How to Ripen Bananas (2024)

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When you cannot wait for banana bars, but all of your bananas are underripe, what’s a baker to do? Learn How to Ripen Bananas for pancakes, muffins, loaf cakes, and more.

Ideally, a banana, apple, or other fruit left alone will ripen naturally. During the ripening process, it releases ethylene, a natural plant hormone in the form of a gas. Some types of fruit and vegetables release more ethylene than others. Similarly, some fruits and vegetables are more sensitive to ethylene than others.

But when you need super ripe bananas NOW, the oven method is your BBF (banana’s best friend). You don’t even need to peel them.

As bananas ripen, they have a sweeter taste and a softer texture. Yellow bananas eventually turn dark brown and become mushy. These “overripe bananas” are great for making baked goods! But be sure to grab them (and freeze them or use them) before mold forms.

Tutorial notes

• Storage: To slow the ripening process of bananas, store them away from heat and direct sunlight and wrap banana stems tightly in plastic wrap (the ethylene gas is released through the banana stem, so you can reduce what is released if you wrap the stems). You can also transfer them to the refrigerator when they are at peak ripeness.
• Freezing: Frozen bananas keep in the freezer almost indefinitely, but they are best within 6 to 8 months. Wrap whole ripened bananas in freezer bags, label, and date.
• Thawing: When you’re ready to make something, let the frozen bananas thaw before adding to the recipe. If you plan on making a smoothie or blender ice cream, add frozen banana chunks right into the blender, no need to thaw.
• Mashing: When using ripened bananas, add them to a bowl and mash them well with a potato masher, sturdy fork, or spatula. A good recipe will give the amount of mashed banana needed in cups, not just in the number of bananas. Mash first, measure second.
• Applesauce backup: If you are a little shy on the amount of mashed banana needed (½ cup or less), make up the difference with unsweetened applesauce. I have tested this substitute on all of the banana baked goods on my site and it always works like a charm.

Step-by-step instructions

To ripen bananas on the counter:

Time to ripen: 24 hours to 5 days.

1. Place bananas in a warm spot such as a sunny window or near a heating vent.
2. Keep the bunch of bananas together. Their friends will help speed the process along.
3. Depending on how green they are, and where on the banana ripeness spectrum you prefer them, they should ripen in 24 hours to 5 days.

To ripen bananas in a bag:

Time to ripen: 24 hours to 2 days.

1. Place the unripe bananas in a bag (a brown paper bag, plastic bag, etc) along with a high-ethylene-producing fruit, such as a ripe banana or apple.
2. Loosely fold the paper bag closed and let the ethylene gas from the fruit encourage the banana to ripen. This process is gradual but definitely faster than leaving the banana out in the open.
3. Depending on how green they are, and where on the banana ripeness spectrum you prefer them, they should ripen in a couple of days (24 hours to 2 days. By the way, this is a great way to ripen stubborn avocados, too).

To ripen bananas in the oven:

Time to ripen: 15 to 20 minutes.

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. For easier cleanup, prepare a lined baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Arrange unpeeled bananas on prepared baking sheet.

2. Bake until banana skins are completely black all over, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely, then scoop banana pulp from the peel and mash.

Recipe tips and variations

• Yield: This recipe yields as many oven-ripened bananas as you add to the baking sheet. Smoothies usually call for 1 banana each while baked goods will call for 2 to 5 bananas per recipe.
• Banana snacks: Put your mushy bananas to work in Banana Bread, Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, Banana Bars, Strawberry Banana Smoothies, banana muffins, and banana pancakes.
• More banana recipes: If you love the flavor of bananas, try Banana Nutella Croissants, Bananas Foster, Banana Smoothies, Banana Pudding, or host an Ice Cream Sundae Bar with Banana Splits.