As bananas ripen, they get sweeter and more flavorful as their starches turn to sugar, which makes them tastier to eat out of hand and great for sweet recipes like banana bread. They are perfect for baking when speckled with brown all over and have a strong fruity fragrance. Bananas also get softer as they ripen, and their mashability makes them ideal for treats and creamy smoothies.
But just how ripe are we talking about here? Should you be using those completely black bananas on your counter or is it safer to toss them in the compost bin instead? To find out, I checked with the experts at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as well as James E. Rogers, Ph.D., the Director of Food Safety Research and Testing for Consumer Reports.
Is It Safe to Eat and Cook with Black Bananas?
Good news for Team Ripe Banana: Extremely ripe bananas—even those with a completely black peel—are likely safe to eat. According to a spokesperson for the FDA, "Generally, as long as it is not visibly moldy, it is safe." Rogers concurs, saying he hasn't seen any studies linking foodborne illness to eating extremely ripe bananas.
That said, Rogers states that if your bananas are jet black and mushy, your safest bet is to cook with them rather than eating them out of hand or using them raw in things like smoothies or nice cream.
"The riper the bananas get, the more levels of bacteria could be on them," he says. Those bacteria include spoilage bacteria, which are typically not harmful, but could also be pathogenic bacteria (which can make you sick) picked up during harvesting, processing, or at the grocery store.
Fortunately, heat should kill any pathogenic bacteria that might have been lurking around and multiplying on the bananas as they ripened. "Cooking is a kill step," says Rogers.
Also, note that placing bananas in the fridge or freezer will turn them black. This is natural—bananas don't handle the cold well—and does not mean the bananas are bad. You can still eat them safely as long as they aren't moldy.
3 Signs It’s Time To Throw Away Your Bananas
If you notice any mold on your bananas, it's time to throw them away or toss them in the compost bin. The black skin itself is not mold. Mold on bananas is fuzzy white, gray, or greenish—it looks a lot like mold on bread.
If a banana smells rotten or fermented or is leaking fluid, it's time to say goodbye.
If the fruit inside, not just the peel, is black, that's a sign that your banana is too far gone to safely eat.
The Takeaway
Completely black bananas are likely safe to consume as long as there is no visible mold, a rotten smell, or the fruit inside is black. If none of these are true and your bananas are simply black, your best bet is to cook with them rather than eat them raw.
Mold on bananas is fuzzy white, gray, or greenish—it looks a lot like mold on bread. If a banana smells rotten or fermented or is leaking fluid, it's time to say goodbye. If the fruit inside, not just the peel, is black, that's a sign that your banana is too far gone to safely eat.
Rotten bananas will often have a fermented or alcohol-like smell. While it's okay if the banana peel is dark brown or even black, if the inside is too, then the fruit is beyond ripe and now on its way to rotten. Another sign that bananas have gone bad is if they start leaking any fluids.
Overripe bananas may not be as pretty as perfectly yellow bananas, but they are still perfectly safe to eat. However, they may have soft spots due to bruises and be more susceptible to bacteria and fungi. So, it's best to consume them before they become too soft and mushy.
Here's the secret: overripe bananas don't necessarily mean too-ripe bananas for banana bread. It really comes down to personal preference. Those brown-speckled, mostly yellow bananas are still ripe and will bake into a great loaf.
Bananas with black spots are safe for consumption and do not pose any health risks. However, exercise caution if a banana with dark spots emits a bad odour. In such cases, it is advisable to steer clear and opt for a fresher alternative. Trust your senses when it comes to ensuring the quality of this nutritious fruit.
Mold on bananas is fuzzy white, gray, or greenish—it looks a lot like mold on bread. If a banana smells rotten or fermented or is leaking fluid, it's time to say goodbye. If the fruit inside, not just the peel, is black, that's a sign that your banana is too far gone to safely eat.
Do not wait, Life Hack warns, for the banana to become completely black, as this is evidence of reduced nutritional benefits. If the bananas are moldy, smell rotten, or have a black center — aka black center syndrome, a fungal condition — do not eat them. As The Whole Portion confirms, these are bananas to avoid.
But if you can't be bothered to trim your bruised banana or bake it into bread, there's little risk to your health in just eating it. There is a caveat: Bruising makes a piece of fruit more susceptible to infection.
Yes, dogs can eat bananas. It's tempting to share tasty fruit with your dog, especially when they're staring at you longingly. The good news is dogs can eat bananas in reasonable quantities as an occasional treat.
The three tiny black spots in the middle of the banana are seeds that are not fertile. You can eat them. Can you eat the black spots on a banana? If it has too many black spots, don't eat it.
A person with diabetes should include a variety of fresh, whole foods in their diet, such as nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables. Bananas are a safe and nutritious fruit for people with diabetes to eat in moderation as part of a balanced, individualized eating plan.
If the banana is totally brown with no yellow showing, is soft or squishy, is showing signs of mold, is leaking fluid or smells rotten, it is beyond saving. A banana that is ripe will have a yellow skin covered in brown spots, will smell sweetly of banana and will be the texture of a ripe avocado.
The ideal place to store bananas is on the countertop, where they can ripen naturally. You can refrigerate bananas once they've achieved your ideal level of ripeness; however, refrigerating bananas too soon or for too long can have detrimental effects on your bunch.
According to Dole, the ideal storage temperature is 54°F (12°C). Any cooler, your bananas will stop ripening and the peel will turn black. Any warmer, your bananas will ripen rapidly—that's why a warm kitchen isn't the ideal place to store your bananas. Also, keep them away from direct sunlight.
Introduction: My name is Velia Krajcik, I am a handsome, clean, lucky, gleaming, magnificent, proud, glorious person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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