Green banana

Description:

A cooking plantain or plantain (/ˈplæntɨn/;[1][2] also US /ˈplɑːntɨn/[1] or UK /plænˈteɪn/)[3][4] is a fruit of one of the cultivated varieties (cultivars) of the genus Musa intended to be consumed only after cooking or other processing, rather than being eaten raw. Those fruits intended to be eaten raw may be called "dessert bananas" or just "bananas", although "banana" is also used as a collective term to include both bananas and plantains. There is no formal botanical distinction between the two. In some countries, there may appear to be a clear distinction between cooking plantains and dessert bananas, but in other countries, where many more cultivars are consumed, the differences are not so clear-cut and the distinction is not made in the common names used there. The broadest sense of the two terms "plantain" and "banana", used here, is based purely on how the fruits are consumed. Plantains are typically eaten cooked and are usually large, angular and starchy, in contrast to dessert bananas, which are typically eaten raw and are usually smaller, more rounded and sugary. A subgroup of plantain cultivars may be distinguished as "true" plantains.-Wikipedia