Bananas in Every Form

The Seychelles is home to at least 23 different banana species, and these are used in a plethora of dishes. From bananas flambeed with rum or brandy or fried as chips to desserts like bananas fried with sugar and butter or baked with coconut milk that, bananas play a crucial role in Seychellois cuisine. 

Banana ladob is a traditional Seychelles dessert, enjoyed both as a sweet treat and a savory meal. The sweet version is usually served as a dessert, made with ripe bananas and sweet potatoes, simmered slowly in coconut milk, sugar, nutmeg, and vanilla. The result is a warm, comforting dessert that perfectly balances sweet and spicy flavors. 

The savory version of Ladob, on the other hand, involves cooking salted fish with bananas, cassava, and breadfruit in coconut milk. Both versions exemplify the clever ways Seychellois have utilized the bounty of their tropical environment. 

The Seychelles is home to at least 23 varieties of banana - spanning tiny sweet ones to giant plantains that need to be cooked. Most are eaten raw, however, but the banana is a popular ingredient in a number of the island’s delicious local delicacies. Commonly cooked in coconut milk or as part of a banana cake. But also occasionally found drenched in caramelised sugar, rum and doused in flames, or thinly sliced, deep fried and served as crunchy banana crisps. Delicious.