This Banana Bread Recipe uses brown sugar and lots of bananas for the BEST flavor. Plus, it takes only 15 minutes to make by hand–no mixer required! Recipe includes a how-to video!
This is it: the BEST banana bread recipe. After over half a dozen recipe tests, I finally landed on a winner. This recipe makes a moist, super flavorful (thanks to our key players: bananas, buttermilk, brown sugar, and vanilla), and easily customizable banana bread, a near cousin to my popular carrot cake recipe.
Want to add nuts? Go for it! Like chocolate chip banana bread? Throw them in too. Or, go a little crazy and add both–this recipe can handle it!
My banana bread recipe is closely based off of my popular banana muffins. That recipe has received nothing but rave reviews, and it took just a few modifications to make it perfect for baking in a bread pan. Serve yours warm with a little bit of honey butter (people do eat banana bread with butter, right?), and you’ve got yourself a slice of pure perfection.
Try it, and you can thank me later!
What You Need
My banana bread recipe is simple and uses basic ingredients:
- Bananas. The browner, spottier, and riper the better and more flavorful your finished bread will be.
- Oil & butter. As with my vanilla cake recipe, I’ve found a blend of oil and butter gives this cake the best texture and flavor. Make sure to melt your butter before using.
- Sugar. I use a blend of brown sugar and granulated for the most flavor. Dark or light brown sugar will work here; dark will give you a richer flavor, slightly more moist texture, and will make the cake darker.
- Eggs. Large, extra large, or jumbo will work here.
- Vanilla extract and salt. For flavor!
- Buttermilk. This adds moisture and flavor to the cake. Real, full-fat buttermilk is best, but if you don’t have any on hand, you can always make my buttermilk substitute instead. To do this, combine ¾ teaspoon of lemon juice (or white vinegar) with ¼ scant cup milk, stir, and let sit for 5 minutes before using.
- Baking powder & baking soda. To give the bread a bit of lift.
SAM’S TIP: Sprinkle a little bit of extra granulated sugar over the batter just before baking for added flavor and texture.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make The Best Banana Bread Recipe
- Mash your bananas. The riper the better!
- Stir together bananas, oil, and butter, then mix in sugar, brown sugar, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla extract.
- Whisk together your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt) separately.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients gently.
- Pour into a greased bread pan and sprinkle generously with sugar (optional, but not really).
- When your banana bread is a beautiful golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, it’s finished baking!
SAM’S TIP: Don’t over-mix your batter! Gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together until just combined; it’s okay if you see some faint flour streaks when you’re done.
Frequently Asked Questions
VERY ripe bananas are ideal. We’re talking dark brown, spotty, and mushy–pretty much the opposite of what you’d like to eat! Super ripe bananas have the most flavor and will subsequently make your bread super flavorful too.
Absolutely! Stir in 1¼ cup coarsely chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts are great choices), chocolate chips, or even raisins at the end. Just remember to not over-mix!
Store at room temperature in an airtight container (or wrapped with plastic wrap) for up to three days. It can also be tightly wrapped and frozen for several months!
First make sure you do not over-bake the bread, as this is the quickest way to make it dry. Once it’s cooked and cooled, store your banana bread tightly wrapped at room temperature and enjoy within 3 days for best results. Do NOT refrigerate–this will dry out the bread!
SAM’S TIP: If using nuts, try toasting them first for added flavor! To do this, simply spread the nuts on a baking sheet in an even layer and bake on 350F for 5-10 minutes, turning halfway through.
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook.
The BEST Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (385 g) well-mashed overripe bananas this is usually 3 large ripe bananas for me (355ml)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil
- ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter melted
- ⅔ cup (135 g) light or dark brown sugar firmly packed
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten, room temperature preferred
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60 ml) buttermilk¹
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose plain flour
- ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cups chocolate chips or chopped nuts² optional
- ¼ cup (50 g) coarse or granulated sugar for sprinkling optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and grease the bottom and ½" up the sides of a 9×5" bread pan. Set aside.
