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I can usually only eat about half of a banana, and usually when I get sick of it I just throw it away. In the past, I've seen bananas cut in half at hotels and other places that provide breakfast, etc, and thought maybe I could do the same - just cut it in half, eat one half now, and eat the other half later.

My question is, how do I need to store a banana that is cut in half like this? Obviously the bottom part of the banana is exposed to the air and not protected by the peel. As well, how long can I keep a half banana around before it just plain goes bad? Or does the fact that it's cut in half even affect how it should be stored / how long it keeps?

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    Can you not just buy smaller bananas?
    – NBenatar
    May 3, 2014 at 21:56

3 Answers 3

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Cut it in half before peeling, so that only the end is exposed. Wrap the exposed end with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator. The skin may darken, but that is okay.

You should get a day or two easily.

Or put all the half bananas in the freezer, and when you have enough, make banana muffins.

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    Puréeing the frozen halves in the food processor with a touch a milk or water makes a quick ice-cream-like dessert.
    – papin
    May 4, 2014 at 16:48
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Before peeling cut the banana in half using a knife. Then place the part you want to save back with the other bananas

When you want to eat the saved half in a day or two, just cut off a 5 mm slice near the cut end and it will be as good as new

You don't need to waste plastic, or to put it in the fridge

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    The fridge does blacken the peel pretty fast, but I wouldn't really say it ruins the flavor... in fact I think it preserves it! cooking.stackexchange.com/a/38270/1672
    – Cascabel ♦
    May 3, 2014 at 22:31
  • @Jefromi So you -1 for that, and ignore the main content ?
    – TFD
    May 3, 2014 at 23:12
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    First off, don't be so quick to take offense. Downvotes aren't personal attacks, and you never know who voted (they're deliberately anonymous). This time you were right, it was me, but I and others often try to point things out when I see others have downvoted without comment. In this case, I didn't ignore part of your answer, I just think that if part of an answer is good advice and part of it is bad advice, that makes it "not useful", exactly what downvotes are for.
    – Cascabel ♦
    May 4, 2014 at 6:53
  • @Jefromi No offence taken, never do. Just surprised on a minor (debatable) point being taken out of context of the main answer, which you effectively have declined to comment on. How does that help? Do you actually put bananas in the fridge?
    – TFD
    May 4, 2014 at 12:06
  • I usually eat them before they need it, but yes, I have put them in the fridge, and I agree with ATK's more thorough testing: it preserves them. And I didn't say anything about the rest of the answer because I thought it was fine, nothing to say about it.
    – Cascabel ♦
    May 4, 2014 at 18:04
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You can buy plastic banana shaped plastic boxes (same as kids use for school) and these extend the life about the same whether refrigerated or not - by at least a day or two longer than cling film etc. One reason is they prevent damage.

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