Sourdough Banana Bread with Chai Spices

This sourdough discard banana bread recipe is easy to make, perfectly spiced with warming masala chai spices, incredibly moist, and uses FIVE bananas.

You don’t need anything special to make this sourdough banana bread except a bread loaf pan, a sourdough starter or sourdough starter discard, some very ripe bananas, and other pantry staples and spices. Even better- it all comes together in an hour!

👉 Be sure to check out my other sourdough discard recipes, including my similarly made Sourdough Zucchini Bread, Sourdough Apple Butter Muffins, and Sourdough Discard Blueberry Scones.

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🍌 What is Banana Bread?

Banana bread is more akin to a cake than bread. Banana bread consists of sugar, eggs, and fat, and is baked in a bread loaf pan. The result is moist cakey bread that slices easily, stores and travels well, and makes a great breakfast treat, dessert, or afternoon snack.

While this recipe highlights warming spices in banana bread, you can add nuts or chocolate chips for additional flavor and texture like in my Sourdough Banana Chocolate Chip Cottage Cheese Protein Muffins.

Baking vegetables and fruits into desserts have been around for centuries, but the first banana bread recipes were documented in the 1930s during the Great Depression. Instead of wasting overripe bananas, they were baked into cakes to extend their convenience (and likely to market baking powder). This is similar to using excess garden zucchini to make zucchini bread.

More recently, banana bread was all the rage during the early months of COVID-19 lockdowns (along with sourdough baking, of course). I guess when life gives you bananas…make banana bread? 🤷‍♂️

Furthermore, banana bread is easy to make! Mix the dry and wet ingredients, pour into a bread loaf pan, and bake for about an hour. It doesn’t get much easier than that in baking!

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🛠 Tools Needed

• Baking Scale
  • Measuring your ingredients by weight is much more accurate than measuring by volume.
• Bread Loaf Pan
  • Bake this loaf in a 9×5″ bread loaf pan. If you’re using a smaller pan, fill it up 75% full so it doesn’t overflow.
  • Other favorite quick bread recipes baked in a loaf pan include my Cranberry Orange Sourdough Bread and Lemon Blueberry Sourdough Pound Cake.
• Whisk & Spatula
  • You only need a whisk and spatula to mix this easy sourdough banana bread!

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🛒 Ingredients Needed

See below for more ideas for substitutions and inclusions.

• Bananas
  • Use four very ripe bananas in the batter and another banana on top of this loaf. Make sure the bananas have lots of brown or black spots for the most sweetness and banana flavor!
• All-purpose flour
  • The all-purpose flour gives this loaf a soft mouthfeels but enough structure to make the loaf rise tall.
• Baking Powder & Baking Soda
  • For leavening the loaf so it rises tall and stays soft.
• Spices
  • I love the pairing of warming masala chai spices in this loaf to give it a spiced tea cake feel that pairs surprisingly well with the tropical fruit.
  • My favorite melange of spices includes cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, clove, allspice, and a touch of black pepper. However, you could omit some of any of these if you prefer.
  • Another favorite recipe with chai spices include my Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Chai Cream Cheese Frosting.
• Sourdough Starter (or sourdough discard)
  • You can use active sourdough starter or unfed sourdough discard in this flexible sourdough banana bread.
• Coconut oil, melted
  • I also use coconut oil for my Easy Sourdough Discard Granola Recipe and Sourdough Buckwheat Pancakes.
  • I prefer refined coconut oil for this recipe so you get a hint of tropical coconut flavor.
• Unsalted butter, melted
  • A mixture of melted butter and coconut oil add fat to the loaf for richness, but give it more flavor too.
• Salt
• Eggs, to help bind the ingredients together
• Vanilla extract
• Light brown sugar, for sweetness and moisture
• Raw sugar, for a crunchy topping

Variations

• Chocolate Chip: Add mini chocolate chips to make an indulgent sourdough banana bread like in my Sourdough Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread.
• Nuts: Toss in toasted and chopped walnuts or pecans for earthy crunch.
• Peanut Butter: Add a peanut butter swirl that always pairs well with banana.
• Whole Wheat: Substitute some of the all-pupose flour with whole wheat flour for a heartier banana bread.

