How do you always keep bananas on hand?

augustremulous

I buy them and none are ripe. Then they all get ripe on the same day. And the day following they're all too ripe.

Has anyone ever come up with a solution to having good bananas regularly? I always just hang around waiting for them to ripen (I haaaaate unripe bananas) and then eat one banana on the day they are good. Then the rest get composted.

Jruzer

Ours get eaten rapidly. But we do have 4 boys, including 2 teenagers.

Ripe bananas can be frozen and used in banana bread, though. Mmmm, banana bread...

VeryKatie

Buy in smaller quantities and separate them when you get home. Otherwise they cause each other to ripen. And also.. a little more ripe than yellow is still perfectly fine.

lisaepell

You need to separate the bananas from each other and they will ripen at different rates - I've heard that it has to do with the gas they give off as they ripen. I buy 5-6 at a time and put them in different places around my kitchen. They still ripen on a similar time frame, but not as quickly. Worth a try!

ToddPa12

We usually buy two sets; one that are almost ripe (yellow) and about 6 that are more green with just a slight yellow to them. We separate them when we get home and that usually lasts from Sunday til Friday, if we're lucky.

Lizzy622

I freeze mine. Peel them, split in half and I always have bananas for my smoothies. I also make a great banana bread with no sugar added. You can also try to buy a few smaller bunches at different levels of ripeness.

augustremulous

oh, I will separate them. Good to know!

To be honest I don't like them perfectly yellow. I like them with a light bit of black spotting. But when the spots get bigger and there are soft spots, I won't touch them.

I wonder if I should develop some refrigeration schedule. Like leave three out and put three in the fridge. Then take one banana out of the fridge on the following day, and the next on the following day, etc.

I'm going to tinker around and share. Unfortunately I don't eat that many bananas so it might take some time to develop a system.

TeaBea

augustremulous wrote: »

I buy them and none are ripe. Then they all get ripe on the same day. And the day following they're all too ripe.

Has anyone ever come up with a solution to having good bananas regularly? I always just hang around waiting for them to ripen (I haaaaate unripe bananas) and then eat one banana on the day they are good. Then the rest get composted.

Don't compost them - freeze them. Place your over ripe bananas in a ziplock bag & freeze. You don't have to peel them first, but you may find it easier.

(Thawed) frozen bananas can be used in yogurt, smoothies, oatmeal, and baked goods.

I don't have solution, so I generally buy only a couple at a time.

kyrannosaurus

I freeze most of mine. I'll eat a couple while they are still good and the rest get peeled and frozen. I'll use the frozen bananas in smoothies, oatmeal or protein balls mostly.

glassyo

I shop once a week so buy 7 at a time and just get 4 of greenest ones I can for the end of the week and 3 of the more ripened ones for the beginning.

Meganthedogmom

So frustrating. I always buy the greenest ones, but then we end up having to eat them all within 2 days. Or I will freeze some and use in smoothies another time. It would be nice to have them (fresh) all throughout the week, though.

briscogun

I buy smaller quantities more frequently. So I shop on the weekend and I'll get 3-4, then maybe go back Wednesday or Thursday and get another few. Rinse and repeat weekly. Or if they go bad, I make banana bread with them and eat an apple instead!

WholeFoods4Lyfe

I buy two bunches on Saturday, one about to be ripe, one still green. The first one is ripe and good to eat Monday and Tuesday and the second gets us through the latter part of the week.

ClubSilencio

There's usually a 3-day window where a banana is perfectly sweet and ripe to eat. I find it odd that a single day is the difference between a perfectly fine and spoiled banana for you.

I suggest selecting bananas at different stages of ripeness when you're at the store.

Also, how you store them makes a difference. Putting them in a paper bag and storing them in the top shelf of a cupboard will result in faster ripening. Leaving them out on the counter in a cool environment will slow the ripening process down. You can play around with this depending on how your place is set up.

