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(Musa spp.) The deep purplish-crimson
colored banana flower is used as a vegetable from Sri Lanka to Laos. The
flower is borne at the end of the stem. Long, slender, sterile male
flowers with a faint sweet fragrance are lined up in tidy rows and
protected by large reddish bracts. Higher up the stem are groups of
female flowers which develop into fruit without fertilization.
In Thailand, slices of tender banana flower
are eaten raw with the pungent dip known as nam prik, or with fried
noodles, or simmered in a hot sour soup with chicken, galangal and
coconut milk.
In the Philippines, banana blossom is added
to the famous kari-kari, a rich beef stew. 'Banana blossom' or 'banana
heart' are the favored names in the Philippines and 'banana heart' in
Indonesia purely because its color and shape suggest a heart; (nothing
to do with the 'heart' of the trunk used in Burma). In Sri Lanka, it is
simply 'plantain flower'. In Australia it is known as 'banana bell'.
Purchasing and storing : Buy flowers which
look fresh and bright. Often they are wrapped in transparent plastic,
which keeps them from drying out too quickly. If they must be kept for a
few days leave them in the wrapping and store in the vegetable crisper
of the refrigerator.
Preparation : To prepare the flower for
cooking, remove and discard outer bracts until the inner, outer portion
is revealed. Some recipes advise steaming the whole blossom for 20
minutes or so before cutting into it. This may also be done in the
microwave oven in a much shorter time by first putting the blossom on a
dish and covering it with microwave-proof plastic wrap. Allow to cool
before slicing.
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