Banana Salad

A favourite South African side dish.

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

When I mentioned the concept of banana salad to my European friends as a side dish to compliment a main meal it caused some eyebrows to twitch. “Banana salad?” someone asked hesitantly curious to learn more. My return question: “What do you see in your mind’s eye?”

Everyone had visions of sliced bananas on chopped green salad leaves. This is what it is not! The idea of using sweetened condensed milk in a salad was very foreign to my friends. Not for South Africans though- we use it whenever we can, mostly in desserts, tarts and potato salad.

Banana salad, using the recipe below has a sweet-tangy creamy taste. It is usually served with a spicy hot curry dish or at a barbeque.

Ingredients:

6 Bananas (cut into slices)
3 Tablespoons mayonnaise (your favourite brand)
3 Tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon lemon juice (freshly squeezed)

Process / Method:

1. Mix mayonnaise and condensed milk together and stir.
2. Slice bananas and sprinkle lemon juice over to prevent them from turning brown.
3. Pour sauce over the sliced bananas.
4. Serve as soon as possible.