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🍌 How to Make Sourdough Banana Bread

Follow this visual and detailed recipe guide to help you make the best sourdough discard banana bread.

1. Preheat Oven and Prepare Bread Loaf Pan

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC).

Coat the interior of a 9×5″ bread loaf pan with butter or non-stick spray.

Line the pan with a piece of parchment paper that fits the length of the pan and has a couple of inches of overhang on each side like two wings. This will help you remove the bread from the pan.

Oil or spray the parchment paper. Set aside.

2. Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt.

Set aside.

3. Mash the Bananas and Mix the Wet Ingredients

In another large mixing bowl, mash four ripe bananas with a fork.

Whisk in the eggs, sourdough starter, melted butter, melted coconut oil, light brown sugar, and vanilla extract.

The wet ingredients will still be a bit lumpy from the bananas, which is fine! The more lumps of bananas you leave, the bigger pockets of bananas you’ll get in your bread, which I prefer.

4. Mix

Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.

Mix the banana bread batter until no dry pockets of flour remain.

At this point, you can fold in ½ cup of toasted nuts or chocolate chips if you desire. Mini chocolate chips are also welcome!

5. Bake

Pour the banana bread batter into the prepared bread loaf pan.

Slice one banana in half lengthwise and lay each half cut-side up on top of the batter.

Finally, sprinkle the top with a tablespoon of demerara or raw sugar.

Bake the banana bread at 350ºF (177ºC) for 55-65 minutes until the top caramelizes, a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, or the internal temperature reads 200ºF (93ºC).

Cool the loaf on a wire rack. Lift the loaf out of the pan using the parchment paper.

Finally,slice and enjoy!

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How to Serve Sourdough Banana Bread

This spiced sourdough banana bread recipe pairs exceptionally well with something creamy. Think a dollop of crème fraîche, mascarpone, Greek yogurt, or cultured butter.

I also enjoy banana bread with creamy nut butter and flaky salt, like peanut butter or almond butter.

Banana bread can be served any time, but it’s particularly good as an afternoon pick-me-up, evening treat, or sweet breakfast.

Furthermore, because it stores well, the bread is a solid traveling loaf cake for get-togethers or as sliced baking gifts for others.

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How to Store Sourdough Banana Bread

You can store sourdough banana bread at room temperature for three to four days wrapped tightly in aluminum foil.

To keep longer, store in the refrigerator for up to a week. Eat the bread cold or reheat it slightly in a toaster oven or oven.

Additionally, banana bread can be frozen for long-term storage. Freeze the entire loaf to retain moisture. Wrap the loaf in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place it in a resealable freezer-safe bag.

To thaw the frozen banana bread, place it in the refrigerator and let it thaw overnight or for a few hours on the counter.

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Tips for Success

1. Don’t Overmix:
   • Overmixing is probably the biggest fatal mistake of most cake recipes! If your cakes always turn out tough and chewy instead of tender and soft, then you are probably overmixing your batter. Mix just until combined and no more.
   • When flour hits a liquid, gluten immediately starts to form, and the gluten strands are what create chewiness in breads (something we’d want in a recipe like My Everyday Sourdough Bread recipe), but not in a soft and tender cake like this recipe or my Sourdough Apple Cider Upside-Down Cake.
2. Use Overripe Bananas:
   • The longer bananas ripen, the sweeter they become. This is because the starches convert to sugars overtime. Ever had a green banana? It’s not tasty! For this recipe, we’re looking for bananas that are covered in brown spots. This is what will give you the best banana flavor and texture!
3. Bake Long Enough:
   • It’s easy to be inpatient and rush this recipe, but banana bread does require about an hour in the oven to bake. Use a toothpick or a cake tester to check if the bread is done baking. No crumbs or only a few should remain on the tester at the end of baking.
4. Cool:
   • If you slice into any baked goods too quickly, they will lose moisture as steam escapes. This can lead to the cake drying out faster and to a sunken loaf. I typically let banana bread cool for at least an hour before slicing (the wait is worth it!).

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Sourdough Banana Bread FAQs