Beyond Flavor: Banana is versatile and offers many health benefits.

Affordable, cheap and delicious, is banana a fruit that pleases most people, especially for its flavor and versatility? which allows it to be used in various sweet or savory dishes.

Tassara Moreira, nutritionist and coordinator of the Nutrition course at Unime Salvador, comments that banana is a famous fruit, affordable, practical and full of energy and nutrients for everyday life.

The nutritionist explains that it is a myth not to be able to consume bananas who want to lose weight. For in 100 grams of the fruit we find only 90 kilocalories. Besides being a source of fibers, which provide satiety, help in weight control and good bowel function ?, he says.

The price of the fruit (which is often affordable), the good nutritional value and the pleasant taste explain the success of the fruit, Tassara adds. Who has never heard, for example, that comment "at the price of banana ??"

6 Amazing Benefits Of Banana

Good reasons for consuming bananas abound? Check out the main properties and advantages of this fruit below:

Read also: 100 Lactose Free Recipes for Healthy and Tasty Meals

1. Helps regulate the intestines

Tassara points out that bananas help regulate intestinal rhythm, as it is a source of fiber (2 grams of fiber in 100 grams of banana). "Banana, when compared to a cereal bar, for example, has 60% more fiber than the cereal bar," he says.

2. Contributes to the feeling of satiety

It is also because it is rich in fiber that bananas contribute to satiety. This way is a good strategy to avoid binge eating. Tip: At the snack, add oats, flaxseeds, chia or nuts with the banana, so you will have even more satiety ?, explains Tassara.

3. Helps prevent cramps

Banana aids in cramps by being a source of magnesium and potassium, minerals that contribute to involuntary contractions, stress and muscle fatigue. Therefore, the fruit is the darling of sportsmen. Every 100 grams of silver banana has an average of 25 mg of magnesium and 358 mg of potassium, he says.

Nutritionist Tassara's tip is: Banana is a great strategy as a pre-workout meal as it will provide energy for physical activity and will not give you the feeling of early satiety (that feeling that we overeat). Add oatmeal or flaked amaranth and you have a great combination for before physical activity?

4. Helps fight depression and provide good mood

This is because bananas are a source of tryptophan, an important regulator of serotonin production, contributing to well-being, helping to relax and maintain a good mood, as well as reducing stress, irritability and contributing to pre-tension. -menstrual? Tassara explains.

Read also: Cocoa Powder: Benefits Beyond Feeling Well-Being

• PMS Tip: Banana vitamin with coconut milk, cocoa powder, oats and oilseeds (walnuts, almonds, nuts, hazelnuts). Banana is still rich in B vitamins, which help the nervous system function and contribute to the maintenance of mood ?, highlights the nutritionist.

Another tip from the Nutrition course coordinator is to consume cinnamon-heated banana to provide a more restful night's sleep.

5. Helps regulate blood pressure

According to Tassara, bananas are an important source of potassium (350 mg in 100 g of bananas). And a diet low in potassium sources and low in sodium (100 g of banana has only 1 mg of sodium) helps regulate blood pressure.

6. Helps prevent cellulite

Tassara explains that bananas can also contribute to the maintenance of cellular integrity, that is, helps to avoid unwanted cellulite, as it is a source of silicon, an important mineral for the maintenance of collagen structure. • An important tip is to consume banana with oats (main source of silicon) and chopped hazelnuts. In addition to contributing to the beauty of the skin, this is a tasty combination ?, highlights.

How to make the most of each banana?

There are some varieties of bananas, but there is no one that is considered better (nutritionally speaking) than another. According to Tassara, the nutritional value varies slightly for each species, but all bananas have similar characteristics, with slight differences only in aroma, taste and texture.

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• Silver banana: It is ideal to be eaten raw, for vitamins or in fruit salads. Nutritionist Tassara's tip is to add oatmeal for a tasty and healthy combination.
• Banana nanica: It has a sweeter flavor and is a great choice for baking. Even the expert tip is to avoid using common sugar and use the dwarf banana to sweeten the cakes.
• Banana Apple: ideal for being eaten raw or for pureeing (kids love it!), according to Tassara.
• Gold Banana: It is the smallest and sweetest. Ideal to be eaten raw, sweeten cakes and vitamins, as emphasizes the nutritionist.
• Plantain: a variety for cooking, baking or frying as it is bitter if eaten raw. The nutritionist's tip is to make plantain chips by cutting the fruit into thin slices and baking with cinnamon powder.

