🕷️ Crawler Inspector

URL Lookup

Direct Parameter Lookup

Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 43 (from laksa012)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa043.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.seriouseats.com/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.seriouseats.com/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918","crawl_time":1776333721,"first_indexed_time":1715804921,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,seriouseats!www,\/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918 s443","src_root_hash":"3385208949286065243","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"Easy Banana Bread Recipe","meta_descriptions":["This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Browning the butter and packing six whole bananas into one loaf."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"Why It Works\nPacking six bananas into one loaf ensures over the top banana flavor.\nBrowning the butter and caramelizing a portion of the bananas punches up the banana flavor even more and also eliminates unwanted moisture that could make the bread soggy.\nMixing the batter until it’s just combined prevents gluten development that could make the bread tough.\nThere’s a lot of banana bread out there, but slices of truly great banana bread are few and far between. Here, I present a recipe to change that. Great banana bread should be fairly simple to prepare while also having incredible banana flavor. And while “bread” is in the name, it shouldn't be bready-y or tough at all. It should be buttery, rich, and tender, yet hold together when sliced and be hearty enough to pick up a slice without it crumbling apart.\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\nIf you'll allow me to extrapolate from internet search data, many of you are making banana bread, but you're still on the hunt for the\nperfect\nbanana bread recipe: Since 2004, Google searches for banana bread have steadily climbed, hitting an all-time high at the start of the pandemic in April 2020. That year, banana bread was the number one searched recipe in the U.S., according to\nCNBC\n. While in 2024 it’s not the top searched recipe overall, it is still the most searched bread on the internet. It’s easy to understand banana bread’s popularity: It’s fairly simple to prepare (mash, mix, bake), it relies on ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and it’s a great way to use up a bunch of bananas slowly turning spotty brown on your countertop or stashed away in your freezer.\nEven if you are already making banana bread regularly, I’m willing to bet that it could be better. (The fact that you clicked on this banana bread recipe indicates that you might indeed be hankering for a better loaf.) For starters, most banana breads don’t even taste that much like their namesake fruit. The banana flavor often seems to disappear during baking, leaving a bland loaf that needs an abundance of cinnamon, nutmeg, chocolate chips, or walnuts to punch it up.\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\nSerious Eats already has Stella’s amazing\nclassic banana bread recipe\nthat delivers on flavor, but I wanted an easier banana bread recipe that relies on basic pantry ingredients with a simple preparation that doesn’t require a stand-mixer or any specialty appliances. I’ll still make Stella’s banana bread when I have the time and energy, but after rounds of testing, I’ve created my new go-to banana bread. This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Packing six whole bananas—that’s double the bananas than most recipes—into one loaf with the help of a quick stovetop technique. Here’s how to do it.\nTips for the Best Banana Bread\nChoose ripe bananas.\nGreat banana bread starts not in your mixing bowl, but in your fruit bowl. The ripeness of the fruit has a large impact on banana bread’s texture and flavor. Bananas are climacteric, meaning they are picked from the tree when they are fully formed, but ripen after harvest. This is because picking triggers the release of ethylene gas, which is what ripens bananas, as well as many other fruits such as avocados, apples, and peaches. Ethylene gas triggers a number of changes in fruit. The three main changes it produces in bananas are a decrease in acid, which leads to a milder tasting fruit; the breakdown of chlorophyll, which changes the banana’s color from green to yellow; and the conversion of starch into sugars, which sweetens the banana.\nUnderripe or green bananas are so high in starch and low in sugar that they lack sweetness and well developed banana flavor. They taste vegetal and slightly astringent due to the abundance of acids and starch. On the other end of the ripeness spectrum, bananas that are completely black are overly sweet and their lack of starch and abundance of fructose creates a dense gummy texture in banana bread. So, when it comes to making banana bread, patience is a virtue—don’t even think about baking with your bananas until they’ve got plenty of brown speckles. At this\nstage of ripening\n, the bananas have a mix of sugar and starch that will produce banana bread with a welcome light texture and sweet, well developed banana flavor. \nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\nIf you find yourself with underripe bananas, you can speed ripening by a day or two by putting them in a paper bag to trap their ethylene gas. To accelerate the process even more, add a ripe banana or any other ripe ethylene-emitting fruit to the bag (avocados, apples, and oranges all work well). Or if you have no fresh bananas on your counter, this recipe works well with frozen ripe bananas. Just be sure to thaw the bananas on the counter for about 15 minutes before cutting into them.\nCook the bananas for a light texture and deep banana flavor.\nAs mentioned above, this banana bread fits six whole bananas into one loaf, while most banana bread recipes call for a max of three. I initially tried baking a loaf with six raw mashed bananas folded into the batter to double down on banana flavor, but the bread was gluey, dense, and stuck to the roof of my mouth from the excess moisture. My tests helped me understand why so many recipes use three or fewer bananas in their bread—it’s to ensure the bread isn’t stodgy, like my six fresh banana loaf was. \nI wanted to keep all those bananas in the batter for the biggest banana flavor possible, but I wanted to get rid of the excess moisture. While I was working at America's Test Kitchen, I learned from Andrea Geary’s\nCook’s Illustrated\nbanana bread recipe that you can cram more bananas into banana bread without creating a wet texture by cooking the bananas to reduce their liquid. While that recipe calls for microwaving the bananas, my solution is cooking the bananas in butter on the stovetop. Cooking the bananas this way accomplishes two main things: It evaporates excess water from the bananas and develops a rich deep caramelized banana flavor that imbues the loaf.\nBrown the butter, and cook the bananas even further for a deep banana-toffee flavor.\nOnce I realized how caramelizing the fruit deepened the banana flavor in the bread, I decided to also use brown butter in the loaf.\nBrown butter\nis one of the most versatile flavor-boosting ingredients around, and it makes most baked goods taste better, including banana bread.\nThe key to this bread’s rich banana-forward flavor is the combination of brown butter and caramelized bananas. The three key stages to making the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture is searing the bananas, browning the butter, and frying the bananas in the brown butter until it forms a homogenous, deep brown, syrupy mixture. It’s important to brown the butter on its own—if you try to brown the butter with the bananas, the solids in the butter will never brown properly due to the moisture from the bananas. This flavor-boosting technique takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and is well worth the effort.\nAdd fresh bananas for ultimate banana flavor.\nWhile this loaf’s flavor revolves around the cooked banana mixture described above, it’s still important to mash fresh bananas into the batter. A ratio of four cooked bananas to two fresh ones works best. The fruitiness of the fresh bananas balances the richness of the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture. You can use a potato masher or even just a large fork for mashing. It’s OK if a few larger chunks of banana remain—they’ll dissolve into the bread while baking and add a welcome fresh fruity flavor.\nDon’t overmix the batter\n. This batter is thick and lumpy, but once the flour is added, do not be tempted to try to whisk or stir those lumps away. Overmixing the batter will cause unwanted gluten development, which will make the loaf tough and chewy, so stir the batter until the flour is\njust\ncombined. It’s even OK if a few dry streaks of flour remain—they will be absorbed while baking. It’s better to under-mix than overmix with this quickbread batter.\nSkip the spices\n. This is banana bread,\nnot\na spiced bread. I know a lot of banana bread recipes rely on warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg to season the loaves. In theory these spices enhance the banana flavor, but in practice warm spices often overpower the banana flavor, especially if that fruit flavor is already dull. So skip the spices and let the rich and fruity banana flavor shine in this loaf.\nKeep Screen Awake\n1 3\/4 cup (7.875 ounces;\n225\ng\n)\nall-purpose flour\n1\nteaspoon\nDiamond Crystal\nkosher salt;\nif using table salt use half as much by volume\n3\/4\nteaspoon\nbaking soda\n1\/4\nteaspoon\nbaking powder\n6\nvery\nripe\n(lightly speckled to heavily speckled)\nbananas\n, peeled (2 left whole, 4 halved crosswise and halved lengthwise)\n8\ntablespoons\nunsalted butter, divided\n 1 cup packed (7 ounces;\n198\ng)\nlight\nbrown sugar\n2\nlarge\neggs, lightly beaten\n1\nteaspoon\nvanilla extract\n1\/2 cup\n(100\ng)\nwalnuts\n, toasted, optional \n1\/2 cup (\n60\ng\n) packed\nsweetened shredded coconut\n, toasted (optional, see notes)\n1\/2 cup (\n85\ng)\nchocolate chips,\noptional\nAdjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350℉(175℃). Spray bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with vegetable oil spray. \nIn a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until combined; set aside. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the 2 whole bananas until fairly smooth; set aside.\nIn a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add banana slices flat side down and cook until glossy, golden brown, and softened, flipping slices as needed, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.\nIn the now-empty skillet, add the remaining butter and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and swirling skillet constantly with rubber spatula, until butter is light golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Return the browned bananas to the skillet and continue to cook, stirring and flipping the banana mixture frequently until the bananas are mostly broken down and the mixture turns dark golden brown and has a deep caramelized nutty banana aroma, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat stir in the brown sugar, return to heat and cook, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved and the syrupy mixture gently bubbles, about 1 minute. Transfer the banana mixture to a large bowl with the mashed fresh bananas. Let sit until cooled slightly, for 10 minutes.\nUsing a potato masher, mash the banana mixture until mostly smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla until combined. Using a spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in walnuts, coconut and\/or chocolate chips, if using. