Banana leaf
Encyclopedia
It is used as a decorative element for special ceremonies in Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
and Buddhist cultures. It is also used as a plate to serve food in countries like India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. Banana leaves, though commonly thrown away, contain large amounts of polyphenols, including EGCG
Epigallocatechin gallate
Epigallocatechin gallate , also known as epigallocatechin 3-gallate, is the ester of epigallocatechin and gallic acid, and is a type of catechin....
, similar to green tea. They also contain polyphenol oxidase
Polyphenol oxidase
Polyphenol oxidase is a tetramer which contains four atoms of copper per molecule, and binding sites for two aromatic compounds and oxygen...
, that could be used to produce L-DOPA, a treatment for Parkinson's disease.
Ceremonies
Banana leaves are predominantly used by Hindus and Buddhists as a decorative element for special functions, marriages, and ceremonies in IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
. Balinese Hindu prepared banana leaf as the container for floral offerings dedicated for hyang
Hyang
Hyang is an unseen spiritual entity that has supernatural power in ancient Indonesian mythology. This spirit can be either divine or ancestral. The reverence for this spiritual entity can be found in Sunda Wiwitan, Kejawen, and Balinese Hinduism. In modern Indonesian this term tends to be...
(spirits or deities) and gods. These floral offerings were placed in various places around the house.
Food
South Indian cuisine
South Indian Cuisine is a term used to refer to the cuisines found in the four southern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.-Similarities and differences in "Four states' cuisines":...
, Filipino food, and Cambodian cuisine is usually served on a banana leaf. The Banana leaf is also used to add aroma to the food. Some Indians also believe that the banana leaf gives a special taste to the food served on it. Some South Indian, Filipino and Khmer recipes use banana leaves as a wrapper for frying. The leaves are later removed to retain flavor. In Vietnamese cuisine, banana leaves are used to wrap foods such as cha-lua
Cha-lua
Giò lụa or Chả lụa is a Vietnamese food, also known as Vietnamese ham or Vietnamese sausage. The term giò lụa is part of the northern Vietnamese's dialect while chả lụa is part of the southern Vietnamese dialect.-Production and consumption:...
.
In Indonesian cuisine, banana leaf is employed in cooking method called pepes
Pepes
Pepes is an Indonesian cooking method using banana leaf as food wrappings. The banana-leaf package containing food is secured with lidi seumat , cooked on steam, in boiled water or grilled on charcoal...
; the banana leaf packages containing food ingredients and spices are cooked on steam, in boiled water or grilled on charcoal. Banana leaf also used to wrap several kinds of kue (delicacies), such as kue pisang, also to wrap sticky pressed rice delicacies such as lemper
Lemper
Lemper is an Indonesian dish made of sticky rice filled with chicken, fish or abon . The meat filling is rolled inside the rice, in a fashion similar to an egg roll; this is in turn rolled and wrapped inside a banana leaf or tinfoil to make a packet ready for serving...
and lontong
Lontong
Lontong is an Asian dish made of compressed rice wrapped inside banana leaf that is then cut into small cakes as staple food replacement of steamed rice...
. Banana leaf is also used as a coned plate called "pincuk", usually to serve rujak tumbuk or pecel
Pecel
Pecel is an Indonesian sauce based on chillies, peanuts, tamarind and coconut sugar. It is commonly served over boiled vegetables. It is similar to the sauce used in Gado-gado.-External links:*...
. The cleaned banana leaf is often used as a plate mat; cutted banana leaf sheet placed upon rattan, bamboo or clay plates to serve food upon it.
In Malaysia and Singapore, banana leaves are used to wrap certain kuih
Kuih
Kuih are bite-sized snack or dessert foods found in the Malay Archipelago as well as the Southern China provinces of Fujian and Canton...
