Costco bananas don't seem to ever ripen (what's the trick)?

[Francis C.]

Whenever I buy Costco bananas, they never seem to ripen to yellow.
http://www.use.com/images/s_2/22214dce6542ae589dfc_1.jpg

What's the trick to ripening green bananas at home?

[Oren]

On Mon, 25 Mar 2013 01:35:23 +0000 (UTC), "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

>Whenever I buy Costco bananas, they never seem to ripen to yellow.
> http://www.use.com/images/s_2/22214dce6542ae589dfc_1.jpg
>
>What's the trick to ripening green bananas at home?

Take them out of the plastic bag....like you have in the bowl in your
photo. Or buy nearly ripe bananas.

Black spots on the peel, indicate sugar sweetness. If the peel turns
black, made banana nut bread.

[DD_BobK]

My experience with very green bananas.... they often "go bad" before
they ripen.

The ripen process involves the release & the action of ethylene gas.
I typically use a ripe banana to "force ripen" tomatoes.

You can do the same with bananas.
Put the unripe bananas in a brown paper bad along with a ripe apple.
The ethylene gas from the apple will help ripen the bananas.

The paper bag will help concentrate the ethylene gas but not retain
moisture which would encourage the bananas to mold.

cheers
Bob

[DerbyDad03]

Overripe bananas are great for smoothies too.

Peel and freeze them if too many go bad before you can use them.

[Julie Bove]

I've had a problem with bananas not ripening. Don't know why. Not Costco
bananas though. Those things come loaded with so many fruit flies, I won't
ever buy them again.

[harry]

The trick is ethylene gas. Given off by (over)ripe fruit.
Put your green bananas in a closed container with other over ripe
fruit.
The ethylene gas given off by the over ripe fruit will ripen your
bananas.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene-ripened_fruits#Storage

[Erik]

In article <kio9kr$q4b$1...@dont-email.me>, "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

> Whenever I buy Costco bananas, they never seem to ripen to yellow.
> http://www.use.com/images/s_2/22214dce6542ae589dfc_1.jpg
>
> What's the trick to ripening green bananas at home?

I remember once reading that if bananas are ever ever allowed to go
below 40°F, they will never ripen.

However, this article suggest even higher temperatures than 40°F
can/will permanently stall ripening. See the 'ripening' heading.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana

Erik

[Francis C.]

I had immediately put a ripe banana and apple in the bags,
leaving one bag as a control.

Here is the current result, after three days:
http://www4.picturepush.com/photo/a/12520377/img/12520377.jpg

I'd say, so far, it's a failure; but maybe time will tell.

[Kalmia]

Wish I had that problem. I buy three at a time and they ripen very
fast. My market sells Chiquitas by bulk.

I let em sit in an open wooden bowl.

[Brooklyn1]

Francis C.wrote:

Can take a lot longer than three days...
Costco doesn't grow bananas, they buy from the same wholesaler that
all the other area stores buy from... the larger stores like Costco
buy in large volume so get the freshest bananas... retail stores
prefer to buy greener bananas... if they ripen too much before they
can sell them they end up in the trash bin. Those plastic banana bags
have large holes punched in them (I can see the holes in your photo),
the ethylene gas produced by the apple and the bananas themselves is
escaping... using those leaky bags is almost like using no bag at all.
Bananas are purposely placed in ventilated bags so that they don't
ripen too quickly, it's difficult to sell overly ripe bananas. The
bananas in the bags with the apple do look slightly riper (more
yellowish) than the bag with no apple all way to the right. If you're
in a big hurry use bags that don't leak... but those bananas will
ripen on their own if left out on the counter with no bag and with no
help at all if you have patience... bananas are harvested very green
so they can survive shipping, you obviously chose the the greenest of
the green, was probably a just arrived shipment. Usually the produce
manager will put the older/riper bananas out first but often in stores
that sell bananas cheap they sell too fast for much in-store ripening.
Btw, most folks complain that bananas ripen too fast, consider
yourself fortunate.

[DD_BobK]

Two comments...


1) Paper bag was suggested (I have never attempted to ripen fruit in
a plastic bag...only paper)
2) Perhaps there is truth to "the less than 40F exposure prevents
ripening" ?
3) Create additoonal condition

[DD_BobK]

On Mar 27, 7:52 am, Brooklyn1 <gravesen...@verizon.net> wrote:
BIG SNIP

>>>Those plastic banana bags
have large holes punched in them (I can see the holes in your photo),
the ethylene gas produced by the apple and the bananas themselves is
escaping... using those leaky bags is almost like using no bag at
all.
Bananas are purposely placed in ventilated bags so that they don't
ripen too quickly, it's difficult to sell overly ripe bananas. The
bananas in the bags with the apple do look slightly riper (more
yellowish) than the bag with no apple all way to the right. If
you're
in a big hurry use bags that don't leak... but those bananas will
ripen on their own if left out on the counter with no bag and with no
help at all if you have patience... bananas are harvested very green
so they can survive shipping, you obviously chose the the greenest of
the green, was probably a just arrived shipment.<<

+1 ...I missed the holes in the plastic bags, good catch.

