The secret to great homemade banana bread is having a tried and tested go-to. Here I share a classic recipe that I have been using for years. The result: Freshly baked banana bread that is always flavorful and moist with the perfect amount of sweetness!
Do you have recipes to go to that you love and keep making over and over again? For me, this banana bread recipe is one of those recipes. I’ve been making this same banana bread since college! It’s so moist and delicious and it’s definitely one of our family’s favorite.
Watch How To Make Banana Bread
Homemade banana bread that’s flavorful and moist. Just need a few common ingredients to make this amazingly delicious banana bread.
I got this recipe from my best friend that I met in college. She was from Osaka and we met each other at the international students’ orientation when we moved to the US for college. She and her banana bread recipe have been my best friend since then, almost 20 years!
I wasn’t into baking until I met her. She loved making sweets and one day she gave me a few slices of this banana bread. It was very moist and it was different from other banana bread I had before. The texture is soft, with bits of banana and just the perfect amount of sweetness. The store-bought banana bread I’ve tried is usually dry and doesn’t have much real banana flavor.
My friend used a square 8” baking dish to make the bread. The height of the bread is shorter than your typical banana bread but you can slice bread into thicker slices. Simply pick up a slice with your fingers to enjoy a mouthful of this moist banana bread. What I love the most is enjoying it with a cup of great coffee in the morning.
This is one of the rare recipes, in which I measured ingredients with a measuring cup (I didn’t own a kitchen scale in college). Even though it’s not as precise, you will still get a good result. I put the weight measurement below for those of you that use a kitchen scale. I hope you enjoy this banana bread as much as my family does!
Similar Recipes:
Wish to learn more about Japanese cooking? Sign up for our free newsletter to receive cooking tips & recipe updates! And stay in touch with me on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram.
Banana Bread
Video
Ingredients
- ½ Tbsp unsalted butter (for greasing the baking dish)
- 1⅔ cups all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ cup unsalted butter (softened)
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) (at room temperature)
- 1 Tbsp neutral oil
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 4 ripe bananas (divided; a 7- to 8-inch, medium-sized banana is roughly 4 oz/113 g with peel; see Notes)
- ½ cup raisins (optional)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). For a convection oven, reduce the cooking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). Grease the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking dish with ½ Tbsp unsalted butter.
- In a bowl, combine 1⅔ cups all-purpose flour (plain flour), ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt, ½ tsp baking soda, and ½ tsp baking powder and whisk all together.
- In another bowl, whisk together ½ cup unsalted butter (softened) and ½ cup sugar until well blended, fluffy, and pale yellow.
- Add 2 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell), 1 Tbsp neutral oil, and 1 tsp pure vanilla extract. Beat with the whisk until well blended.
- Mash 3 ripe bananas with a fork and mix into the egg mixture.
- Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and stir just until blended. Add ½ cup raisins, if you‘d like to include them.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly with the rubber spatula. Slice 1 ripe banana thinly into rounds and decorate on top of the banana bread.
- Bake at 350°F (175°C) until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean, about 1 hour. Remove the baking dish from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes.
To Store
- Wrap each slice or the whole cake with plastic wrap. Store at the cool place and enjoy within 2–3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on January 11, 2011.
I am not so sure..
I will check it later.
Anyway, do you happened to have a hardcopy of your cookbook? I wanna buy it for easy reading…
I like your recipes because it’s written in English
Hi Paola! I don’t have a hardcopy of my eBook. Maybe one day I’ll work on a real cookbook when there is a right opportunity… 🙂
I love to try this for my Japanese husband.
I am in japan now but most of the kitchens here in Japan doesnt have oven.
What othet alternatives you can suggest to bake this?
Hi Paola! Yeah Japanese kitchen doesn’t come with an oven. However, our microwave can be microwave-oven. Have you checked to see if yours can bake in there? You need a oven or oven toaster at least to make this cake…. sorry…. I have a steamed cake recipe that you can use a frying pan… 🙂
One hour is too long. I checked it at 40 minutes it was finished, may even be a bit overcooked at this point.