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into greased loaf pan and smooth top.\nBake until banana bread is golden brown and a toothpick or paring knife inserted in center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer banana bread to a wire rack and cool in the pan for 15 minutes.\nUse oven mitts to carefully turn the loaf pan on its side and remove banana bread from the pan. Let banana bread continue to cool on the cooling rack for at least 1 hour. Transfer to cutting board, slice, and serve.\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\nSpecial Equipment\n9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan, 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, potato masher or large fork\nNotes\nTo toast the coconut flakes (if using): Spread coconut in an even layer on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉(175℃), stirring every 5 minutes, until the shreds are a mix of golden brown and white, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a bowl or airtight container.\nMake-Ahead and Storage\nThe cooled loaf can be covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.","attrs_markdown":"[Skip to Content](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918#skip-to-content)\n\n[My Saves](https:\/\/www.myrecipes.com\/)\n\nbutton\n\nbutton\n\n- [Recipes](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/all-recipes-5117985)\n  - [Recipes by Course](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/recipes-by-course-5117906)\n  - [Recipes by Ingredient](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/recipes-by-ingredient-recipes-5117749)\n  - [Recipes by Cuisine](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/recipes-by-world-cuisine-5117277)\n  - [Recipes by Method](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/recipes-by-method-5117399)\n  - [Recipes by Diet](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/recipes-by-diet-5117779)\n  - [Recipes by Holiday & Season](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/holiday-season-recipes-5117984)\n  - 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[Electric Appliances](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/electric-appliances-5118048)\n  - [Seriously Good Gear](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/seriously-good-kitchen-gear-7255050)\n  - [Bakeware](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/bakeware-5118053)\n  - [Kitchen Basics](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/kitchen-basics-5118045)\n  - [Storage & Organization](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/storage-organization-5118043)\n  - [Barware](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/barware-5118052)\n  - [Tableware](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/tableware-5118042)\n  - [Books](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/books-5118051)\n  - [Seasonal & Gifts](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/gifts-5118047)\n  - [View all](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/equipment-5117081)\n- [Features](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/features-5118040)\n  - [Dining Out](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/dining-out-5118039)\n  - [Food History](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/food-history-5118037)\n  - [Food Industry](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/food-industry-5118038)\n  - [Food Science](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/food-science-5118036)\n  - [Personal Essays](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/personal-essays-5118035)\n  - [View all](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/features-5118040)\n- [About us](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/about-us-5120006)\n- Newsletter\n- [My Saves](https:\/\/www.myrecipes.com\/)\n- Get fresh recipes, cooking tips, deal alerts, and more\\!\n- - [About Us](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/about-us-5120006)\n  - [Contact Us](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/about-us-5120006#toc-contact-us)\n\n- [Recipes](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/all-recipes-5117985)\n- [Recipes By Course](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/recipes-by-course-5117906)\n- [Breakfast & Brunch](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/breakfast-brunch-recipes-5117905)\n\n# Easy Banana Bread\nThe key to this easy pantry-friendly banana bread? Packing six whole bananas into one loaf.\n\nBy\n\n[Leah Colins](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/leah-colins-senior-culinary-editor-at-serious-eats-7504244)\n\n![A studio portrait of editor Leah Colins.]()\n\n![A studio portrait of editor Leah Colins.](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/q9oZdVLP033j_CUazJhOOZ0xN-w=\/200x200\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/LeahColinsHeadshot-7a6fabb7a70844a39f08ada94b32e842.JPG)\n\n[Leah Colins](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/leah-colins-senior-culinary-editor-at-serious-eats-7504244)\n\nSenior Culinary Editor\n\nLeah is the Senior Culinary Editor at Serious Eats, and was previously a recipe developer and editor with America's Test Kitchen for almost 9 years. She has developed recipes for and edited over 20 cookbooks ranging in topic from bread baking to plant-based eating to outdoor grilling and so much more. While there, she also developed recipes and articles for Cooks Illustrated Magazine, Cooks Country Magazine, and ATK's digital platform.Before her life as a recipe developer, she cooked in 5-star and Michelin-starred fine dining establishments from coast to coast such as The Herbfarm and Aubergine Restaurant at L'Auberge Carmel; she also treasures her time flipping burgers on flattops in her teenage years, and baking and boxing cookies and pies at a wonderful family-owned German bakery in her early professional life.\n\nLearn about Serious Eats' [Editorial Process](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/about-us-5120006#toc-editorial-guidelines)\n\nUpdated April 10, 2025\n\n(4)\n\nSave\n\n[WRITE A REVIEW](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918)\n\nClose\n\n![Overhead view of banana bread](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/32_heNJkpbJKTSI4dHHBuqmLHT0=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-hero-1feacf17720b499d96c425adcb010a5e.jpg)\n\n![Overhead view of banana bread](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/32_heNJkpbJKTSI4dHHBuqmLHT0=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-hero-1feacf17720b499d96c425adcb010a5e.jpg)\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nIn This Recipe\n\nExpand\n\n- [Tips for the Best Banana Bread](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918#toc-tips-for-the-best-banana-bread)\n\nJump to recipe\n\n### Why It Works\n- Packing six bananas into one loaf ensures over the top banana flavor.\n- Browning the butter and caramelizing a portion of the bananas punches up the banana flavor even more and also eliminates unwanted moisture that could make the bread soggy.\n- Mixing the batter until it’s just combined prevents gluten development that could make the bread tough.\n\nThere’s a lot of banana bread out there, but slices of truly great banana bread are few and far between. Here, I present a recipe to change that. Great banana bread should be fairly simple to prepare while also having incredible banana flavor. And while “bread” is in the name, it shouldn't be bready-y or tough at all. It should be buttery, rich, and tender, yet hold together when sliced and be hearty enough to pick up a slice without it crumbling apart.\n\n![Overhead view of banana bread slice]()\n\n![Overhead view of banana bread slice](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/T4tG2hBfGYVHpTBB-JmpoM1hFW8=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-06-590f2e6463a848728cb56a12acff6ee6.jpg)\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nIf you'll allow me to extrapolate from internet search data, many of you are making banana bread, but you're still on the hunt for the *perfect* banana bread recipe: Since 2004, Google searches for banana bread have steadily climbed, hitting an all-time high at the start of the pandemic in April 2020. That year, banana bread was the number one searched recipe in the U.S., according to [CNBC](https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2020\/04\/26\/top-google-recipes-amid-covid-19-banana-bread-whipped-coffee.html). While in 2024 it’s not the top searched recipe overall, it is still the most searched bread on the internet. It’s easy to understand banana bread’s popularity: It’s fairly simple to prepare (mash, mix, bake), it relies on ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and it’s a great way to use up a bunch of bananas slowly turning spotty brown on your countertop or stashed away in your freezer.\n\nEven if you are already making banana bread regularly, I’m willing to bet that it could be better. (The fact that you clicked on this banana bread recipe indicates that you might indeed be hankering for a better loaf.) For starters, most banana breads don’t even taste that much like their namesake fruit. The banana flavor often seems to disappear during baking, leaving a bland loaf that needs an abundance of cinnamon, nutmeg, chocolate chips, or walnuts to punch it up.\n\n![Overhead view of banana bread loaf]()\n\n![Overhead view of banana bread loaf](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/iszxXYtdJdMuXb0onLpjo2gG2Yk=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-00-b045ef6f18e141bf8f19c0c6c3891b32.jpg)\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nSerious Eats already has Stella’s amazing [classic banana bread recipe](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/classic-banana-bread-recipe) that delivers on flavor, but I wanted an easier banana bread recipe that relies on basic pantry ingredients with a simple preparation that doesn’t require a stand-mixer or any specialty appliances. I’ll still make Stella’s banana bread when I have the time and energy, but after rounds of testing, I’ve created my new go-to banana bread. This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Packing six whole bananas—that’s double the bananas than most recipes—into one loaf with the help of a quick stovetop technique. Here’s how to do it.\n\n## Tips for the Best Banana Bread\n**Choose ripe bananas.** Great banana bread starts not in your mixing bowl, but in your fruit bowl. The ripeness of the fruit has a large impact on banana bread’s texture and flavor. Bananas are climacteric, meaning they are picked from the tree when they are fully formed, but ripen after harvest. This is because picking triggers the release of ethylene gas, which is what ripens bananas, as well as many other fruits such as avocados, apples, and peaches. Ethylene gas triggers a number of changes in fruit. The three main changes it produces in bananas are a decrease in acid, which leads to a milder tasting fruit; the breakdown of chlorophyll, which changes the banana’s color from green to yellow; and the conversion of starch into sugars, which sweetens the banana.