More Banana Varieties: Red Bananas and Oritos

I continued my banana quest at the market and found some red bananas and Doles' version of mini bananas (which is different from Chiquita's version). You can see them in the picture on the left, next to the Cavendish banana. 


Of course a taste test was in order, so I had a fabulous time eating! I read that you should eat the small bananas when they are almost brown, so I selected the almost "over-ripe" version that you see in the picture. 

I believe the small bananas in the pictures are orito (little gold) bananas. These bananas are grown in Ecuador and may be less susceptible to disease than the standard Cavendish. Oritos grow wild in the Upper Amazon region of Ecuador. They were quite creamy, with flesh that is more golden than that of the other two varieties. It was quite flavorful!

Red bananas are thicker but shorter than the Cavendish. I found them to be more flavorful with perhaps a slight raspberry taste. They seemed denser than the Cavendish and sweeter.

Domesticated bananas do not have seeds as you can see on the left. Farmers plant corms to get new banana plants. Also, notice the thickness of the Cavendish and Red Banana peels compared to that of the tiny orito on top. 


You can see a picture of a wild banana with its seeds at this site. Musa velutina produces bananas with many seeds sprinkled within the banana flesh. When the banana ripens, the peelings pop open so that the seeds can escape, fall to the ground, and create new banana plants.

The picture on the right shows slices of the three different banana varieties along with their peels so that you can compare them. Better yet, do your own comparison and savor the subtle taste differences between them. I hope you have as much fun with it as I had!