How to Peel a Banana Like a Matador: The Snap Method

A few weeks ago, I was sitting in our sunny conference room in San Bruno, California, for The FruitGuys Community Fund Advisory Board meeting. Suddenly, a SNAP! made me jump. I looked around to see where the sound had come from and noticed one of the board members next to me. She had just snapped a banana through the air like a whip—opening it up in the process!

I thought I knew all of the cool ways to open a banana (for example, peeling it from the bottom like some monkeys do) but I had never seen her method before. Apparently, banana snapping is a thing. Here’s how it works:

The Snap Method

1. Pull the banana from the bunch (if it’s still connected).
2. Hold the banana by the “handle” or stem with the tip curving toward you and pointing up in the air. Imagine the banana like a letter C; the open side of the C should face you.
3. Flick your wrist like you’re flicking a whip: up, then down. The banana peel will crack open at the stem.

Pretty cool, right?

Other Ways to Peel Bananas

As I mentioned, this isn’t the only way to peel a banana. You can pull off the peel the traditional way (by snapping off the stem and peeling the banana from the top down). Or, you can use the method some monkeys do (pinch the tip until it cracks open and peel the banana from the bottom). I’ve also seen some people snap their bananas in half and peel each half separately. Apparently, the late Queen Elizabeth even ate her bananas with a knife and fork. She wasn’t exactly a fan of monkeying around.

All that said, when it comes to eating bananas, there’s really no wrong way to do it.

If you want to learn more fun facts about bananas or get the answers to some of our most frequently asked banana questions, we have a new blog for that: “Going Bananas: Your Complete Ripe Banana Guide.” I hope it helps you learn some of the secrets hidden up this fruit’s famous peel.

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