With its super-moist and buttery texture, banana and brown sugar flavors, soft crumb, and 1,000+ reviews, this is a delicious AND undeniably popular banana bread recipe. You need 4 ripe bananas.
One reader, Michele, says: “Perfectly delish every time! Absolutely foolproof. Nuts, no nuts, smidge more or less of sour cream—no problem… bigger bananas, smaller—no worries, perfect, beyond delicious EVERY time. ★★★★★”
This is my favorite banana bread recipe, one that I’ve cherished for years. It’s one of those classic recipes that you start to know by heart, just like a good pie crust or chocolate chip cookies recipe. This bread comes to mind first when I have leftover spotty bananas on the counter, and it’s the bread that’s on constant rotation in my freezer stash.
It’s one of the most popular recipes I’ve published on this website, out of over 1,200.
One reader, Tricia, says: “I have this recipe on speed dial. LOL. It is so tasty and is always a crowd pleaser. My kids and entire family love it!!! ★★★★★”
Yes, I have this recipe on speed dial too! 😉
I’ve tried dozens of banana bread recipes over the years, and when I baked and originally published this recipe back in 2013, I never looked back.
Why You’ll Love This Banana Bread Recipe Too
- Mega banana flavor (from 2 cups/460g mashed bananas)
- Not overly sweet, so banana flavor shines
- Dense, but still quite tender & soft
- Buttery & stays moist for days
- Straightforward, simple recipe
- Freezes wonderfully
- Excellent plain or with nuts or chocolate chips
This bread uses more mashed bananas than similar recipes. Add 2 whole cups (460g) of mashed banana, which is about 4 large bananas. More banana = more moisture and flavor in the finished loaf.
How to Mash Bananas
Did you know you can use your electric mixer to mash bananas? Break or slice the spotty bananas into large pieces and place in the bowl of your stand mixer—or use a regular mixing bowl and your hand mixer. Begin beating on low, then gradually increase to medium-high speed as the bananas break down into mashed banana. Transfer the bananas to another bowl and use the mixing bowl for the butter and sugar. (No need to clean it—some mashed banana remnants is fine.)
I do this when I mash bananas for banana muffins and banana chocolate chip breakfast cookies too.
Other Banana Bread Ingredients
- Butter: Use softened butter for a soft texture and irresistible butter flavor.
- Brown Sugar: Use all brown sugar in this recipe. In the headnotes for this chocolate chip cookies recipe, I explain that brown sugar yields soft and moist cookies. Well, brown sugar works that same magic in banana bread, too. It also adds wonderful flavor.
- Eggs: Eggs supply cakes, cupcakes, breads, doughs, and cookies their stability and structure, as well as a tender texture. You’ll need 2 large eggs for this.
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Sour cream or yogurt adds even more moisture to this banana bread. (You can use the 2 interchangeably in most baking recipes.)
For banana nut bread, add 3/4 cup of chopped nuts to the banana bread batter; I like using either pecans or walnuts. If you’re nuts for nuts (LOL), you’ll enjoy the toasty slight crunch nestled inside the soft crumbs. If you’re not a nut person, feel free to leave them out or replace with chocolate chips. For a whole wheat version, try my whole wheat banana bread.
Can I Use Frozen Bananas?
Yes and I do this often. Thaw the frozen bananas at room temperature. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe below. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking. Try not to mash too much or else you’ll be left with 2 cups of banana-y liquid; some chunks are great.
Can I Turn This Into a Banana Bundt Cake?
I recommend using my extremely similar, scaled-up recipe for chocolate marble banana Bundt cake instead. You can leave out the chocolate swirl in that recipe.
How to Freeze Banana Bread
Freeze banana bread using these instructions to preserve its fresh flavor and texture for months:
- Cool baked banana bread completely.
- Tightly wrap the loaf or slices (individually or grouped) in 2–3 layers of plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
- Place wrapped banana bread in a large freezer-friendly storage bag or reusable container.
