Dole Superkids
Bananas
How to Select & Store


How to Select Bananas

In your grocery store you may find bananas that are green-tipped, full yellow, or yellow with brown spots. All of these bananas are ready to eat. The more yellow a banana is, the sweeter it will taste. Bananas are fully ripened when brown spots appear on the peel. These bananas have a softer texture and are very sweet. The next time you and your family are at the grocery store, buy two bunches of bananas—a bunch of yellow bananas to eat immediately and a bunch of green-tipped bananas that will be ready to eat in 2–3 days!



Manzano bananas, also called apple or finger, are finger sized and turn dark yellow when ripe.




Red bananas taste sweet and turn purplish red when ripe.



In your grocery store you may find bananas that are green-tipped, full yellow, or yellow with brown spots. All of these bananas are ready to eat. Bananas with a yellower skin color have a sweeter flavor. Bananas are fully ripened when brown spots appear on the peel. These bananas have a softer texture and are very sweet. The next time you and your family are at the grocery store, buy a bunch of bananas to take home and try!





How to Store Bananas

When you bring home a bunch of bananas, you’ll want to store them so they will stay fresh. Take them out of the plastic produce bag and store them at room temperature. The bananas will continue to ripen.

Storing bananas on a banana hanger or hook is the best way to preserve the overall quality of a ripe banana. This way, your bananas won’t get "resting bruises."



How to Ripen Bananas

If your bananas are too green, you can put them in a paper bag to ripen. If you add an apple or tomato to the bag, the bananas will ripen even faster. Do you know why? It’s because apples and tomatoes give off ethylene gas, which speeds the ripening of bananas.

You can store bananas in the refrigerator if you want to keep them for a longer time.

Although the peel of a refrigerated banana will turn dark brown, the fruit inside will remain firm and delicious.