Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe (VIDEO)
The only thing better than our popular Banana Bread recipe might just be this Chocolate Banana Bread recipe, straight from Natasha’s Kitchen Cookbook. It is soft, extra chocolatey, and stays moist for days.
Call it breakfast, bread, or even dessert- this soft crumb, double chocolate loaf is a chocolate lover’s dream. Watch the video tutorial and see how easy it is to make.
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Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe
We love that this recipe is a perfect combination of our Fudgy Brownies and Chocolate Chip Banana Bread. If you are a fan of quick and easy sweet bread recipes that could be mistaken for a cake, this Chocolate Banana Bread is a must-try!
This has to be the richest, chocolaty (and yet perfectly acceptable for breakfast) loaf I’ve baked. The best part is that it will stay nice and moist for a few days, but let’s be serious, we both know it won’t last that long!
This recipe checks all of the right boxes:
- Moist – with a tender crumb
- Chocolatey – with gooey morsels of chocolate
- Easy to make – essentially mixing dry and wet ingredients
- Freezer-friendly – this keeps well
Chocolate Banana Bread Video
Watch Natasha make this Fudgy Chocolate Banana Bread. You will be surprised at how moist it is thanks to the ripe bananas. This recipe is perfect for any time of day, so what are you waiting for? Let’s get baking!
Ingredients
The key to making great banana bread is using overripened bananas. See my tips below to speed up the ripening process.
- Bananas – very ripe bananas are easier to mash and make a sweeter banana bread
- Sugar – adds sweetness to balance the cocoa
- Butter – unsalted and softened at room temperature
- Eggs – large and at room temperature, to bind the batter together
- Vanilla – Use our homemade vanilla for the best flavor
- Flour – All-purpose, or gluten-free if desired
- Cocoa Powder – natural unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Hershey’s (not Dutch-process cocoa)
- Baking soda – a leavening agent to help the banana bread rise
- Salt – I almost always use fine sea salt
- Chocolate Chips – semisweet is our go-to
Customize Your Bread
This recipe is delicious as is, but feel free to add your own mix-ins.
- Chopped nuts – walnuts, pecans
- Nutella
- Peanut butter
- Milk chocolate chips, white chocolate chips
How to Make Double Chocolate Banana Bread
This recipe couldn’t be easier – it’s essentially beating together the wet ingredients then sifting in the dry ingredients and putting them together.
- Prepare – Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9.25 x 5.25 x 2.75-inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper. Use enough parchment paper to hang over the sides of your pan so you can lift the banana bread later.
- Wet Ingredients – In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs and mix just to combine. Mix in the mashed bananas and vanilla until blended.
- Dry Ingredients – In a second large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on medium-low speed until just incorporated. The batter will be a little lumpy (don’t over-mix).
- Fold in 3⁄4 cup of the chocolate chips, spread the batter into the loaf pan, and sprinkle the remaining 1⁄4 cup of the chocolate chips over the top.
- Bake – Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center, comes out clean. Let the bread rest in the pan 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges and gently pull up on the parchment paper to transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool.
Pro Tip:
When checking for doneness, a toothpick inserted in the center should come out without any wet batter on it, not to be mistaken with melted chocolate. Sometimes you’ll hit a melted chocolate chip so poke the surface a couple of times.
How to Ripen Bananas Quickly
The best bananas for banana bread are not bright yellow. You want brown, soft bananas for this recipe. If you need to quickly ripen your bananas for baking, there are a couple of ways to do this.
- Paper Bag Method: Place the unripe bananas in a paper bag and fold the top closed. If you have apples or tomatoes, toss them in too to help speed up the process. All of these fruits release ethylene gas, a natural ripening agent and the paper bag traps the gas and helps to ripen the bananas quickly. Place the bag on the counter for 24 hours. Placing the bag near a heat source or in direct sunlight will expedite the process even more.
- Oven Method: If your bananas are already yellow but not browned, you can speed up the process. Place bananas on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake at 300°F for 30 minutes or until softened and blackened on the outside. Let them cool before handling.
- Saving Ripe Bananas: If you have overripe bananas and aren’t ready to bake with them, don’t throw them away! Peel them and place them in a freezer bag, 2-3 to a bag, and pop them into the freezer to use in the future. Let them thaw to room temperature, and they’ll be perfect for your next batch of Banana Bread.
Common Questions
Absolutely! You can make a double batch and bake in 2 separate pans. They may need a slightly longer bake time if baking two so test both with a toothpick to ensure doneness.
The key is to have the perfect ratio of mashed bananas to flour. Watch my How to Measure Ingredients video tutorial to be sure you are measuring correctly. Too much flour and your bread will be dry, too little flour and your bread will be mushy.
You can certainly use previously frozen bananas, but make sure you thaw them first so you can mash them into a smoother consistency for baking.
