First and foremost, this banana candy is sugar-free. But the main question you were asked was, “Why do banana sweets taste like bananas?” or does it have a banana flavor?
Perhaps you’ve tasted a banana Laffy Taffy and noticed, “Wow, that tastes exactly like a banana?” Neither do I.
I think I’ve always thought of banana Laffy Taffy as the gold standard.
Today, I’m curious about what causes that particular fake banana flavor, if actual bananas have it, as well as which bananas have the most of it.
In other words, I’d like to determine which banana is the most.
Isoamyl acetate, a single molecule, is answerable for that false banana flavor.
And, yes, isoamyl acetate may be found in bananas.
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So Why Don’t Actual Bananas Smell and Taste Like Banana Laffy Taffy?
The major reason is that bananas contain many more odorous chemicals than merely isoamyl acetate. however, there is one banana type called the Gros Michel that some people appear to believe contains isoamyl acetate.
The cavendish banana is now the normal grocery store banana, especially in the United States. I ran out of bananas. I ate them all.
But earlier in the day, it was called the Gros Michel. which was extremely popular. But was all but wiped off by a fungal epidemic in the early 1900s.
I came discovered a report claiming ISO pig acetate was based on the Gross Michell fake banana taste.
So I checked with a food historian to see whether that was accurate. Lychee Candy: The Best Melting Sweet Ever
Banana Candies Flavor
Banana taste, fake banana flavor, I discovered came before Gros Michel or even before bananas were widely available in American markets.
So it’s probable that many Americans had banana-flavored stuff, a synthetic chemical version of banana before they had Gros Michel. Also, Check Peanut Candies – A Guide to the Best Treats
Varieties of Flavor
There are over a thousand different kinds of bananas.
And it turns out that none of these were the sources of banana taste.
Isoamyl acetate was discovered in the 1800s by scientists experimenting with carbon-based compounds in the lab.
And if you’ve ever taken an organic chemistry class, you could have made it as well.
That’s an ester, a kind of molecule that has a carbon, two oxygen, and another carbon.
Similar to this Isoamyl acetate is created by combining isoamyl alcohol plus acetic acid, adding a catalyst, heating it, and voilà!
You have something that smells just like banana Laffy Taffy.
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We Test the Flavor of these Candies
So, let’s go back to those 1800s scientists. Since it was the 1800s when chemical security was not yet a thing, they are smelling and tasting these sweet esters that they have manufactured in a lab.
In addition, the average life expectancy was around 23 years. So who cares, One of those esters just occurred to suit the taste and smell of what they considered “banana.”
We were excited to get our fingers on some Gros Michel bananas to check. If they tasted more like banana Laffy Taffy than bananas we’re used to eating.
If I had instantly commented on how it tasted, I would have responded, “This tastes just like a cavendish.”
However, the aftertaste is rather different.
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Review of this Banana Candies Flavor
- They are sniffing and tasting.
- It’s incredibly tasty.
- Let’s give it a go.
- The aftertaste is quite similar.
- You’re just getting the aftertaste of this, so I’m eager to see what the rest of the crew thinks.
- Yes, It has a banana flavor.
- Oh yeah, It looks a lot like a Cavendish.
- Yup, It’s almost the same in flavor.
- It appears to be a typical grocery shop banana.
- This tastes just like a supermarket banana.
- There is no distinction.
So, Our Conclusion About the Flavor of Banana Candy
We also sent some Gros Michele bananas to our animators, but like with anything.
I think I’m the only one on our team who has a refined enough palate to recognize that the Gros Michel tastes a little different than the ordinary cavendish.
If isoamyl acetate is the major chemical in the Gros Michel. That may be why some people say it tastes like banana Laffy Taffy.
I’m Curious Whether the Gros Michel has More Isoamyl Acetate than other Banana Candies Kinds
Let’s discuss this in steps
1st Step of Banana Candies
The first step is to figure out, how to remove those stinky banana chemicals from the banana.
I phoned Dr. Pam Dalton of the Monell Chemical Senses Center You could manufacture a banana essence by smashing a banana in some pure alcohol, steeping it for a bit, and then filtering the solid components out.
So I followed Dr. Dalton’s suggestion and performed it for a variety of bananas, including the Gros Michel as well as the Cavendish.
When they were mature, I checked out varied amounts of each, beginning with 10 grams. Then I soaked them in 60 mm thickness of 95% ethanol.
Then just hang around for a few weeks, which should extract the isoamyl acetate and other chemicals out of the banana.
This smells so wonderful.
But it doesn’t smell exactly like a banana Laffy Taffy. Perhaps, a banana Laffy Taffy laced with alcohol.
2nd Step of Banana Candies
The next step is to submit each of these banana candies’ essence samples to a scientist who has the necessary equipment to determine what components are present in them.
Dr. Curtis Pulliam teaches chemistry at Utica College in New York. And, happily, he’s going to assist us.
I’m going to identify the samples such that Dr. Pulliam has no idea which one belongs to which banana type.
He’ll use gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, or GCMS to determine what’s in our sample.
Different compounds are separated using gas chromatography. Then, using mass spectrometry, electrons are fired at the molecules, converting them to ions.
These molecules can be differentiated based on their mass. Finally, ideally, you will receive a visual signal indicating the mass of those molecules, which can then be compared to the signals for other molecules.
By comparing it to the known signal for isoamyl acetate, you can identify it. We received the results! And first and foremost, Dr. Pulliam, thank you very much for all of your hard work for us.
These were difficult samples. Dr. Pulliam will have to sift through a lot of substances, but he’s an expert. As a result, he was able to focus on this region of signal or peaks where isoamyl acetate could be found.
It does, however, produce a molecule with the molecular name isopentyl alcohol acetate. That is, after all, the ester we’ve been calling isoamyl acetate.
That is the ester with a banana taste. Dr. Pulliam examined around 30 samples for us. And he compared the isoamyl acetate peak in each sample, which tells you how much isoamyl acetate was in each.
If Isoamyl Acetate is Present in Both the Gros Michel and the Cavendish, How Come the Majority of the Team Thought Neither Tasted Like a Laffy Taffy?
I think I’m the only one with a refined enough palate to recognize that the Gros Michel tastes different from the normal cavendish.
What I found particularly intriguing was that the majority of the bananas examined contained no isoamyl acetate at all.
So my gold standard for banana flavor isn’t noticeable in a variety of bananas. Unexpected? Maybe. Is it a little perplexing? Yes.
And, yes, but that’s just science. When you’re initially trying to answer a question, it’s frequently surprising and confounding, especially when you’re working with samples as chemically complicated as extracts from living cells.
So, if you’re a chemist and want to know whether there’s a difference between the Gros Michel and the Cavendish, not just in terms of isoamyl acetate. but also in some of those other chemicals, feel free to start up where we left off and let us know how it goes.
Conclusions
So, this blog is especially for the chemist, if they want to test the taste of the banana flavor, so here is this informative blog. I share my own experience with the seniors’ chemist, so you may be wondering, hey, a chemist is writing a blog and sharing an experience with us, because most people ask me this question, so the word “multitasking” also appears. Furthermore, I enjoy writing and sharing my personal experiences with you all. So, please let me know in the comments below if you found this article informative or not.
Also, check this out
A banana and a candy bar are not the same things. Regrettably, this must be addressed. This because? Since this is the type of dietary recommendation that has been forgotten in the era of social media.
The major reason is that bananas contain many more odorous chemicals than merely isoamyl acetate. however, there is one banana type called the Gros Michel that some people appear to believe contains isoamyl acetate.