Matoke

{{Short description|Banana cultivar}} {{Infobox cultivar | name = East African Highland bananas | image = Matooke to the market.jpg | image_caption = Men taking banana (matooke) to the market | species = ''Musa acuminata'' | group = ''Musa acuminata'' (AAA-EA) or the Mutika/Lujugira subgroup of the AAA group<ref name="ploetz"/> | origin = Uganda | subdivision = See text }} '''Matoke''', locally also known as '''matooke''', '''amatooke''' in Buganda (Central Uganda), '''ekitookye''' in southwestern Uganda, '''ekitooke''' in western Uganda, '''kamatore''' in Lugisu (Eastern Uganda), '''ebitooke''' in northwestern Tanzania, '''igitoki''' in Rwanda, Burundi and by the cultivar name '''East African Highland banana''', are a group of starchy triploid banana cultivars, originating from the African Great Lakes. The fruit is harvested green, carefully peeled, and then cooked and often mashed or pounded into a meal. In Uganda and Rwanda, the fruit is steam-cooked, and the mashed meal is considered a national dish in both countries.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Tufariello|first1=Maria|title=Biotechnology can Improve a Traditional Product as Table Olives|date=2016-10-26|work=Products from Olive Tree|publisher=InTech|isbn=978-953-51-2724-6|last2=Mita|first2=Giovanni|last3=Bleve|first3=Gianluca|doi=10.5772/64687|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Matoke bananas are a staple food crop in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nbs.go.tz/nbstz/index.php/english/tanzania-abstract|title=Tanzania Statistical Abstract|website=www.nbs.go.tz|language=en-gb|access-date=2017-03-28}}</ref> and other Great Lakes countries. They are also known as the Mutika/Lujugira subgroup.

The medium-sized green fruits, which are of a specific group of banana, the East African Highland bananas (''Musa'' AAA-EA),<ref>Karamura, D. and Mgenzi, B. 2004. On-farm conservation of ''Musa'' diversity in the Great Lakes region of East Africa. African Crop Science Journal 12(1):75-83.</ref><ref>Karamura, D., Mgenzi, B., Karamura, E. and Sharrock, S. 2004. Exploiting indigenous knowledge for the management and maintenance of ''Musa'' biodiversity on-farm. African Crop Science Journal 12(1).</ref><ref>Mgenzi, S.R.B., Mshaghuley, I.M., Staver, C. and Nkuba, J.M. 2005. A study on the analysis of ''Musa'' processing businesses and their support environment in Tanzania. A paper presented to the ''Musa'' processing businesses and their support environment workshop, Manila, Philippines 10-13 Oct. 2005. INIBAP [online], accessed 2011 June 14 from: {{cite web |url=http://platforms.inibap.org/processing/images/stories/file/pdf/tanzania.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2011-06-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110824143538/http://platforms.inibap.org/processing/images/stories/file/pdf/tanzania.pdf |archive-date=2011-08-24 }}.</ref> are known in the Bantu languages of Uganda and Western Kenya as ''matoke''.

Cooking bananas have long been and still are a common staple crop around the Lake Victoria area of Kenya and Uganda, and in the West and Kilimanjaro regions of Tanzania.<ref>Raschke, V., Oltersdorf, U., Elmadfa, I., Wahlqvist, M.L., Cheema, B.S.B. and Kouris-Blazos, A. 2007. Content of a novel online collection of traditional east African food habits (1930s – 1960s): data collected by the Max-Planck-Nutrition Research Unit, Bumbuli, Tanzania. Asia Pac. J. Clin. Nutr. 16(1):140-151 [online]. Accessed 2011 June 14 from: http://apjcn.nhri.org.tw/server/APJCN/Volume16/vol16.1/Finished/Raschke.pdf.</ref>

== Description == In Uganda, East African Highland bananas are easily distinguishable from other banana cultivars by the numerous black (or more rarely brown or bronze) blotches on their pseudostems, giving them the appearance of polished metal. The outermost sheath of their pseudostems is a medium green, superimposed over the pink to purple underlying sheaths.<ref name="karamura">{{cite journal|author1=Deborah Karamura|author2=Barbara Pickersgill|year=1999|title=A classification of the clones of East African Highland bananas (''Musa'') found in Uganda|journal=Plant Genetic Resources Newsletter|issue=119|pages=1–6|publisher=Bioversity International & Food and Agriculture Organization|url=http://www.musalit.org/pdf/FA010072_en.pdf|access-date=June 16, 2011|archive-date=March 20, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320111806/http://www.musalit.org/pdf/FA010072_en.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Their leaves are also darker green and dull, a difference more apparent when comparing them side by side with other banana cultivars from a distance.<ref name="karamura"/>

