Did you know that in Africa plantains and bananas provide more than 25% of carbohydrates for over 70 million people? Plantains can be eaten cooked, raw, and you can get starch/flour from it.
Plantain starch is a great gluten-free alternative that has lower calories than all-purpose flour. Keep reading and we will guide you through the five interesting reasons to incorporate plantain starch into their cooking.
1. Healthier Alternative
Plantain flour is a healthy alternative to wheat flour. Plantain flour can help boost your immune system, help with weight loss control, and more.
Plantains are a fruit, specifically a type of banana. They have become a healthy alternative because wheat isn’t as healthy as it used to be.
Modern farming and new technology has made wheat farming filled with chemicals, making it a lot less healthy to eat.
This is why plantain flour, which is made with minimal ingredients, is a healthier alternative. You can read more into the health benefits of plantain flour.
2. Plantains and Potatoes
Plantains are nutritionally similar to a potato in terms of calorie intake. However, they have a lot more vitamins and minerals.
They are a rich source of fiber and complex carbohydrates, vitamins A, C, and B-6. The minerals included are magnesium and potassium. They are very digestible.
3. Baked, Boiled, Fried, Roasted
There are many ways you can cook plantains, which is why they vary in nutrition. Baked plantains and plantain flour are healthy alternatives, but frying plantains can make them less nutritious.
4. Heart Health
The potassium in plantains help with keeping regular levels of cells and body fluids that control your heart rate and blood pressure. The fiber can also help lower your cholesterol, which also helps with heart health.
5. Versatile
You might see plantains fried and covered in grease, or you may see them as a side dish grilled next to fish. You also may try them in a plantain flour pancake.
Plantains are very versatile and give you many options and ways to eat them. You can make them as healthy as you want, and they are a great healthy alternative for people that are gluten-free.
Plantains vs. Bananas
Plantains and bananas are very similar and have a similar look. Plantains are larger, darker, and have thicker skin than the supermarket bananas.
Plantains are a lot less sweet than bananas and unappealing to eat raw. One important distinction is that plantain starch and flour aren’t the same as banana flour.
You will be able to taste the difference between the two flours and bananas are much sweeter. Both provide great alternative flours.
Cook with Plantain Starch
Now that you understand the nutritional benefits and versatility of plantains, you can try cooking with plantain starch.
It’s a nutritious alternative to wheat flour, which has become less vitamin and mineral-filled and more filled with chemicals.
Get your first plantain or keep browsing through recipes here!
