Heart Of Banana, Sth Indian Delicacy: Florida Style

Tropical storm Isaac's passage brought a lot of rain and wind to Florida. It also brought down my banana plant loaded with unripe bananas.


Banana plant stalk chopped to expose heart, Fla.

Embracing the expression--the glass is half full; I chopped down the plant to get to its heart. I learned years ago, the heart, when steamed, tastes a bit like cooked water chestnuts.

Heart of banana stalk exposed, Fla.

Unfortunately it is not possible to simply cut out the heart and steam it. First it has to be processed. The outer layers have to be cut away, and then trimmed further to get rid of any cardboard-like layers.

Trimmed down piece of heart of banana stalk, Fla.

It can be a bit disappointing to see how much of the plant is discarded but trust me you don't want to eat those outer bits.


Sticky fibers between slices heart of banana stalk , Fla.

Slicing can be very time consuming. The banana stalk is full of sticky fibers and the cutting process can take a long time because the knife has to be cleaned constantly.

Sliced and diced heart of banana stalk, Fla.

The hours of labor, yes I said hours, are worth it because in the end you get a delicious new vegetable to try. I steam it but it can also be cooked into a stir fry dish.