Banana fritters are a Caribbean staple food. Whenever you have extra ripe bananas, you have to make these fried Caribbean banana fritters, they are perfect.
Recipe video:
Every single time my grandmother would make fried Caribbean banana fritters, my face would light up. They always fill not only my stomach but my heart. Fritters are a Caribbean delicacy, you must try these fried deliciousness.
I love fritters because of the taste obviously, but also because you can enjoy them as a snack or breakfast dish. When they are fresh out the pan, I enjoy them as a snack. However the next day, I enjoy them cold out of the fridge with a nice warm cup of bush tea(Caribbean way to say herbal tea).
These fritters are not intimidating at all. You can whip up the batter in less than ten minutes and fry them immediately. Unlike other fried delicacies, like beignets for example, the batter doesn’t need to rest. And the best part is that you only need a handful of ingredients to make these.
Before I get into the recipe, I thought I should share some tips & tricks with guys first:
TIPS & TRICKS:
- Oil: Traditionally, vegetable oil is used to fry the fritters. However, I’ve used coconut oil to do the frying and they came out the same. Now if you have no problem using vegetable oil or canola oil or whatever, then go ahead. But if you are on a healthier journey, like myself, then you can use coconut oil. Just note that if you are using coconut oil then you will have a different taste, nothing too strong tho.
- Banana or other: Banana is the main ingredient but you can also use other ingredients. When I was younger, during the fall season or whenever pumpkins were in season she would use them. So, pumpkin fritters are also amazing.
- Spices: These make the fritters come to life so do not skip them. I keep mines fairly simple and Caribbean, I used nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, vanilla extract and of course almond essence/extract.
- Milk or no milk: For years, I have tried to recreate my grandmother’s recipe and I failed, still haven’t gotten it down. However, I’ve come pretty close to it. The key to a bomb banana fritters is the milk, I’ve found that when I use milk they come out the best. I’m not opposed to using water but the milk is best.
I hope you enjoy the recipe.
Now, let’s get into it.
Fried Caribbean Banana Fritters
Ingredients
- 2 ripe Bananas
- 1 Egg at room temperature
- 2 cups All-purpose flour sifted
- 1/2 cup Whole milk at room temperature
- 1/2 cup Brown sugar
- 1/4 cup Coconut oil or Vegetable oil
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp Ground allspice
- 1/4 tsp Almond essence
Instructions
Wet ingredients:
- In a medium mixing bowl, mash the bananas until they have become a banana purée.
- Stir in the egg, brown sugar, vanilla extract and almond essence/extract.
- Mix all the ingredients together then set aside.
Dry ingredients:
- In another mixing bowl, mix together the flour, salt and spices.
Combining both:
- Once all the dry ingredients are mixed together, gradually incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients alternating between the milk.
- Stir everything together perfectly.
Cooking the fritters:
- In a medium size skillet/frying pan over medium heat, warm the oil.
- Once the oil is warm, pour about 1/4 cup of the batter into the pan each time.
- Cook the fritters on each side for 4-6 minutes or until the sides are golden brown.
- Squeeze down the fritters to ensure that the inside isn't runny and is cooked. If there is some batter that comes out runny and the outside is golden brown then turn down your heat.
Other banana recipes you may enjoy: