What Is a Primitivo Banana?

The first time I saw primitivos at the market I thought somebody had harvested the bananas super early. They were short, chunky, a little lumpy, and sitting right next to the regular ones like the shorter cousin at a family photo. I bought them mostly out of curiosity and that was the end of me buying regular bananas.

If you landed here wondering what a primitivo banana is, you are not alone. Depending on who you ask you will hear banano primitivo, plátano primitivo, or just primitivos, and they all mean the same little banana.

So what is a primitivo?

A primitivo is a small, stubby banana that grows here in Panama. They are about half the length of the bananas you buy at home, thicker in the middle, and the skin gets thin and freckly when they are ripe. Locals know to grab them first, and once you taste one you understand why.

What do they taste like?

Sweeter and creamier than a regular banana, with a little tang at the end. The texture is denser too, so they hold up better in a smoothie or a pancake and they are dangerous sliced over ice cream. I actually use them in the Ninja ice cream maker as a main ingredient!

Most of the bananas sold in the world are Cavendish, which are basically all clones of each other. That is why every banana back home tastes exactly the same. Primitivos are a nice reminder that bananas used to come in a lot more personalities.

Where to find primitivos in Bocas del Toro

You will not find them in a plastic bag with a sticker. Look at the fruit and veg stands in Bocas Town and the boats that come in with produce from the mainland. There are several stands along main street, and in Saigon Bay. Buy them a little green if you are not eating them today, they ripen fast in this heat.

Bananas and Bocas go way back

Bananas built this province. Bocas Town was a busy banana port more than a hundred years ago, and the plantations on the mainland are still running today. So it felt right that one of the first fruits I painted here was a banana, just not the one everybody already knows.

Why I painted them neon

I paint everyday things in colors they would never come in, and primitivos were perfect for it. They already look like a cartoon of a banana, so I gave them bold black outlines and turned the yellow and red all the way up. You can see the whole collection here: Neon Primitivo Bananas Collection.

They are on canvas, totes, scarves, mugs and more, so if you have a primitivo fan in your life (or you just became one) there is something for them.

Next time you are in Bocas, skip the regular bananas and grab a bunch of primitivos. You will thank me.

¡Hasta luego!

Jennifer