[Francis C.]

DD_BobK wrote:

> +1 ...I missed the holes in the plastic bags, good catch.

I will switch to clear un-holed plastic bags.

This isn't the first time I've had the Costco bananas not ripen,
but, maybe I just didn't wait long enough.

There was no way NOT to get green bananas, as that's all they
had when I bought them. Must have been a fresh shipment.

[andrew s]

Brooklyn1 wrote on Wed, 27 Mar 2013 10:52:33 -0400:

Why would a "paper" bag be any different than a plastic bag for
ripening fruits?

[DD_BobK]

If you want to extend the experiment,
keep a bag with holes

& switch to plastic bag w/o holes
but.....
my experience that I shared was with a paper bag (specifically size 8,
oversized lunch bag)

plastic w/o holes may be too mositure tight, rot before ripen?

[Ed Pawlowski]

On Wed, 27 Mar 2013 23:40:21 +0000 (UTC), "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

>DD_BobK wrote:
>
>> +1 ...I missed the holes in the plastic bags, good catch.
>
>I will switch to clear un-holed plastic bags.
>

I'd use a paper bag. Plastic bags tend to allow the fruit to go moldy
long before paper.

>This isn't the first time I've had the Costco bananas not ripen,
>but, maybe I just didn't wait long enough.
>
>There was no way NOT to get green bananas, as that's all they
>had when I bought them. Must have been a fresh shipment.

Supermarkets have ripening rooms and they control how the banana
reaches the selling floor. Maybe Costco does not do it well.
http://www.ripeningrooms.com/home.aspx
http://abullseyeview.com/infographic-target-banana-ripening-rooms/

[DD_BobK]

On Mar 27, 4:46 pm, andrew s <andr...@nospammers.com> wrote:

> Why would a "paper" bag be any different than a plastic bag for
> ripening fruits?

I'm not sure, I was told (or read) to use a paper bag...like a lunch
sized bag.

My guess >>>

closed bag is to increase the concentration of ethylene gas, paper bag
to allow bananas to "breath".
Thus preventing rot by not allowing liquid water (condensation) to
accumulate.

Don't know "why" for sure but in my experience paper bags just work.
YMMV

cheers
Bob

[Oren]

On Wed, 27 Mar 2013 19:33:12 -0700 (PDT), DD_BobK <rkaz...@gmail.com>
wrote:

>
>plastic w/o holes may be too mositure tight, rot before ripen?

...kind of related

Crime scene evidence with possible DNA, body fluids, etc is stored in
paper bags. Keeps it from deteriorating faster.

Other evidence is okay in plastic bags.

Back to the topic -- some say to put an avocado in a dark kitchen
cabinet with no bag and it will ripen faster than sitting on the
counter.

[Janet Bostwick]

On Wed, 27 Mar 2013 23:40:21 +0000 (UTC), "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

I buy Costco bananas all the time. It takes a couple days before
they are ripe enough to eat and then every one of them ripens and you
have to eat fast or freeze them. You can keep ripe bananas in the
refrigerator for a couple of days to hold them from spoiling. The
refrigerator will turn the skins black but that doesn't harm the
insides.
Janet US

[Janet Bostwick]

I wouldn't use plastic either. Plastic traps moisture and allows
fruit to get moldy. Use a paper bag. I really don't see why you need
a bag at all as they will ripen by themselves given time.
Janet US

[Francis C.]

DD_BobK wrote:

> plastic w/o holes may be too mositure tight, rot before ripen?

Ah, makes sense.

Since I have 4 bags of bananas, I'll do this:
1. Control (unopened plastic bag)
2. Apple with bananas (paper bag)
3. Banana with bananas (paper bag)
4. Apple with bananas (plastic bag)

[James Silverton]

I look forward to the results!

--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not" in Reply To.

[atec77]

Placing un-ripened fruit in a bowl for several days usually induces
ripening , some wont ripen after picking or in the case of bananas gassing

--









X-No-Archive: Yes

[Francis C.]

James Silverton wrote:

> I look forward to the results!

