The Happy Home Cook: Banana-Cue
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Banana-cue (Source: Kulinarya: A Guidebook to Philippine Cuisine, Expanded Second Edition (Anvil Publishing Inc., 2013))
Yields: 24 skewers
Ingredients
12 saba bananas
1 cup (240 ml) oil for frying
1/2 cup (115 g) light brown or washed raw sugar
24 bamboo barbecue sticks, soaked in water
Preparation
- Peel and slice each banana lengthwise into quarters.
- Carefully skewer onto bamboo barbecue sticks, 2 to a stick, and set aside.
Cooking
- Into a deep pan, pour in enough oil to submerge the bananas on their skewers.
- Bring the oil to medium heat and fry the bananas until light golden.
- Sprinkle bananas with sugar, and turn them continuously in the oil while they fry so that the caramel coats the bananas in a crust.
Tips
The humble banana-cue is usually skewered whole and sold on busy street corners, and at schools as a snack. Here, it is given a bit of finesse.
Select plantain bananas that are fully ripened. Sliced into manageable pieces, the bananas are then rolled in brown sugar and fried so that the sugar encrusts the banana in a sweet, crunchy casing. A splash of rum and ice cream on the side elevates this favorite street food to a memorable dessert.
From: Kulinarya: A Guidebook to Philippine Cuisine, Expanded Second Edition (Anvil Publishing Inc., 2013).
