Brown Butter Banana Bread

This easy to make, moist, and flavorful Brown Butter Banana Bread recipe adds a sophisticated twist on a classic quick bread favorite.

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By: Diana Last updated on March 17, 2025

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This moist and delicious Brown Butter Banana Bread is an easy twist on an old favorite that will have everyone asking you for your recipe!

Browned butter adds a rich, nutty flavor to banana bread that takes this classic quick bread recipe to the next level in the very best way.

four slices of banana bread stacked on a plate. A hand is removing the top slice.

Have you ever gone to the store, bought a bunch of bananas with the intention of eating them as snacks or slicing them into overnight oats, and then completely forgotten about them?

You’re definitely not alone, and from what I can gather, we all do that thing with bananas. All the time. And I think I have it figured out now!

I don’t think we buy bananas to eat, even if we think we’re doing that.

Nope. Honestly, we intend to let those bananas go overripe on the counter so that on the weekend, we can bake banana bread!

I have the perfect brown butter banana bread recipe here for you, made with nutty, rich browned butter, sweet bananas, and a handful of common pantry ingredients.

You can also try my Hawaiian Banana Bread with coconut and pineapple or make Pumpkin Banana Muffins, Date Nut Bread, or easy Strawberry Pound Cake.

sliced banana bread. The first slice is slathered with softened butter.

Brown Butter Banana Bread Highlights

An Elevated Classic — Using rich and nutty browned butter rather than vegetable oil or plain melted butter gives this banana bread recipe a definite flavor advantage over the rest.
Simple Ingredients — While the flavor profile is slightly advanced, the ingredients are all very common and easy to find. If you bought bananas earlier in the week and forgot to eat them, you might already have everything you need!
Versatile Recipe — Use this banana bread recipe as a starting point, and add any number of tasty mix-ins like nuts, seeds, and fruits to create your own gourmet banana bread varieties!

Ingredients in Brown Butter Banana Bread

Here’s what you need to make this delicious quick bread:

The ingredients to make brown butter banana bread with three bananas. Each ingredient is in a small bowl and arranged on a counter.

Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

Unsalted Butter: This is the star of the recipe! Browned butter will give banana bread a rich, nutty, buttery flavor.
Bananas: I’m using three bananas in this recipe. Be sure that your bananas are ripe so that they are soft and sweet.
Brown Sugar and Granulated Sugar: I love using brown sugar in banana bread! It gives the bread a warm, rich flavor and keeps it tender and moist.
Flour, Baking Soda, and Salt: Baking soda does most of the work here, helping the quick bread to rise and giving it a soft, tender crumb.
Sour Cream: This adds extra richness and moisture to the bread.
Eggs: Let the eggs come to room temperature before adding them to the batter. This step is key to smooth, well-mixed batters.
Vanilla Extract: Vanilla enhances the flavor of the browned butter and bananas.

How To Make Browned Butter Banana Bread

butter browning and foaming in a saucepan over an electric burner, stirred with a red spatula. — 1. **Brown the Butter:** Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and continue to cook until it bubbles and turns a caramel shade of brown. Let cool.

Sugar and sour cream added to mashed bananas for banana bread batter. — 2. **Mix the Wet Ingredients:** Combine mashed bananas with cooled browned butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and sour cream.

vanilla extract and brown butter whisked into banana bread batter in a glass bowl. — 3. **Add Eggs:** Whisk in two large eggs and the vanilla extract.

dry ingredients added to wet ingredients to make brown butter banana bread. — 4. **Add the Dry Ingredients:** Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, then add that dry mixture to the wet mixture.

Tip!

Don’t overmix the banana bread batter! Stop stirring when you just barely see a few streaks of dry flour left.

Wet ingredients for brown butter banana bread, stirred in a bowl with a red spatula. — 5. **Fold:** Use a spatula to stir the batter, taking care not to overmix.

banana bread batter in a metal bread pan, lined with parchment paper. — 6. **Bake:** Add the banana bread batter to a loaf pan and bake in a preheated oven for about an hour.

baked brown butter banana bread in a silver metal bread pan.

Recipe Tips

Prepare your Loaf Pan: To ensure that the banana bread will release easily from the pan, I like to spray it lightly with cooking spray, then line the pan with parchment paper.
Use Ripe Bananas: Yellow bananas with brown spots are extra sweet and have the perfect soft texture for making the banana mixture for bread. Leave your green bananas on the counter to get ripe so that you can make this recipe in a few days.
Let it Cool: It will be hard to wait, but you need to let the browned banana bread cool completely before slicing it, or it might crumble. You can warm up slices later using the microwave if you like!
Making Browned Butter: Brown butter takes 5-8 minutes to cook, and you should stir constantly to prevent burning. Wait for the butter to foam up and then clear, then continue to cook until it turns a golden brown color.
Prep Ahead Option: If necessary, you can make the browned butter up to 5 days ahead of time. Simply brown the butter, let it cool, then transfer it to a sealed container and refrigerate. You can also freeze it for longer storage—up to 3 months.

a thick wooden cutting board holding a loaf of brown butter banana bread that has been sliced, a cup of coffee, and banana slices.

Storing Tips

Banana bread made with browned butter can be kept at room temperature for up to 4 days. It should be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container.

You can also store banana bread in the fridge for up to a week or freeze it for up to 3 months.

I like to keep individual slices in the freezer so that I can thaw them overnight and enjoy them for breakfast.

Variations and Mix-Ins

Add up to a half cup of nuts such as chopped cashews chopped walnuts, slivered almonds, or chopped pecans to the batter. A few tablespoons of seeds like chia seeds or flax seeds can also add flavor and fiber to the mix.
Add a tropical flair and stir in some shredded coconut. Or just make my Hawaiian Banana Bread recipe!
Along with the cinnamon, add a dash of ground nutmeg.
Try it with Chocolate! Mix in semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips.

Recipe FAQs

Can I use browned Butter in Any banana bread recipe?

Browned butter behaves differently than uncooked butter in baking recipes because the cooking process removes all of the excess water from the butter. For this reason, it’s best to follow a recipe that has already been tested and designed to use browned butter.

Do I have to brown the butter?

If you want to bake the best banana bread you’ve ever had, then yes, you definitely do need to brown the butter! This step takes just a few minutes, but it’s well worth the extra time.

Can I bake mini loaves with this recipe?

Of course! The baking time will need to be decreased if you decide to bake this recipe in smaller pans. Check on the bread after 30-35 minutes.

How do I know when banana bread is done?

Just like cake or muffins, you can check for doneness using a toothpick or a wooden skewer. If you insert the toothpick into the center of the loaf and it comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs, it’s ready!

Can I make this recipe gluten free?

I have not specifically tested it, but most quick bread recipes can be made gluten-free by replacing the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour.