Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colours; most cultivars are yellow when ripe but some are red. The ripe fruit is easily peeled and eaten raw or cooked. Depending upon cultivar and ripeness, the flesh can be starchy to sweet, and firm to mushy. Unripe or green bananas and plantains are used in cooking and are the staple starch of many tropical populations. The term banana is applied to both the plant and its elongated fruit (technically a false berry) which grow in hanging clusters, with up to 20 fruit to a tier (called a hand), and 5-20 tiers to a bunch. The total of the hanging clusters is known as a bunch, or commercially as a banana stem, and can weigh from 30 - 50 kg. The fruit averages 125g, of which approximately 75% is water and 25% dry matter content. Bananas are a valuable source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and potassium.

Bananas are classified either as dessert bananas (meaning they are yellow and fully ripe when eaten) or as green cooking bananas/plantains. Almost all export bananas are of the dessert variety; however, only about 10-15% of all production is for export, with the US and EU being the dominant buyers.

Bananas and plantains constitute a major staple food crop for millions of people in developing countries. In most tropical counties green (unripe) bananas used for cooking represent the main cultivars. Cooking bananas are very similar to potatoes in how they are used. Both can be fried, boiled, baked or chipped and have similar taste and texture when served. Nutritionally one green cooking banana has about the same nutritional and calorie content as one potato.