The inflorescence has peduncles covered with coarse hair. The bracts are ovate to lanceolate in shape with outer surfaces that are purple to brown and inner surfaces which are red fading to yellow towards the base. The male flowers have cream colored tepals with yellow lobes. The anthers are pink, while the stigmata are orange.<ref name="karamura"/>

The fruits are recurved and can vary in length. They are inflated with blunt tips. The pulp is white in unripe fruits and cream-colored in ripe fruits.<ref name="karamura"/> left|thumb

== Taxonomy == East African Highland bananas are triploid (AAA) cultivars. Their official designation is ''Musa acuminata'' <small>Colla</small> (AAA-EA). Synonyms include ''Musa brieyi'' <small>De Wild</small>. Their paternal parent is the blood banana subspecies (''M. acuminata'' ssp. ''zebrina'') of the wild banana species ''Musa acuminata''.<ref name="ploetz">{{cite journal|author1=Randy C. Ploetz |author2=Angela Kay Kepler |author3=Jeff Daniells |author4=Scot C. Nelson |year=2007|title=Banana and plantain — an overview with emphasis on the Pacific island cultivars|journal=Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry|publisher=Traditional Tree Initiative|url=http://www.agroforestry.net/tti/Banana-plantain-overview.pdf|access-date= June 5, 2011}}</ref>

East African Highland bananas are a subgroup that refers to about 200 individual banana cultivars (or clones).<ref name="ploetz"/> They can be subdivided into five distinct groups of clones known as clone sets according to their use:

*'''''Mbidde''''' or '''beer clone set''' :The ''Mbidde'' clone set contains 14 cultivars. ''Mbidde'' means 'beer', and clones belonging to this clone set are usually used for making banana beer.<ref name="tugume">{{cite journal|author1=A.K. Tugume|author2=G.W. Lubega|author3=P.R. Rubaihayo|year=2002|title=Genetic diversity of East African Highland bananas|journal=Infomusa|volume=11|issue=2|pages=28–32|publisher=Bioversity International|url=http://bananas.bioversityinternational.org/files/files/pdf/publications/info11.2_en.pdf|access-date=June 16, 2011|archive-date=August 12, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812050532/http://bananas.bioversityinternational.org/files/files/pdf/publications/info11.2_en.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Their pulp is bitter and astringent with sticky brown excretions.<ref name="karamura"/> *'''''Nakitembe'' clone set''' *'''''Nakabululu'' clone set''' :''Nakabululu'' clones are soft-textured and savory. They mature quickly, but their fruits are smaller and have lesser overall yields per bunch.<ref name="nantale"/> *'''''Musakala'' clone set''' :''Musakala'' clones are characterized by slender fruits with bottle-necked tips. Other characteristics are the same as the preceding three clone sets.<ref name="karamura"/> *'''''Nfuuka'' clone set''' :Nfuuka clones are characterized by inflated, rounded, or almost rectangular fruits with intermediate-shaped tips. The bunch shape is mainly rectangular. Other characteristics are the same as the other clone sets.<ref name="karamura"/> It is the most diverse of the five clone sets, a probable result of its tendency to mutate more frequently. They bear heavy compacted bunches and are thus more often exploited commercially than other clone sets.<ref name="nantale">{{cite journal|author1=G. Nantale |author2=E.K. Kakudidi |author3=D.A. Karamura |author4=E. Karamura |author5=G. Soka |year=2008|title=Scientific basis for Banana Cultivar Proportions on-farm in East Africa|journal=African Crop Science Journal|volume=16|issue=1|pages=41–49|publisher=African Crop Science Society|issn=1021-9730|url=http://www.ajol.info/index.php/acsj/article/viewFile/54338/42857|access-date= June 16, 2011}}</ref> : Mbwazirume : Musakala : Kibuzi : Mpologoma : sukaali ndiizi : Kawanda

