The Easiest Way To Ripen Bananas In A Pinch

Sometimes you may just crave banana bread, cinnamon banana muffins, peanut butter and banana pancakes, or other yummy recipes that require ripened bananas. The issue here could be that you have bananas on hand, but they haven't softened yet. What's a banana bread-loving home cook to do?! Luckily, there's one easy way to ripen your bananas that doesn't require them to sit on the counter for a few days: using your oven.

This trick works by letting your oven soften and sweeten up your bananas via low heat. You aren't trying to cook your bananas; you just want to give them a little boost to speed up their ripening process. To do this, just set your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and pop your bananas — skin and all — inside for about 40 minutes. While they're working their magic, you can prep your other ingredients — unless you have a simple 3 ingredient banana bread recipe... if this is the case you can plop on the couch for a quick Netflix binge. Keep in mind that the bananas are going to appear blackened on the outside once the 40 minutes are up — this is totally normal. Just let the bananas cool for a few minutes before peeling and proceeding as usual.

If you're looking for other ways to ripen your bananas outside of the oven, there are some techniques you can use. One is the polar opposite of using heat: using cold. To do this, you'd want to place your bananas in the freezer until frozen solid (which should take about an hour). Once ready, place them in the refrigerator to defrost for another hour or so. They'll be much softer once ready, making them easier to work with. Another option you may have heard of before is to place your bananas in a paper bag. Just fold the top over so air can't escape, and allow them to ripen on the counter. This one works because the paper bag essentially traps the ethylene gas that bananas release, causing them to ripen faster. If using this method, you can expect your bananas to be ready between 24 and 36 hours.

If you want your bananas ready faster, you can consider using the microwave method, which is the fastest option. To do this, poke your unpeeled bananas with a knife or fork and nuke them in 30-second increments until they've softened to your liking. Once ready, just let them cool for a few minutes before peeling and using them in your favorite recipes.