\n\nUnderripe or green bananas are so high in starch and low in sugar that they lack sweetness and well developed banana flavor. They taste vegetal and slightly astringent due to the abundance of acids and starch. On the other end of the ripeness spectrum, bananas that are completely black are overly sweet and their lack of starch and abundance of fructose creates a dense gummy texture in banana bread. So, when it comes to making banana bread, patience is a virtue—don’t even think about baking with your bananas until they’ve got plenty of brown speckles. At this [stage of ripening](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/how-to-store-and-ripen-bananas-8651168), the bananas have a mix of sugar and starch that will produce banana bread with a welcome light texture and sweet, well developed banana flavor.\n\n![Side view of banana bread loag]()\n\n![Side view of banana bread loag](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/UDyujY8D09OrOeR4FyMWHEMoogQ=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-05-412face42ab54efea89e615ff37e2781.jpg)\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nIf you find yourself with underripe bananas, you can speed ripening by a day or two by putting them in a paper bag to trap their ethylene gas. To accelerate the process even more, add a ripe banana or any other ripe ethylene-emitting fruit to the bag (avocados, apples, and oranges all work well). Or if you have no fresh bananas on your counter, this recipe works well with frozen ripe bananas. Just be sure to thaw the bananas on the counter for about 15 minutes before cutting into them.\n\n**Cook the bananas for a light texture and deep banana flavor.** As mentioned above, this banana bread fits six whole bananas into one loaf, while most banana bread recipes call for a max of three. I initially tried baking a loaf with six raw mashed bananas folded into the batter to double down on banana flavor, but the bread was gluey, dense, and stuck to the roof of my mouth from the excess moisture. My tests helped me understand why so many recipes use three or fewer bananas in their bread—it’s to ensure the bread isn’t stodgy, like my six fresh banana loaf was.\n\nI wanted to keep all those bananas in the batter for the biggest banana flavor possible, but I wanted to get rid of the excess moisture. While I was working at America's Test Kitchen, I learned from Andrea Geary’s *Cook’s Illustrated* banana bread recipe that you can cram more bananas into banana bread without creating a wet texture by cooking the bananas to reduce their liquid. While that recipe calls for microwaving the bananas, my solution is cooking the bananas in butter on the stovetop. Cooking the bananas this way accomplishes two main things: It evaporates excess water from the bananas and develops a rich deep caramelized banana flavor that imbues the loaf.\n\n**Brown the butter, and cook the bananas even further for a deep banana-toffee flavor.** Once I realized how caramelizing the fruit deepened the banana flavor in the bread, I decided to also use brown butter in the loaf. [Brown butter](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/brown-butter-recipes) is one of the most versatile flavor-boosting ingredients around, and it makes most baked goods taste better, including banana bread.\n\nThe key to this bread’s rich banana-forward flavor is the combination of brown butter and caramelized bananas. The three key stages to making the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture is searing the bananas, browning the butter, and frying the bananas in the brown butter until it forms a homogenous, deep brown, syrupy mixture. It’s important to brown the butter on its own—if you try to brown the butter with the bananas, the solids in the butter will never brown properly due to the moisture from the bananas. This flavor-boosting technique takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and is well worth the effort.\n\n**Add fresh bananas for ultimate banana flavor.** While this loaf’s flavor revolves around the cooked banana mixture described above, it’s still important to mash fresh bananas into the batter. A ratio of four cooked bananas to two fresh ones works best. The fruitiness of the fresh bananas balances the richness of the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture. You can use a potato masher or even just a large fork for mashing. It’s OK if a few larger chunks of banana remain—they’ll dissolve into the bread while baking and add a welcome fresh fruity flavor.\n\n**Don’t overmix the batter**. This batter is thick and lumpy, but once the flour is added, do not be tempted to try to whisk or stir those lumps away. Overmixing the batter will cause unwanted gluten development, which will make the loaf tough and chewy, so stir the batter until the flour is *just* combined. It’s even OK if a few dry streaks of flour remain—they will be absorbed while baking. It’s better to under-mix than overmix with this quickbread batter.\n\n**Skip the spices**. This is banana bread, *not* a spiced bread. I know a lot of banana bread recipes rely on warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg to season the loaves. In theory these spices enhance the banana flavor, but in practice warm spices often overpower the banana flavor, especially if that fruit flavor is already dull. So skip the spices and let the rich and fruity banana flavor shine in this loaf.\n\nRecipe Details\n\n## Easy Banana Bread Recipe\nPrep 5 mins\n\nCook 80 mins\n\nCooling Time 60 mins\n\nTotal 2 hrs 25 mins\n\nServes 10\n\nMakes 1 loaf\n\nSave\n\nKeep Screen Awake\n\n## Ingredients\n- 1 3\/4 cup (7.875 ounces; 225g) all-purpose flour\n- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; if using table salt use half as much by volume\n- 3\/4 teaspoon baking soda\n- 1\/4 teaspoon baking powder\n- 6 very ripe (lightly speckled to heavily speckled) bananas, peeled (2 left whole, 4 halved crosswise and halved lengthwise)\n- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided\n- 1 cup packed (7 ounces;198g) light brown sugar\n- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten\n- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract\n- 1\/2 cup (100g) walnuts, toasted, optional\n- 1\/2 cup (60g) packed sweetened shredded coconut, toasted (optional, see notes)\n- 1\/2 cup (85g) chocolate chips, optional\n\n## Directions\n1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350℉(175℃). Spray bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with vegetable oil spray.\n2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until combined; set aside. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the 2 whole bananas until fairly smooth; set aside.\n3. In a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add banana slices flat side down and cook until glossy, golden brown, and softened, flipping slices as needed, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.\n4. In the now-empty skillet, add the remaining butter and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and swirling skillet constantly with rubber spatula, until butter is light golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Return the browned bananas to the skillet and continue to cook, stirring and flipping the banana mixture frequently until the bananas are mostly broken down and the mixture turns dark golden brown and has a deep caramelized nutty banana aroma, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat stir in the brown sugar, return to heat and cook, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved and the syrupy mixture gently bubbles, about 1 minute. Transfer the banana mixture to a large bowl with the mashed fresh bananas. Let sit until cooled slightly, for 10 minutes.\n5. Using a potato masher, mash the banana mixture until mostly smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla until combined. Using a spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in walnuts, coconut and\/or chocolate chips, if using. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into greased loaf pan and smooth top.\n6. Bake until banana bread is golden brown and a toothpick or paring knife inserted in center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer banana bread to a wire rack and cool in the pan for 15 minutes.\n7. Use oven mitts to carefully turn the loaf pan on its side and remove banana bread from the pan. Let banana bread continue to cool on the cooling rack for at least 1 hour. Transfer to cutting board, slice, and serve.\n   ![Overhead view of sliced banana bread]()\n   \n   ![Overhead view of sliced banana bread](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/thmb\/K9qquduS4gf9X1-NNORf3Oc-vqU=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale\\(\\):max_bytes\\(150000\\):strip_icc\\(\\)\/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-03-b07f015e47974e879e20a6ac3abcdae5.jpg)\n   \n   Serious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n## Special Equipment\n9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan, 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, potato masher or large fork\n\n## Notes\nTo toast the coconut flakes (if using): Spread coconut in an even layer on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉(175℃), stirring every 5 minutes, until the shreds are a mix of golden brown and white, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a bowl or airtight container.\n\n## Make-Ahead and Storage\nThe cooled loaf can be covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.\n\n- [Breakfast & Brunch](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/breakfast-brunch-recipes-5117905)\n- [The Latest](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/latest-5117998)\n- [Quick Breads](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/quick-bread-recipes-5117390)\n- [Banana](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/banana-recipes-5117659)\n- [Muffins](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/muffin-recipes-5117378)\n\n| Nutrition Facts (per serving) |   |\n|---|---|\n| 319 | Calories |\n| 11g | Fat |\n| 53g | Carbs |\n| 4g | Protein |\n\nShow Full Nutrition Label\n\n×\n\n| Nutrition Facts |   |\n|---|---|\n| Servings: 10 |   |\n| Amount per serving |   |\n| Calories | 319 |\n| % Daily Value\\* |   |\n| Total Fat 11g | 14% |\n| Saturated Fat 6g | 31% |\n| Cholesterol 62mg | 21% |\n| Sodium 267mg | 12% |\n| Total Carbohydrate 53g | 19% |\n| Dietary Fiber 2g | 9% |\n| Total Sugars 28g |   |\n| Protein 4g |   |\n| Vitamin C 6mg | 31% |\n| Calcium 45mg | 3% |\n| Iron 2mg | 9% |\n| Potassium 322mg | 7% |\n| *\\*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.* |   |\n\n(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)\n\n#### More Serious Eats Recipes\n[![Banana bread with pecans sliced on a small wooden cutting board on top of a white kitchen towel with knife on the side.]() ![Banana bread with pecans sliced on a small wooden cutting board on top of a white kitchen towel with knife on the 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even more and also eliminates unwanted moisture that could make the bread soggy.\n- Mixing the batter until it’s just combined prevents gluten development that could make the bread tough.\n\nThere’s a lot of banana bread out there, but slices of truly great banana bread are few and far between. Here, I present a recipe to change that. Great banana bread should be fairly simple to prepare while also having incredible banana flavor. And while “bread” is in the name, it shouldn't be bready-y or tough at all. It should be buttery, rich, and tender, yet hold together when sliced and be hearty enough to pick up a slice without it crumbling apart.