- Date the bag and freeze for up to 3–4 months. Thaw wrapped or unwrapped in the refrigerator or at room temperature. All methods work like a charm!
I like to freeze the quick bread in slices because slices thaw much quicker than a whole loaf.
Overall, this is an easy recipe for classic banana bread. The batter takes about 10 minutes to throw together, the bread stays moist for days, and nothing beats the smell of fresh banana bread in the oven. (Except for, maybe, zucchini bread or pumpkin bread… try those next!)
Other Favorite Banana Recipes:
- Banana Cake & Banana Cupcakes
- Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
- Banana Cream Pie & Banoffee Pie
- Banana Muffins or Healthier Chocolate Banana Muffins & Blueberry Banana Muffins
- Banana Chocolate Chip Streusel Muffins
- Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
My Favorite Banana Bread
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 65 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 1 loaf
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
With its super-moist and buttery texture, banana and brown sugar flavors, soft crumb, and 1,000+ reviews, this is a delicious AND undeniably popular banana bread recipe. You need 4 large ripe bananas.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80g) plain yogurt or sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 cups (460g) mashed bananas (about 4 large ripe bananas)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional: 3/4 cup (100g) chopped pecans or walnuts
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lowering the oven rack prevents the top of your bread from browning too much, too soon. Grease a metal 9×5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. With the mixer running on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then beat in the yogurt, mashed bananas, and vanilla extract until combined.
- With the mixer running on low speed, slowly beat the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until no flour pockets remain. Do not over-mix. Fold in the nuts, if using.
- Pour and spread the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 60–65 minutes, making sure to loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil halfway through to prevent the top from getting too brown. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few small moist crumbs. This may be after 60–65 minutes depending on your oven, so begin checking every 5 minutes around the 60-minute mark.
- Remove bread from the oven and allow the bread to cool in the pan set on a wire rack for 1 hour. Remove bread from the pan and cool bread directly on the wire rack until ready to slice and serve.
- Cover and store banana bread at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Banana bread tastes best on day 2 after the flavors have settled together. See post above for freezing instructions.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Butter: If needed, you can use salted butter in this recipe with no other changes needed. I’ve also successfully reduced the butter down to 6 Tablespoons (85g) with no issue (just as tasty).
- Brown Sugar: This is not an overly sweet quick bread. If you want a sweeter banana bread, increase to 1 cup (200g) brown sugar. Feel free to replace some or all of the brown sugar with regular white granulated sugar.
- Cream Cheese Frosting: This banana bread also tastes fantastic with cream cheese frosting on top! To make it, beat 4 ounces (112g) of softened cream cheese and 1/4 cup (60g) of softened unsalted butter together on medium speed until smooth. Beat in 1 cup (120g) of confectioners sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt until combined. Spread on cooled loaf.
- Banana Bread Muffins: Use this banana bread recipe to make 15 banana bread muffins. Spoon the batter into a lined or greased muffin pan (fill each to the top with batter) and bake for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C); then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 16–17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total bake time for the banana bread muffins is about 21–23 minutes. The initial burst of hot air helps those muffins rise nice and tall! Or try my quick & easy banana muffins.
- Brown Sugar: Feel free to substitute the same amount of regular white granulated sugar or coconut sugar. I do not recommend any liquid sweeteners.
- No Sour Cream or Yogurt? Feel free to use 1/3 cup mashed banana (in addition to the 2 cups), unsweetened applesauce, or even canned pumpkin puree.
- Frozen Bananas: You can use frozen bananas here. Thaw the frozen bananas. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking. Try not to mash too much or else you’ll be left with 2 cups of banana-y liquid; some chunks are great.
- Chocolate Chips: I love this bread with chocolate chips, too. Feel free to add 1 cup of your favorite chocolate chips. No need to leave out the nuts if you add the chocolate chips. Chocolate chips and nuts are both optional.
- Can I Turn This Into Banana Bundt Cake? There isn’t enough batter. I recommend using my extremely similar, scaled-up recipe for chocolate marble banana Bundt cake instead. You can leave out the chocolate swirl in that recipe.
