What’s a banana peel made of, and can you eat it? A banana peel is made of carbohydrates (roughly 60 per cent), fiber (30 per cent), water and small amounts of protein and fat. The banana peel's thickness and high fiber content make it quite tough and sometimes bitter, but it is edible and contains many minerals including potassium and manganese. Do you ever eat the peel? The internet recommends try adding one to a smoothie: take an unpeeled ripe banana, wash it, cut off the ends and slice. Add 200ml milk or yogurt, a pinch of cinnamon, and blend.
I've never slipped on a banana peel, but I was once walking down a sloping sidewalk at the Chicago riverfront before the fourth of July fireworks, my little son on my shoulders, when I slipped on a fallen hotdog. Turns out, a hotdog has all the properties of a cartoon banana peel. I slid for about 10 feet, downhill, desperately trying not to drop my son on the concrete, doing wild contortions in an absurdly incompetent acrobatic routine with the toddler. When I came to a halt, leaving behind a long, greasy hotdog skid mark, I got an ovation from the crowd. My son: "do that again!"