- Combine mashed bananas, canola oil, and melted butter in a large bowl and stir until well-combined.1 ½ cups (385 g) well-mashed overripe bananas, ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil, ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter
- Add sugars and stir well.⅔ cup (135 g) light or dark brown sugar, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- Stir in eggs and vanilla extract.2 large eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- Add buttermilk and stir until thoroughly combined.¼ cup (60 ml) buttermilk¹
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.2 cups (250 g) all-purpose, ¾ teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- Add dry ingredients to wet and carefully, gently using a spatula (not an electric mixer) fold ingredients together until just combined. Don’t overmix the batter or your banana cake could end up dense/dry. If adding nuts/chocolate chips, stir them in here.1 ¼ cups chocolate chips or chopped nuts²
- Pour batter into prepared pan and, if desired, sprinkle generously with coarse sugar.¼ cup (50 g) coarse or granulated sugar for sprinkling
- Transfer to 350F (175C) oven and bake 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted all the way into the center of the cake comes out clean or preferably with a few moist crumbs. Do not over-bake your banana bread or it will be dry.
Notes
¹Buttermilk
If you don’t have buttermilk in your fridge, you can use my easy buttermilk substitute instead.²Adding nuts
If you have nuts that aren’t already chopped, I recommend toasting them first for an even better flavor. To toast, layer 1 ½ cup of walnut or pecan halves over a baking sheet and bake on 350F for about 8 minutes. Allow the nuts to cool then use a large knife to coarsely chop. I don’t recommend toasting pre-chopped nuts just because they don’t always cook evenly and could end up burned.Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. This recipe also freezes well, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and it will keep for several months!Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
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This recipe was originally published March 18th 2019.
lisa
BEST BANANA BREAD RECIPE EVER. This recipe was so easy and it was the best banana bread I’ve ever tasted. Thank you!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Lisa! 🙂
Celina
Hi Sam!
I tried your banana muffin recipe earlier and they were a big hit! Gone within 30 minutes! I have some leftover streusel and I was wondering if it was possible to use it on this banana bread recipe as well?
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Celina! I think the streusel would definitely work on top of the banana bread. 🙂
Sherlynne
Hi Sam!! This is the best banana bread!!!! It was a hit! I was requested to make a bigger portion next time I make it😁. I have a question though, is it okay to use 4 bananas on a single loaf? I have 1 excess overripe banana and I don’t want to waste it 😆.
Sam
Hi Sherlynne! If they are smaller bananas 4 will work, but make sure not to add too much more than the 1.5 cups needed in the recipe. If you add too much banana, you end up introducing too much moisture and that could be detrimental to the outcome of the cake. 🙂
Miri
I made this a few weeks ago for work, they LOVED IT! I hade to make another one the following week. And yesterday I made one fro my family in Puerto Rico and they loved it so much i had to make a new one today! And they asked me to make another one on Monday before i fly back home to Kansas! This one is an absolute WINNER!! I used the bananas from our back yard and it was amazing!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoys it so much! That is so cool that there are bananas in the backyard to use. 🙂
Miriam
Yess!! They are a lot sweeter than the ones you buy in the local grocery stores in the US! Also, i have to admit that in the first banana bread i made back home i went super light on the sugar in top, thanking that it would be too much, now i go crazy with it’ lol! It create such a yummy crust that it’s everyone’s favorite part of the cake!! Thank you sooo much, Sam!!!!
Sam
You are very welcome! I’m always happy when everyone is enjoying their baked goods. 🙂
Sarah Shivley
Oh my word! I made this yesterday, and just had a slice for breakfast… SO GOOD!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Sarah! 🙂
jamie
i also wanted to say that when the people reviewing this are saying this is the best banana bread they’ve ever tasted, i don’t think that’s quite good enough a description! i thought that meant, this banana bread is as good as the best banana bread they’ve had in the past. but oh no. this is BETTER than any banana bread i’ve ever had. and this is coming from someone who LOVES banana bread. we made this recipe this morning and now we just have a tiny bit left. i ate it for breakfast and lunch and just now again for a snack, and not sure i’ve got room for dinner and i don’t care. yum yum yum yum yum!!!