This is by far the best banana bread I have ever made. The flavours are so good. I have tried many different banana bread recipes before but nothing beats this.
Thank you for sharing your goodness to the world. I love most of your recipes!
This really is the best banana bread recipe! I have been making banana bread for years and stumbled across this recipe when I had lots of ripe bananas and wanted to use them all. The extra banana and yogurt make this recipe so tasty and moist. I also love that it uses brown sugar. I am making it today for the third time and added walnuts and chocolate chunks (the irregular shaped “chips”). One caveat when adding nuts and chocolate, you have to bake longer! The second time I made it I added both nuts and chocolate but didn’t check for doneness because it came out perfect the first time after an hour (no add-ins that time). My fault and my dismay when the middle was underbaked…so sad! My husband was sad too because the ends that were baked were SO good. That’s why I am attempting it again and will tent with foil and add extra time in the oven AND check for doneness this time.
Omg!! A whole lot of scrumptiousness. This is the first time i have actually made banana bread and it turned out great. The the Greek i think did the trick for me. I also added Nutmeg for a little kick
This recipe made for a delicious gluten free banana bread by subbing out the regular flour for gluten free plain flour! I didn’t even have to add xantham gum, however did increase the bananas to 5 overripe (black) bananas as I had them all to use. I used my Kitchenaid stand mixer with the Sifter+Scale attachment to help me make the batter. Divine!
Delicious…my first real success with banana bread. Always have had a burnt edge and top to get the center done!
First time my family & I finished the whole thing. I used to make banana bread as a last resort to get rid of overripe bananas. Not anymore. Moist without being uncooked wet texture and not too sweet. This is the best banana bread recipe!
Super yummy!!!! I veganized this with flaxegg and vegan butter. Probably my favorite recipe
I really like the yogurt or sour cream idea! Also the chocolate chips sounds great! My wife and kids don’t like the addition of nuts, but the chocolate chips will be a surprise!
Thanks for this recipe!
Literally amazing. Made into muffins with some sugar on top with chocolate chips and I can’t stop eating them. You’d be crazy to choose any other recipe
Omg I can’t stop eating it . This is the best banana bread ever!!!!!
Hi Alyssa,
I just made it by hand, no mixer. Takes a bit of wrist action but turned out beautifully.
Oh forgot to rate
5 stars on ease and taste!
Hi Sally! I found your recipe last week and baked 2 more loaves yesterday. One to share with a friend. I’ve always added apple sauce to my old recipe, but this didn’t need any more moisture. With the lock down and limited items available at the store, I actually used butter flavored Crisco, I know it’s not healthy but it’s what I had! This was a great place for my yogurt to go before the date expired. I know I’ll make this over and over now.
Glad to have found your vlog!
Have a great day!
I have tried a lot of recipes and this one is my new favorite. My family’s favorite too. I added some golden flax and pecans.
This is my second attempt at making the bread. I used Greek yogurt and added walnuts. I baked it in a glass loaf pan. I am at a loss as to tell when it is done. I’ve tested the middle and the pick comes out clean only to reveal that the middle isn’t cooked. So disappointing. Today I removed the loaf from the pan, cut it in half, and put it back in the oven. After 30 additional minutes, it still doesn’t look done. I’m afraid that in order to get the middle done, I’m going to end up with a dry brick. Any advice for me? If I try this recipe again, I will try to bake in mini loaf pans.
Hi Kim, extra moist quick breads like banana bread can take quite awhile to cook through. The time largely varies depending on ovens, pans, and simply the thickness of the loaf. Anyway, if you have a metal 9×5 inch loaf pan, you may want to try that instead. (Glass bakeware typically requires an extended bake time– and, of course, a mini loaf pan works too.) Adding even extra time is completely fine and tenting the loaf with aluminum foil helps prevent the top from over-browning as the center cooks.
Thanks for the amazing recipe Sally! Appreciate how you spend the time explaining the science behind each recipe, and sharing tips which are very useful for amateur bakers like myself.
