Identifying Sulfur Bananas

Bananas are not found in the north, so most bananas are shipped from the tropical south to the north. Since bananas secrete ethylene, they ripen very quickly. If the transportation time is too long, the bananas will rot after being transported to the north, so people will pick the bananas before they are ripe. Some people will even use sulfur to ripen the bananas. So how do you identify sulfur bananas?

Pay attention to identification when purchasing

First, you can smell it. If the banana skin has a faint sour smell, which is not the normal banana fragrance, do not buy it. Then, by touch, if the skin looks very yellow but the flesh inside is tough, don't buy it. Because after sulfur fumigation, only the skin can mature quickly, the flesh inside is not ripe and tastes astringent.

How to identify ripe bananas?

1. Identify ripe bananas by their surface

When you buy bananas, you can look at the surface of the bananas. If there are pockmarks on the surface of the bananas, it means that they are self-ripened bananas. If there are no pockmarks on the surface of the bananas, it means that these bananas are artificially ripened. Because artificial ripening often uses chemical drugs, it will not allow pockmarks to appear on the surface of the bananas.

2. Identify ripe bananas by looking at their flesh

Whether a banana is ripened artificially can be determined by looking at the texture of the banana. Naturally ripened bananas are usually softer in texture and sweeter in taste, while artificially ripened bananas are only yellow on the surface, and the flesh inside is very hard, feels cooked when eaten, and has a very light sweetness.

3. Identify ripe bananas by smelling them

When you buy bananas, you can put the banana under your nose and smell it. If the banana has a natural aroma, it means that it is a naturally ripe banana. However, if there is a chemical smell or sulfur smell on the surface of the banana, it is recommended not to buy it, because they are most likely raw bananas ripened with ethylene or sulfur iodine.