\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nIf you'll allow me to extrapolate from internet search data, many of you are making banana bread, but you're still on the hunt for the *perfect* banana bread recipe: Since 2004, Google searches for banana bread have steadily climbed, hitting an all-time high at the start of the pandemic in April 2020. That year, banana bread was the number one searched recipe in the U.S., according to [CNBC](https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2020\/04\/26\/top-google-recipes-amid-covid-19-banana-bread-whipped-coffee.html). While in 2024 it’s not the top searched recipe overall, it is still the most searched bread on the internet. It’s easy to understand banana bread’s popularity: It’s fairly simple to prepare (mash, mix, bake), it relies on ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and it’s a great way to use up a bunch of bananas slowly turning spotty brown on your countertop or stashed away in your freezer.\n\nEven if you are already making banana bread regularly, I’m willing to bet that it could be better. (The fact that you clicked on this banana bread recipe indicates that you might indeed be hankering for a better loaf.) For starters, most banana breads don’t even taste that much like their namesake fruit. The banana flavor often seems to disappear during baking, leaving a bland loaf that needs an abundance of cinnamon, nutmeg, chocolate chips, or walnuts to punch it up.\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nSerious Eats already has Stella’s amazing [classic banana bread recipe](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/classic-banana-bread-recipe) that delivers on flavor, but I wanted an easier banana bread recipe that relies on basic pantry ingredients with a simple preparation that doesn’t require a stand-mixer or any specialty appliances. I’ll still make Stella’s banana bread when I have the time and energy, but after rounds of testing, I’ve created my new go-to banana bread. This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Packing six whole bananas—that’s double the bananas than most recipes—into one loaf with the help of a quick stovetop technique. Here’s how to do it.\n\n## Tips for the Best Banana Bread\n**Choose ripe bananas.** Great banana bread starts not in your mixing bowl, but in your fruit bowl. The ripeness of the fruit has a large impact on banana bread’s texture and flavor. Bananas are climacteric, meaning they are picked from the tree when they are fully formed, but ripen after harvest. This is because picking triggers the release of ethylene gas, which is what ripens bananas, as well as many other fruits such as avocados, apples, and peaches. Ethylene gas triggers a number of changes in fruit. The three main changes it produces in bananas are a decrease in acid, which leads to a milder tasting fruit; the breakdown of chlorophyll, which changes the banana’s color from green to yellow; and the conversion of starch into sugars, which sweetens the banana.\n\nUnderripe or green bananas are so high in starch and low in sugar that they lack sweetness and well developed banana flavor. They taste vegetal and slightly astringent due to the abundance of acids and starch. On the other end of the ripeness spectrum, bananas that are completely black are overly sweet and their lack of starch and abundance of fructose creates a dense gummy texture in banana bread. So, when it comes to making banana bread, patience is a virtue—don’t even think about baking with your bananas until they’ve got plenty of brown speckles. At this [stage of ripening](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/how-to-store-and-ripen-bananas-8651168), the bananas have a mix of sugar and starch that will produce banana bread with a welcome light texture and sweet, well developed banana flavor.\n\nSerious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n\nIf you find yourself with underripe bananas, you can speed ripening by a day or two by putting them in a paper bag to trap their ethylene gas. To accelerate the process even more, add a ripe banana or any other ripe ethylene-emitting fruit to the bag (avocados, apples, and oranges all work well). Or if you have no fresh bananas on your counter, this recipe works well with frozen ripe bananas. Just be sure to thaw the bananas on the counter for about 15 minutes before cutting into them.\n\n**Cook the bananas for a light texture and deep banana flavor.** As mentioned above, this banana bread fits six whole bananas into one loaf, while most banana bread recipes call for a max of three. I initially tried baking a loaf with six raw mashed bananas folded into the batter to double down on banana flavor, but the bread was gluey, dense, and stuck to the roof of my mouth from the excess moisture. My tests helped me understand why so many recipes use three or fewer bananas in their bread—it’s to ensure the bread isn’t stodgy, like my six fresh banana loaf was.\n\nI wanted to keep all those bananas in the batter for the biggest banana flavor possible, but I wanted to get rid of the excess moisture. While I was working at America's Test Kitchen, I learned from Andrea Geary’s *Cook’s Illustrated* banana bread recipe that you can cram more bananas into banana bread without creating a wet texture by cooking the bananas to reduce their liquid. While that recipe calls for microwaving the bananas, my solution is cooking the bananas in butter on the stovetop. Cooking the bananas this way accomplishes two main things: It evaporates excess water from the bananas and develops a rich deep caramelized banana flavor that imbues the loaf.\n\n**Brown the butter, and cook the bananas even further for a deep banana-toffee flavor.** Once I realized how caramelizing the fruit deepened the banana flavor in the bread, I decided to also use brown butter in the loaf. [Brown butter](https:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/brown-butter-recipes) is one of the most versatile flavor-boosting ingredients around, and it makes most baked goods taste better, including banana bread.\n\nThe key to this bread’s rich banana-forward flavor is the combination of brown butter and caramelized bananas. The three key stages to making the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture is searing the bananas, browning the butter, and frying the bananas in the brown butter until it forms a homogenous, deep brown, syrupy mixture. It’s important to brown the butter on its own—if you try to brown the butter with the bananas, the solids in the butter will never brown properly due to the moisture from the bananas. This flavor-boosting technique takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and is well worth the effort.\n\n**Add fresh bananas for ultimate banana flavor.** While this loaf’s flavor revolves around the cooked banana mixture described above, it’s still important to mash fresh bananas into the batter. A ratio of four cooked bananas to two fresh ones works best. The fruitiness of the fresh bananas balances the richness of the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture. You can use a potato masher or even just a large fork for mashing. It’s OK if a few larger chunks of banana remain—they’ll dissolve into the bread while baking and add a welcome fresh fruity flavor.\n\n**Don’t overmix the batter**. This batter is thick and lumpy, but once the flour is added, do not be tempted to try to whisk or stir those lumps away. Overmixing the batter will cause unwanted gluten development, which will make the loaf tough and chewy, so stir the batter until the flour is *just* combined. It’s even OK if a few dry streaks of flour remain—they will be absorbed while baking. It’s better to under-mix than overmix with this quickbread batter.\n\n**Skip the spices**. This is banana bread, *not* a spiced bread. I know a lot of banana bread recipes rely on warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg to season the loaves. In theory these spices enhance the banana flavor, but in practice warm spices often overpower the banana flavor, especially if that fruit flavor is already dull. So skip the spices and let the rich and fruity banana flavor shine in this loaf.\n\nKeep Screen Awake\n\n- 1 3\/4 cup (7.875 ounces; 225g) all-purpose flour\n- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; if using table salt use half as much by volume\n- 3\/4 teaspoon baking soda\n- 1\/4 teaspoon baking powder\n- 6 very ripe (lightly speckled to heavily speckled) bananas, peeled (2 left whole, 4 halved crosswise and halved lengthwise)\n- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided\n- 1 cup packed (7 ounces;198g) light brown sugar\n- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten\n- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract\n- 1\/2 cup (100g) walnuts, toasted, optional\n- 1\/2 cup (60g) packed sweetened shredded coconut, toasted (optional, see notes)\n- 1\/2 cup (85g) chocolate chips, optional\n\n1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350℉(175℃). Spray bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with vegetable oil spray.\n2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until combined; set aside. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the 2 whole bananas until fairly smooth; set aside.\n3. In a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add banana slices flat side down and cook until glossy, golden brown, and softened, flipping slices as needed, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.\n4. In the now-empty skillet, add the remaining butter and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and swirling skillet constantly with rubber spatula, until butter is light golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Return the browned bananas to the skillet and continue to cook, stirring and flipping the banana mixture frequently until the bananas are mostly broken down and the mixture turns dark golden brown and has a deep caramelized nutty banana aroma, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat stir in the brown sugar, return to heat and cook, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved and the syrupy mixture gently bubbles, about 1 minute. Transfer the banana mixture to a large bowl with the mashed fresh bananas. Let sit until cooled slightly, for 10 minutes.\n5. Using a potato masher, mash the banana mixture until mostly smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla until combined. Using a spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in walnuts, coconut and\/or chocolate chips, if using. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into greased loaf pan and smooth top.\n6. Bake until banana bread is golden brown and a toothpick or paring knife inserted in center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer banana bread to a wire rack and cool in the pan for 15 minutes.\n7. Use oven mitts to carefully turn the loaf pan on its side and remove banana bread from the pan. Let banana bread continue to cool on the cooling rack for at least 1 hour. Transfer to cutting board, slice, and serve.\n   Serious Eats \/ Amanda Suarez\n## Special Equipment\n9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan, 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, potato masher or large fork\n\n## Notes\nTo toast the coconut flakes (if using): Spread coconut in an even layer on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉(175℃), stirring every 5 minutes, until the shreds are a mix of golden brown and white, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a bowl or airtight container.\n\n## Make-Ahead and Storage\nThe cooled loaf can be covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.","meta_canonical":null}

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Meta Description	This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Browning the butter and packing six whole bananas into one loaf.
