What Goes With Banana? 24 Best Flavour Pairings

Banana goes best with warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, rich partners like chocolate and peanut butter, and creamy or toasty friends like yogurt, vanilla and oats. Its soft sweetness loves a little bitterness, salt or tang to keep it from tasting flat.

Spices

• Cinnamon — warm spice that flatters banana's sweet, fruity aroma in bread and pancakes.
• Vanilla — creamy sweetness that rounds out banana's fruity esters.
• Nutmeg — a pinch adds warm depth to banana bread and custards.
• Cardamom — floral, citrusy cardamom makes banana desserts taste brighter.
• Ginger — a little zing to lift sweet banana in smoothies and cakes.

Sweet Things

• Cocoa — banana softens chocolate's bitterness; a dessert hall-of-famer.
• Honey — floral sweetness for banana on toast or in yogurt bowls.
• Maple syrup — woody, caramel notes over banana pancakes.
• Brown sugar — caramelised banana in a pan with brown sugar is pure bananas Foster magic.
• Coffee — bitter roast notes balance banana in cakes, breads and shakes.

Nuts & Seeds

• Peanut — salty, roasted peanut and soft banana are a lunchbox legend.
• Walnut — tannic, slightly bitter walnut balances banana's sweetness in baked goods.
• Pecan — buttery crunch for banana bread and caramel desserts.
• Almond — almond butter or flaked almonds add nutty richness.
• Hazelnut — banana and chocolate-hazelnut spread on toast or crêpes.

Dairy & Creamy Things

• Yogurt — yogurt's tang cuts banana's sweetness and lightens breakfasts.
• Cream — whipped cream and banana make banoffee pie and banana splits.
• Milk — blend for the simplest, creamiest banana shake.
• Coconut milk — tropical richness for banana curries, puddings and smoothies.

Grains & Starches

• Oats — mashed banana sweetens and binds oats, which add toasty chew.
• Bread — toast with peanut butter and banana slices is a perfect quick breakfast.

Fruit

• Strawberry — the classic smoothie duo; tart berries lift mellow banana.
• Mango — tropical friends that blend into smooth, sunny smoothies.
• Lime — a squeeze stops banana browning and brightens fruit salads.

Classic combos

• Banana + peanut butter + honey — the sandwich, the smoothie, the snack.
• Banana + chocolate + walnut — the best banana bread mix-ins.
• Banana + caramel + cream — the heart of banoffee pie.
• Banana + brown sugar + cinnamon + butter — sizzled together for bananas Foster.
• Banana + oats + yogurt — the breakfast bowl that keeps you full.

Pairings to avoid

• Anchovy — salty, funky anchovy and gentle sweet banana flatten each other.
• Kimchi — sour, garlicky kimchi and sweet banana have nothing in common.
• Za'atar and nutritional yeast — herby or cheesy savoury seasonings clash with banana's dessert-like sweetness.
• Bacon — salty bacon with banana is a fun diner novelty, but it divides people; try it before serving to a crowd.