Over 500 local names are known for cultivars from the EAHB subgroup.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|title=Banana cultivar checklist on ProMusa|url=http://www.promusa.org/tiki-index.php?page=Banana+cultivar+checklist&f_87=EAHB|access-date=28 May 2014}}</ref>

== Origin and distribution == East African Highland bananas were introduced early into Africa from Southeast Asia during the first to sixth centuries AD, probably via trade.<ref name=":0" /> They are genetically distinct from the other AAA cultivars, having evolved locally in the African Great Lakes region for over a millennium. They are found nowhere else in the world, and the African Great Lakes has been called the secondary center of banana diversity because of this (with Southeast Asia being the first). East African Highland bananas are considered to be especially diverse in Uganda, Burundi, and Rwanda.<ref name="ploetz"/><ref name="tugume"/> However, genetic analysis has revealed that all East African Highland bananas are genetically uniform, having most likely originated from a single ancestral clone (introduced to Africa within the past 2000 years) that underwent population expansion by vegetative propagation.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = The triploid East African Highland Banana (EAHB) genepool is genetically uniform arising from a single ancestral clone that underwent population expansion by vegetative propagation|journal = Theoretical and Applied Genetics|date = 2016-01-08|issn = 1432-2242|pmid = 26743524|doi = 10.1007/s00122-015-2647-1|first1 = Mercy|last1 = Kitavi|first2 = Tim|last2 = Downing|first3 = Jim|last3 = Lorenzen|first4 = Deborah|last4 = Karamura|first5 = Margaret|last5 = Onyango|first6 = Moses|last6 = Nyine|first7 = Morag|last7 = Ferguson|first8 = Charles|last8 = Spillane |author8-link=Charles Spillane|volume=129|issue = 3|pages=547–61|s2cid = 6144293}}</ref> The triploid East African Highland banana gene pool arose from a single hybridization event, which generated a genetic bottleneck during the foundation of the crop genepool. Triploid East African Highland bananas are sterile, and have been asexually vegetatively propagated for generations by successive generations of farmers since their introduction to Africa. This has likely led to the emergence of the genetically near-isogenic somatic mutants (i.e. today's East African Highland banana varieties) that have been selected by farmers and environments across East Africa.<ref>Kitavi M, Downing T, Lorenzen J, Karamura D, Onyango M, Nyine M, Ferguson M, Spillane C. The triploid East African Highland Banana (EAHB) genepool is genetically uniform arising from a single ancestral clone that underwent population expansion by vegetative propagation. Theoretical and applied genetics. 2016 Mar 1;129(3):547-61.</ref>

== Economic importance == East African Highland bananas are one of the most important staple food crops in the African Great Lakes region, particularly for Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Burundi, and Rwanda. ''Per capita'' annual consumption of bananas in Uganda is the highest in the world at {{convert|0.70|kg|lbs|abbr=on}} daily per person.<ref name="ifpri">{{cite book|author1=Robert Kalyebara |author2=Jackson M. Nkuba |author3=Mgenzi Said Ramadhan Byabachwezi |author4=Enoch Mutebi Kikulwe |author5=Svetlana Edmeades |year=2003|chapter=Overview of the Banana Economy in the Lake Victoria Regions of Uganda and Tanzania |title=An Economic Assessment of Banana Genetic Improvement and Innovation in the Lake Victoria Region of Uganda and Tanzania|editor1=Melinda Smale |editor2=Wilberforce K. Tushemereirwe |pages=25–36|publisher=International Food Policy Research Institute|url=http://www.ifpri.org/sites/default/files/pubs/pubs/abstract/155/rr155.pdf|access-date= July 12, 2011}}</ref> Including Rwanda and Burundi, consumption is about {{convert|250|to|400|kg|lbs|abbr=on}} per person annually (about three to 11 bananas each day).<ref name="englberger">{{cite journal|author1=Lois Englberger|author2=Ian Darnton-Hill|author3=Terry Coyne|author4=Maureen H. Fitzgerald|author5=Geoffrey C. Marks|year=2003|title=Carotenoid-rich bananas: A potential food source for alleviating vitamin A deficiency|journal=Food and Nutrition Bulletin|volume=24|issue=4|pages=303–318|publisher=The United Nations University|url=http://www.islandfood.org/publications/bulletin.pdf|access-date=July 12, 2011|doi=10.1177/156482650302400401|pmid=14870618|s2cid=6726153|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726193508/http://www.islandfood.org/publications/bulletin.pdf|archive-date=July 26, 2011}}</ref> Uganda is the second-largest producer of bananas in the world. It is, however, one of the smallest exporters, with the crops being used mostly for domestic consumption.<ref name="ifpri"/>