I have a number of aluminum foil trays at home. Was wondering if it would be possible to bake the banana bread in them – thought it would easier to give them to family and friends thereafter. Thanks!
One of the best recipes I’ve tried ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Hi Renee, Fresh brown sugar definitely is more moist! You can also certainly cover the loaf sooner if you notice the top beginning to brown too quickly.
Hi Sally, this recipe is great my family absolutely loved it! I also made your whole wheat banana bread but I found that it didn’t have as much banana flavour compared to this one, probably because this recipe has more banana in it. So I was wondering if it would be possible to substitute the flour for whole wheat flour in this recipe? Thanks!
Hi Sally, My family and neighbors loved this banana bread. I used half sour cream and half Greek yogurt and noticed that the bottom of the loaf was more moist/dense than the rest of the bread. Was this from the mixture of sour cream and yogurt?
Love your pound cake too!!!!
Cece
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe!
Forgot to rate this when I created the comments. Definitely 5 stars.
Yum, this was sooo good! She is right, the brown sugar makes all the difference in this recipe, it adds such a great flavor! I used sour cream instead of yogurt.
Love this recipe! Delicious! Thank you.
Loved this recipe. Made it into 12 overstuffed muffins. Forgot to do the 450 at the beginning so cooked at 350 for 23 minutes. They were perfect. My family loved them as well. I was lucky to get one. Will keep this as a favorite and make again.
Delicious recipe, so easy to follow
Thank you !
I adore this recipe! Made the loaf into muffins and added chocolate chips to half of the batch. Perfect for both breakfast or dessert (served with a side of vanilla ice cream), or even just a yummy afternoon snack – thanks! M
Everyone in my family are in love with this recipe!! My kids took pieces for school in their lunch box and my husband just ate them for breakfast. For me a really good snack with coffee / tea.
Best recipe ever!!
Thank you
Needs more salt, a little more sugar and possibly more vanilla. Recipe comes out bland but texture is good
My family loved the banana bread!
Thanks to you I now consider myself a “baker”. Though I’d like to take the credit . . .
Maybe I’ll take the credit for a little while longer. Then I’ll give you the credit as I share your recipes Thanks!!Lol
As a beginner in baking, I followed your recipe to make the banana bread. I’ve got to say, it came out quite successful! Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe!
Oh, I guess I also forgot to say that I added the batter to two loaf sections then mixed in the nuts. And they were special one. My friend brought them back from Texas. They were pecans for her parent’s yard.
It was excellent! I made it last night. Half the people in the house don’t like nuts in their banana bread and half do. So I made this in my old stoneware mini loaf pan from Pampered Chef. The recipe for the four mini loaves perfectly. I wasn’t sure about adjustments to bake time because even though the loaves were smaller the heavy stoneware pan can make things take a little longer. When I went to cover it with foil at 30 minutes they looked almost done, so I gave them 15 more minutes. They came out great.
So good! I couldn’t stop eating! Thank you for this delicious recipe <3
Me, too! I’m really glad that I had made mine as 4 mini loaves or I may have eaten half a whole loaf before bed!
Mini loaves, excellent idea! Next time I will try it 🙂
Hi Sally,
I love this recipe! I’ve used it 3 times in quarantine. This time I opted for muffins and they came out so delicious. The moistness is unreal, so lush! Thank you for your amazing instructions. I’m quite a perfectionist so I have been a bit concerned that both the bread and the muffins are going flat when they come out of the oven?! I was wondering if there’s a reason for this and how to prevent this???
Lola
Hi Lola, I’m so glad that you enjoy this banana bread recipe. If the bread and muffins are deflating, double check the freshness of your baking soda. (I find it loses strength after just 3 months.) Additionally, try baking for a few extra minutes. Sinking is usually because the baked good is under-baked.
Hi Sally,
Thanks so much for your response, I’ll be sure to make note of these two things as I also suspect undertaking. Much love!
I added more sugar than called for (as I usually do with your recipes), but I guess my sweet tooth is just insatiable! Very mild, but still good 🙂