Add 100 cc of mother liquor to every kilo of fruit used.
• Plug mouth of container with cotton and cover it with clean paper.
• Ferment for one to two months.
• Pasteurize at 70 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes.
Banana Figs
• Select firm, ripe Cavendish bananas.
• Peel.
• Blanch for 30 seconds in boiling water.
• Drop bananas into boiling syrup made up of one part water and ¾ part sugar. Brown sugar may be used.
• Cook for one minute.
• Remove from fire and let bananas soak in the syrup overnight.
• Drain bananas.
• Add ¼ part sugar to syrup and boil.
• Add bananas and cook for one minute.
• Everyday for three more days, concentrate syrup by boiling for five to seven minutes.
• Soak bananas. On the final consistency.
• Soak bananas in the thick syrup for a week to plump and be thoroughly impregnated with syrup.
• Drain bananas and dry. The figs when dried can be handled without sticking to the finger.
Banana Catsup
Ingredients:
1 kilo cavendish (saba) bananas
1 head onion
1 pc red bell pepper
1 head garlic
3-3/4 liter water
20 pcs chili pepper
500 mL vinegar
1 kilo brown sugar
100 grams rock salt
1/8 tsp cloves (fine clavo de comer)
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp paprika
1 tsp catsup red # 600
1/8 tsp strawberry red
1/8 tsp chocolate brown
5 grams sodium benzoate
Utensils:
casserole
strainer
bowls
chopping board (plastic)
stainless steel knives
measuring spoons
weighing scales
thermometer
ladle
osterizer/food processor
funnel
colander
Packaging Material: sterilized bottles/jars
Procedure:
1. Wash rare ripe bananas (80% yellow and 20% green).
2. Boil bananas for 10 minutes. Drain water.
3. Peel, slice bananas into 3 cm thickness.
4. Slice onions, bell pepper and garlic then add 3 and ¼ liter of water. Add in sliced bananas. Grind using osterizer/blender for 1 minute.
5. Add ½ liter of water in chili pepper. Grind using osterizer/blender. Strain and mix the extract in banana mixture.
6. Add vinegar, sugar, salt and spices. Cook at 80° to 85°C for 40 minutes or until thick.
7. Add other ingredients previously dissolved in small amount of water such as catsup red, chocolate brown, strawberry red and sodium benzoate.
8. Pour in sterilized bottles while hot and seal thoroughly.
9. Label and store.
Source: Department of Agriculture
Agriculture and Fisheries Information Service
Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City 1100
Tel. No.: 9288758 to 65 loc. 2156
DA TIN No.: 000-845-895-000
www.da.gov.ph
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