Most production for local sale is of green cooking bananas and plantains, as ripe dessert bananas are easily damaged while being transported to market.

This is different from the soft and sweet banana (which is often called dessert banana).

Plantains are often firmer than dessert bananas; they also have less sugar.

Unlike dessert bananas, plantains are always cooked, and that's not the only difference.

Unless you shop in a Latino market (where dessert bananas are the rarity) you'll most often buy plantains green.

Lacatan is the most popular dessert banana in the Philippines.

They can be eaten raw, but are not as tasty as dessert bananas, so are usually cooked.

The bananas that are used for desserts are called dessert bananas.

In popular culture and commerce, "banana" usually refers to soft, sweet "dessert" bananas.

Bananas are classified either as dessert bananas or as green cooking bananas.