Banana bread is the bake that rescues the three blackening bananas in the fruit bowl: a tender, buttery loaf that tastes of caramelised banana, with a dark golden crust that cracks along the top. This easy banana bread recipe needs one bowl, a fork and a spatula – no mixer – and is in the oven 15 minutes after you start. It bakes for about an hour in a 25 cm loaf tin and makes one loaf of 10 generous slices. It works because very ripe bananas bring sweetness and moisture, melted butter keeps the crumb soft for days, and bicarbonate of soda lifts the loaf and browns the crust.
| Preparation | 15 minutes |
|---|---|
| Baking | 55–65 minutes |
| Total | about 1 hour 20 minutes, plus cooling |
| Servings | 1 loaf (10 slices) |
| Difficulty | Easy |
| What you need | A 25 cm loaf tin, baking paper, a large bowl, a fork, a spatula, a skewer, a wire rack and a bread knife for slicing |
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas (about 350 g peeled)
- 100 g butter, melted and cooled slightly, plus a little for the tin
- 130 g caster sugar or light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 200 g plain flour
- 80 g walnuts, roughly chopped, or 80 g dark chocolate, chopped (optional)
Three medium, brown-speckled bananas give around 350 g once peeled; if yours are small, use four.
Method
- Oven and tin. Heat the oven to 175 °C (160 °C fan) with a shelf in the middle. Butter a 25 cm loaf tin and lay a strip of baking paper along the base and up the two long sides, leaving an overhang so you can lift the loaf out later.
- Mash the bananas. Peel the bananas into a large bowl and mash them with a fork. Keep going until they are mostly smooth with a few small lumps left – those lumps turn into soft, sweet pockets in the baked loaf.
- Mix the wet ingredients. Pour in the melted butter and stir with the same fork, then add the sugar, egg and vanilla extract. Stir for about half a minute, until the mixture is glossy and even.
- Bicarbonate of soda and salt. Sprinkle the bicarbonate of soda and salt over the surface and stir them in thoroughly. Adding them before the flour lets them spread evenly without any extra mixing.
- Fold in the flour. Tip in the flour and fold it in with a spatula just until no dry streaks remain – 15 to 20 strokes is usually enough. The batter should be thick and slightly lumpy; if you keep stirring until it is smooth, the loaf will be dense. Fold in the walnuts or chocolate now, if you are using them.
- Fill the tin. Scrape the batter into the tin and level the top with the spatula. It should come about halfway up the sides; the loaf rises a good deal in the oven.
- Bake. Bake for 55–65 minutes. After 40 minutes, check the colour: if the top is already dark golden, lay a sheet of foil loosely over the tin. The loaf is done when a skewer pushed into the thickest part of the centre comes out clean or with a few dry crumbs, not wet batter.
- Cool and slice. Leave the loaf in the tin for 10 minutes, then lift it out by the paper and set it on a wire rack. Let it cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing – warm banana bread cuts in a gummy, crumbly way; cooled, it slices cleanly into 10 even pieces.
What to bake banana bread in
The batter is far too wet to hold a shape on its own, so a loaf tin is what gives banana bread its tall, straight sides and domed, cracked top. Size comes first: this recipe is written for a 25 cm tin of roughly 2 litres, which the batter fills about halfway. A wider, shallower tin gives a flat loaf that is done 10–15 minutes sooner; a narrower, deeper one darkens on top before the middle is cooked. A thin, light-coloured tin leaves the sides pale, whereas carbon steel heats evenly, so base and sides colour at the same pace as the top. You will find the right size among our loaf pans and the rest of the range under ovenware.
Balance Non-stick Loaf Pan 25 cm – the tin this recipe was written for
The Balance Non-stick Loaf Pan 25 cm measures 25 × 14 × 7.5 cm inside and holds 2.2 litres – the tin the baking time above is based on. It is made of carbon steel for even heating and a properly browned loaf, with a high-quality non-stick coating so the loaf releases easily and the tin is quick to clean. The diamond-textured base increases the air flow underneath for even baking, and its grid lines help you cut equal slices. It is lightweight, ovenproof up to 230 °C, and hand washing is recommended. The same series has a longer, narrower 30 cm loaf pan (30 × 11.5 × 7.5 cm) that bakes a little faster.
A bread knife for clean slices
A straight-edged knife squashes the soft crumb; a serrated bread knife saws through crust and crumb with almost no pressure, so every slice keeps its shape. The Legacy Bread Knife 20 cm is made of high-quality stainless steel that stays sharp for a long time, with a seamless transition from the blade to a hollow stainless steel handle that sits comfortably in the hand; 20 cm reaches across a loaf in a couple of strokes. More serrated models are in knives for bread and cakes, and the bread knife section of our guide to the types of kitchen knives explains why the teeth matter.
Complete your kitchen: several of our knife sets and blocks come with a bread knife alongside the chef's, utility and paring knives you use every day.
Tips and common mistakes
- The bananas are not ripe enough. The most common reason for a bland, dry loaf. If you cannot wait, bake the unpeeled bananas at 175 °C for 15 minutes until the skins are black, then cool and mash.
- The loaf is dense. The flour was overmixed – every extra stroke tightens the crumb. Stop as soon as the last streak of flour disappears.
- The middle is wet but the top is dark. The oven was too hot or the tin too deep. Use a 25 cm tin and cover the top loosely with foil for the final 15–20 minutes.
- The loaf sinks in the centre. It came out too early – the skewer test is not optional. Too much banana has the same effect: 350 g is plenty for 200 g of flour.
Variations
Walnut and cinnamon banana bread
Add 1 tsp ground cinnamon with the bicarbonate of soda and fold in 80 g of roughly chopped walnuts. For a crunchy top, scatter a tablespoon of demerara sugar over the batter before baking.
Chocolate banana bread
Fold in 80 g of chopped dark chocolate, or push a line of chocolate pieces down the middle of the batter so each slice has a molten centre. Lay the foil over the tin a little earlier, after about 35 minutes.
How to serve banana bread and what to bake next
Banana bread is at its best the day after baking, when the crumb has settled and the flavour has deepened. Serve it in thick slices with salted butter, or toast a slice and spread it with cream cheese or peanut butter. If the household has a sweet tooth at breakfast, the natural next bake is a stack of fluffy American pancakes, made from similar store-cupboard ingredients. The loaf tin and bread knife used here can be ordered from berghoff.lv and its sister shops berghoff.lt, berghoff.ee, berghoff.fi, berghoff.se and berghoff.dk, the official BergHOFF online stores across the Baltics and the Nordics.
Frequently asked questions
How long does banana bread take to bake?
In a 25 cm loaf tin at 175 °C (160 °C fan), this loaf takes 55–65 minutes. The exact time depends on how wet the bananas were and on the tin, so trust the skewer rather than the clock: if it shows wet batter, give the loaf another 5 minutes and test again.
Can I use baking powder instead of bicarbonate of soda?
Bicarbonate of soda is the better choice here because the ripe bananas and brown sugar supply the acid it needs, and it also browns the crust. If you only have baking powder, use 3 tsp in place of the 1 tsp of bicarbonate; the loaf will rise well but the crust will be paler.
How do I store banana bread and can I freeze it?
Cool the loaf completely, wrap it tightly and keep it at room temperature for up to four days. To freeze, cut it into slices, separate them with baking paper and freeze for up to three months; a frozen slice toasts straight from the freezer.
The photo is illustrative (AI-generated).
