A lighter Asian-style banana fritter that is less calorie-dense and still satisfies your sweet tooth.

The Chinese version of banana fritters, or more precisely, fried bananas, is a popular dessert that we splurge on once in a while. It is quite different from the American style banana fritters. Instead of mixing the banana with batter and creating a donut-like texture, this recipe coats the bananas with a thin batter and fries them until crispy. I really enjoy the Asian style fritters, because they are lighter and stay true to the taste of the bananas.

In this recipe, I used a blend of all-purpose flour and cornstarch. It creates a more crispy and crunchy texture than does 100% flour.

The recipe is quite easy to whip together. You simply need to mix the batter, coat the bananas, then deep fry them until golden and crispy. The finished fried bananas are super tender and sweet, with a crunchy coating, and not overly sweet. You can serve them with powdered sugar or some syrup. But most of the time I just snack on them because the bananas are sweet enough themselves.

This is my guilty little pleasure that I don’t cook so often, because I’d easily finish a whole batch by myself 🙂

I hope you enjoy it!

A lighter Asian-style banana fritter that is less calorie-dense and still satisfies your sweet tooth.

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A lighter Asian-style banana fritter that is less calorie-dense and still satisfies your sweet tooth.

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A lighter Asian-style banana fritter that is less calorie-dense and still satisfies your sweet tooth.

Chinese Banana Fritters (炸香蕉, fried banana)

By Maggie Zhu
4.80 from 5 votes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 4 to 6 servings
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A lighter Asian-style banana fritter that is less calorie-dense and still satisfies your sweet tooth.

Ingredients 

  • 4 to 5 big ripe bananas , cut into 1-inch chunks
  • Oil for deep frying
  • Powdered sugar (honey, or maple syrup to serve with)

Batter

  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons milk (or plant-based milk for a vegan dish)
  • 1 tablespoon butter , melted
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup water

Instructions

  • Combine all the ingredients for the batter in a big bowl. Stir to mix well. It should form a runny batter similar in consistency to a pancake batter.
  • Heat 1 inch of oil in a small deep pot over medium-high heat until hot. Test the oil by inserting a wooden chopstick. If the oil sizzles and you can see small bubbles rising rapidly on the chopstick, the oil is ready.
  • Line a large plate or baking sheet with a cooling rack. Add the chopped bananas into the batter, a few pieces at a time, and coat well. Gently transfer the bananas into the oil. Fry until all sides turn golden brown. Transfer onto the cooling rack to drain the extra oil. Fry all the bananas this way in batches.
  • Wait until the bananas cool down slightly. They will continue to crisp.
  • Serve hot with powdered sugar, honey, or maple syrup.

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutrition

Serving: 6g, Calories: 196kcal, Carbohydrates: 37.9g, Protein: 2.2g, Fat: 4.7g, Saturated Fat: 1.7g, Cholesterol: 6mg, Sodium: 18mg, Potassium: 297mg, Fiber: 2.4g, Sugar: 11.9g, Calcium: 10mg, Iron: 0.7mg

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A lighter Asian-style banana fritter that is less calorie-dense and still satisfies your sweet tooth. {Vegan Adaptable}