Puso ng Saging / Banana Bud or Blossom
Puso ng saging literally translated is “heart of banana.” 
Most English source books however, refer to this common “vegetable” as Banana bud, flower or blossom… I have no idea why the cooked puso is considered a vegetable while the fruit of the same tree is a fruit… I suppose if you ate a salad of apple leaves that would be a vegetable too… At any rate, puso is the brilliantly maroon or red end of a bunch of bananas. It is extremely common because banana trees (a large herb, actually) grow by the gajillions in the Philippine countryside…
Most folks carefully wash and prepare the puso 
by slicing the inner section (throwing out the tougher outer leaves and odd flowers or limp fingers) and stewing it in coconut milk with perhaps onions, garlic, chillis and salt and pepper. I can usually eat a few spoonfuls of puso with coconut milk but it isn’t exactly my favorite vegetable dish. Some like to think of it as the poor man’s version of artichokes but I don’t think it has the same flavor, just the funny hard-leafy texture, that softens as it is stewed. If any of you have any interesting ways to prepare this readily available vegetable(?), please leave a comment below…
I like “Puso ng Saging” kinilaw. Does anyone know how to make them?
January 18th, 2006I dont remember quite well, but that was the ONLY time I tasted puso (dont they also refer rice as puso in cebu?) ng saging. It was in a salad with pepper and vinegar-based dressing.
January 18th, 2006Kinilaw na puso ng saging is just guisado with pork and shrimps. Let it stew until the pork fat renders. Then add vinegar and lots of black pepper towards the end. I like it this way better than most ways of cooking it.
January 18th, 2006Puso ng saging will taste like artichoke, only if what you use is the canned puso. Try preparing Glenda Barretto’s Ensaladang Puso ng Saging, from Flavors of the Philippines. One of the comments I got when I served this was that it tasted just like pickled artichokes.
January 18th, 2006Go to iluko.com, they have recipe for burger made out of banana blossom.
A week ago I cooked banana blossom by cutting it into thin slices, boiled it. I put beaten eggs, flour, salt and perpper. And mixed it together. Fry it.
January 18th, 2006if you stand underneath a banana tree, with your mouth hanging open for a shot of puso ng saging sap during a full moon, you might gain some mystical powers. correct me if i’m wrong. is this another pinoy myth?
January 18th, 2006pete, that comment is too amusing to ignore for long. No, I haven’t heard that one before. But perhaps I should have tried it the other night when the moon was full… noemi, the fried version sounds good. Seaweed, you are right, a pickled version would be similar but the fresh version different I guess… Shoppaholique, the salad version sounds nice but I have yet to try it and yes, they do call rice wrapped in banana leaves puso in the Visayas (I have an earlier post on this, check the archives), jay seems Mita has given you a recipe for kinilaw na puso!
January 18th, 2006I heard it is a stone which drops from the puso at midnight, careful, though, you might turn into Darna. In Pangasinan we peel off the “leafy” parts and “harvest” the little banana fingers, which are the ones we cook as “vegetable,” usually in a fish sinigang, which turns opague from the sap.
January 18th, 2006the one in photo is the variety that is used for kinilaw or with coconut milk. The puso ng saging from saging na saba is the one being used with Kare-kare. It looks like long white / yellowish elongated puso ng saging. Try it and it’s good.
more power MM!
January 18th, 2006maybe you could also use puso ng saging as an alternative to dishes that call for sliced bamboo shoots?
mm, how about banana blossoms? any recipe for them other than putting them as extenders/extra ingredient for adobo?
January 18th, 2006Bubut, cool… I didn’t know the long beigy enlongated puso is from saba…see, you learn something every day…thanks for that. acidboy, I hear dried banana blossoms are sometimes put in sweet and sour soup in lieu of a more expensive ingredient but I haven’t made anything with banana flowers…maybe other readers have ideas?
January 18th, 2006My mom makes kilawin na puso ng saging with vinegar, onions and liver spread; just simmer till the puso shreds are tender. For banana flowers, she uses them for paksiw na lechon or paksiw na pata =)
January 18th, 2006What a coincidence you wrote about this, MM, because just the other night, my friend asked if there was any Filipino food I craved and considered comfort food (she knows Pinoy food is not one of my faves). One of the few dishes I mentioned is one that uses puso ng saging! I don’t cook, so I don’t know how it’s made, but there’s a dish I enjoy at my family’s house which has puso ng saging with gata, kalabasa, and shrimp. It’s really delicious, and quite comforting, too.
