Bananas Foster Recipe: How to Make Banana Foster Sauce
Written by MasterClass
Last updated: Sep 22, 2024 • 2 min read
Make bananas Foster as a Valentine’s Day dessert, a Sunday brunch, or any time you need something to satisfy your sweet tooth.
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What Is Bananas Foster?
Bananas Foster is a dessert consisting of sliced bananas and Foster sauce—a caramel sauce with banana liqueur and dark rum that a server flambés tableside. The dessert traditionally comes with sweetened whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Alternatively, chefs flambé the dish before serving it alongside classic brunch dishes, such as waffles, French toast, crêpes, or banana bread.
While some wrongly believe the dish is a French dessert, bananas Foster originated in New Orleans. In the 1950s, around the dessert’s creation, New Orleans was one of the main import areas for bananas from South America. The dessert might come from the New Orleans restaurant Brennan’s, an eatery by restaurateur Owen Brennan, or from one of Brennan’s earlier restaurants. Regardless, historians agree that chef Paul Blangé and Brennan’s wife, Ella, invented bananas Foster, rather than Brennan himself. Richard Foster, the chairman of the New Orleans Crime Commission at the time and a friend of Brennan’s, was the dessert’s namesake.
3 Alcohols to Use in Bananas Foster
Cooks typically use banana liqueur and dark rum in bananas Foster recipes, but you can try a few additional options for a twist on the classic recipe.
- 1. Amaretto: The almond flavor in amaretto complements the sweet bananas and caramel sauce. Amaretto is a darker liqueur, similar to the dark rum in the traditional recipe, so the color of the overall dish remains almost the same.
- 2. Bourbon: Ranging in flavor from sweet to bitter to woody, bourbon adds depth to the caramel sauce. As a result of the flambéing, the alcohol burns off, leaving your dish with subtle notes of flavor.
- 3. Orange liqueur: Bananas and citrus pair nicely, especially when the flavors are mild. Orange also pairs well with caramel, so it’s a good substitute for a banana liqueur from the traditional recipe.
Bananas Foster Recipe
makes
prep time
5 mintotal time
15 mincook time
10 minIngredients
- 1
Remove the peels from each banana and remove any errant strings from the inside of the peel that remain on the flesh of the banana.
- 2
With a sharp knife, first cut each banana in half crosswise, then cut each section in half lengthwise, ending up with four total pieces.
- 3
In a large skillet on the stovetop over medium heat, melt the butter. Once the butter melts, add the brown sugar and cinnamon, stirring to moisten the sugar so it looks like wet sand.
- 4
Stir the butter and sugar mixture constantly until the sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes.
- 5
Turn the stove down to low heat and add the bananas to the sauce, cut sides down, and sauté the bananas until they soften, about 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
- 6
Turn the heat off once the bananas soften. Add the banana liqueur and the dark rum. Then, using caution, light a long match and set the whole mixture on fire. Allow the alcohol to cook off—the flames will die down as it does.
- 7
Sprinkle a pinch of coarse sea salt over the bananas Foster and serve the buttery dessert with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, or make bananas Foster French toast.
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