Bananas are one of the most versatile fruits you can have on hand – perfect for a light snack, or for turning into banana bread when they start to go bad.
However, while there are loads of recipes out there for how to use up bananas that have gone bad, there aren’t really any recipes that use up bananas that are rock solid and green.
So why not learn how to turn your under-ripened, hard-as-a-rock bananas into some delicious and versatile banana flour?
How Can I Use My Homemade Banana Flour?
Banana flour is an incredibly starch-rich and totally gluten-free flour, so it is perfect for substituting regular flour in pretty much any kind of dish.
The high starch content ensures that you can use banana flour as a direct substitute, so long as you use just a little bit less in your recipe when compared to regular flour, because of banana flour’s higher absorption potential.
Use it to make some delicious gluten-free pancakes or even a really accurately named banana bread! Keep in mind, though, that banana flour contains no gluten whatsoever, so without the addition of some kind of thickening agent, you might find that whatever you bake with it lacks a bit of that thick texture that regular flour would give you.
What Kind Of Special Equipment Do I Need To Make Banana Flour?
The only special equipment you need to make banana flour, or really any kind of alternative flour whatsoever, is an oven, and something to break the banana pieces down into flour. This can be a high-powered blender, a food processor, or even just a mortar and pestle.
Other than that, there really isn’t anything special that you need to make your very own homemade banana flour!
Ingredients
3 Bananas, green and underripe
How To Make Homemade Banana Flour
Step 1 – Peel and slice your bananas into thin slivers, and then lay them out on a baking sheet for drying.
Step 2 – Dehydrate your banana slices in an oven set to the lowest temperature it can comfortably achieve for around 2 hours, or until the slices are completely thin and crisp.
Step 3 – Once completely dry, grind your banana pieces into a fine powder, either using a blender or food processor.
Step 4 – Sift your banana flour through a fine mesh sieve to catch any errant pieces of banana, and then store them in a sealed container for up to 1 month.
Optionally, if you have a dehydrator:
Step 5 – Place your banana slices onto a dehydrator sheet and set it to “dried fruits” and dehydrate according to your manufacturer’s instruction, and then blend as above.
Troubleshooting Tips
• One trouble you might have with your banana flour is that anything you bake with it doesn’t seem to want to thicken properly. This happens because not only is there no gluten whatsoever in your banana flour, but also because banana simply doesn’t have the regular thickening properties of flour. To get around this, try adding a small amount of chia seeds, or agar agar powder, to help thicken everything up so it is closer in thickness to something you baked with flour.
• If your banana pieces just will not blend properly, no matter what you do, consider fishing out any of the pieces of banana that don’t want to blend properly and putting them back in the oven for another half an hour or so. The extra time in the oven or the dehydrator will help remove that last little bit of moisture that is stopping you from being able to blend it properly.
Nutritional Facts
For the health-conscious out there, here are the nutritional details for 1/4 cup of banana flour
Calories: 79
Total Fat: 0.3 grams
Saturated Fat: 0.1 grams
Cholesterol: 0 milligrams
Sodium: 1 milligrams
Total Carbohydrates: 20.2 grams
Dietary Fiber: 2.3 grams
Sugars: 10.8 grams
Protein: 01 gram
Potassium: 317 milligrams
FAQs
Most recipes involving bananas usually have you use those blackened, overripe bananas that have been sitting on your counter for the last 2 weeks. This recipe, however, is all about underripe, green bananas.
While the banana is a super versatile fruit, trying to use a ripe banana for this recipe just wouldn’t work properly. The reason for this is that the ripening process converts all of the starches in an underripe banana into sugar, and it is that starch that we absolutely need to be able to make banana flour.
So while it might be a bit annoying, if you don’t have green bananas for this recipe, you might need to go buy some!
When making any kind of alternative flour like banana flour, it is best to use a powerful blender, because that is the best tool for ensuring that every little piece of banana gets broken down into a fine powder.
However, if you don’t have one, you can always use something like a food processor instead. You just might need to open it up and scrape down the sides a bit.
Failing that, you could also use a mortar and pestle, and just pound the banana slices thoroughly until it is a uniform powder. If you choose this option, though, consider adding just a tiny sprinkle of salt to help encourage the banana pieces to break down a bit easier.
How to Make Homemade Banana Flour
Ingredients
3 Bananas, green and underripe
Instructions
Step 1 – Peel and slice your bananas into thin slivers, and then lay them out on a baking sheet for drying.
Step 2 – Dehydrate your banana slices in an oven set to the lowest temperature it can comfortably achieve for around 2 hours, or until the slices are completely thin and crisp.
Step 3 – Once completely dry, grind your banana pieces into a fine powder, either using a blender or food processor.
Step 4 – Sift your banana flour through a fine mesh sieve to catch any errant pieces of banana, and then store them in a sealed container for up to 1 month.
Optionally, if you have a dehydrator:
Step 5 – Place your banana slices onto a dehydrator sheet and set it to “dried fruits” and dehydrate according to your manufacturer’s instruction, and then blend as above.
Nutrition Facts
- Serving Size: 1/4 cup
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