Maui, Day 6: Fried Red Bananas and a Rainbow of Beaches

What do you do when you're trapped in Hana and you've run out of fish and wild boar?

Improvise.

These are decadent. Serve over jungle rice with some diced avocado tossed with lime and cilantro as a counterpoint to the sweetness. Pairs incredibly well with either Maui Brewing Company's Coconut Porter (available, if you happen to be trapped in Hana too, at the Hasegawa General Store) or a sweeter Torrontés like the 2012 from Terraza de los Andes (available, if you happen to be passing it, at the Costco in Kahului).

Ingredients

1 tbsp butter

Olive oil

2 red bananas that aren't quite ripe (or sub yellow bananas when still slightly green)

1 tsp finely chopped lemongrass

1 tsp minced or finely julienned ginger

1 tbsp toasted grated coconut or crumbled coconut chips

Heat a wide pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and melt, then supplement with a drizzle of olive oil if needed to have a thin layer of fat along the bottom of the pan. Add the bananas in a single layer. Sprinkle with the lemongrass and ginger, then fry until golden brown.

Flip the bananas, sprinkle with the coconut, and fry until browned on both sides. Serve hot.

Serves 2-3.

Cuban red bananas from the local roadside fruit stand

Hike down to the red sand beach for a morning swim

Red and black lava cinders lining the trail

Sunset from the black sand beach at Wai'anapapa