Bummer. I don't have any small paper bags.
So, I just left them (since Sunday) in the plastic bags.
Here's the result, Friday morning:
http://www3.picturepush.com/photo/a/12537441/img/12537441.jpg

[James Silverton]

The ones on the left look most promising but even I, who don't like
really ripe bananas, think they have a way to go. My ideal, naturally
ripened, banana has a clear yellow skin with, at most, a few brown
spots. Many people would not consider my favorites really ripe but I
like them sweet with a slight sub-acid taste.

[Francis C.]

James Silverton wrote:

>> Here's the result, Friday morning:
>> http://www3.picturepush.com/photo/a/12537441/img/12537441.jpg

> The ones on the left look most promising but even I, who don't like
> really ripe bananas, think they have a way to go

Interestingly, look at the difference a day makes!

Here's the same set Friday evening:
http://www1.picturepush.com/photo/a/12541714/img/12541714.jpg

Both apples came from the same batch, but one is
really working those bananas, while the other must
be working for the DMV.

Meanwhile, the control is still as green as my lawn,
almost a week after buying them from Costco!

[James Silverton]

Yes, now we have to figure out what was different about the apples.

[Jon Danniken]

Sounds about right to me, I don't like any brown spots on my bananas,
just yellow with a little green is about right for me.

Jon

[sf]

On Sat, 30 Mar 2013 05:19:38 +0000 (UTC), "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

You never said why you bought so much at once, but I'd only want one
of those packages ripe at a time anyway.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

[sf]

On Sat, 30 Mar 2013 08:33:01 -0400, James Silverton
<not.jim....@verizon.net> wrote:

> Yes, now we have to figure out what was different about the apples.

I'm guessing one was coated with wax and the other one wasn't - even
if it wasn't applied, they develop their own natural coating.

[Brooklyn1]

On Sat, 30 Mar 2013 08:33:01 -0400, James Silverton
<not.jim....@verizon.net> wrote:

If the apples were waxed they won't release much ethylene.

[Francis C.]

sf wrote:

> You never said why you bought so much at once,
> but I'd only want one of those packages ripe at a time

It's the normal amount I buy for the family.
Normally I get 'em yellow at the supermarket.

In the past, the Costco bananas never ripened.
I don't know why.

But, I'm learning.
http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/12565358/img/12565358.jpg

Notice today, one week and one day later, just the
ONE with one of the apples (unwaxed I presume) has
ripened.

The rest are still green!

[Oren]

On Mon, 1 Apr 2013 15:36:44 +0000 (UTC), "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

>In the past, the Costco bananas never ripened.
>I don't know why.
>

Must be the Del Monte brand. I never have a problem with Chiquita
bananas. Just the opposite. They ripen fast.

>But, I'm learning.
> http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/12565358/img/12565358.jpg
>
>Notice today, one week and one day later, just the
>ONE with one of the apples (unwaxed I presume) has
>ripened.
>
>The rest are still green!

The apples look waxed to me as they a very shinny (in the bowl). Look
in the core dimple on top. The area is not shinny, that I see.

You might take the third bag with the apple and cut the apple in half
or quarters and place them back in the bag.

[Jean B.]

Francis C. wrote:
> Whenever I buy Costco bananas, they never seem to ripen to yellow.
> http://www.use.com/images/s_2/22214dce6542ae589dfc_1.jpg
>
> What's the trick to ripening green bananas at home?
>

The trick of finding ripe bananas (which isn't what you asked for)
is to look for them in the reduced produce area. God forbid that
unsightly ripe bananas should grace the shelves of normal produce.

--
Jean B.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Some of the best tasting and ripest fruit comes from the "used food"
cart. I always check it out.

[Francis C.]

Jean B. wrote:

> The trick of finding ripe bananas (which isn't what you asked for)

The problem was that, at Costco, all they had was green, and greener.
In the past, they NEVER ripened - which is why I asked (they 'must'
be ripening for someone or they'd never be able to sell 'em).

Anyway, here are the four bags of bananas, which were bought two
Sunday's ago, so it has been 10 days to date.

Notice only ONE bag ripened.
http://www4.picturepush.com/photo/a/12582862/img/12582862.jpg

So, I took the liberty of adding a few more inducements to the
bags (leaving the control alone).

I suspect the control will NEVER ripen, and I'll have to throw
it away - but - I'll let the banana prove me right or wrong on
its own.

[Pico Rico]

"Francis C." <f...@fc.com> wrote in message news:kjhlq6$80a$1...@dont-email.me...

why not return it to Costco for a refund?

[Francis C.]