. Malay food such as Nasi Lemak
Nasi lemak
Nasi lemak is a dish sold in Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Riau Islands and Southern Thailand. The dish is considered the national dish and a national heritage of Malaysia. It is not to be confused with Nasi Dagang sold on the east coast of Malaysia or Terengganu and Kelantan although both dishes...
are also commonly wrapped with banana leaves before being wrapped with newspaper as banana leaves add fragrance to the rice.
In Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, banana leaves and parchment paper form the wrapper for pasteles
Pasteles
Pasteles are a traditional dish in several Latin American countries. In Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, the Caribbean coast of Colombia, and Panama, it is similar to a tamale. In Central American cuisine, it more closely resembles a British pasty or an Italian calzone.In...
(similar to tamales). Ground green bananas stuffed with meat are packed inside and then boiled with the banana leaf imparting extra flavor and aroma.
Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and more specifically Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
n tamale
Tamale
A tamale — or more correctly tamal — is a traditional Latin American dish made of masa , which is steamed or boiled in a leaf wrapper. The wrapping is discarded before eating...
s and a local variety of lamb meat, or barbacoa
Barbacoa
Barbacoa is a form of cooking meat that originated in the Caribbean with the Taíno people, from which the term "barbecue" derives. In contemporary Mexico it generally refers to meats or a whole sheep slow-cooked over an open fire, or more traditionally, in a hole dug in the ground covered with...
taco
Taco
A taco is a traditional Mexican dish composed of a corn or wheat tortilla folded or rolled around a filling. A taco can be made with a variety of fillings, including beef, chicken, seafood, vegetables and cheese, allowing for great versatility and variety...
s are often steamed
Steaming
Steaming is a method of cooking using steam. Steaming is considered a healthy cooking technique and capable of cooking almost all kinds of food.-Method:...
in banana leaves. Banana leaves are used for wrapping pork in the traditional Yucatán dish Cochinita pibil
Cochinita pibil
Cochinita pibil is a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán Península. Preparation of traditional cochinita or puerco pibil involves marinating the meat in strongly acidic citrus juice, coloring it with annatto seed, and roasting the meat while it is wrapped in banana...
. The Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an imu
Kalua
Kālua is a traditional Hawaiian cooking method that utilizes an imu, a type of underground oven. The word kālua, which literally means "to cook in an underground oven", may also be used to describe the food cooked in this manner, such as kālua pig or kālua turkey, which are commonly served at luau...
is often lined with banana leaves.
See also
- Banana leaf riceBanana leaf riceBanana leaf rice is a typical dish in South Indian cuisine.In banana leaf rice, white rice is served on a banana leaf with an assortment of vegetables, curried meat or fish, pickles, and/or papadum...
- StrelitziaStrelitziaStrelitzia is a genus of five species of perennial plants, native to South Africa. The genus is named after the duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, birthplace of Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom. A common name of the genus is bird of paradise flower, because of a supposed resemblance of its...
, a bird of paradise plant with similarly shaped leaves. - Cochinita pibilCochinita pibilCochinita pibil is a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán Península. Preparation of traditional cochinita or puerco pibil involves marinating the meat in strongly acidic citrus juice, coloring it with annatto seed, and roasting the meat while it is wrapped in banana...
, a Yucatán Mexican dish that wraps pork in banana leaves. - PutoPutoPuto is Philippine steamed rice cake, eaten as is or with butter and/or grated fresh coconut or as accompaniment to a number of savory dishes for breakfast .-Preparation:...
, BibingkaBibingkaBibingka is a type of rice cake from the Philippines. It is traditionally eaten during Christmas season.-Preparation:Bibingka is made with rice flour and coconut milk or water. Other ingredients can vary greatly, but the most common secondary ingredients are eggs and milk. The traditional...
, and SumanSuman (food)Suman is a rice cake originating from the Philippines. It is made from glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk, and often steamed in banana leaves. It is served wrapped in buli or buri palm leaves and usually eaten sprinkled with sugar...
, Filipino rice cakes which are traditionally wrapped in banana leaves.