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Boilerpipe Text	Why It Works Packing six bananas into one loaf ensures over the top banana flavor. Browning the butter and caramelizing a portion of the bananas punches up the banana flavor even more and also eliminates unwanted moisture that could make the bread soggy. Mixing the batter until it’s just combined prevents gluten development that could make the bread tough. There’s a lot of banana bread out there, but slices of truly great banana bread are few and far between. Here, I present a recipe to change that. Great banana bread should be fairly simple to prepare while also having incredible banana flavor. And while “bread” is in the name, it shouldn't be bready-y or tough at all. It should be buttery, rich, and tender, yet hold together when sliced and be hearty enough to pick up a slice without it crumbling apart. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez If you'll allow me to extrapolate from internet search data, many of you are making banana bread, but you're still on the hunt for the perfect banana bread recipe: Since 2004, Google searches for banana bread have steadily climbed, hitting an all-time high at the start of the pandemic in April 2020. That year, banana bread was the number one searched recipe in the U.S., according to CNBC . While in 2024 it’s not the top searched recipe overall, it is still the most searched bread on the internet. It’s easy to understand banana bread’s popularity: It’s fairly simple to prepare (mash, mix, bake), it relies on ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and it’s a great way to use up a bunch of bananas slowly turning spotty brown on your countertop or stashed away in your freezer. Even if you are already making banana bread regularly, I’m willing to bet that it could be better. (The fact that you clicked on this banana bread recipe indicates that you might indeed be hankering for a better loaf.) For starters, most banana breads don’t even taste that much like their namesake fruit. The banana flavor often seems to disappear during baking, leaving a bland loaf that needs an abundance of cinnamon, nutmeg, chocolate chips, or walnuts to punch it up. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez Serious Eats already has Stella’s amazing classic banana bread recipe that delivers on flavor, but I wanted an easier banana bread recipe that relies on basic pantry ingredients with a simple preparation that doesn’t require a stand-mixer or any specialty appliances. I’ll still make Stella’s banana bread when I have the time and energy, but after rounds of testing, I’ve created my new go-to banana bread. This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Packing six whole bananas—that’s double the bananas than most recipes—into one loaf with the help of a quick stovetop technique. Here’s how to do it. Tips for the Best Banana Bread Choose ripe bananas. Great banana bread starts not in your mixing bowl, but in your fruit bowl. The ripeness of the fruit has a large impact on banana bread’s texture and flavor. Bananas are climacteric, meaning they are picked from the tree when they are fully formed, but ripen after harvest. This is because picking triggers the release of ethylene gas, which is what ripens bananas, as well as many other fruits such as avocados, apples, and peaches. Ethylene gas triggers a number of changes in fruit. The three main changes it produces in bananas are a decrease in acid, which leads to a milder tasting fruit; the breakdown of chlorophyll, which changes the banana’s color from green to yellow; and the conversion of starch into sugars, which sweetens the banana. Underripe or green bananas are so high in starch and low in sugar that they lack sweetness and well developed banana flavor. They taste vegetal and slightly astringent due to the abundance of acids and starch. On the other end of the ripeness spectrum, bananas that are completely black are overly sweet and their lack of starch and abundance of fructose creates a dense gummy texture in banana bread. So, when it comes to making banana bread, patience is a virtue—don’t even think about baking with your bananas until they’ve got plenty of brown speckles. At this stage of ripening , the bananas have a mix of sugar and starch that will produce banana bread with a welcome light texture and sweet, well developed banana flavor. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez If you find yourself with underripe bananas, you can speed ripening by a day or two by putting them in a paper bag to trap their ethylene gas. To accelerate the process even more, add a ripe banana or any other ripe ethylene-emitting fruit to the bag (avocados, apples, and oranges all work well). Or if you have no fresh bananas on your counter, this recipe works well with frozen ripe bananas. Just be sure to thaw the bananas on the counter for about 15 minutes before cutting into them. Cook the bananas for a light texture and deep banana flavor. As mentioned above, this banana bread fits six whole bananas into one loaf, while most banana bread recipes call for a max of three. I initially tried baking a loaf with six raw mashed bananas folded into the batter to double down on banana flavor, but the bread was gluey, dense, and stuck to the roof of my mouth from the excess moisture. My tests helped me understand why so many recipes use three or fewer bananas in their bread—it’s to ensure the bread isn’t stodgy, like my six fresh banana loaf was. I wanted to keep all those bananas in the batter for the biggest banana flavor possible, but I wanted to get rid of the excess moisture. While I was working at America's Test Kitchen, I learned from Andrea Geary’s Cook’s Illustrated banana bread recipe that you can cram more bananas into banana bread without creating a wet texture by cooking the bananas to reduce their liquid. While that recipe calls for microwaving the bananas, my solution is cooking the bananas in butter on the stovetop. Cooking the bananas this way accomplishes two main things: It evaporates excess water from the bananas and develops a rich deep caramelized banana flavor that imbues the loaf. Brown the butter, and cook the bananas even further for a deep banana-toffee flavor. Once I realized how caramelizing the fruit deepened the banana flavor in the bread, I decided to also use brown butter in the loaf. Brown butter is one of the most versatile flavor-boosting ingredients around, and it makes most baked goods taste better, including banana bread. The key to this bread’s rich banana-forward flavor is the combination of brown butter and caramelized bananas. The three key stages to making the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture is searing the bananas, browning the butter, and frying the bananas in the brown butter until it forms a homogenous, deep brown, syrupy mixture. It’s important to brown the butter on its own—if you try to brown the butter with the bananas, the solids in the butter will never brown properly due to the moisture from the bananas. This flavor-boosting technique takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and is well worth the effort. Add fresh bananas for ultimate banana flavor. While this loaf’s flavor revolves around the cooked banana mixture described above, it’s still important to mash fresh bananas into the batter. A ratio of four cooked bananas to two fresh ones works best. The fruitiness of the fresh bananas balances the richness of the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture. You can use a potato masher or even just a large fork for mashing. It’s OK if a few larger chunks of banana remain—they’ll dissolve into the bread while baking and add a welcome fresh fruity flavor. Don’t overmix the batter . This batter is thick and lumpy, but once the flour is added, do not be tempted to try to whisk or stir those lumps away. Overmixing the batter will cause unwanted gluten development, which will make the loaf tough and chewy, so stir the batter until the flour is just combined. It’s even OK if a few dry streaks of flour remain—they will be absorbed while baking. It’s better to under-mix than overmix with this quickbread batter. Skip the spices . This is banana bread, not a spiced bread. I know a lot of banana bread recipes rely on warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg to season the loaves. In theory these spices enhance the banana flavor, but in practice warm spices often overpower the banana flavor, especially if that fruit flavor is already dull. So skip the spices and let the rich and fruity banana flavor shine in this loaf. Keep Screen Awake 1 3/4 cup (7.875 ounces; 225 g ) all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; if using table salt use half as much by volume 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 6 very ripe (lightly speckled to heavily speckled) bananas , peeled (2 left whole, 4 halved crosswise and halved lengthwise) 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided 1 cup packed (7 ounces; 198 g) light brown sugar 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup (100 g) walnuts , toasted, optional 1/2 cup ( 60 g ) packed sweetened shredded coconut , toasted (optional, see notes) 1/2 cup ( 85 g) chocolate chips, optional Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350℉(175℃). Spray bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with vegetable oil spray. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until combined; set aside. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the 2 whole bananas until fairly smooth; set aside. In a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add banana slices flat side down and cook until glossy, golden brown, and softened, flipping slices as needed, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. In the now-empty skillet, add the remaining butter and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and swirling skillet constantly with rubber spatula, until butter is light golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Return the browned bananas to the skillet and continue to cook, stirring and flipping the banana mixture frequently until the bananas are mostly broken down and the mixture turns dark golden brown and has a deep caramelized nutty banana aroma, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat stir in the brown sugar, return to heat and cook, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved and the syrupy mixture gently bubbles, about 1 minute. Transfer the banana mixture to a large bowl with the mashed fresh bananas. Let sit until cooled slightly, for 10 minutes. Using a potato masher, mash the banana mixture until mostly smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla until combined. Using a spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in walnuts, coconut and/or chocolate chips, if using. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into greased loaf pan and smooth top. Bake until banana bread is golden brown and a toothpick or paring knife inserted in center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer banana bread to a wire rack and cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Use oven mitts to carefully turn the loaf pan on its side and remove banana bread from the pan. Let banana bread continue to cool on the cooling rack for at least 1 hour. Transfer to cutting board, slice, and serve. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez Special Equipment 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan, 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, potato masher or large fork Notes To toast the coconut flakes (if using): Spread coconut in an even layer on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉(175℃), stirring every 5 minutes, until the shreds are a mix of golden brown and white, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a bowl or airtight container. Make-Ahead and Storage The cooled loaf can be covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