Pico Rico wrote:

> why not return it to Costco for a refund?

The point is to figure out HOW to get them to ripen.

[Cheryl]

Maybe you're not to supposed to leave them in the sealed plastic bag
once taken home. Your control group seems to suggest that. The rest
was interesting, with the apples and all.


--
CAPSLOCK–Preventing Login Since 1980.

[pltrgyst]

On 4/7/13 3:58 AM, Cheryl wrote:

> Maybe you're not to supposed to leave them in the sealed plastic bag

> once taken home....

You're not. Place them in brownpaper bags to ripen.

-- Larry

[Francis C.]

Francis C. wrote:

> Whenever I buy Costco bananas, they never seem to ripen to yellow.
> http://www.use.com/images/s_2/22214dce6542ae589dfc_1.jpg
>
> What's the trick to ripening green bananas at home?

UPDATE: 2 weeks later

a. I bought 4 DelMonte banana plastic bags at Costco (Sunday 3/30)
b. I put a ripe apple in two & a yellow banana in one.
c. One of the apple banana bags ripened (and has subsequently been eaten)
d. I added MORE APPLES to the one bag (including the magic apple)
e. I removed the now-wholly-brown ripening banana (which had failed)
f. Now it's exactly two weeks later

March 29th:
http://www4.picturepush.com/photo/a/12636337/img/12636337.jpg

April 1st:
http://www1.picturepush.com/photo/a/12636339/img/12636339.jpg

April 7th:
http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/12636338/img/12636338.jpg

[gregz]

I never buy green bananas. The only time I buy bagged bananas, is when they
are by the paper bag full, discounted. Half price or less. Go to a real
grocery.

Greg

[Nancy Young]

I buy green-ish bananas because I just don't want a whole bunch of them
ripening all at once. Seems to work well enough. I take the Costco
bananas (which are pretty good) out of the bag to ripen them.

The Costco bananas are a big bunch for $1.39.

nancy

[Brooklyn1]

Nancy Young wrote:
>
>I buy green-ish bananas because I just don't want a whole bunch of them
>ripening all at once. Seems to work well enough. I take the Costco
>bananas (which are pretty good) out of the bag to ripen them.

I do the same, I also break off each banana from the hand while still
green, less chance of tearing the skin. I keep them in a straw basket
on the counter, I've never had a problem with bananas not ripening,
only that sometimes they ripen faster than I eat them. I don't care
for very ripe bananas unless used in a recipe.

>The Costco bananas are a big bunch for $1.39.

I've only seen bananas sold by weight, last time 43�/lb... what's a
big bunch?

[Nancy Young]

On 4/8/2013 9:01 AM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
> Nancy Young wrote:
>>
>> I buy green-ish bananas because I just don't want a whole bunch of them
>> ripening all at once. Seems to work well enough. I take the Costco
>> bananas (which are pretty good) out of the bag to ripen them.
>
> I do the same, I also break off each banana from the hand while still
> green, less chance of tearing the skin. I keep them in a straw basket
> on the counter, I've never had a problem with bananas not ripening,
> only that sometimes they ripen faster than I eat them. I don't care
> for very ripe bananas unless used in a recipe.

Ditto. If they get too ripe they go into the freezer, of course.

>> The Costco bananas are a big bunch for $1.39.
>
> I've only seen bananas sold by weight, last time 43�/lb... what's a
> big bunch?

Someone will correct me forthwith if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking
5 pounds.

nancy

[Brooklyn1]

That's a real bargain, it's been many years since I've seen bananas
selling for 27�/lb.

[Francis C.]

Cheryl wrote:

> Maybe you're not to supposed to leave them in the sealed plastic bag
> once taken home. Your control group seems to suggest that. The rest
> was interesting, with the apples and all.

Well, the funny thing is that, in the past, I've unbagged the green
Costco bananas, and they never ripened. I also left them bagged,
and, they never ripened.

For a long while, I just stopped buying Costco bananas.

But then, I was at Costco on the last Sunday in March, and
I figured I'd buy them, and ASK YOU GUYS.

I do realize the paper bag was the suggested method, along
with the ripened fruits - but I had no paper bags, and not
enough bananas to do all the experiments - so I opted for
the simplest ... which was to put fruits in three of the
four bags.

So far, I've learned that the yellow Dole banana did almost nothing
to ripen the green DelMonte bananas; and I learned that a single
apple was a risk because it appears to depend on the apple.

So I juggled the apples yesterday - and threw away the yellow
Dole which had turned brown all over - and am currently just
waiting to see if the multiple apples will work.

I will report back in a few days...

