Sometimes you just need a ripe banana - whether it's for a specific recipe, or just because you're in the mood to enjoy the sweet and creamy deliciousness of a ripe banana. Whatever the reason, there are several things you can do to speed up the banana ripening process quickly and easily. The paper bag method is the best way to ripen the bananas you want to eat, while the oven method is perfect for bananas that will be used in other recipes. Read on to find out how to do both!
Step
Method 1 of 2: In a Paper Bag
Step 1. Gather the brown paper bag, the banana you want to ripen, and the apple or tomato
By placing bananas in a brown paper bag with other fruit, you will maximize the amount of ethylene gas produced. Ethylene gas is a gas produced by fruit as it ripens. This will help speed up the ripening process, and result in bananas with a smooth and creamy texture.
Step 2. Place the bananas at the bottom of the paper bag
Step 3. Place the tomatoes and/or apples next to the bananas
Make sure the tomatoes aren't overripe so they don't crack or mold in the paper bag. If you don't have apples or tomatoes, you can use pears too.
Step 4. Close the paper bag
Roll down or fold up the top of the paper bag to contain the ethylene gas produced by the fruit.
Step 5. Place the paper bag filled with fruit in a warm place
Higher temperatures cause the fruit to release more ethylene gas, which speeds up the ripening process.
Step 6. Leave the bananas overnight
Leave bananas and other fruit in a paper bag overnight. Check in the morning to see if the bananas have reached the desired level of ripeness. If not, roll up again and check the bananas every 12 hours until they are quite ripe.
You can ripen green bananas using this paper bag method until they have a yellow skin, or yellow skin with brown spots, within 24 hours
Method 2 of 2: In the Oven
Step 1. Preheat your oven to 150 degrees C
If your oven has a light, turn it on, so you can easily keep an eye on the bananas.
Step 2. Put the bananas you want to ripen on the baking sheet
Don't overcrowd, three or four bananas per pan is usually enough. Keep in mind that this method will not work for bananas that are still completely green. Use bananas that are almost ripe (yellow in color) for best results.
Step 3. Cook the bananas in the oven
What you will use the bananas for will determine how long you need to leave the bananas in the oven.
Step 4. If you want to use bananas in certain recipes, cook them in the oven for an hour
Leaving a banana in the oven for an hour will make the skin completely black while the flesh will be perfect for use in banana smoothies and cake recipes, such as banana bread.
Step 5. If you want to eat bananas only, remove them from the oven after 20 minutes
If you leave the bananas in the oven long enough for the skin to turn dark yellow, without any dark spots forming, you can eat the bananas right away. This will take about 20 minutes, but be sure to watch it carefully in the oven so you can get it out in time.
After removing the bananas from the oven, place them in the refrigerator to cool the bananas and stop the ripening process. Eat bananas after they have cooled completely
Tips
- Bananas that are still in the bunch will ripen faster than those that are not.
- Hang the bananas to make them look as if they are still hanging from the tree to ripen later than 2-3 days if you don't need them to ripen right away.
- Place the bananas in the refrigerator to stop the ripening process.
Warning
- Do not place unripe bananas in the refrigerator if you want to continue the ripening process later. Cold temperatures stop the ripening process, and once you remove the bananas from the refrigerator, they cannot continue the ripening process.
- While some people prefer bananas that are green or with a green tip, unripe bananas can be more difficult to digest due to their high starch content.