To Serve Chocolate Banana Bread
This bread has such a moist crumb and the chocolate chips add wonderful creamy texture to the inside, and a chocolate chunk texture to the topping. We love that it can pass for breakfast bread or dessert. After baking, let the bread cool to room temperature before slicing. This ensures that the sugars have settled into the crumb and make it perfectly sweet.
Pour yourself a cup of coffee or tea and serve with:
- Fresh berries or sliced bananas
- Yogurt
- Vanilla ice cream (ok, maybe not for breakfast)
- Peanut butter
- Whipped Cream
How to Store Banana Bread
We love that this Chocolate Banana Bread stays moist for days. Bake your bread and let it cool completely before storing.
- To Refrigerate: Wrap it in plastic wrap, or place it in a Ziploc bag or airtight container, and store it at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- To Freeze: Tightly wrap your chocolate banana bread in plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn and freeze for up to 3 months. When you are ready to enjoy this tasty bread, unwrap it and let it sit on the counter at room temperature to thaw.
We hope that you will enjoy this recipe and all of the recipes included in Natasha’s Kitchen Cookbook. I am so excited to finally get to share more of the recipes that I love, with you.
More Banana Recipes
If you love this Chocolate Banana Bread, then you won’t want to miss these other delicious banana recipes. These are all tasty ways to use up leftover bananas.
- Banana Muffins
- Banana Pancakes
- Banana Pudding
- Strawberry Banana Smoothie
- Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas, mashed with a fork (about 1 3/4 cups)
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, or gluten-free flour
- 1/3 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Hershey’s
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided into 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9.25 x 5.25 x 2.75-inch loaf pan and line it with a sheet of parchment paper. There should be at least two inches of overhang on the sides to help you lift out the loaf once it’s done baking.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the lightly beaten eggs and mix just to combine. Mix in the bananas and vanilla until blended.
- In a second large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on medium-low speed until just incorporated. The batter will be a little lumpy, and that’s ok. Do not over mix or your loaf will be tough.
- Use a spatula to fold in 3⁄4 cup of the chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the remaining 1⁄4 cup of the chocolate chips over the top. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center, comes out clean.
- Let the banana bread rest in the pan for 10 minutes, then gently pull up on the parchment paper to transfer the loaf to a cooling rack. Serve the banana bread at room temperature or when it is slightly warm to the touch.
Nutrition Per Serving
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
This bread looks delicious! I’m going to make this bread today, but I noticed a note about adding Nutella. How much should I add and how?
Hi Amy, you would att in around the same time you would fold in the chocolate chips before baking. I hope that helps.
Hello,
Looking forward to making Banana Bread and Chocolate Chip Banana Bread. How long would you bake the bread in mini loaf pan?
I haven’t tried that to advise of the exact timing.
Just make this up this morning & let me tell you, it is absolutely delicious!
Needed to use up some bananas & happened to stumble across this recipe & I’m so very glad I did. It’s is a keeper!
Thank you very much for sharing this with us, Natasha!
You’re very welcome, Jackie! I’m glad it was enjoyed.
Made your recipe Natasha. I’m addicted. It is delicious.
Thank you for your recipes. ❤️
Hi Dianne! I’m so glad you loved the recipe.
Received your cookbook & just Love it!!
I was wondering if I can use salted butter instead of unsalted in your recipes ?
You are awasome!!
Hi Doris! That’s great. We prefer to use unsalted because we can control the salt level. If you use salted, you need to omit the remainder of the salt the recipe asks for.
Hi Natasha! If I wanted to make them into muffins, would the amount of time be the same? Thanks in advance!
Hi Amber! You can reference the Banana muffin recipe for instructions on that.
This recipe is the best, and easy to follow too! My family absolutely loves it! Thank you, Natasha 🙂
Thanks so much for this great review, Eleana!
Another delicious recipe Natasha! I panicked because I moved recently and misplaced my loaf pan. But I improvised with a corningware dish and it worked perfectly! I did add walnuts and I might lighten up on the sugar next time for my personal preference but I am definitely making this again!
Hi Kim! I’m so glad you loved the recipe.
Thank you for providing us with the ingredients measured “grams.” It is so helpful. Many times I use 4 bananas if they are small, or 2 bananas if they are large. Is it possible to share a measurement for. the bananas?
I’m so happy that was helpful, Monica! Mashed with a fork its about 1 3/4 cups of banana.
It’s excellent! Keeps nice for a few days. Doesn’t need butter or cream cheese, can have as breakfast or dessert 😋
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Valeria!
Just received my cookbook yesterday. Today I made the Chocolate Banana Bread. It was wonderful! We had it for dessert tonight. Next time I will probably try it with nuts.
On a side note: ever since I ordered your cookbook, I have frantically been writing down your recipes. It’s kind of difficult for me because I had a stroke 10 years ago and it took my short-term memory and my handwriting has diminished. I was a professional baker/cake decorator for 50 years. Your recipes are not only delicious they are easy to make. Many thanks and prayers for you. I am so happy for this book!