[Nancy Young]

On 4/8/2013 9:48 AM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
> On Mon, 08 Apr 2013 09:31:29 -0400, Nancy Young

>> Someone will correct me forthwith if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking
>> 5 pounds.
>
> That's a real bargain, it's been many years since I've seen bananas
> selling for 27�/lb.

I really can't say for sure how heavy the bag is, I don't know.
Looking around, maybe it's only 3 pounds. I don't mean to
backpedal. The bunch is larger than those I generally see in
my supermarket.

nancy

[DD_BobK]

Dear FC-

imo, your "juggling of the experimental conditions" as time progress
is effectively muddling any results. :(

You might hit a "home run" and discover a ripening solution but at
this point, I cannot say which of your experimental paths I would
repeat to confirm a success.

That over ripe Dole may have been you best ripening agent. Based on
the results so far, I'd give up on Costco bannanas :(

[Brooklyn1]

Nancy Young wrote:

> Brooklyn1 wrote:
>> Nancy Young
>
>>> Someone will correct me forthwith if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking
>>> 5 pounds.
>>
>> That's a real bargain, it's been many years since I've seen bananas
>> selling for 27�/lb.
>
>I really can't say for sure how heavy the bag is, I don't know.
>Looking around, maybe it's only 3 pounds. I don't mean to
>backpedal. The bunch is larger than those I generally see in
>my supermarket.

At the stores I shop I never see bananas in plastic bags, the hands
are loose but neatly displayed, take how much you want and they're
weighed at check out. And there's typically an assortment at various
levels of ripeness.

[Francis C.]

DD_BobK wrote:

> That over ripe Dole may have been you best ripening agent. Based on
> the results so far, I'd give up on Costco bannanas

UPDATE:

The untouched DelMonte Costco control set of bananas finally ripened!
http://www4.picturepush.com/photo/a/12676187/img/12676187.jpg

Today is the 12th of April, and they were bought green
on the 24th of March, which is 19 days elapsed time.

If we selected just the right (magic) apple, that time can be
dropped by two thirds - otherwise - a bunch of random apples
seemed to drop ripening time only by about a third.

The yellow Dole banana was nearly useless as a ripening
agent (which had to be removed when it turned totally brown).

In summary, the green Costco DelMonte bananas, if left alone,
will ripen in two to three weeks but will ripen in one to two
weeks if we put a few apples in the bag.

[sf]

On Sat, 13 Apr 2013 01:23:24 +0000 (UTC), "Francis C." <f...@fc.com>
wrote:

Thank you for the update! Your saga was a real cliff hanger. :)

[Jean B.]

I learned that trick in relatively recent years. I always
wondered where the ripe fruit was.

--
Jean B.

[sf]

Grocery stores around here know exactly how much they're selling, so
they know how much to put on the shelves and there's never a "use
fruit" cart.

[gregz]

Sometimes my grocery puts some older bananas in a paper bag in the buggy,
on sale. I grab one every time I see it. That's after they red up the
banana racks.
Then I go buy some jumbo and chipped ham.

Greg

[Cavendish]

Take them out of the bag, sit them on the counter, you can speed up things if you wrap sarran wrap around stump. But the costco bananas are small and even when ripe taste green, guess it's where there from or many other reasons. But seems nobody knows that cavendish bananas are soon to be extinct so a race to save, pick, and transport whats left. Enjoy them while you can because till now no replacement has been found. 😕

--
For full context, visit https://www.homeownershub.com/maintenance/costco-bananas-don-t-seem-to-ever-ripen-what-s-the-trick-742033-.htm

[Rod Speed]

"Cavendish" <5d68d203bcd882a3...@example.com> wrote in message
news:165dab67752b28e5$1$571192$4636...@news.newsgroupdirect.com...

> Take them out of the bag, sit them on the counter, you can speed up things
> if you wrap sarran wrap around stump. But the costco bananas are small and
> even when ripe taste green, guess it's where there from or many other
> reasons. But seems nobody knows that cavendish bananas are soon to be
> extinct so a race to save, pick, and transport whats left. Enjoy them
> while you can because till now no replacement has been found. 😕

Likely they have stopped buying them after 7 years.

[Peeler]

On Tue, 26 Jan 2021 15:12:07 +1100, cantankerous trolling geezer Rodent
Speed, the auto-contradicting senile sociopath, blabbered, again:

<FLUSH the trolling senile asshole's latest trollshit unread>

--
Sqwertz to Rodent Speed:
"This is just a hunch, but I'm betting you're kinda an argumentative
asshole.
MID: <ev1p6ml7ywd5$.d...@sqwertz.com>