Having bought bananas in bulk, we often end up with a lot of brown ones before we can enjoy them all. One must note that, as there are tricks to ripen faster, there are also some simple hacks to elongate the yellow stage of a banana. Take a look at the best ways for both ripening and anti-ripening processes of bananas.
How to ripen banana overnight?
As per Parade, no matter how hard we try, it is not possible to speed up the ripening process of a banana to happen overnight. “There are seven recognized color stages, from full green (stage 1) to yellow flecked with brown (stage 7). Depending on conditions at home or on the retail shelf, bananas typically advance ½ stage per day,” Bil Goldfield, director of corporate communications at Dole Food Company, told the publication.
Martha Stewart’s blog recommended placing the bananas in a brown paper bag, which will trap the ethylene gases the bananas produce and trigger faster ripening. The blog further suggested that if one needs ripe bananas tomorrow, add other ethylene-producing fruits such as avocados, apples, melons, pears, or peaches to that brown paper bag. One must remember, especially with the avocados, that those fruits will ripen quicker, too, as reported by marthastewart.com.
“Bananas in my house seem to ripen faster when they are in a paper bag with an avocado, and vice versa, because both produce ethylene gas, which triggers a rapid ripening process in each other,” Emilie Berner, chef-instructor of plant-based culinary arts at the Institute of Culinary Education in Los Angeles, told Martha Stewart.
Anti-ripening hacks
As per USA Today, unless they are in fruit salad or smoothies, bananas do not play nicely with other fruits, and this is especially true of fruits that release a lot of ethylene gas as they ripen. The report further stated that Ashley Roth, MS, RDN at Common Threads, told TODAY Food that the biggest culprits behind bananas ripening prematurely are avocados, peaches, tomatoes, apples, and figs.
The report published by Today further recommended not to buy the fruit bowl with the banana hanger above, and instead, getting a separate banana hanger is advised.
Cooler temperatures slow down the chemical ripening process, and once bananas are ripe to your liking, you can store them in the fridge. It is all right if the peel turns brown or even black, as per the Today article.
