Plantain Bread
Overview
Plantain bread is a sweet quick bread built on overripe plantains, and it exists for the same practical reason banana bread does: it is what you make when the fruit has gone too far to eat but is too good to throw out. The comparison to banana bread is the useful one, and the difference is real. Plantain is starchier and less sugary than banana even when very ripe, so plantain bread comes out slightly denser and less cloying, with a flavour that is deeper and a little more savoury at the edges. People who find banana bread too sweet tend to prefer it. It uses the plantains at the stage most cooks would consider past it, skins mostly black, flesh soft and heavily speckled. At that point the starches have converted and the fruit mashes easily, which is exactly what the batter needs. It is a quick bread, chemically raised, so there is no proving and no kneading. Walnuts are a common addition for texture, and it is eaten at breakfast, with tea, or as a snack.
AFN Heritage Note
Plantain bread applies the quick-bread method to overripe plantains in the same way banana bread uses overripe bananas. Plantain's higher starch and lower sugar content produce a denser, less sweet loaf.
Ingredients
Dietary tags are provided by contributors as a guide, not verified by AFN, and they depend on the products you buy. If you have a serious allergy, check every ingredient yourself. Cooking, allergies and your own judgement
Directions
- 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Greased a loaf pan with butter and lightly dust it with some flour or use some non stick spray.
- 2
Beat granulated sugar, butter and milk in a medium bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed and mix.
- 3
Add the sour cream or yogurt to the creamed butter and mix. Then add the vanilla extract, mashed plantains and eggs to the mixture.
- 4In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients
flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and the ground nutmeg. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix.
- 5
Bake for about 60 to 65 minutes or until a knife or toothpick is inserted into the center and it comes out clean. Baking time may vary depending on the climate or oven heat.
- 6
Let it stand for about 15 minutes, before removing it from the loaf pan.
- 7
Once it’s cool to your desire, slice and enjoy.
Africook’s Notes
- Use plantains that are genuinely overripe, skins mostly black. Yellow plantain is too firm and too starchy to mash properly.
- Do not overmix. Quick breads toughen if you work the batter after the flour goes in.
- Check with a skewer rather than by time. Plantain holds moisture and the middle takes longer than you expect.
- Cool it fully before slicing or it crumbles.
Questions cooks ask
What is the difference between plantain bread and banana bread?
Mostly sweetness and density. Plantain is starchier and less sugary than banana even when fully ripe, so plantain bread comes out denser and less sweet, with a slightly deeper flavour. The method is the same. People who find banana bread cloying often prefer this version.
How ripe do the plantains need to be?
Very. The skins should be mostly or entirely black and the flesh should mash easily under a fork. This is well past the stage most people would grill or fry them at. Underripe plantain will not mash properly and the loaf will be dry and bland.
Can I leave out the walnuts?
Yes, they are for texture rather than structure and the loaf works without them. If you are baking for anyone with a nut allergy, leaving them out is straightforward, nothing else in the recipe depends on them.
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