If you grow bananas, you already know the purple-red cone that appears before the fruit. Many people cut it off and throw it away. In kitchens across Southeast Asia, India, and other tropical regions, that same blossom has long been treated as food — sliced into salads, simmered in curries, or steeped as a simple drink. It is not a miracle plant. It is a familiar, underused part of a tree many households already have. What banana blossom actually is Banana blossom (also called banana heart or banana flower) is the large, teardrop-shaped inflorescence of the banana plant. The outer layers are firm and purple; inside are paler, tender florets. After harvest, farmers often remove it so the plant can put energy into the fruit. In traditional cooking it is washed, the tougher outer bracts peeled away, and the inner parts used fresh. Nutritionally it is modest and plant-based: low in calories, a source of dietary fiber, and a contributor of minerals such as potassium, calcium, and iron...
Holistic Bloom