You want to make a quick banana bread for breakfast tomorrow and realized your bananas aren’t ripe enough to be used. There is a way to ripen bananas quickly without using a paper bag and I will show you exactly how to do it in the Air fryer or Oven.
Table of Contents
How to Ripen Bananas
There are various ways to ripen bananas. Like placing a bunch in a plastic or paper bag. However that would take longer to achieve the desired level of ripeness needed for baking banana breads or muffins.
That’s where other methods like the air fryer and oven come to play because those methods will ripen bananas quickly.
How to Ripen Bananas Naturally
Bananas will ripen naturally if left alone. Depending on the level of ripeness it started out with, it can take anywhere from 24 hrs to 4 days.
However if you are not in a hurry to use the bananas, you can let them ripen naturally by leaving them in the manufacturers package in a warm place in your kitchen.
This Could be by the window, stove, heater or even a cupboard in the pantry. Leave it there and let the ethylene gas (also called fruit ripening hormone) which is naturally produced in all fruits in varying degrees do it’s work.
Now sometimes we need to speed things up and that’s where the other methods below come in.
How to Ripen Bananas in a Paper bag
This is one of the easiest and hands free methods of ripening bananas. All you need to do is get a paper bag, place the bananas in the paper bag, wrap it tightly and let heat and ethylene gas get to work. The banana will ripen in two or 3 days.
You can also add a ripe banana or apple in the bag to increase the amount of ethylene gas circulating in there to help speed up the process.
Though the bag method is your best bet for ripening, however it works best for green bananas.
In a Plastic bag
You can also ripen bananas in a plastic bag just like your regular grocery store bags. In fact, did you know leaving Bananas in the plastic wraps they come in can also speed up ripening.
To ripen Bananas in a plastic bag, lightly sprinkle some water on a bunch of bananas place it in a plastic bag and tie the bag up. The heat, moisture and ethylene gas production will ripen the bananas.
How to Ripen Bananas Quickly in the Air fryer or Oven
The previously listed methods are great but would not get your bananas ready for that fast banana bread cravings. So let’s dive into the quickest possible way to get your banana muffins on your table for breakfast.
The oven and air fryer methods are not suitable for green bananas. They work best with ripe but firm bananas or semi ripe bananas. If your bananas are green, you need to use the plastic or paper bag method.
In the Air fryer.
- Line your air fryer basket with Perforated Parchment Paper or aluminum foil. This is optional but helpful for clean up. The bananas may burst and leak into the basket and leave caramelized bits in there.
- Place 3 or 4 unpeeled bananas in the air fryer basket.
- Set timer to 300°F / 148°C air fry for 8 mins or till bananas are soft and the the peel darkens and is completely black.
- Let bananas cool then use for your recipes.
- Or store in the refrigerator for later.
In the Oven
- Preheat oven to 300°F / 148°C
- Line a baking sheet with Parchment paper or foil for easy clean up.
- Bake unpeeled bananas in preheated oven for 15 to 20 mins till the skin is completely black.
- Let it cool and use immediately or store for later.
Can we put aluminum foil in Air fryer?
If you are worried about putting aluminum foil in your air fryer, I am happy to help. Yes you can use aluminum foil or baking paper aka parchment in your air fryer.
However you cannot put it in the air fryer while preheating or when no food is on it to hold it down from flying around in the air fryer. Flying around can get it stuck in the element of the air fryer which might cause damage to your kitchen appliance.
Storing Ripe Bananas.
Sometimes you might have bananas that get ripe all at once naturally. You can’t use all up at once and you don’t want the whole bunch to get too ripe all at once.
You can store some in the refrigerator this stalls the ripening process and will give you more time to enjoy the bananas for breakfast or as toppings for pancakes, yogurt or oatmeal.
You can also peel and freeze in a freezer bag for later use in smoothies or banana bread.
I won’t recommend storing air fryer or oven ripened bananas for more than 2 days in the refrigerator. If not using within 2 days peel and freeze. Try to use it within a month.
How long can you freeze bananas
If the bananas were ripened naturally, they can be frozen for up to 2 months. I peel and cut, then put in a ziplock bag or air tight containers before freezing.
Tips for success
I try to use up my oven or air fryer ripened bananas within a month of freezing because it’s been cooked.
- Line Air fryer Basket with parchment to help with easy clean up. When taking photos for this post I forgot to use a liner so I had to clean up a bit of sticky stuff from the bottom of my air fryer.
- Please use a pair of tongs to check if the bananas are soft so you don’t get burned.
- Some bananas may have some black spots but are still not ripe enough for baking. Those are also great candidates for air frying.
- Do not try ripen green bananas (completely unripe) it won’t taste nice in your banana bread.
Recipes using ripened bananas
- Air fryer Banana Bread
- Banana bread muffins in Air fryer
- Air fryer Chocolate Banana muffins
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Happy Air frying!
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How to ripen bananas quickly in the air fryer
Equipment
- Air fryer
- Parchment paper or Aluminum foil
Ingredients
- 3 medium Unpeeled Bananas (ripe or semi ripe)
Instructions
In the Air fryer
- Line your air fryer basket with Perforated Parchment Paper or aluminum foil this is optional but helpful for cleanup as thr bananas may burst and leak into the basket and leave caramelized bits in there.
- Place 3 or 4 unpeeled bananas in the air fryer basket.
- Set timer to 300°F / 148°C air fry for 8 mins or till bananas are soft and the peel darkens and is completely black.
- Let bananas cool then use for your recipes.
- Or store in the refrigerator for later.
In the Oven
- Preheat oven to 300°F / 148°C
- Line a baking sheet with Parchment paper or foil for easy clean up.
- Bake unpeeled bananas in preheated oven for 15 to 20 mins till the skin/ peel is completely black.
- Let it cool and use immediately or save for later in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Line air fryer basket with Perforated parchment paper to help with easy clean up. I didn’t do so when I took photos for this post, I had to clean up a bit of sticky stuff from the bottom of my air fryer.
- Please use a pair of tongs to check if the bananas are soft so you don’t get burned.
- Some bananas may have some black spots but are still not ripe enough for baking. Those are also great candidates for air frying.
- Do not try ripen green bananas (completely unripe) it won’t taste nice in your banana bread.
First of all, this blog is beautiful, well done! Loving all the tips on how to ripen banana faster. I must say that air fryer is versatile!
Hi Kech!
Thank you so much for your kind word and for stopping by. Happy you found the post helpful. 😀