Freeze ripe bananas for smoothies or ice cream. Or just use the ripe bananas you have on hand for a smoothie if you have the calories for it. I buy 60 a week and use 5-6 a day in smoothies, the rest for pre/post workout snacks. I rarely have to resort to freezing bananas because I have the process locked down to a science.

hellonew2015

When they are just right/ripe, I wrap them with aluminum foil and stick them in the fridge, they last longer and not get too ripe.

ktekc

i wrap the stems with plastic wrap. . . trick i saw on youtube. seems to keep them from going spotty longer.

VeryKatie

Hey, I guess you could always pick one banana from a bunch of .. bunches ranging from SUPER GREEN to yellow or even ripe! No one will stop you hahaha.

Lasmartchika

ktekc wrote: »

i wrap the stems with plastic wrap. . . trick i saw on youtube. seems to keep them from going spotty longer.

I do something similar to this. I buy green bananas and use the plastic bag they come in to wrap around the stem.

cwolfman13

I'm not much of a banana guy unless I'm having pancakes...but I have two boys and they're like little monkeys and will devour a bunch of ripe bananas within a couple of days.

mjwarbeck

lisaepell wrote: »

You need to separate the bananas from each other and they will ripen at different rates - I've heard that it has to do with the gas they give off as they ripen. I buy 5-6 at a time and put them in different places around my kitchen. They still ripen on a similar time frame, but not as quickly. Worth a try!

It is the ethylene that is released. That's why if you put them together in a closed bag they will ripen even faster - they release ethylene which causes them to ripen faster...which releases more ethylene....

Best to keep them apart or on a handing rack that allows the gas to dissipate...

And yes, freeze them if they are getting too ripe. The best part is as they ripen the gain more banana flavour...the best banana to make a banana cream pie is a black banana!

rpachigo

I use a bunch at a time in waffle/pancake/ smoothie recipes. Extras get frozen

sylkates

I adore bananas as the basis for the smoothie I have for breakfast every day.

I wait for them to ripen, then I peel them and split them into quarters to facilitate calorie counting (sometimes my smoothie is 1/2 a banana and 1/2 a cup of frozen berries, sometimes it's just one full banana for fruit). I freeze them in a large freezer Ziploc and try to squeeze all the air out first.

successgal1

We use 2 a day, buy twice a week from different stores.

Lounmoun

We buy some once a week. They get ripe. People eat them but usually leave a couple to get super ripe. I make banana bread.

jgnatca

When the bananas go over-ripe hubby peels them and puts them in a freezer bag. They all go in to his smoothies.

In our household if we run out of bananas, we are out of "food".

BeYouTiful94

I put them in the fridge. For some reason, when I put them in the fridge, the outside will get suuuuper black and nasty looking, but when I peel it, the banana is nice and yellow, with the exception of maybe a few spots here and there

feisty_bucket

VeryKatie wrote: »

Otherwise they cause each other to ripen.

Yeah, "fruit signalling" is pretty freaky. WHAT ELSE ARE THEY SAYING?!

Anyways, when having a bunch: I keep 'em out on the counter until they're optimum and then uneaten ones go in the fridge which slows 'em down.

Ideally though, I just buy them one at a time from a convenience store, and eat immediately.

ElizabethOakes2

How do I always keep bananas on hand? Hide them from my husband, especially if he's in 'protein smoothie' mode.

MelodyandBarbells

Don't know. I have like ten going bad at home right now because I couldn't resist the "lightly bruised" deal. I like bananas a lot, but then I'll sometimes go a week or more just ignoring them. And I don't do smoothies or breads, pancakes or waffles that require use of bananas other than just straight eating, so there ya go.

successgal1

JaneiR36 wrote: »

Don't know. I have like ten going bad at home right now because I couldn't resist the "lightly bruised" deal. I like bananas a lot, but then I'll sometimes go a week or more just ignoring them. And I don't do smoothies or breads, pancakes or waffles that require use of bananas other than just straight eating, so there ya go.

Well then, peel, stick them with a stick, freeze them, then dip in chocolate.

Where there's a will there's a way, :-)

TheLittleRedHairedGirl

I buy the snack size zip lock baggies and slice up a banana and put a half of it in a baggie and freeze them. When I want a sweet creamy treat, I'll grab a bag and eat them frozen... so good.