National Dish St Lucia: Boiled Green Bananas (Recipe)
In this article
Green Fig and Saltfish is the national dish of St Lucia, and green fig means green banana, not fig. The bananas are boiled in their skins and served with salt cod cooked with onion, pepper and thyme. Bananas were the island’s export crop for most of the twentieth century.
About Boiled Green Bananas
Green bananas are a starch, not a fruit. Boiled, they are firm, faintly waxy and closer to a new potato than to anything sweet. They are one of the ground provisions that fill out a Caribbean plate.
The salt fish is the other half. Together they are eaten for breakfast as often as dinner.
Ingredients (serves 1–2)
- 500 g green bananas
- Water, for boiling
- Salt, to taste
Shopping for the ingredients
Buy them properly green, with no yellow at all. Any yellowing means the starch has begun turning to sugar and the result will be sweet and soft. They are sold in Caribbean, African and Asian grocers.
Preparing the dish
Boil them in their skins. The skins slip off afterwards and this keeps the flesh from discolouring. Score the skin lengthways first so they peel easily and oil your hands, since green banana sap stains.
Step-by-step instructions
- Score the skin of each banana lengthways without cutting into the flesh.
- Bring a pan of water to the boil and season it with salt.
- Add the bananas, skins on, and cook for around 20–25 minutes, until tender.
- Lift them out with a slotted spoon and let them cool briefly.
- Peel off the skin carefully, then slice the bananas or serve them whole.
- Serve hot with salt fish, or with butter and pepper.
Gluten-free / lactose-free version
Green bananas contain no gluten and no dairy. They are one of the simplest naturally suitable staples for both restrictions.
Tips for vegans and vegetarians
Boiled green bananas are vegan. Served with stewed lentils or a coconut vegetable stew rather than saltfish, they make a full plate. A splash of coconut oil and black pepper is enough on its own.
More tips and tricks
Boil them with the skins on. Add a splash of oil to the water, which is a Caribbean habit that stops them sticking together. And serve them hot; green bananas go hard and grey as they cool.
Adapting the recipe to your taste
Green fig and saltfish is the full national dish. Green banana salad uses them cold with a vinaigrette. A little turmeric in the water gives colour.
Ingredient substitutions
Green plantain works and is firmer. Breadfruit or dasheen fill the same role. Nothing else is needed.
Drink pairing ideas
Sorrel drink or cocoa tea, which is what St Lucians drink at breakfast. Piton lager later. Bush tea afterwards.
Serving and presentation ideas
Serve them alongside the saltfish rather than under it, with a wedge of avocado if it is in season. The plate is plain and unarranged. Pepper sauce on the table.
A bit of history
Bananas dominated the St Lucian economy from the 1950s until EU trade preferences ended in the 1990s, which devastated the industry. The dish predates the export trade and outlasted it. It anchors St Lucian cuisine.
More recipe ideas
- Dasheen and Saltfish
- Fried Breadfruit
- Green Banana Salad
- Green Fig and Saltfish
- Smoked Herring and Ground Provisions
- Stewed Green Figs
Summary: Boiled Green Bananas
Boiled green bananas are green bananas cooked in their skins and served with salt fish. Buy them properly green, boil them skin-on, and serve them hot.
