Going Bananas

According to Taste Atlas, our very own fried bananas known as turon (deep-fried banana rolls) and maruya (fried banana fritters) are included in the 50 best deep-fried desserts in the world.

They may not be the healthiest of choices but are very popular as desserts or for afternoon snacks. Turon which is sugar-dusted and rolled in lumpia wrapper with slivers of ripe jackfruit ranked in 21st place. The lumpia wrapper makes it so crispy especially when it is newly cooked. Maruya, mashed banana mixed with batter and deep-fried was in 36th place, ranking nine places above the popular US dessert funnel cake.

Photo culled from Rappler. This a Turon.

Sometimes, when we need dessert or merienda,we buy turon at the nearby store at P12 each. In malls, they sell it at P25.

Bananas like sweet plaintain used in these two recipes are rich in fiber, antioxidants and other nutrients.

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More Filipino Words In the Oxford English Dictionary

Yes, there are more Filipino words added to the  Oxford  English Dictionary.

Trapo: The traditional connotation of trapo is that in Tagalog it is a rag, something we use to clean  surfaces or our hands with. Nowadays though, when you say trapo, it refers to those traditional politicians belonging to a corrupt ruling.

Bongga: Back  in the seventies, a local group popularized a song called Bongga Ka Day. In Tagalog parlance, bongga simply means extravagant, flamboyant, impressive, stylish, or  more generally means excellent.

Bagoong: A fish sauce which we use as condiment, something that flavors our local recipes especially mixed veggies.

Bihon: Thin rice noodles we usually use for our pancit, made of rice flour.

Calamansi or kalamansi:  It is our famous Philippine lime which we use for various recipes,  as dips and  also as marinades for meat and other viands. Calamansi is also used as juice, hot or cold.

Sorbetes:  The Tagalog term for ice cream.

Turon:  Ah, my favorite. Sliced bananas or other fruit rolled in a thin layer of pastry and deep-fried, served as a dessert or snack. We wrap turon in lumpia wrappers.

Carinderia: Carinderia is a small food stall which can be usually found in small areas like the sides of a market or along  roads.  They serve complete meal and snacks too.

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