Sam
Thank you so much, Jamie! I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much! 🙂
jamie
yes yes yes!!! okay, so this recipe is really, really amazing, but i think you need to rename it ALSO to the worst banana bread recipe because it’s too good and it will have me eating entirely too much sugar. your whole website should be called the worst recipes because they’re all too amazing. i don’t know about everyone else, but when i’ve searched the internet at random for recipes, they are VERY hit-or-miss, and the results are very spotty. i don’t know how you’ve done it, but we can’t seem to go wrong with any of your recipes! they all turn out amazing, even for we who consider ourselves not good at baking, who in the past have tried to follow recipe instructions to the letter and still had so many epic failures. yours just WORK! it’s not enough for a recipe to be good in theory, like, it will be delicious if you don’t screw it up, but you have to have crazy skills to accomplish that. a recipe has to actually work when you follow the steps as written, and your recipes do. we’ve basically stopped searching the web for recipes now, and we’re searching your site first every time. i can’t wait to try your worst chocolate chip cookies, your buttermilk pancakes, your strawberry cake, and your cheesecake. we want to try one of your blueberry recipes, but 6 cups of blueberries are a bit pricey right now, so maybe in a few years when we can go pick them ourselves for a reasonable price. 😉
Sam
Thank you so much, Jamie! I am so glad you enjoyed it so much. I take pride in my recipes being delicious and easily duplicated so I put lots of time and effort (and MANY, MANY test runs) into making the perfect recipe so I am glad it turned out so well for you. 🙂
Annabel
Truly the best banana bread I have ever had. All the other ones that I have made or tried have left me cold, but this one is super moist and full of banana! No offense to the other recipes or anything but this should be the most popular banana bread recipe!
Sam
Thank you so much, Annabel! I am so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Tania
I loved this bread!! It literally will last less than 12hrs 🙂 Had a quick question… If I want to make a chocolate banana bread – Not chocolate chip- Just a chocolate banana bread, is there a recipe you can share or a suggestion.
Thanks so much for all your amazing recipes!!
Sam
Hi Tania! I don’t currently have a chocolate banana bread recipe but I will certainly put it on my list of things to do. There would be a few alterations that would need to be made to make it a chocolate banana bread. 🙂
Diana
I made this banana bread twice so far, and it is the very best banana bread I’ve ever tasted. I’m an old baker (72) and really didn’t care for the old banana nut recipes with all the oil as they were very heavy and oily. So I haven’t made any for years. This one is absolutely awesome! I will be trying the vanilla cake one soon and others that I have printed off. Keep the great recipes coming as I really enjoy your website.
Sam
Thank you so much, Diana! I am so glad you enjoyed it so much. 🙂
Debbie
Wow, I have made a lot of good banana nut bread, but this one is wonderful, delicious and everything you want in a banana nut bread! I love the sprinkle of sugar on top…..that is great. And I bake a lot and never knew that about greasing only 1” from the side of the pan. My bread was excellence, I will try more of your recipes for sure.
10 star
Debbie
Sam
I am so happy to hear you enjoyed so much, Debbie! Thank you so much for commenting and letting me know how it turned out for you, I appreciate it!
Toni Brown
Sam,
Again, another hit! B
But I mistakenly used 1/2 cup melted butter vs. 1/4 cup, so I added an addl (less than) 1/4 cup of oil in hopes the bread wouldn’t be too dry. It tasted good but was a bit dry and rubbery (if there’s a thing.) Either way, I was surprised it tasted good in spite of the mistake.
Question: After cooling in pan for 10 minutes, is it advisable to store in the cake holder? Was it rubbery because it sweat in the container (plastic holder used vs. glass cake holder.)
Thanks much
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed it, Toni! I have never heard of this bread become “rubbery.” It could be the because of the container it was stored in. You also want to allow it to cool before storing it. I am sorry that this happened but happy it tasted delicious. 🙂
Michelle Magsumbol
This is the best banana bread recipe I’ve made. I’m glad that I did not settle for the recipe I found before on the net. I kept looking for another recipe and I found yours. Thank you for sharing your recipe. I am currently trying you Carrot cake recipe. This site will be my go to place whenever I need to bake something special. More power!
Sam
I am so happy to hear this, Michelle! Thank you so much for commenting and letting me know how you are liking the recipes! <3
Barbara Rinaman
Look no more! It was so moist and hubby agreed it was the best one yet! I’m so glad you recommended stirring in the flour which I did and will always hand stir in the flour for all my recipes in the future. Thanks for this great recipe, will be trying more of yours!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so happy to hear how much you and your husband enjoyed this recipe, Barbara. Thank you for trying it and for commenting. I can’t wait to see what recipe you try next! 🙂
Patty
Great banana bread. It’s the best!!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it, Patty! 😊