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- - [About Us](https://www.seriouseats.com/about-us-5120006) - [Contact Us](https://www.seriouseats.com/about-us-5120006#toc-contact-us) - [Recipes](https://www.seriouseats.com/all-recipes-5117985) - [Recipes By Course](https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes-by-course-5117906) - [Breakfast & Brunch](https://www.seriouseats.com/breakfast-brunch-recipes-5117905) # Easy Banana Bread The key to this easy pantry-friendly banana bread? Packing six whole bananas into one loaf. By [Leah Colins](https://www.seriouseats.com/leah-colins-senior-culinary-editor-at-serious-eats-7504244) ![A studio portrait of editor Leah Colins.]() ![A studio portrait of editor Leah Colins.](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/q9oZdVLP033j_CUazJhOOZ0xN-w=/200x200/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/LeahColinsHeadshot-7a6fabb7a70844a39f08ada94b32e842.JPG) [Leah Colins](https://www.seriouseats.com/leah-colins-senior-culinary-editor-at-serious-eats-7504244) Senior Culinary Editor Leah is the Senior Culinary Editor at Serious Eats, and was previously a recipe developer and editor with America's Test Kitchen for almost 9 years. She has developed recipes for and edited over 20 cookbooks ranging in topic from bread baking to plant-based eating to outdoor grilling and so much more. While there, she also developed recipes and articles for Cooks Illustrated Magazine, Cooks Country Magazine, and ATK's digital platform.Before her life as a recipe developer, she cooked in 5-star and Michelin-starred fine dining establishments from coast to coast such as The Herbfarm and Aubergine Restaurant at L'Auberge Carmel; she also treasures her time flipping burgers on flattops in her teenage years, and baking and boxing cookies and pies at a wonderful family-owned German bakery in her early professional life. Learn about Serious Eats' [Editorial Process](https://www.seriouseats.com/about-us-5120006#toc-editorial-guidelines) Updated April 10, 2025 (4) Save [WRITE A REVIEW](https://www.seriouseats.com/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918) Close ![Overhead view of banana bread](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/32_heNJkpbJKTSI4dHHBuqmLHT0=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-hero-1feacf17720b499d96c425adcb010a5e.jpg) ![Overhead view of banana bread](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/32_heNJkpbJKTSI4dHHBuqmLHT0=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-hero-1feacf17720b499d96c425adcb010a5e.jpg) Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez In This Recipe Expand - [Tips for the Best Banana Bread](https://www.seriouseats.com/easy-banana-bread-recipe-8648918#toc-tips-for-the-best-banana-bread) Jump to recipe ### Why It Works - Packing six bananas into one loaf ensures over the top banana flavor. - Browning the butter and caramelizing a portion of the bananas punches up the banana flavor even more and also eliminates unwanted moisture that could make the bread soggy. - Mixing the batter until it’s just combined prevents gluten development that could make the bread tough. There’s a lot of banana bread out there, but slices of truly great banana bread are few and far between. Here, I present a recipe to change that. Great banana bread should be fairly simple to prepare while also having incredible banana flavor. And while “bread” is in the name, it shouldn't be bready-y or tough at all. It should be buttery, rich, and tender, yet hold together when sliced and be hearty enough to pick up a slice without it crumbling apart. ![Overhead view of banana bread slice]() ![Overhead view of banana bread slice](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/T4tG2hBfGYVHpTBB-JmpoM1hFW8=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-06-590f2e6463a848728cb56a12acff6ee6.jpg) Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez If you'll allow me to extrapolate from internet search data, many of you are making banana bread, but you're still on the hunt for the perfect banana bread recipe: Since 2004, Google searches for banana bread have steadily climbed, hitting an all-time high at the start of the pandemic in April 2020. That year, banana bread was the number one searched recipe in the U.S., according to [CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/26/top-google-recipes-amid-covid-19-banana-bread-whipped-coffee.html). While in 2024 it’s not the top searched recipe overall, it is still the most searched bread on the internet. It’s easy to understand banana bread’s popularity: It’s fairly simple to prepare (mash, mix, bake), it relies on ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and it’s a great way to use up a bunch of bananas slowly turning spotty brown on your countertop or stashed away in your freezer. Even if you are already making banana bread regularly, I’m willing to bet that it could be better. (The fact that you clicked on this banana bread recipe indicates that you might indeed be hankering for a better loaf.) For starters, most banana breads don’t even taste that much like their namesake fruit. The banana flavor often seems to disappear during baking, leaving a bland loaf that needs an abundance of cinnamon, nutmeg, chocolate chips, or walnuts to punch it up. ![Overhead view of banana bread loaf]() ![Overhead view of banana bread loaf](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/iszxXYtdJdMuXb0onLpjo2gG2Yk=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-00-b045ef6f18e141bf8f19c0c6c3891b32.jpg) Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez Serious Eats already has Stella’s amazing [classic banana bread recipe](https://www.seriouseats.com/classic-banana-bread-recipe) that delivers on flavor, but I wanted an easier banana bread recipe that relies on basic pantry ingredients with a simple preparation that doesn’t require a stand-mixer or any specialty appliances. I’ll still make Stella’s banana bread when I have the time and energy, but after rounds of testing, I’ve created my new go-to banana bread. This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Packing six whole bananas—that’s double the bananas than most recipes—into one loaf with the help of a quick stovetop technique. Here’s how to do it. ## Tips for the Best Banana Bread Choose ripe bananas. Great banana bread starts not in your mixing bowl, but in your fruit bowl. The ripeness of the fruit has a large impact on banana bread’s texture and flavor. Bananas are climacteric, meaning they are picked from the tree when they are fully formed, but ripen after harvest. This is because picking triggers the release of ethylene gas, which is what ripens bananas, as well as many other fruits such as avocados, apples, and peaches. Ethylene gas triggers a number of changes in fruit. The three main changes it produces in bananas are a decrease in acid, which leads to a milder tasting fruit; the breakdown of chlorophyll, which changes the banana’s color from green to yellow; and the conversion of starch into sugars, which sweetens the banana. Underripe or green bananas are so high in starch and low in sugar that they lack sweetness and well developed banana flavor. They taste vegetal and slightly astringent due to the abundance of acids and starch. On the other end of the ripeness spectrum, bananas that are completely black are overly sweet and their lack of starch and abundance of fructose creates a dense gummy texture in banana bread. So, when it comes to making banana bread, patience is a virtue—don’t even think about baking with your bananas until they’ve got plenty of brown speckles. At this [stage of ripening](https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-store-and-ripen-bananas-8651168), the bananas have a mix of sugar and starch that will produce banana bread with a welcome light texture and sweet, well developed banana flavor. ![Side view of banana bread loag]() ![Side view of banana bread loag](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/UDyujY8D09OrOeR4FyMWHEMoogQ=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-05-412face42ab54efea89e615ff37e2781.jpg) Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez If you find yourself with underripe bananas, you can speed ripening by a day or two by putting them in a paper bag to trap their ethylene gas. To accelerate the process even more, add a ripe banana or any other ripe ethylene-emitting fruit to the bag (avocados, apples, and oranges all work well). Or if you have no fresh bananas on your counter, this recipe works well with frozen ripe bananas. Just be sure to thaw the bananas on the counter for about 15 minutes before cutting into them. Cook the bananas for a light texture and deep banana flavor. As mentioned above, this banana bread fits six whole bananas into one loaf, while most banana bread recipes call for a max of three. I initially tried baking a loaf with six raw mashed bananas folded into the batter to double down on banana flavor, but the bread was gluey, dense, and stuck to the roof of my mouth from the excess moisture. My tests helped me understand why so many