Hello Deanna, I’m happy that you got your cookbook and that you’re already enjoying the recipe. Thanks a lot for sharing and I hope you’ll enjoy all of the recipes that you will try.
I made this and it didn’t last long in the tin. My family loved it!
So glad to hear that it was enjoyed!
Just made this recipe today, and it turned out perfect! Which is very rare for me when it comes to banana bread.
Thanks so much for the fab recipe. Going to refer to this whenever I need the perfect banana bread fix.
That’s wonderful, Carol! So glad to hear that.
Hi Natacha,
I’m wondering how much you mix the batter. When it came out of the oven it smelled amazing, but when I ate a slice, I was getting huge bites of banana, and then a bite with probably all the salt in the recipe, and then a huge bite of cocoa powder, etc.
I saw in the recipe it said not to over mix. 🤔
Hi Madeline. If you are sitting your dry ingredients together beforehand (see step 3), they should already be blended so you are not getting bites of cocoa powder, salt, etc. Don’t skip this step or it will be hard to get them evenly mixed together without over mixing your batter.
Watch my process in the video to see what my batter looks like after mixing. You may try smashing the bananas down really well too so they are not too chunky. I hope that helps.
I just did the oven method for my bananas at 300 for 30 min
They are cooling off but they look way more squishy and like soggy then yours
Is it still ok to use them or should I redo it at 20-25 min baking
Hi Lily! If they taste ok you should be fine to use them still.
I went ahead and made the bread. It came out so delicious
Thank you for another great recipe.
You’re so welcome. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you!
I made three changes
Halved the sugar and used brown, used 1/2 cup unsweetened organic applesauce instead of the butter and added coconut. It came out decadent!!
Plan to add chopped nuts next time. Thanks again.
Hi Laura, thank you for sharing. Nice to know that you enjoyed this recipe!
Hi Natasha,
I am pretty good at making banana bread, because my whole family loves it. I just want to Thank You for making me a Great Banana Bread Cook:) This Chocolate Banana Bread is out of this world, Thank You So Much-In My Book You Are Truly The Best!!!!
This is my New Banana Bread which I’m sure I’ll be making lots of time:)
Aw, thank you so much, Melinda! I’m so glad this recipe was a hit too!
Simply delicious! I used less sugar than called for and we all loved it. Thank you.
That’s wonderful, Nev!
Hi dear Natasha
Would you please tell me how your chocolate on the top of cake not burning 🔥 all that time?? It’s to much time, always did that but it’s burning 🥲🥲
I don’t have that issue. I would check to make sure your cake is not too close to the top heating element in the oven. It can burn if it’s too close or if your oven runs too hot. I use an In oven thermometer (affiliate link) to ensure my oven is the right temperature.
the recipe looks really tasty, my kids love banana bread. but quick question, do you have anything for this recipe with no eggs, anything we can substitute?
Hi! I’m sorry, I have not tested any egg substitutes to advise.
I have used soy flour in place of eggs with good results. Look online for substitution ratios.
Hi, in your chocolate banana bread recipe…is that 1/2 cup plus 8 tablespoons of butter.
It sounds very good …I want to make them.
Hi Elaine. Thanks for pointing that out. It’s 1/2 cup (which is 8 TBSP).
Hi Natasha! Love your recipes and videos :)) so easy to follow and delicious!
About this recipe, may I substitute the butter for oil? Is it 1:1?
Many thanks!
Christine (from Montreal) 🙂
Hi Christine! I haven’t tested it with oil. We prefer butter because it adds better flavor but I think it would be fine. It can affect the texture a bit.
Very soft, moist, and delicious. I opted for half the sugar, as the chocolate chips add sweetness along with the banana and it was perfect.
That’s great, Anna! I’m so glad you loved it.
I love that you added that you can use gluten free flour. Can’t wait to try this, looks so good
I hope you love the recipe!
Would love to make these in giant cupcake pans. Would you be able to tell me how long to bake them.
Hi Pamela! I have not tested it but you can reference my banana muffins recipe to get an idea of how to adjust the time. It will likely require a few more minutes if you are using jumbo-size pans.
Turned out great and delicious! Enjoyed every slice. A must-bake treat!
I’m so glad you loved it, Leah!
How can I avoid to have the chocolate chips going to the bottom of the loaf pan?
Hi Rosy! This batter is thicker and they shouldn’t sink to the bottom. You can also toss them in a little bit of flour to help.
Wow, the best recipe for the chocolate lovers in the fam! I used my old bananas and cacao powder, and it turned out perfectly.
Hi Erin! I’m so glad to hear it was a hit!
I love a good chocolate banana bread recipe and this was just phenomenal! Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe
You’re so welcome, Jess! I’m so happy you loved this recipe!