If you’ve ever wondered what to do with your leftover sourdough discard, this sourdough banana bread is your perfect solution. It’s a moist, flavorful, and frugal recipe that turns aging bananas and starter into a breakfast or snack you’ll crave.
Recipe: $4.64 | Per Serving: $0.46 | Yields: 10 Slices
This sourdough banana bread is a cozy classic with a twist. Using sourdough discard for an added depth of flavor, it's easily become a go-to recipe in our home.
The natural tang from the starter pairs beautifully with sweet, ripe bananas, giving the loaf an irresistible depth of flavor. It’s a fantastic make-ahead option and freezes well for later snacking.
It also sneaks in some of your favorite kitchen staples like brown sugar, cinnamon, and sour cream for richness.
Want more sourdough discard ideas? Try my Rustic Sourdough Discard Bread or Sourdough Discard Banana Muffins.
Jump to:
🍯 Why This Recipe Works
- Naturally Moist and Sweet: Moisture from ripe bananas keeps the bread incredibly tender and naturally sweet, allowing you to use less added sugar while still delivering rich banana flavor. The riper the bananas, the better the taste and texture.
- Flavorful and Low-Waste: Sourdough discard adds natural flavor and reduces waste, giving the loaf a subtle tang and extra depth without needing to activate or proof anything. It's a fantastic way to use up discard instead of throwing it out, perfect for frugal, low-waste baking.
- Quick and Easy Cleanup: One-bowl batter makes it quick and easy to whip up with minimal cleanup. No need for fancy mixers or multiple steps, just mash, mix, and bake. It's a great go-to for busy mornings or last-minute baking sessions.
🥘 Ingredients
Ripe Bananas. The blacker, the better! Overripe bananas add natural sweetness and plenty of moisture, making the bread soft and flavorful.
Sourdough Discard. Adds a tangy depth of flavor while helping to reduce food waste. It's an easy way to use up your starter between feedings.
Butter or Oil. Provides moisture and richness. Melted butter gives a slightly more classic banana bread flavor, while oil keeps it extra soft.
Brown and White Sugar. Brown sugar adds warmth, moisture, and flavor depth, while granulated sugar keeps the crumb light and balanced.
Eggs. Help bind the ingredients and give the loaf structure. Don’t have any on hand? You can skip them, just like we do in our popular Eggless Banana Bread.
For specific ingredients and measurements, please see the recipe card below.
🧾 Substitutions
Butter: Vegetable oil or melted coconut oil can replace the butter for a dairy-free version. Oil will make the bread slightly softer.
Sour cream: Plain Greek yogurt or even regular yogurt can work here. Just aim for a similar consistency to keep the batter balanced.
Sugars: You can replace the combination of granulated sugar and brown sugar and simply use all of one instead (depending on what you have on hand).
🔪 Instructions for Sourdough Banana Bread
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
Step 2: In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. (Image 1). Whisk together to combine. (Image 2).
Step 3: In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas until mostly smooth. Add the melted butter, brown sugar, white sugar, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and sourdough discard. (Image 3). Stir until well combined. (Image 4).
Step 5: Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. (Image 5). Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined, don’t overmix! (Image 6).
Step 6: Pour the batter into the loaf pan and smooth out the top. (Image 7).
Step 7: Bake for 50–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Image 8).
Step 8: Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove and cool fully on a wire rack. Slice and Enjoy!
🍴 Recipe Tips
- Use a scale. If you have a kitchen scale, it’s worth using here. Precise measurements lead to consistent results.
- Speed-Ripen Bananas. Craving banana bread but only have yellow bananas? You can ripen them quickly by placing unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet and baking at 250°F for about 30 minutes. They’ll turn black on the outside and soft and sweet on the inside, perfect for baking.
- Avoid Overmixing. Be gentle when combining the wet and dry ingredients. Overmixing can lead to too much gluten formation, which may result in dense, tough banana bread instead of a tender loaf.
- Make It Muffins. This batter works beautifully as muffins! Simply divide into a standard muffin tin and bake at 350°F for 20–25 minutes. They’re great for grab-and-go breakfasts or portion-controlled snacks.
👩🏻🍳 Storage
Store leftover banana bread wrapped tightly at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to a week. For longer storage, slice and freeze pieces individually—perfect for grab-and-go breakfasts.
🍳 Reheating
Microwave individual slices for about 15–20 seconds to bring back that just-baked softness. Add a little pat of butter for extra indulgence.
⏲️ Make Ahead Instructions
You can make the batter the night before and store it covered in the fridge. Just give it a gentle stir before pouring it into the pan the next day.
🥣 Recipe Add-Ins
Want to level up your banana bread? Try mixing in:
- Chopped nuts – ½ cup of walnuts or pecans for crunch and richness.
- Chocolate chips – ½ cup of dark, milk, or white chocolate for a sweeter loaf.
- Dried fruit – ½ cup of raisins, cranberries, or chopped dates for natural sweetness and texture.
- Shredded coconut – ¼ to ½ cup for a tropical twist and added moisture.
- Spices – ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg, ginger, or cardamom for a cozy, warm flavor.
- Swirls – 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, Nutella, or cream cheese for extra flavor.
💭 Recipe FAQs
Yes! Active starter works just as well here since it’s not being used for leavening. It may give a slightly stronger tang.
Yes, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and foil, and freeze for up to 3 months.
Butter, Peanut butter or almond butter, Cream cheese, Honey or maple syrup, Greek yogurt and fruit, Coffee or tea
Very ripe, almost black. The more brown spots or fully black the peel, the sweeter and softer the banana, which makes for moist and flavorful banana bread.
❤️ More Delicious Sourdough Recipes
If you tried this Sourdough Banana Bread, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and share your feedback in the 📝 comments section below. I would truly appreciate it!
📖 Recipe
Sourdough Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups (210g) all-purpose flour ($0.22)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ($0.05)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder ($0.02)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda ($0.01)
- 1 teaspoon salt ($0.01)
- 8 Tablespoons (113g) butter, melted (or ⅓ cup vegetable oil) ($1.98)
- ½ cup (100g) brown sugar ($0.24)
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar ($0.10)
- 2 large eggs ($0.66)
- 1½ cups mashed bananas (about 2-3 ripe) ($0.84)
- 3 Tablespoons (45g) sour cream ($0.25)
- ½ cup (125g) unfed sourdough starter ($0.22)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ($0.04)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk together to combine.
- In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas until mostly smooth. Add the melted butter, brown sugar, white sugar, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and sourdough discard. Stir until well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined, don’t overmix!
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and smooth out the top.
- Bake for 50–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove and cool fully on a wire rack. Slice and Enjoy!
Notes
- Use a Scale: Measuring ingredients by weight ensures accuracy and consistent results every time.
- Speed-Ripen Bananas: You can bake yellow bananas (unpeeled) at 250°F for about 30 minutes until blackened and soft, making them perfect for baking.
- Avoid Overmixing: Stir the batter gently to avoid developing too much gluten, which can make the bread tough.
- Make It Muffins: This batter works great in muffin tins—bake at 350°F for 20–25 minutes for easy, portion-sized treats.
- Storage: Wrap tightly and store at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to a week.
Nicole Durham says
This is one of our favorite ways to use up sourdough discard and ripe bananas!