Dried banana

A small handful, about 25–30 g, is a practical portion; it is easy to eat much more when snacking straight from the packet. That amount provides 82 kcal and 13 g of sugars.

Separate the pieces with clean, dry fingers and toss them with a little porridge oats or chopped nuts before adding them to a snack mix. If they are very sticky, chill them briefly so they are easier to handle.

Keep it in an airtight container in a cool, dry cupboard, away from steam and direct sunlight. Use a clean, dry spoon or hand to take some out, as moisture can make the pieces sticky or encourage mould.

Stir chopped pieces into porridge, granola or flapjack mixture, or add them to banana bread and trail mix. For a softer texture in baking, soak them in warm water for about 10 minutes, then drain and chop.

Not as a direct swap: dried banana lacks the moisture that fresh banana brings to a loaf or muffin batter. Rehydrate chopped pieces in warm water for about 10 minutes, drain them well and use them as fruit pieces, rather than relying on them to replace mashed banana.

Not necessarily: dried banana is usually chewy and made by drying banana, while banana chips are often thin, crisp slices fried in oil. The difference shows in the nutrition too: one banana-chip entry has 514 kcal and 29 g fat per 100 g, compared with 273 kcal and 1 g fat in dried banana.

Yes. It is ready to eat as sold, so you can snack on it or add it straight to cereal and baking mixtures.