Kitchen Garden Forum

Following on from this post viewtopic.php?p=96835#p96835
more ideas for your bananas. Can't say I've tried any as we find bananas revolting!


Health and Beauty
Banana peels are chock-a-block with antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins, so they're a natural cure for many an ailment and an aid for cell regeneration. Here are just a few uses:

Bug Bites
Rub a banana peel on bug bites to soothe the skin and reduce itching.

Bruises
With restorative properties, banana peel can speed up the healing of bruises.

Teeth Whitening
It's said that if you rub banana peel on your teeth for a couple of minutes every day, your teeth could be noticeably whiter in a few weeks. (I'm not sure if you're supposed to brush your teeth before or after this treatment, since common sense would predicate brushing after eating...my guess is that you need to deal with banana-breath for a while for it to take effect.)

Warts
Not only do banana peels help eliminate warts, but they prevent their return. Simply tape (or otherwise fasten) a piece of banana peel to the wart overnight for about a week. Alternately, you can just rub the banana peel on the affected area daily (but I suspect the taping method would be more effective). This even works for plantar warts (on the sole of the foot).

Scrapes and Scratches
Rubbing banana peel on boo-boos can help promote healing.

Splinters
Among the more bizarre applications for banana peels is the removal of splinters. The enzymes actually help dislodge the splinter and start the healing process when you tape a piece of the peel over a splinter.

Acne
Banana peel will soothe the inflammation and irritation of acne and reduce outbreaks. Rub the peel over the acne (face or body) every night. Improvements should be apparent within a few days.

Psoriasis
Once or twice daily, rub a banana peel on a psoriasis-affected area. Bananas have all the properties to moisturize, reduce itchiness, and heal psoriasis providing noticeable differences in as little as a few days.

Rashes and Itches
Got poison ivy? Banana peel is good for relieving the itch. Rub the peel over the rash twice daily until it is gone.

Headaches
Next time you’re at a friend’s house, ask for a banana, peel it, discard the banana, and hold the banana peel across your forehead as a headache cure. Watch for their reaction; your friend may have lost faith in your sanity, but you also might not have a headache any more.

Wrinkles
Given the overall restorative and healing properties of banana peel, it is said that regularly applying banana peel to your forehead and cheeks can tighten the skin and reduce wrinkles. I wouldn’t hope for a miracle, but I’d expect that the skin will at least look healthier for it (and you won’t have a headache if you had one to begin with).

Household
The theme in household applications for banana peels is polishing. After removing the stringy bits from the peel, rub away and watch the shine.

Shoe Polish
Rub the banana peel on your (leather) shoes, then buff them up with a soft cloth.

Leather Polish
Leather jackets and furniture could benefit from those peels. (Please!) test a small area first before tackling your sofa with a banana peel and buffing it with a soft cloth.

Silver Polish
I can attest to using toothpaste to polish silver, but wouldn’t have dreamed of banana peel. The application is the same as above: rub and buff.

Kitchen
If banana leaves are used in Asian countries to wrap and cook foods, maybe the banana peel itself can help in similar ways.

Keep Chicken Moist
Roasting boneless, skinless cuts of meat (especially chicken) is an art in trying to keep the meat moist. By putting a banana peel on top of each chicken breast, you can help keep the meat tender and juicy.

Garden
Potassium seems to be the secret ingredient to banana peels making your garden bigger and better.

If I don't put my skins onto the compost heap, I chop them up finely and dig them into the soil or the compost in my patio containers in the (possibly mistaken) belief that as they rot down, they will add some useful potassium to the soil.

I only like to eat bananas when they are very firm and have barely ripened. Am afraid that once they've passed this stage I find them very unappetising, whatever use they're put to.

Uurgh ! I can't stand bananas which are not really ripe, still taste green and vegetal. Black bits are OK.

I guess this is why we don't really have "too far gone" bananas to compost - my DW likes them like you do Primrose, and when they are too ripe for her they are nearly ready for me .

If you all want a laugh, you can leave banana skins outside my back door, i'm very unlikely to see them until it's too late, especially these darker mornings.