Hi Stephanie! Each oven is different (and size matters too), so I’m glad you noticed yours are done sooner. I’ve used 4 different (American size) ovens making this same recipe and I always use 60 minutes. Hope the cake was okay after baking for 40 minutes.
I love banana bread. Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Martha! Hope you enjoy this recipe!
Hi Nami..I made this 3 times and each time I received praise for it. It is also the first time I bake a cake. So happy that it is a so easy and yummy recipe.
Hi Angie! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! So happy yours came out well. Thank you for trying this recipe! 🙂
Hi Nami,
I tried this recipe and substitute yhe flour with gluten free flout and butter with oil since my son is on gfcf diet. It turned out great! Moist…soft…and sweetness just right. Thank you for this wonderful simple recipe!
Hi Lyana! I’m so glad to hear that you tried this recipe with GF recipe and it worked! Thank you for writing your kind feedback and I’m sure many of my readers appreciate your tip! 🙂
Lovely! I found it only took 40 minutes both times I’ve tried this. Only change I made was adding a small sprinkle of cinnamon before topping with the sliced banana. Next time I may try subbing applesauce for the oil as I do with most of my recipes, and eventually attempt to make it vegan for my sister. I’ll report back with results! The original recipe has been a hit with my in-laws as well as my husband’s coworkers.
Hi Malinda! I’m happy to hear you and your family enjoyed this recipe and I love that you shared different versions! Thank you for your kind feedback and tips!
Hi Nami, last week I made banana bread for friends at the office , this is the 1st time I made it and I don’t think that they really like it because it looks not as pretty as you made (my husband said my banana bread look like a Halloween bread) but i’m so happy cause all my friends & my boy really like the taste and they asked for more….
Hi Kenken! I’ve been making this for 15 years, so I know how to make it look pretty, in a way. Don’t be harsh on yourself. 🙂 Practice helps, too, and I’m sure next one will look better than first! After all, taste matters most! 🙂
just tried this, soooo easy and sooo good, always great recipes from you Nami!
Hi Zusy! I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for your kind feedback. 🙂 xo
I have made your banana bread many times… sometimes I even make it vegan and it always turns out amazing!!! Thank you!!! 🙂
Hi Paula! I’m happy to hear that! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! 🙂 xo
Such an easy, great recipe! I’ve whipped it up 3 times in the last month! So yummy, it’s a hit with everyone!
Hi Annie! Aww thank you so much! I’m so glad to hear you enjoy this recipe! Thanks for your kind feedback! 🙂
Hi Nami,
This banana cake recipe was so delicious and the banana slices looked great. I prefer using a cake pan versus a loaf pan. The recipe was very easy to follow.
Hi Darlene! I’m so happy to hear you liked the recipe! I like the cake pan or baking pan rather than a loaf pan too (I like thick cut haha!). Thank you for your kind feedback! xo
hi nami, i’ve been an avid fan of your site and always looking forward to new recipes… tried almost all your recipes and my family loves it… banana bread is one of my favorite and would try to bake this… just have a question is it possible to use bread flour instead of all purpose flour? thank you.
Hi Baobei! Thank you so much for following my site and trying many of my recipes! So happy to hear your feedback and THANK YOU!! I recommend all purpose flour for this recipe to get the good fluffy texture. 🙂
Hi Nami! Fantastic recipe! Thanks for sharing it.
Hi Pearly! Thanks so much for your kind words! 🙂
Hi Nami, I’m making this again to bring to a friend who just had a baby. The last time I made it it was such a hit…
Hi Sau! I’m really happy to know you are baking the banana bread again! And thank you for letting me know that. When I saw your comment this morning, it made my day. Baking it for the second time means you really liked it! 🙂
Dear Nami, this is such a great recipe! Simple and yummy! I’ve baked it twice already and because my daughter prefers chocolate, I’ve replaced raisins with chocolate chips and added walnuts as well. I am no baker at all, but this recipe is really so easy for a noob like me! Thumbs up!
Hi Angeline! Awesome! Thanks so much for your kind words. I’m happy to hear your family enjoyed this recipe. My kids love chocolate chips too!