Could banana peel be the next big thing in vegan meat alternatives?
By now you've probably heard of loads of vegan "meat" alternatives, such as soy mince, pea protein meatballs, mushroom burgers, or maybe even jackfruit pulled pork.
Well, now there's apparently a hot new "meat" option: banana skin. And it can be used in a variety of vegan dishes.
According to food blogger, Melissa Copeland, aka The Stingy Vegan, the skin is completely edible. To prove it she shared a video on her blog last week demonstrating how to use it to make the perfect "pulled pork" sandwich.
"I was super sceptical about it but brave enough to try it. Turns out it works!
"You are probably just as sceptical as I was about banana peels so let me put your mind at rest: no, they are not bitter and no it doesn't taste like banana. The trick is to choose bananas that are not quite ripe yet as the peels are firmer and thicker, and scrape out the white skin part from the inside."
First, she recommends scraping the inside with a spoon to get rid of all white flesh. Then she demonstrates shredding the skin with a fork before mixing it with olive oil and spices and frying it in water and BBQ sauce.
Copeland then serves the creation in a seeded bun with coleslaw on top, to make it look the part.
It turns out she isn't the first to try the wacky offering either: Fellow food bloggers note they also use banana peel in fishless fishcakes, faux meatballs and even to make bacon.
Vegan BLTA!! But wait! The bacon is made from...BANANA PEEL! If you haven't tried this yet, get on it!! Scrape any banana bits from the peel, steam for about 5 mins, and marinate in your favorite bacon flavours (liquid smoke, soy sauce, maple syrup, bit of evoo). Fry it up in a cast iron until it's as crispy as you like it. It sounds bizarro, but holy crap this was so good!!
Although not as rich in potassium as a banana, the peel contains vitamin B6, B12, magnesium and potassium, and is a source of fibre.