recipes use three or fewer bananas in their bread—it’s to ensure the bread isn’t stodgy, like my six fresh banana loaf was. I wanted to keep all those bananas in the batter for the biggest banana flavor possible, but I wanted to get rid of the excess moisture. While I was working at America's Test Kitchen, I learned from Andrea Geary’s Cook’s Illustrated banana bread recipe that you can cram more bananas into banana bread without creating a wet texture by cooking the bananas to reduce their liquid. While that recipe calls for microwaving the bananas, my solution is cooking the bananas in butter on the stovetop. Cooking the bananas this way accomplishes two main things: It evaporates excess water from the bananas and develops a rich deep caramelized banana flavor that imbues the loaf. Brown the butter, and cook the bananas even further for a deep banana-toffee flavor. Once I realized how caramelizing the fruit deepened the banana flavor in the bread, I decided to also use brown butter in the loaf. [Brown butter](https://www.seriouseats.com/brown-butter-recipes) is one of the most versatile flavor-boosting ingredients around, and it makes most baked goods taste better, including banana bread. The key to this bread’s rich banana-forward flavor is the combination of brown butter and caramelized bananas. The three key stages to making the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture is searing the bananas, browning the butter, and frying the bananas in the brown butter until it forms a homogenous, deep brown, syrupy mixture. It’s important to brown the butter on its own—if you try to brown the butter with the bananas, the solids in the butter will never brown properly due to the moisture from the bananas. This flavor-boosting technique takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and is well worth the effort. Add fresh bananas for ultimate banana flavor. While this loaf’s flavor revolves around the cooked banana mixture described above, it’s still important to mash fresh bananas into the batter. A ratio of four cooked bananas to two fresh ones works best. The fruitiness of the fresh bananas balances the richness of the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture. You can use a potato masher or even just a large fork for mashing. It’s OK if a few larger chunks of banana remain—they’ll dissolve into the bread while baking and add a welcome fresh fruity flavor. Don’t overmix the batter. This batter is thick and lumpy, but once the flour is added, do not be tempted to try to whisk or stir those lumps away. Overmixing the batter will cause unwanted gluten development, which will make the loaf tough and chewy, so stir the batter until the flour is just combined. It’s even OK if a few dry streaks of flour remain—they will be absorbed while baking. It’s better to under-mix than overmix with this quickbread batter. Skip the spices. This is banana bread, not a spiced bread. I know a lot of banana bread recipes rely on warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg to season the loaves. In theory these spices enhance the banana flavor, but in practice warm spices often overpower the banana flavor, especially if that fruit flavor is already dull. So skip the spices and let the rich and fruity banana flavor shine in this loaf. Recipe Details ## Easy Banana Bread Recipe Prep 5 mins Cook 80 mins Cooling Time 60 mins Total 2 hrs 25 mins Serves 10 Makes 1 loaf Save Keep Screen Awake ## Ingredients - 1 3/4 cup (7.875 ounces; 225g) all-purpose flour - 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; if using table salt use half as much by volume - 3/4 teaspoon baking soda - 1/4 teaspoon baking powder - 6 very ripe (lightly speckled to heavily speckled) bananas, peeled (2 left whole, 4 halved crosswise and halved lengthwise) - 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided - 1 cup packed (7 ounces;198g) light brown sugar - 2 large eggs, lightly beaten - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract - 1/2 cup (100g) walnuts, toasted, optional - 1/2 cup (60g) packed sweetened shredded coconut, toasted (optional, see notes) - 1/2 cup (85g) chocolate chips, optional ## Directions 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350℉(175℃). Spray bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with vegetable oil spray. 2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until combined; set aside. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the 2 whole bananas until fairly smooth; set aside. 3. In a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add banana slices flat side down and cook until glossy, golden brown, and softened, flipping slices as needed, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. 4. In the now-empty skillet, add the remaining butter and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and swirling skillet constantly with rubber spatula, until butter is light golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Return the browned bananas to the skillet and continue to cook, stirring and flipping the banana mixture frequently until the bananas are mostly broken down and the mixture turns dark golden brown and has a deep caramelized nutty banana aroma, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat stir in the brown sugar, return to heat and cook, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved and the syrupy mixture gently bubbles, about 1 minute. Transfer the banana mixture to a large bowl with the mashed fresh bananas. Let sit until cooled slightly, for 10 minutes. 5. Using a potato masher, mash the banana mixture until mostly smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla until combined. Using a spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in walnuts, coconut and/or chocolate chips, if using. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into greased loaf pan and smooth top. 6. Bake until banana bread is golden brown and a toothpick or paring knife inserted in center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer banana bread to a wire rack and cool in the pan for 15 minutes. 7. Use oven mitts to carefully turn the loaf pan on its side and remove banana bread from the pan. Let banana bread continue to cool on the cooling rack for at least 1 hour. Transfer to cutting board, slice, and serve. ![Overhead view of sliced banana bread]() ![Overhead view of sliced banana bread](https://www.seriouseats.com/thmb/K9qquduS4gf9X1-NNORf3Oc-vqU=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale\(\):max_bytes\(150000\):strip_icc\(\)/20240515-BananaBread-AmandaSuarez-03-b07f015e47974e879e20a6ac3abcdae5.jpg) Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez ## Special Equipment 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan, 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, potato masher or large fork ## Notes To toast the coconut flakes (if using): Spread coconut in an even layer on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉(175℃), stirring every 5 minutes, until the shreds are a mix of golden brown and white, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a bowl or airtight container. ## Make-Ahead and Storage The cooled loaf can be covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months. - [Breakfast & Brunch](https://www.seriouseats.com/breakfast-brunch-recipes-5117905) - [The Latest](https://www.seriouseats.com/latest-5117998) - [Quick Breads](https://www.seriouseats.com/quick-bread-recipes-5117390) - [Banana](https://www.seriouseats.com/banana-recipes-5117659) - [Muffins](https://www.seriouseats.com/muffin-recipes-5117378) \| Nutrition Facts (per serving) \| \| \|---\|---\| \| 319 \| Calories \| \| 11g \| Fat \| \| 53g \| Carbs \| \| 4g \| Protein \| Show Full Nutrition Label × \| Nutrition Facts \| \| \|---\|---\| \| Servings: 10 \| \| \| Amount per serving \| \| \| Calories \| 319 \| \| % Daily Value\* \| \| \| Total Fat 11g \| 14% \| \| Saturated Fat 6g \| 31% \| \| Cholesterol 62mg \| 21% \| \| Sodium 267mg \| 12% \| \| Total Carbohydrate 53g \| 19% \| \| Dietary Fiber 2g \| 9% \| \| Total Sugars 28g \| \| \| Protein 4g \| \| \| Vitamin C 6mg \| 31% \| \| Calcium 45mg \| 3% \| \| Iron 2mg \| 9% \| \| Potassium 322mg \| 7% \| \| \The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.* \| \| (Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.) #### More Serious Eats Recipes [![Banana bread with pecans sliced on a small wooden cutting board on top of a white kitchen towel with knife on the side.]() ![Banana bread with pecans sliced on a small wooden cutting board on top of a white kitchen towel with knife on the 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Readable Markdown	### Why It Works - Packing six bananas into one loaf ensures over the top banana flavor. - Browning the butter and caramelizing a portion of the bananas punches up the banana flavor even more and also eliminates unwanted moisture that could make the bread soggy. - Mixing the batter until it’s just combined prevents gluten development that could make the bread tough. There’s a lot of banana bread out there, but slices of truly great banana bread are few and far between. Here, I present a recipe to change that. Great banana bread should be fairly simple to prepare while also having incredible banana flavor. And while “bread” is in the name, it shouldn't be bready-y or tough at all. It should be buttery, rich, and tender, yet hold together when sliced and be hearty enough to pick up a slice without it crumbling apart. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez If you'll allow me to extrapolate from internet search data, many of you are making banana bread, but you're still on the hunt for the perfect banana bread recipe: Since 2004, Google searches for banana bread have steadily climbed, hitting an all-time high at the start of the pandemic in April 2020. That year, banana bread was the number one searched recipe in the U.S., according to [CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/26/top-google-recipes-amid-covid-19-banana-bread-whipped-coffee.html). While in 2024 it’s not the top searched recipe overall, it is still the most searched bread on the internet. It’s easy to understand banana bread’s popularity: It’s fairly simple to prepare (mash, mix, bake), it relies on ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and it’s a great way to use up a bunch of bananas slowly turning spotty brown on your countertop or stashed away in your freezer. Even if you are already making banana bread regularly, I’m willing to bet that it could be better. (The fact that you clicked on this banana bread recipe indicates that you might indeed be hankering for a better loaf.) For starters, most banana breads don’t even taste that much like their namesake fruit. The banana flavor often seems to disappear during baking, leaving a bland loaf that needs an abundance of cinnamon, nutmeg, chocolate chips, or walnuts to punch it up. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez Serious Eats already has Stella’s amazing [classic banana bread recipe](https://www.seriouseats.com/classic-banana-bread-recipe) that delivers on flavor, but I wanted an easier banana bread recipe that relies on basic pantry ingredients with a simple preparation that doesn’t require a stand-mixer or any specialty appliances. I’ll still make Stella’s banana bread when I have the time and energy, but after rounds of testing, I’ve created my new go-to banana bread. This banana bread is easy to make, has just the right sweetness, and (most importantly) is heavy with the aroma and flavor of bananas. The key to this? Packing six whole bananas—that’s double the bananas than most recipes—into one loaf with the help of a quick stovetop technique. Here’s how to do it. ## Tips for the Best Banana Bread Choose ripe bananas. Great banana bread starts not in your mixing bowl, but in your fruit bowl. The ripeness of the fruit has a large impact on banana bread’s texture and flavor. Bananas are climacteric, meaning they are picked from the tree when they are fully formed, but ripen after harvest. This is because picking triggers the release of ethylene gas, which is what ripens bananas, as well as many other fruits such as avocados, apples, and peaches. Ethylene gas triggers a number of changes in fruit. The three main changes it produces in bananas are a decrease in acid, which leads to a milder tasting fruit; the breakdown of chlorophyll, which changes the banana’s color from green to yellow; and the conversion of starch into sugars, which sweetens the banana. Underripe or green bananas are so high in starch and low in sugar that they lack sweetness and well developed banana flavor. They taste vegetal and slightly astringent due to the abundance of acids and starch. On the other end of the ripeness spectrum, bananas that are completely black are overly sweet and their lack of starch and abundance of fructose creates a dense gummy texture in banana bread. So, when it comes to making banana bread, patience is a virtue—don’t even think about baking with your bananas until they’ve got plenty of brown speckles. At this [stage of ripening](https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-store-and-ripen-bananas-8651168), the bananas have a mix of sugar and starch that will produce banana bread with a welcome light texture and sweet, well developed banana flavor. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez If you find yourself with underripe bananas, you can speed ripening by a day or two by putting them in a paper bag to trap their ethylene gas. To accelerate the process even more, add a ripe banana or any other ripe ethylene-emitting fruit to the bag (avocados, apples, and oranges all work well). Or if you have no fresh bananas on your counter, this recipe works well with frozen ripe bananas. Just be sure to thaw the bananas on the counter for about 15 minutes before cutting into them. Cook the bananas for a light texture and deep banana flavor. As mentioned above, this banana bread fits six whole bananas into one loaf, while most banana bread recipes call for a max of three. I initially tried baking a loaf with six raw mashed bananas folded into the batter to double down on banana flavor, but the bread was gluey, dense, and stuck to the roof of my mouth from the excess moisture. My tests helped me understand why so many recipes use three or fewer bananas in their bread—it’s to ensure the bread isn’t stodgy, like my six fresh banana loaf was. I wanted to keep all those bananas in the batter for the biggest banana flavor possible, but I wanted to get rid of the excess moisture. While I was working at America's Test Kitchen, I learned from Andrea Geary’s Cook’s Illustrated banana bread recipe that you can cram more bananas into banana bread without creating a wet texture by cooking the bananas to reduce their liquid. While that recipe calls for microwaving the bananas, my solution is cooking the bananas in butter on the stovetop. Cooking the bananas this way accomplishes two main things: It evaporates excess water from the bananas and develops a rich deep caramelized banana flavor that imbues the loaf. Brown the butter, and cook the bananas even further for a deep banana-toffee flavor. Once I realized how caramelizing the fruit deepened the banana flavor in the bread, I decided to also use brown butter in the loaf. [Brown butter](https://www.seriouseats.com/brown-butter-recipes) is one of the most versatile flavor-boosting ingredients around, and it makes most baked goods taste better, including banana bread. The key to this bread’s rich banana-forward flavor is the combination of brown butter and caramelized bananas. The three key stages to making the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture is searing the bananas, browning the butter, and frying the bananas in the brown butter until it forms a homogenous, deep brown, syrupy mixture. It’s important to brown the butter on its own—if you try to brown the butter with the bananas, the solids in the butter will never brown properly due to the moisture from the bananas. This flavor-boosting technique takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and is well worth the effort. Add fresh bananas for ultimate banana flavor. While this loaf’s flavor revolves around the cooked banana mixture described above, it’s still important to mash fresh bananas into the batter. A ratio of four cooked bananas to two fresh ones works best. The fruitiness of the fresh bananas balances the richness of the brown butter and caramelized banana mixture. You can use a potato masher or even just a large fork for mashing. It’s OK if a few larger chunks of banana remain—they’ll dissolve into the bread while baking and add a welcome fresh fruity flavor. Don’t overmix the batter. This batter is thick and lumpy, but once the flour is added, do not be tempted to try to whisk or stir those lumps away. Overmixing the batter will cause unwanted gluten development, which will make the loaf tough and chewy, so stir the batter until the flour is just combined. It’s even OK if a few dry streaks of flour remain—they will be absorbed while baking. It’s better to under-mix than overmix with this quickbread batter. Skip the spices. This is banana bread, not a spiced bread. I know a lot of banana bread recipes rely on warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg to season the loaves. In theory these spices enhance the banana flavor, but in practice warm spices often overpower the banana flavor, especially if that fruit flavor is already dull. So skip the spices and let the rich and fruity banana flavor shine in this loaf. Keep Screen Awake - 1 3/4 cup (7.875 ounces; 225g) all-purpose flour - 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; if using table salt use half as much by volume - 3/4 teaspoon baking soda - 1/4 teaspoon baking powder - 6 very ripe (lightly speckled to heavily speckled) bananas, peeled (2 left whole, 4 halved crosswise and halved lengthwise) - 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided - 1 cup packed (7 ounces;198g) light brown sugar - 2 large eggs, lightly beaten - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract - 1/2 cup (100g) walnuts, toasted, optional - 1/2 cup (60g) packed sweetened shredded coconut, toasted (optional, see notes) - 1/2 cup (85g) chocolate chips, optional 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350℉(175℃). Spray bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with vegetable oil spray. 2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until combined; set aside. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the 2 whole bananas until fairly smooth; set aside. 3. In a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add banana slices flat side down and cook until glossy, golden brown, and softened, flipping slices as needed, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. 4. In the now-empty skillet, add the remaining butter and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and swirling skillet constantly with rubber spatula, until butter is light golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Return the browned bananas to the skillet and continue to cook, stirring and flipping the banana mixture frequently until the bananas are mostly broken down and the mixture turns dark golden brown and has a deep caramelized nutty banana aroma, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat stir in the brown sugar, return to heat and cook, stirring frequently, until sugar is fully dissolved and the syrupy mixture gently bubbles, about 1 minute. Transfer the banana mixture to a large bowl with the mashed fresh bananas. Let sit until cooled slightly, for 10 minutes. 5. Using a potato masher, mash the banana mixture until mostly smooth. Whisk in egg and vanilla until combined. Using a spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in walnuts, coconut and/or chocolate chips, if using. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into greased loaf pan and smooth top. 6. Bake until banana bread is golden brown and a toothpick or paring knife inserted in center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer banana bread to a wire rack and cool in the pan for 15 minutes. 7. Use oven mitts to carefully turn the loaf pan on its side and remove banana bread from the pan. Let banana bread continue to cool on the cooling rack for at least 1 hour. Transfer to cutting board, slice, and serve. Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez ## Special Equipment 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan, 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet, potato masher or large fork ## Notes To toast the coconut flakes (if using): Spread coconut in an even layer on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉(175℃), stirring every 5 minutes, until the shreds are a mix of golden brown and white, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a bowl or airtight container. ## Make-Ahead and Storage The cooled loaf can be covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
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