Miso Banana Bread

This miso banana bread is an asian twist on classic banana breads. It's moist, tender, full of banana flavor, and also with a subtle hint of umami and well balanced savoriness. It's a wonderful breakfast/brunch item, but also great as a mid-day snack or dessert!

We are huge fans of banana breads. Matter of fact, there was a month where I'd have a thick slice of banana bread every morning for breakfast! 🙈

So, here we're sharing this easy banana bread recipe with an asian twist using miso! The miso is not overpowering, but adds a hint of umami and savory note this moist miso banana bread. It's honestly sooo good! We're addicted, lol.

Aside from banana bread, we like to occasionally alternate between having matcha custard toast, Korean sausage bread, and wool bread with red bean paste for breakfast!

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour - Cake flour is too weak and bread flour is too strong. All-purpose (A/P) flour is the perfect in between for making quick breads like this miso banana bread. We like to use Central Milling's Organic A/P flour.

• Overripe bananas - The riper the bananas, the better. Super ripe bananas adds natural sweetness and moisture to banana breads. It also give the bread extra banana flavor, which is what we want in banana bread!

• White or yellow miso - These two miso are less pungent, less salty, and less fermented. They are perfect for baked goods without being too overpowering. We used Marukome's organic miso.

• Unsalted butter - Butter adds richness and additional moisture to the banana bread. Make sure to use the unsalted ones though! This way, you can 100% control how your baked goods turn out and how it tastes.

• Brown sugar - Both light or dark brown sugar are perfect for this miso banana bread. It'll add extra flavor, moisture, and give the banana bread that beautiful brown color.

• Whole eggs - Eggs will add richness, moisture, and fluffiness to the banana bread. It'll also help bind the batter.

• Baking soda and baking powder - Both are needed as a leavener for this quick bread.

• Ground cinnamon and vanilla extract (optional flavoring)

Freeze overripe bananas

Personally, we like to freeze our bananas when they become too ripe. This way, we can freely decide when we want to make and eat banana bread.

Plus, frozen bananas make amazing and super moist banana breads! All you have to do is peel the bananas once they become too brown for your liking. Then, store them in airtight containers or freezer bags. They'll last for months!

To use, defrost the bananas overnight in the fridge, at room temperature, or in the microwave until thoroughly thawed. Drain most of the juice before using.

Baking soda substitution

We've had questions about substituting baking soda in baked goods. Well, in the case of this miso banana bread, it's kind of possible.

First, know that baking soda helps leaven baked products, cancel out acidic flavors, and add colors to our baked goods. So, the best choice of substitution is baking powder.

Baking powder will leaven the banana bread. However, it will not cancel out any minor acidic flavors from the brown sugar or bananas. But that's okay. Most importantly, it will not brown the banana bread as much as baking soda.

So if the color is no issue, substitute 1 teaspoons of baking powder for the baking soda. Do note that the result may vary a bit.

How to make miso banana bread

Prepare the batter:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Also lightly grease a loaf pan with butter or oil. We used our 9x4 pullman loaf pan.

2. In a small mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon (if using). Whisk to combine. Set aside.

3. Using a hand mixer, cream together the softened butter and miso paste on medium speed until smooth and well combined.

🌟 Pro tip: It is very important to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl between mixing and adding ingredients. This ensure that everything gets well combined, so that the batter is consistent throughout.

4. Add the brown sugar and blend on medium low for a few seconds then increase the speed to medium high. Cream the butter and sugar mixture until fluffy and looks paler, about 2 to 3 minutes.

5. Add the eggs and vanilla extract (if using) and blend on medium speed until incorporated. You can also add the eggs one at a time to make it easier to blend.

6. Next, add the mashed overripe bananas and blend on medium speed until the bananas well incorporated. After the bananas are added, the batter may look a little broken, but don't worry! It'll come together once you add the dry ingredients.

7. Once the bananas are mixed in, add the flour mixture. Gently mix with a rubber spatula until no more dry flour is visible. Make sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl!

Bake the banana bread:

8. Pour the banana bread batter into the prepared loaf pan. Level out the batter with the spatula and bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the center of the banana bread comes out clean or with only a few crumbs.

🌟 Pro tip: For an extra flare, split a fresh banana in half and place them on top of the batter. We recommend using a yellow, just ripe banana.

9. Once the miso banana bread is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool at room temperature until comfortable to handle.

10. When it's cool enough to handle, flip the banana bread out of the pan.

11. Let the bread cool all the way or until just warm then slice it into your desired thickness. Enjoy!

Additional toppings

This miso banana bread is amazing as it is. Although we do like to add a bit of flare with by placing a split banana on top. In addition, these optional toppings are also great add-ons:

• Chocolate chips
• Nuts (walnut and pecans)
• Rolled oats or quick oats
• Dry berries (raisins, blueberries, cranberries)

If using, gently fold about ½ cup of these additional toppings to the batter after the flour mixture has been incorporated.

Recipe Tips

• Use overripe bananas. The riper the bananas, the more natural sweetness, extra moisture, and more potent the banana flavor will be.

• Use white or yellow miso. Light miso like white and yellow are fermented for a shorter time, making it less pungent and less salty. This will prevent the miso flavor from overpowering the banana bread.

• Freeze overripe bananas for future banana bread baking. Ripe bananas can be easily frozen, then thawed to make banana breads at a later date. It actually helps the banana taste riper. Refer to the topic above for more detail on freezing bananas.

• Lightly grease the loaf pan. Even if you're using a nonstick pan, it's always good to lightly grease it to prevent sticking.

• Use an oven thermometer. Every oven is different, so it's best to keep an oven thermometer in the oven to ensure the temperature is right before you bake the banana bread. Otherwise, you may have to increase your bake time significantly.

• Use foil to prevent the miso banana bread from getting too dark. Towards the last 20 minutes of baking, you can cover your banana bread with foil to prevent it from browning further.

Storage

These miso banana breads can be pre-sliced or kept whole after baking. It will stay moist and tasty for up to 7 days if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

To freeze, we recommend slicing the banana bread to your preferred thickness, then individually wrap them and keep them in airtight containers. They will freeze well up to 2 months.

Simply defrost however many slice you'd like the in the fridge the night before or for a few hours at room temperature.

These banana breads will taste good chilled, but ever better slightly warmed up. Just zap it briefly in the microwave.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you’ve made this recipe or any recipes from our blog, please tag us on Instagram using #twoplaidaprons! You can also tag us in your Instagram stories using @two_plaid_aprons. We would love to see your creations! It absolutely makes our day! 🥰