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Saba banana fritters |
By Nurhafizah Yusof
Pictures by Ille Tugimin
Sabah’s ubiquitous banana is aptly named
Saba. But it did not find favour with the people on the peninsula until Najib Razak, the prime minister, had a taste of it. Now demands for Sabah banana or
Pisang Sabah in Malay have outstripped supply, according to Yahya Hussin, a deputy chief minister who heads the ministry of agriculture and food industry.
Saba is a hybrid of the genera
Musa acuminata and
balbisiana of the Cavendish group. Thus it has a mild tangy Cavendish taste. It stands out from other bananas because of its angular sides. It is between 8 and 13 cm long, about the length of a ballpoint pen, and looks rather stubby with a girth of between 2.5 and 5.5 cm. As a plantain, it is usually used to make fritters, chips and cakes.
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Sebastian Chew |