East African Highland bananas are so important as food crops, the local name '''matoke''' (or more commonly ''matooke'') is synonymous for the word "food" in Uganda. Also, a portion of the East African Highland bananas locally known as ''mbidde'' is used to produce juice and beer.<ref name="birabwa">{{cite journal|author1=R. Birabwa|author2=P.J.A. van Asten|author3=I.N. Alou|author4=G. Taulya|year=2010|journal=Acta Hort.|title=Got Matooke (''Musa'' spp.) for Christmas?|pages=113–122|issue=879|url=http://www.banana2008.com/cms/details/acta/879_9.pdf|access-date=July 12, 2011|doi=10.17660/actahortic.2010.879.9|archive-date=March 10, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140310182928/http://www.banana2008.com/cms/details/acta/879_9.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="nordling">{{cite journal|url=http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101001/full/news.2010.509.html|title=Uganda prepares to plant transgenic bananas|author=Linda Nordling|date=October 1, 2010|doi=10.1038/news.2010.509|journal=Nature|access-date=July 12, 2011|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

== Food preparation == thumb|A man cooking matoke|240x240px ''Matoke'' are peeled using a knife, wrapped in the plant's leaves (or plastic bags), and set in a cooking pot (Swahili: sufuria) atop the banana stalks. The pot is then placed on a charcoal or wood fire and the ''matoke'' is steamed for a couple of hours; water is poured into the bottom of the cooking pot multiple times. The stalks in the bottom of the pot keep the leaf-wrapped fruits above the level of the hot water. While uncooked, the ''matoke'' is white and fairly hard; cooking turns it soft and yellow. The ''matoke'' is then mashed while still wrapped in the leaves or bags and often served on a fresh banana leaf. It is typically eaten with a sauce made of vegetables, ground peanut, or some type of meat (goat or beef).{{Cn|date=December 2020}}

''Matoke'' are also used to make a popular breakfast dish called ''katogo'' in Uganda.<ref>{{cite news|title=The king of all breakfast|url=http://www.monitor.co.ug/SpecialReports/ugandaat50/-/1370466/1377136/-/ujj1orz/-/index.html|access-date=19 February 2014|newspaper=Daily Monitor|date=April 1, 2012}}</ref> ''Katogo'' is commonly cooked as a combination of peeled bananas and peanuts or beef, though offal or goat meat are also common.<ref>{{cite web|title=Katogo|url=http://www.92y.org/Uptown/Jewish-Cookbook/Side-Dishes/Katogo-or-Ugandan-Matooke.aspx|access-date=19 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150129002502/http://www.92y.org/Uptown/Jewish-Cookbook/Side-Dishes/Katogo-or-Ugandan-Matooke.aspx|archive-date=29 January 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In Bukoba, Tanzania, ''matoke'' (or ''ebitooke'') are cooked with meat or smoked catfish, and beans or groundnuts. This method eliminates the need for preparing a separate sauce. In this recipe, the ''matoke'' are not mashed. Until the early 1980s, this was the most common meal in Bukoba and would be eaten all year.{{Cn|date=December 2020}}

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == * [https://web.archive.org/web/20181231152513/http://congocookbook.com/meat_recipes/matoke.html The Congo Cookbook (African Recipes)] * [https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/image/view/-/683128/highRes/112101/-/maxw/600/-/kc65b1/-/news+index+pix.jpg Photo of Green Bunches of Matooke] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170102004710/http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/image/view/-/683128/highRes/112101/-/maxw/600/-/kc65b1/-/news+index+pix.jpg |date=2017-01-02 }} * [http://www.promusa.org/tiki-index.php?page=East+African+highland+banana+subgroup Musapedia, page on East African highland bananas]

Category:Banana cultivars Category:Banana production Category:Bananas Category:Burundian cuisine Category:Crops originating from Africa Category:Flora of East Tropical Africa Category:Musaceae Category:National dishes Category:Plantain dishes Category:Rwandan cuisine Category:Ugandan cuisine