Much is now said about green banana biomass. Tassara explains that it is a preparation made from green bananas, which is a source of prebiotic fiber (resistant starch: a type of carbohydrate that the body does not digest). "Therefore, the use of biomass is interesting because resistant starch is not digested, reaches the gut and helps control cholesterol levels, triglycerides and glycemia," he says.

? Biomass is practically harmless in flavor and adds nutritional value to the food it is added to (soups, vitamins, cakes, among other foods)? House:

Green Banana Biomass (by Tassara Moreira)

1. Wash about 6 peeled green bananas one by one using a soapy water sponge and rinse well.
2. In a pressure cooker with boiling water (to create thermal shock), cook the unpeeled green bananas covered with water for 20 minutes.
3. Turn off the heat after the first 8 minutes and let the pressure continue to cook the bananas. Wait for the steam to escape naturally. Do not force the process by opening the pan under the tap, for example.
4. At the end of cooking, keep the bananas in the hot water of the pan.
5. Remove the peel gradually. The pulp should be immediately passed into the still very hot processor to avoid disintegration.
6. Put the desired amount of the hot-cooked pulp into the processor. Process until you get a very thick paste (if you have no processor, it can be blender).

Tip: If you are not going to use biomass immediately, store the pulp in a plastic bag or glass jars. This pulp can be stored for 3 to 4 months in the freezer and for 1 week in the refrigerator. If it is in the freezer, remove 1 day before the amount you will use the next day ?, highlights Tassara.

36 banana recipes to add to your menu

Want good tips for including bananas in your daily diet? Check out the recipes below!

Read also: Everything you need to know about green banana biomass

Salted

1. Plantain Moqueca: A beautiful, colorful and tasty dish with? The face of Brazil ?! If you can't find plantain, can you replace it with silver banana? They are best suited for stew because they are more consistent and less sweet, perfect for bittersweet dishes.

2. Shrimp Moqueca with Plantain: Delicious, light and easy to make! To complete the dish, the tip is an almond palm oil crumbs. A great choice for the weekend!

3. Plantain and pork croquette: Savory snacks made with fried green plantains and well-seasoned and soft pork shank. A delicious treat to innovate in the kitchen!

4. Plantain puree: light and delicious, this puree has Bahian influences. It's an easy, quick and simple recipe that combines with fish, seafood and even red meat.

5. Banana Farofa: A vegan recipe that only takes olive oil, garlic, onions, cornmeal, green-smelling, rancid bananas, salt and black pepper. It looks delicious, is easy to make and becomes a great accompaniment.

6. Risotto with dried meat, cachaça and plantain: Risotto, despite being an Italian dish, is a very versatile base for the most diverse ingredients, including Brazilians. This one, for example, takes a nice touch of cachaça. The recipe yields four portions.

7. Banana, curd cheese and beef jerky: different recipe and very tasty, and easy to make. If you don't find plantain, you can use silver, which is also less sweet. The important thing is that the banana is ripe, but not too soft.

8. Beef, Banana, and Curd Cheese Couscous: To make this delicious recipe, all you need is corn flake, water, shredded boiled beef, diced curd cheese, and sliced ​​silver banana.

9. Stuffed banana with pepperoni and cheddar: A different and delicious recipe that only includes ground beef, ground pepperoni sausage, plantain, grated cheddar cheese and parsley. To serve with the certainty that will surprise!

10. Lactose-free Stroganoff with Banana Biomass: The recipe is easy, but of course having the biomass ready in the fridge makes preparation a lot easier.And the good thing is that you can do a lot at once and freeze.

11. Ground Beef and Banana Pie: The taste is amazing and the dough is perfect, crispy and very light. The bananas used were dwarfed. The sauce is made with butter, wheat flour, milk and salt.

Sweets

12. Hot Banana Mixed: A simple yet delicious recipe. You will only use bread loaf, butter, cheese, banana, dulce de leche and cinnamon. To do whenever you want a different sweetie!

13. Homemade banana candy: This candy is made with banana nanica, also known as water banana, because it looses a lot of water. In addition to it, you will only use demerara sugar! Practical and delicious recipe!

14. Muffled banana: such a simple thing, but so tasty! Good tip for everyday dessert, as it only takes dwarf banana, sugar, lemon peel, cinnamon sticks and water.

15. Caramel Banana: Recipe for this well-known dessert! You will use wild bananas, oil, egg, cornstarch, wheat flour, sugar, water, salt and cinnamon. Good tip when you want to eat a candy, but do not have many ingredients at home.

16. Banana bread: This is actually a banana cake baked in a loaf pan. It is super light and at the same time dense. Soft and very tasty. With a glass of milk to go with it, it is perfect for a late afternoon.