January 18th, 2006i grew up surrounded with banana
My family in Cebu make kinilaw out of this puso
Thanks for the info btw greatly appreciated!
January 18th, 2006Yeah Pete, that is common “belief” among Visayans in Mindanao!
January 19th, 2006It is supposed to be an “anting-anting” which renders you invincible (ex. will not die when hit by a bullet, wanna try?) hehehehehe, CDO peole like to make kinilaw(with pinakurat vinegar) with the puso once they get the “anting-anting” though, so you see, busog na, invincible pa! And yes, it does taste like artichoke!
pete, i remember a movie when i was small about a guy waiting for the sap to fall down and have the agimat - if i am not mistaken - it was a ramon revilla film of years back?!?! :)
My lola used to cook the puso - kilawin style and she adds sotanghon too and really yummy…
January 19th, 2006Oh, good you reminded me of this.
Puso ng saging is also used for sinigang.
January 19th, 2006i remember another movie where ricky belmonte was a dwarf named rickytik. naturally, he was paired with rosemarie sonora, who tried that trick of standing below a puso in anticipation of special powers. i think the movie was entitled “juanita banana.”
anyways, i have a question, how do you prepare puso ng saging so it won’t darken after slicing?
January 19th, 2006cheche, prepare a salt and water solution in a bowl. after slicing the “puso” place the slices in the solution immediately. this would retard the “darkening”.
I prepare my kinilaw by frying several slices of pork skin cut in 1-inch squares. Once done “ala chicharon” I remove it, let it rest skin side up in a plate with a paper towel.
Using the same pan and oil used to make the “chicharon” I would sautee shrimps,garlic and onions, add the “puso” slicing (drain the salt and water solution and wash it a few time to remove excess salt), add salt and pepper and the vinegar. Cook for about 15 minutes.
Before serving put the chicharon on top.
January 20th, 2006cheche, some acidulated water might do the trick, just squeeze some lemon or kalamansi into a bowl of water and soak the sliced puso ng saging in the bowl until ready to use. The acid tends to retard the blackening in most cases…
January 20th, 2006If you want to cook puso ng saging, the variety with the round tip is usually better than the ones you have in the picture. My mom, if she can help it, wouldn’t buy the pointy ones. They tend to have this kinda bitter taste. You can try puso ng saging with fish sinigang, it’s really good. Try to avoid the tough outer part though.
There’s a variety of banana that is not really good for anything but bird food because the fruit is full of seeds, and I mean peppercorn-sized seeds; but the puso from this same tree/herb is really good.
January 21st, 2006Puso ng saging in sinigang na bangus is good. It tastes better if yung “pinaghugasan ng bigas” (the water from the 2nd or 3rd washing) is used instead of plain water for the sabaw. And instead of sampalok para “pampaasim”, an alternative is santol.
For the flowers (yung fresh, the ones that are left when the outer tougher leaves were removed), my Ilokano father would stew that with okra, talong, sitaw, saluyot and fish bagoong. (Can add also dried shrimps for more flavor.) This is a good partner for fried fish.
June 23rd, 2006I like Puso ng saging because it used in kilawi……….
August 21st, 2006Masarap un……..matiman mo na b un????????
namit xa…………………..
August 21st, 2006Can you give me an information about the nutritional content of the banana blossom and what kind of diseases it can prevent if you eat it.. i need it for my feasibility studies.. Thanks..
September 20th, 2006“Pancit Puso” - noodles with [puso ng saging with vinegar]on top.. sarap!
September 20th, 2006muzz, sorry, I don’t have any nutritional information on banana blossoms…I think you need to do more in depth research than I can assist with…
September 20th, 2006puso ng saging is one of my favorite vegetable particularly if it is cooked as kare-kare in tagalog
July 18th, 2007can you give me some information about its help in our bopdy
July 18th, 2007gregorio, I don’t know much about medicinal benefits…
July 18th, 2007hi. is the kilawing puso ng saging the same as ensaladang puso ng saging with chicharon toppings?
October 4th, 2007Hi All,
Like Gregorio, would like also to know the vitamin content of Banana Bud. This has been one of my favorites as far as salads are concerned yet til now I dont have any info as to what nutrients does this stuff have. Pls let us know.
October 13th, 2007I recently preserved banana heart in olive oil and it actually tasted like preserved artichokes, like the ones they serve at Italian Restaurants as antipasto.
