Banana Bread — Moist Not Dense
Experience banana bread like never before: ultra-moist, intensely flavored, and boasting a tender crumb. The secret? Overripe bananas and a touch of sour cream.
15 min active, minimal dishes
Banana Bread — Moist Not Dense
Experience banana bread like never before: ultra-moist, intensely flavored, and boasting a tender crumb. The secret? Overripe bananas and a touch of sour cream.
15 min active, minimal dishes
Key move
Use very ripe bananas (almost black) and don't overmix the batter to avoid a tough bread.
Cook mode keeps your place
Larger text, ingredients in reach, and saved step progress while you cook.
The Setup
- Loaf Pan9x5 inch
- Mixing Bowlmedium
- Wire Rack
The Mise en Place
5 of 10Your prep station before cooking begins
The Dry Mix (0/5)
Bread is dry
Make sure to use overripe bananas and measure flour accurately.
Bread is dense
Do not overmix the batter. Overmixing develops gluten, resulting in a tough bread.
Chef's Notes
Mash bananas until mostly smooth with a few small lumps for best texture.
Don't overmix the batter after adding flour to keep the bread moist.
Serve warm with a smear of butter or cream cheese for extra richness.
The batter can be refrigerated overnight before baking for deeper flavor.
Watch the Technique
Video source: YouTube
The Method
PREHEAT
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
Uneven release: Missed corners will cause the bread to stick and tear when unmolding.
Oven is preheated and loaf pan is greased and floured.
WHISK
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda (1 tsp), and salt (½ tsp).
Uneven leavening: Failing to fully incorporate the baking soda can cause dense pockets or metallic tasting spots.
Dry ingredients are evenly combined.
CREAM
In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter, granulated sugar (¾ cups), and brown sugar (¼ cups) until light and fluffy.
Cold butter: If butter is too cold, it will not aerate, resulting in a dense, heavy bread.
Butter and sugars are light and fluffy.
BEAT
Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sour cream (½ cups) and vanilla extract (1 tsp).
Overmixing: Mixing too vigorously develops gluten, which leads to a tough, rubbery loaf.
Eggs, sour cream, and vanilla are fully incorporated.
FOLD
Gently fold in the mashed bananas until just combined. Do not overmix.
Overmixing: Excessive mixing develops gluten, leading to a rubbery, dense loaf instead of a tender crumb.
Bananas are just combined with the batter.
ADD
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix.
Tough texture: Working the flour too much will make the bread chewy rather than moist and cake-like.
Dry ingredients are just combined with the wet ingredients.
POUR
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Overmixing: Do not smooth the top excessively; overworking the batter at this stage will lead to a dense, rubbery bread.
Batter is evenly distributed in the loaf pan.
BAKE
Time-sensitiveBake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Raw center: If the toothpick comes out with wet batter, continue baking in 5-minute increments.
Toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
COOL
Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack to cool completely.
Structural collapse: Removing the bread from the pan too early can cause the loaf to tear or crumble.
Bread has cooled in the pan for 10 minutes and is on a wire rack.
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