Trust me, I’m not really a very big expert on Banana Jam. Actually, I hadn’t even heard of it until two weeks ago, when I came across a recipe for it in “The cookery book for complete idiots”. So, being the adventurous explorer that I am, I tackled a horde of bananas, added in a few extra weapons, left them to die in peace and voila! I had made some banana jam!
The anatomy of a banana
A wonderful person called Captain James Cook discovered bananas in 1799, and throughout the years they also travelled around the world. It is one of the most popular fruits in the world, mainly because of its attractive yellow peel and luscious gooey and sugary inside. You can also get unripe bananas, which taste really nice if your lovely mother will cook you them in a curry!(Don’t try it yourself…it will only go horrendously wrong…unless you are a mother…then I salute you!:)
Whilst eating a banana raw, you should always remember to eat it in a way that does it justice. First, you carefully peel the yellow or green or brown or black peel, depending on how you like the bananas. Then you take small bites from it, taking care to savour every delicious and sugary morsel. But make sure you don’t eat the two hard end bits of a banana: my friend ended up choking on one and had to be saved by a cute waiter. Actually, that means you should eat the end bits!;)
Finally, the peel. Oh the fun I’ve had with the peels from the bananas I ate. The outsides are rubbery, and the insides are smooth which act together to make a banana peel defy the laws of friction. Whether you throw it under an arrogant looking businessman and watch him land head first into the nearest bin, or put it on the seat of a non-suspecting innocent victim, these things can keep you entertained for hours. If you’re really creative and have way too much time on your hands, you could even create an obstacle course using a hundred or so banana peels!(Just don’t tell anyone where you got the idea from!:P
The associations of bananas
Bananas can find their way into your every day conversations, whatever you’re talking about! It can have many meanings, depending on what kind of person you are(looks at everyone suspiciously), so I’ll leave you to decide this for yourselves!:) But here’s an example of an amazing pun from a not so amazing film from two amazing looking actors.
Hrithik: She’s a girl not a fruit you idiot!
Saif(:D): Yeah…but I’m a kela!(get it, get it?:P)
There are also the usual meanings in the English language, which could be called idioms. The phrase “I’m going bananas” usually comes from a person who has been subjected to the two hour torture of Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon, whilst the pet name “banana” goes to the person who managed to save that movie!;)
The Recipe for Banana Jam
You will need:
? 4 ripe mashed bananas(and by mashed I mean squashed into the finest possible pulp ever invented!)
? 2 small sized lemons(you can get big ones…which will make your banana jam extra tangy!:P) Or a bottle of lemon juice if you’re feeling particularly lazy.
? 1 ½ cups sugar(this is a normal sized cup…don’t you dare even think of adding in more sugar…the banana is there for that:)
? 1 ½ cups water(this will always be the same as the amount of sugar.)
? Some ginger to taste(I never understood how to adapt it to taste…so I added a teensy bit of ginger. I don’t like it anyway…too gingery for me.)
? Some cloves to taste(I just missed this out…looks sickened)
Preparing:
? Make a thick-ish syrup by boiling sugar and water for around 10-15 minutes.(Did you know, if you boil sugar and water enough…you can make toffee?)
? Juice the lemons or pour out half a cup of lemon juice whilst boiling.
? Mix the bananas, lemon juice, ginger and cloves in a bowl but not one that’s too small or you’ll end up filling the whole kitchen with banana jam like I did…and get into trouble for it!:P
? Stir the banana mixture and then slowly add the syrup to it. Leave it to simmer for 30-40 minutes.(Does anyone else love the word simmer? Isn’t it so magical?)
Garnishing:
? You can add the banana jam to anything you want, but I think it’ll taste the nicest with some bread or rotis or puris or naan bread etc.
? It is the perfect topping for any savoury snack.(but don’t go spreading it on a cupcake or something like that or you make become sweetly sick.)
So my lovely people, that’s how to banana banana ka jam. I hope you find my recipe useful, I’m sure you could make some on a rainy day or something. But then again, most of you live in India evil stares and its so much fun to go and do some bhangra in the rain!:-)
Even though I’ve written two reviews on how to banana something or another…be warned, my cooking is always a disaster! This banana jam didn’t turn out too well for me.maybe the recipe was faulty.but it was probably my cooking! Anyway, try it out and tell me how it goes!:)
Don’t forget to RRC…and leave your comments so jammy(man…my rhyming gets lamer by the day!)
R.P.S(review post script): This review reminds me of a certain girl who put kelas in our food for seasoning. Poisoning more like. Warning: Don’t ever do that!
R.P.P.S: I’m back!