The Stingy VeganUntil now, you may have thought banana peels were only good for three things: protecting the fruit inside, writing on in biro, and throwing at fellow racers behind you on Rainbow Road.
One food blogger has shared a new use that may make you reconsider before you throw away those peels though, no matter how quickly Princess Peach is gaining on you.
Vegan food enthusiast Melissa, also known as the Stingy Vegan, took to Facebook to share her recipe for a banana peel vegan pulled pork sandwich. Admit it, even if you’re not vegan that sounds decent – good pulled pork always has a bit of a fruity kick, so a vegan alternative made from nothing but fruit has got the taste buds tingling. No?
Sharing the story behind her meal, which was inspired by a Venezuelan recipe involving plantains, the Stingy Vegan explained how banana and plantain peels can make a really good meat substitute if prepared properly. It involves soaking the peels, shredding them and marinating them in a mix of spices.
As Melissa told BuzzFeed:
When they’re prepared with a typical pulled pork spice mix and a good barbecue sauce, they don’t taste like bananas at all. The texture is also surprisingly soft and not what you would expect from a banana peel.
Of course, it’s not the first time fruit has been used as vegan alternative to meat, as jackfruit has been doing the rounds for some time now thanks to its versatility in creating pulled pork-esque sandwiches.
Check out Melissa’s recipe here:
Speaking about how she developed her recipe, Melissa said:
I first heard some talk about it in a vegan Facebook group. A few people had tried a banana peel pulled pork recipe by a YouTube user called Chef Jana. There was also some mention of the fact it’s not a new idea. It turns out that vegetarians in Venezuela have been using plantain peels to make a similar pulled meat dish called carne mechada for years (and they’ve been keeping it a secret from us this whole time!) So I decided to try it out.
And while some people have embraced the fruity idea:
a lot of ppl hating on that vegan banana peel/pulled pork idea but i think it’s kinda cool and may even try it myself. i bet the texture adds a meatiness to it you wouldn’t expect and i predict subtle hints of sweetness
a lot of ppl hating on that vegan banana peel/pulled pork idea but i think it’s kinda cool and may even try it myself. i bet the texture adds a meatiness to it you wouldn’t expect and i predict subtle hints of sweetness
— Chibuzo (@haggygyllenhaal) March 21, 2019
Others weren’t so sure:
Did this mf just make bbq using banana peels!? pic.twitter.com/A09Ia6vrYh
— March 28th 🎂 Kri$ (@uHateKris) March 20, 2019
Swear to God, you try to feed this to me and we're gonna fight. https://t.co/pUTGIVwgI9
— Crazy Train (@csonkaguy) March 23, 2019
I started the video a little late and so I watched the whole thing wondering what it was made out of. Nothing could have prepared me.
— They Dug Foell Together (@hannanimal) March 18, 2019
I thought “did they just put barbeque sauce on spaghetti and put it on a bun?” But then I watched the beginning and realized it was much worse
— Philadelphia Kara (@KaraNextWeek) March 19, 2019
I’d give it a go though, at least you could say it’s one of your five-a-day. Yummers.
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Charlie Cocksedge is a journalist and sub-editor at UNILAD. He graduated from the University of Manchester with an MA in Creative Writing, where he learnt how to write in the third person, before getting his NCTJ. His work has also appeared in such places as The Guardian, PN Review and the bin.