We love Banana Bread. Like, really. It’s versatile, it’s easy, and it’s a great way to prevent bananas past their prime from going to waste. Chocolate banana bread. Peanut Butter banana bread. Count us in for all the variations!
Most banana bread recipes call for a range of ripe bananas, usually stated as ‘3-4 medium-sized, very ripe bananas’. Some recipes list a volume measurement in cups. Few others list a weight in grams. Does anyone measure their mashed banana?
We put this to the test and made 4 loaves- all exactly the same aside from the # of bananas included in the loaf. We weighed the ingredients and used the same pan size and oven temperature. The only variable was the number of bananas used.
We purchased all bananas on the same day and watched patiently day by day waiting for the signature black patches to develop.
Banana Bread Made With 2 Bananas
This loaf tasted the least like banana, was the most dense, and had the smallest crack due to limited rise. This tasted like a generic breakfast loaf instead of a moist banana bread.
This batter was extremely thick and very hard to mix- the resulting loaf turned out far better than we thought it would!
We run short on the number of ripe bananas we have quite often. Even though I stash a small bunch of bananas for bread making our toddler somehow always snags a couple =] We even have a recipe developed specifically for when you only have 2 bananas to use in banana bread.
Banana Bread Made With 3 Bananas
The loaf of banana bread made with 3 bananas was tasty and great- it had medium banana flavor, it rose appropriately, and it had the perfect amount of moisture. It had a nice crust on top, the slices held their shape, and the loaf had a nice crumb.
This batter was appropriate for a quickbread and mixed up easily.
Banana Bread Made With 4 Bananas
Our 4-banana loaf was ultra moist and super banana-flavored! The slices from this loaf were far more crumbly upon handling due to the high moisture. This banana bread felt almost like a full, heavy sponge– that if you pressed down it, banana juice would drip out
It definitely had a stodge factor to it. Amazing flavor and a deep brown crust, but it fell a bit short on the texture and tiptoed into ‘gummy’ territory.
Differences Between The Loaves
The amount of banana changed the amount of moisture in the batter which affected the bake time, rise, texture, and crumb of the banana bread. All loaves were baked until they reached 195* in the center of the loaf and a toothpick was removed clean.
| Bake differences | 2 bananas | 3 bananas | 4 bananas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook Time | 45 minutes | 50 minutes | 55 minutes |
| Cups of wet ingredients | scant 1 1/3 cups | heaping 1 3/4 cups | 2 1/4 cups |
| Taste | lackluster and mild banana | solid banana flavor | SUPER banana flavor |
| Texture | more dry & firm non-crumbly slices | moist but not crumbly or gummy | very moist, slices crumbled, a little gummy |
The Best Loaf Of Banana Bread
We are 3-banana, banana bread people- this is our favorite banana bread.
We found that the loaf of banana bread that used 4 bananas had an intense banana flavor, was incredibly moist, and had a lot of banana bits speckled throughout the loaf. I think when people envision banana bread, this ultra-moist, ultra-banana-y, and slightly crumbly loaf is what comes to mind.
However, our household is partial to the 3-banana loaf for its texture. This loaf isn’t so moist that it gets gummy as you chew but still has a solid banana flavor.
Not All Bananas Are Equal
We began this test by weighing all ingredients so of course we also weighed our bananas. And boy was that a surprise! The few bunches of bananas we had at the time were immensely different in weight, ranging from 65 grams up to 158 grams per peeled banana.
Well. There’s a whole new topic to explore, however for the sake of this experiment we put the weight of 1 banana at 123 grams each– the average peeled weight from our lot of 25 bananas.
Keep this in mind as you read through the results- if you have 4 bananas that weigh 65 grams OR 4 bananas that weigh in on the high end of 158 grams- that’s a whopper of a difference.
1 cup of mashed banana weighs about 225 grams.
In small (65g bananas) you would need 3.46 bananas for 1 cup of mashed banana!
In large (158g bananas) you would need 1.42 bananas for 1 cup of mashed banana!
Final Thoughts
If you’re baking banana bread and use a large quantity of bananas, the bread will take longer to bake. Most recipes list a banana range (3-4 medium) but a specified bake time. Depending on the size and #of bananas, you may need to tack on an additional 10-15 minutes onto the bake time specified.
If you are baking a VERY banana-heavy loaf, you may need to tent the bread with foil to prevent too dark of an exterior crust.
As with all things in baking, this test shows that baking often and knowing your ingredients and preferences is key to having quickbreads turn out the way your household loves.
Do you usually buy smaller or larger bananas?
Are you familiar with quickbread batter and the ideal consistency?
Do you like the uber moist and squishy banana bread texture or the perfectly moist banana bread with a good bite and structure?
Banana bread is baked by a range of home bakers but it’s surprisingly not precise in most recipes or executions.
Additional Banana Bread Tips
Place the baked loaf on a cooling rack and leave to cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before cutting for slices that hold their shape.
For the tallest loaf of banana bread use an 8×4″ loaf pan instead of a 9×5 pan.
For extra big banana flavor, add a teaspoon of banana extract.
Use a parchment paper sling in your loaf pan for easy removal.
Additional Banana Bread Recipes
Oatmeal Banana Bread
Peanut Butter Banana Bread
Vegan Banana Bread
Cardamom Crunch Banana Bread
Coffee Cake Banana Bread
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