Should You Wash Bananas?

Since they have such a thick peel, it’s safe to skip it, right? Not so fast…

Produce washing is a topic our Test Kitchen gets countless questions about. You probably know that you should wash all produce items with skin that you plan to consume (plain water is A-OK!), and it’s wise to wash items that you’ll slice through the exterior to reach the flesh. That’s because when your knife slices through the surface and into the flesh of something like a melon, it could introduce bacteria hanging out on the rind inside.

If there might be one produce aisle pick that could be safe to skip washing, bananas would be it. Their skin is so thick and a knife isn’t needed to open them, so this feels like safe territory to dive right in, right? Wrong.

Lynn Blanchard, Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen director

Daniel Kiefer, PhD, an entomologist and the technical director at American Pest in Washington, D.C.

The “should you wash bananas?” debate has been turning heads on social media this summer, however, it’s certainly not a new dilemma. In fact, Dear Abby even tackled the topic in 1994. After she initially wrote that she didn’t wash her bananas and didn’t think it was necessary, a flurry of fan feedback came in urging her to change her strategy and give her bananas a shower.