Vegan Banana Bread: A Moist, Easy One-Bowl Recipe

Good vegan banana bread needs no special ingredients. Very ripe bananas bind the batter and keep it moist, which is the job eggs normally do, and oil gives a tender crumb that stays soft for days. Everything is mixed in one bowl with a fork, and the loaf goes into the oven about 10 minutes after you start.

Ingredients

Makes one 9 x 5 inch (23 x 13 cm) loaf, about 10 slices.

• 3 large very ripe bananas, about 1½ cups mashed (340 g)
• ⅔ cup packed light brown sugar (135 g)
• ⅓ cup neutral oil, such as canola or sunflower, or melted vegan butter (75 ml)
• ¼ cup unsweetened plant milk, such as soy or oat (60 ml)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1¾ cups all-purpose flour (220 g)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Optional: ½ cup chopped walnuts or dairy-free chocolate chips

Method

1. Prepare. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan and line the bottom and long sides with a strip of parchment paper, leaving some overhang so you can lift the loaf out.
2. Mash. In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a fork until mostly smooth, with a few small lumps.
3. Add the wet ingredients. Stir in the brown sugar, oil, plant milk and vanilla until well combined.
4. Add the dry ingredients. Sprinkle the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon over the top. Fold together with a spatula until you no longer see dry flour. Stop as soon as it comes together: overmixing makes banana bread tough and tunneled.
5. Add extras. Fold in nuts or chocolate chips, if using, and scrape the batter into the pan. Smooth the top. For a crackly top, sprinkle with a tablespoon of coarse sugar or lay a halved banana on top.
6. Bake. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until the loaf is deep golden and a skewer in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. If the top browns too fast after 40 minutes, cover it loosely with foil.
7. Cool. Leave in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift out and cool on a rack for at least an hour before slicing. Vegan banana bread finishes setting as it cools.

Why this recipe works without eggs

In most banana bread recipes the eggs add moisture and hold the crumb together. Ripe bananas already contain a lot of moisture and natural pectin and starch, so a generous amount of banana replaces the eggs without any substitute. The baking soda reacts with the slightly acidic bananas and brown sugar to lift the loaf.

The riper the bananas, the better: they should be heavily freckled or almost black. They are sweeter and more fragrant, and they mash more easily. If yours are not ripe yet, bake them in their skins at 300°F (150°C) for 15 to 20 minutes until black and soft, then cool before using.

If you prefer a firmer, more cake-like slice, add a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed mixed with 3 tablespoons water, rested for 5 minutes) with the wet ingredients. Our egg substitute guide explains when each swap helps.

Variations

• Chocolate chip: fold in ¾ cup dairy-free chocolate chips. Many dark and semisweet chips are vegan, but US standards allow milk ingredients in sweet chocolate, so check the label.
• Walnut or pecan: toast the nuts for 8 minutes at 350°F first for a deeper flavor.
• Whole wheat: replace up to half the flour with whole wheat flour and add 1 extra tablespoon of plant milk.
• Peanut butter swirl: drop spoonfuls of warmed peanut butter onto the batter in the pan and swirl with a knife.
• Muffins: divide the batter between 12 lined muffin cups and bake for 20 to 24 minutes.

Troubleshooting

• Gummy streak at the bottom: the bread was underbaked or sliced while hot. Bake until a skewer comes out clean and cool fully.
• Sunken middle: too much banana or underbaking. Measure the mashed banana rather than counting fruit, because banana sizes vary.
• Dry and crumbly: too much flour. Weigh it, or spoon it into the cup and level off.
• Dense and flat: old baking soda. It loses strength once opened; replace it every six months.

A note on sugar

Sugar is plant-based, but some vegans avoid certain white and brown cane sugars because they may be filtered through bone char during refining, and labels rarely say. The Vegetarian Resource Group notes that beet sugar is not processed this way. If this matters to you, choose sugar labeled vegan or beet sugar.

Storing and freezing

Wrap the cooled loaf and keep it at room temperature for up to 3 days. It actually tastes better on day two. To freeze, slice it first, wrap well and freeze for up to 3 months. Toast slices straight from the freezer.