17. Cinnamon banana brigadeiro: a basic but delicious recipe for when you want to eat a candy. You will only need condensed milk, ripe bananas, cinnamon and unsalted butter.

18. Banana, Cocoa and Nutella Muffins: Easy-to-make and delicious muffins are always a good choice for an afternoon coffee, right ?! And this one is extremely tasty. In this recipe, you don't even have to use a mixer or blender, you can even use a fouet to mix.

19. Chocolate Blender Banana Cake: Delicious and Great Looking! For the cake you will use, in addition to banana dwarfs, eggs, coconut oil, coconut sugar, oatmeal, nuts, baking powder, raisins and chocolate chips.

20. Inverted caramel banana cake: Banana cake is always wonderful, right? And this one, with caramel syrup, besides being delicious, is simple to make. The smell of banana when baking, by itself, is already very good and pays off!

21. Banana Pudding Cake: A More Than Neat Dessert! It is a cake made with banana paste, banana pudding, caramel and whipped cream filling. It is so much good together that you can hardly believe it!

22. Banana Crumble: Ideal for those days when you need to make a quick dessert that pleases everyone! Even better if it is accompanied by a good cream ice cream!

23. Banana Cuca: dessert that always goes well! For the dough, you will use yeast, flour, sugar, egg, milk and butter. The stuffing is made with silver banana. And for the crumbs you will need flour, sugar, butter and cinnamon powder.

Banana Banoffee and Dulce de Leche: Banoffee is a typical English candy that has been winning the hearts of Brazilians. It is easy to make and takes very few ingredients. It is super creamy and elegant.

25. Banana and Nutella Puff Pastry: It is delicious, takes only 4 ingredients and results in a charming sweet, which makes all the difference after dinner or with the afternoon coffee.

26. Mexican Palette with Banana and Nutella: A Delicious Way to Cool Off on Warmer Days! The combination of banana and Nutella already knows it's wonderful! The recipe yields six incredible ice creams, so no one can blemish!

Fit

27. Banana Peel Bread: A delicious sweet bread that fits very well for breakfast or afternoon coffee. You will need milk, brown sugar, whole wheat flour, egg, salt, extra virgin olive oil, yeast and banana peels.

28. Banana fit pancake: You will basically need two ingredients, banana and egg. The tip is to use a banana not very ripe, and to increase the pancake with whatever you want, such as nutmeg, cinnamon, cocoa etc.

29. Banana and apple wholemeal cake: To sweeten this cake, the recipe uses sucralose. But if you are not a fan of sweetener, can you substitute for brown sugar or demerara? However, in this case, the calories in the cake will increase.

30. Flourless and Sugar Free Banana Cake: A recipe that has no flour, no milk and no sugar, and is still very practical to make! You will use dwarf banana, raisin, egg, oil, oats and baking powder.

31. Plantain and Coconut Cake: Do you find it difficult for a flourless and sugarless cake to be soft, cuddly and delicious ?! Believe me, it is possible with this recipe! Plantain makes this miracle and with it you can prepare a simple, delicious and healthy cake.

32Banana and oatmeal cookies: They have few ingredients and are a great choice for a snack for college, school or work; or for breakfast and afternoon snack at home.

33. Banana and Lemon Smoothie: Cool and refreshing. Good tip for those who want to taste a delicious and different drink, but without "leaving the diet". In addition to lemon and banana, you will need water, mint, ice and sweetener.

34. Banana and Strawberry Smoothie: You only need frozen strawberries, chilled banana pieces, vanilla yogurt, milk powder, strawberry pulp, ice and honey. Then just mix everything and serve well cold.

35. Banana, mango and peach smoothie: A refreshing and tasty drink, good for breakfast, for example. You will need frozen bananas, also frozen mango and peaches, vegetable milk (or coconut milk, orange juice or passion fruit), sugar or sweetener to taste.

36. Banana and Chocolate Smoothie: You will only need banana, cocoa powder, skim milk, ice, a square of chocolate or cocoa nibs. Anyone who wants to can use vegetable milk for a lactose free version.

Banana Contraindications

Tassara recalls that bananas are rich in potassium. "Thus, patients with kidney problems should be careful and careful, as they usually have excess potassium and should avoid its consumption," he says.

An alternative for these patients, according to the coordinator of the Nutrition course, is to boil the banana in two waters, as well as other potassium fruit sources, because in this way, the mineral is reduced.

Now you know that, besides being versatile, delicious and cheap, banana is a fruit that offers many health benefits. There is certainly no reason to include it in your diet!

Super Greens. The #1 Fruits and Greens Supplement in the world! Dr Joel Wallach Youngevity (April 2024)