How to Make a BBQ Banana Peel Pulled Pork Sandwich
This recipe is one that I am sure has people thinking, “vegans will really do ANYTHING to replicate meat.” And to that, I say, they’re kind of not wrong, haha. BUT I will also say that we vegans deserve a heck of a lot of credit for making something, like banana peels, taste incredible. To me, this is a fun recipe that happens to taste phenomenal when done right. I always eat the bbq banana peel pulled pork on a bun with a simple coleslaw, and you really cannot tell that it’s not real pulled pork or that it’s made from BANANA PEELS! Don’t knock it until you try it!
Are banana peels safe to eat, though???
YES! Banana peels are safe to eat unless you have an allergy to them! A banana allergy is also often connected to a latex allergy, so if you have a latex allergy, you should steer clear of bananas in general. Bananas are not only edible, but they are also very rich in several nutrients, like potassium, fiber, polyunsaturated fats, and essential amino acids. I won’t bore you with a spiel about how each nutrient is beneficial, but feel free to do some of your own research to learn more!
You must make this recipe with lots of love AKA, do NOT take any shortcuts!
I mean it! Follow my directions to a T, and you will have a delicious vegan BBQ banana peel pulled pork sandwich that will have you questioning if it’s made from banana peels, even though you were the one who made it! If you use super ripe bananas, eyeball the ingredient measurements all willy-nillingly, don’t marinate the peels, half-a$$ cook them, well, then you’re going to have something disgusting, and you’ll also have wasted your precious time. So, for the love of everything, please follow my directions, and you’ll be golden. (Please read my “tiparooskis,” located below the written recipe, for important recipe tips!)
Fan of sandwiches? Same. Check these other ones out!
- Realistic Vegan Lobster Roll
- Mojo Artichoke Pulled Pork Vegan Cuban Sandwich
- The Ultimate Vegan Meatball Sub
- Vegan Copycat McDonald’s Steak, Egg, & Cheese Bagel Breakfast Sandwich
- Vegan Copycat Shake Shack Shroom Burger
If you make my vegan banana peel pulled pork sandwich recipe, don’t forget to post a picture to Instagram, tag me @chefsummerstorm, and #gardengrub so I can see your recreation!
How to Make a BBQ Banana Peel Pulled Pork Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 burger bun
- 1 tbsp vegan butter
BBQ Banana Peel Pulled Pork
- 2 medium organic bananas (These MUST be yellow and firm, with the tips having a tiny bit of green on them! Please read my tiparooskis below the recipe for IMPORTANT information!)
- 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 3/4 tsp chili powder
- 3/4 tsp ground mustard
- 3/4 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/8 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup favorite vegan BBQ sauce
Simple Coleslaw
- 1 1/4 cup basic coleslaw mix
- 2 tbsp vegan mayonaisse
- 1 1/2 tsp organic cane sugar
- 2 tsp raw apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp celery salt
Instructions
- Please read my tiparooskis below the recipe for IMPORTANT information before beginning this recipe!
BBQ Banana Peel Pulled Pork
- Wash the bananas very well. Cut the ends of the bananas off, remove the bananas, and save them for another recipe.
- Using a spoon, scrape out all of the inside white part of the banana peels and throw it away.
- Finely shred the peels using a fork, then cut the strips into roughly two-inch long pieces.
- Place the shredded banana peels in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse them under cold water.
- Shake the strainer to release any excess water and add the shredded banana peels into a medium-sized mixing bowl along with the olive oil, smoked paprika, chili powder, ground mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, ground cumin, and salt. Massage everything together well, press a piece of plastic wrap directly on top, and let it marinate for 20 minutes. In the meantime, make the coleslaw.
- Then, place a large saute pan over medium heat. Once hot, add in the marinated banana peels along with about two tablespoons of the water. Stir well and cook this for 12 minutes, continually adding a splash of the water each time the banana peels have soaked all of the water up. Stir frequently. Make sure you use the entire 3/4 cup of the water by the end of the 12-minute cooking mark.
- Now, once it has been 12 minutes and the water is completely absorbed, add in the bbq sauce. Cook this for 1 1/2 more minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat to prevent the bbq sauce from burning.
Simple Coleslaw
- Add all of the ingredients to a small mixing bowl and stir together until evenly combined. Allow this to marinate while you cook the banana peel pulled pork.
How to Assemble the Sandwich
- To toast the burger bun, place a large saute pan over medium/medium-low heat. Once hot, add in the vegan butter.
- Once the butter has melted, add in the burger bun halves, inside facing down.
- Rub them around evenly to coat them in the butter and cook them until they're lightly golden brown, about 1-2 minutes.
- To build the sandwich, place all of the bbq pulled pork on the bottom half of the bun. Top it with a heavy scoop of coleslaw, followed by the top half of the bun. *You may have a little bit of slaw leftover. I like to use any leftover slaw for vegan fish tacos! 🙂
Tiparooskis
Welcome to my tip section of the BBQ banana peel pulled pork sandwich recipe! Here I provide my top tips to help you perfect the recipe. Sometimes, I also give substitute suggestions that I think you may find helpful.
- You MUST use bananas that are organic, yellow, and firm, with a touch of green on both ends. This is extremely important. There shouldn’t be a TON of green on the bananas, only just a tiny bit on both ends. If you use super green ones, you’re going to have tough and bitter banana peel pulled pork. If you use bananas that are super ripe with brown specks, you’re going to have a mushy mess.
- You MUST shred the peels relatively thinly. If you barely shred them and have thick pieces, the final result will not be enjoyable! Imagine what real shredded pork looks like, as we are trying to replicate that same texture.
- Do NOT skip any of the ingredients. If you don’t have one of the ingredients on hand, I ask that you please don’t even make the recipe. BBQ banana peel pulled pork has a bad rep because people often under-season it or skip the BBQ sauce, amongst a few other reasons which I mention in the blog post above the written recipe.
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*The first time I made banana peel pulled pork was a few years ago based on someone else’s recipe when it went viral. Since then, I have created my own recipe, which has been adapted from the original viral recipe by www.thestingyvegan.com.
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6 Comments
Anne Woody
Can you double or triple the receipt or do you have to make one at a time?
garden grub
Hi! You can definitely double or triple the recipe! 🙂
Ruth
Thank you ! I have made this before & it IS great. Just wondering, though, how it freezes. Do you know ?
garden grub
Hi Ruth! So glad to hear you enjoy the recipe! Unfortunately, I have never frozen it before, so I don’t know how it holds up. My suggestion would be to freeze one portion as a test! Let me know if you give it a try 🙂 Best of luck!
NewbieVegan
I had to try this as soon as you posted it, and I have to say… OMG, I can’t believe I just ate a sandwich of banana peels!! It is AMAZING. It literally tasted like a pulled pork BBQ sandwich. I am FLOORED. Thank you so much for sharing this!
garden grub
HI! Isn’t it CRAZY (in a good way)!? I am so glad you loved it and agree that it tastes like a real BBQ pulled pork sandwich! YAY!