This is the following recipe, i hope it helps! :D
Ingredients for a one litre jar
1 kg (2.2 lb.) white inner section of the puso, discard the outer layer and the flowers
500 ml (2 cups) extra virgin olive oil
150 ml (generous half cup) dry white wine
100 ml (6 tbsp.) white vinegar 10 g
(2 tsp.) fine salt
5 g (1/6 oz.) coriander
Juice of half a lemon
1 fresh bay leaf
1 clove of garlic
1 Espelette chili
1 tsp. sugar
Preparation
1. Turn the banana heart using a small paring knife
2. In a stainless-steel saucepan, bring the vinegar, salt, coriander, bay leaf, Espelette chili, crushed garlic, sugar and lemon juice to a boil over high heat.
3. Place the puso in this marinade for 10 minutes.
4. Drain, cool and pack into a sterilized jar.
5. Fill with olive oil and seal tightly.
6. Can be eaten as an hors-d’oeuvre, or with a mesclun salad.
ENJOY! :D
October 21st, 2007Carissa, that sounds terrific, will have to try it the next time I get some good hearts…
October 21st, 2007i have question:) if we eat banana bud does it has desame vitamins or nutrition like in banana fruit????:) need some ansewers for my PFS:)
December 4th, 2007Hello,
fried puso ng saging is the best i tried it and my caucasian friend was really delighted by the taste. I will try carissa’s recipe next time.
December 18th, 2007actually,because of banana blossom i learn how 2 make banana blossom embutido
January 19th, 2008in bicol,my mom will cook puso ng saging in kare kare along w/ petchay,long beans and eggplant.
April 20th, 2008can anyone tell me the nutritional value of banana blossom/heart (not banana fruit). I just need it in my thesis. I couldn’t find anything over the net. thanks in advance.
tetepot@yahoo.com
May 12th, 2008hello,,i am just curious if it is possible for a banana tree to have 10 hearts at one time…There was a particular tree at our place who have that case..Do science have any explanation at this or is it a miracle?thanks a lot
June 6th, 2008my high school teacher defined a vegetable as a plant or a plant part that is eaten (as viand) with the staple food, so if you eat the banana blossom as “ulam” with rice, “puso ng saging” is considered a vegetable. the banana part that you pick from the “piling” and peel before eating, that is eaten as a fruit.
June 6th, 2008Hi there, I cant find the Puso ng Saging burger in the iluko.com. I dont speak Ilocanot neither. Is possible to post a recipe? thanks
June 24th, 2008Puso ng saging- or banana blossoms even are best in vegetarian karekare with pechay, kalabasa, sitaw, etc. Nothing beats peanut butter you make yourself- totally organic!!! And oh, ‘fake’ bagoong from soy- oh so good! I patterned my recipe from Bodhi’s karekare!
July 26th, 2008I’m studying in Sydney and I was tasked to present an exotic fruit/vegetable in class. All your inputs are helpful. Thanks.
August 12th, 2008ei,i want to share my recipe of puso ng saging.
actually,naisip ko lang ito.my contest kasi sa school para sa masustansyang recipe kya ito ang niluto nmin.pls. give a comment about it.
125 g all purpose flour
500 g puso ng saging(finely choped)
2 tbsp oil
3-4 gloves of garlic(minced)
200 g giniling
12-14 spring onions
3 eggs
1 small can tomato sauce
salt
pepper
1. combine the flour,puso ng saging,giniling,eggs,and season to taste,
2. make a ball(1 tbsp)then set aside.
3. put some oil into a caserol an the balls(mixture of puso ng saging).
4. when it is already golden brown, add the tomato sauce and let it simmer for 3-5 min.
5.put in a plate and ready to eat..
enjoy!!!!!!
August 19th, 2008me i like the HAMBURGER STYLE PUSO NG SAGING SO DELICIOUS. MY MOM AND MY LOLA ARE VERY GOOD ON MAKING IT. ITS LIKE A MEAT BURGER BUT ITS REALLY A PUSO NG SAGING. IF YOU DNT EAT VEGGIES YOU CAN NOW.
August 28th, 2008May I use your photod for my assigment?
From what I have gathered, the banana blossom is a good source of Vitamin C and fibre. I learned from Kerala Kitchen Blog that is also a cure for menstrual pains and bleeding. It is good for lactating mothers and recommeded during pregnancy and after giving birth.
September 1st, 2008Abbey, you may use the photo, just provide source in your assignment. Good luck!
September 1st, 2008