A banana's colour can quickly change from white or yellow to brown once it has been peeled. Ripe bananas get a dark peel after a while on the counter. The polyphenol oxidase enzyme, which is found in bananas, combines with oxygen to produce a chemical reaction. Banana peel and fruit turn brown as a result of an enzymatic browning response.
Fortunately, there are easy techniques to keep bananas at the yellow stage, just as there are shortcuts for hastening the ripening of other vegetables. Here are several anti-ripening tips to try, whether you're working with unpeeled bananas or their peeled cousins.
Plastic wrap
When you buy a bunch of bananas, the crown of the fruit may be wrapped in plastic wrap. Continue to cover the fruit because the top generates ethylene gas, which induces enzymatic browning. To extend the shelf life of your fruits, wrap some plastic wrap over the bunch if it doesn't already have any.
Hang bananas separately
Bananas don't get along well with other fruits unless they are in fruit salad or smoothies. This holds true, particularly for fruits that produce large amounts of ethylene gas when they develop. Avocados, peaches, tomatoes, apples, and figs are the main fruits that cause bananas to ripen too early. Therefore, avoid purchasing the fruit dish with the hanging bananas. Purchase a different banana hanger.
Why do you hang bananas? It avoids bruising and lessens the possibility of exposing the banana flesh to oxygen, which would hasten the ripening process.
Use citric acid
Citric acid is used in fruit preservation powders to prevent the oxidation of sliced fruit. These powders have been created especially to prevent the browning of banana slices. In essence, the powder is a dried-up form of the citric acid present in citrus fruits including oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruits. Simply place your banana slices in a bowl of water, add the recommended amount of powder to the water, and then follow the directions on the back of the container. Drain them after soaking them for 3 to 5 minutes.
Refrigerate them
Bananas may definitely be kept in the refrigerator. Just bear in mind that the cool, dry weather slows the ripening process, which is why supermarkets don't keep their bananas refrigerated. In other words, if you put green, underripe bananas in the refrigerator, they will probably stay that way.
Freeze them
Bananas can be frozen, and you should. Blending frozen bananas will produce a sweet, creamy end product that is great as the foundation of a smoothie or eaten on its own as a sort of banana ice cream. Just be careful to wait until your bananas are completely ripe before freezing them because the freezer's frost will stop the ripening of the fruit. The bananas should ideally be peeled and sliced before freezing so they're simple to handle later.
