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Home » Recipes » Dessert

Vietnamese Coconut Banana Bread Pudding (Bánh Chuối Nướng)

Published: Jun 25, 2020 · Modified: Jul 5, 2020 by Suzanne Nuyen · This post may contain affiliate links · 12 Comments

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Half a loaf of banana bread with three slices of banana bread placed above it on a round white plate

Banana bread has always been a classic way to use up your overly ripe bananas. I love a good banana bread myself, but I can never resist a slice of this Vietnamese banana coconut bread pudding. It's called bánh chuối nướng, which translates to banana cake, but I'm calling it a bread pudding because of the way it's made. Nướng means it is baked, differentiating it from a similar steamed cake. This baked bread pudding is made with chunks of bread soaked in a coconut milk custard. Chunks of banana are layered into the bread mix before baking.

Thai bananas for Bánh Chuối Nướng

I like to use Thai bananas for this dish because they hold their shape better in the bread pudding mix and they tend to turn a beautiful purple color once cooked. Thai bananas are shorter and fatter than the regular bananas you'd see at the grocery store, I find them often at Asian grocery stores. If you don't have access to Asian groceries, this cake will still work with regular bananas. You will want to treat them more gently when mixing things around and you might not get the coloring you want once the bread pudding is cooked.

A close up shot of half a loaf of banana bread pudding with a slice of the banana bread placed to the right of it.

Vietnamese Coconut Banana Bread Pudding (Bánh Chuối Nướng): Step-by-step instructions

Peel the bananas and soak them in rum and sugar overnight. You can either soak them whole like this, split them in half or slice them into coins before soaking. I ended up slicing all of these in half before putting them in the fridge.

Mix coconut milk, whole milk, condensed milk, butter, an egg, salt and vanilla together to form the custard. Add the bananas with all of the liquid that has collected while they were marinating to the custard. Tear your bread up into small one inch chunks and soak them in the custard until they are completely saturated. I recommend using Italian bread. Find a bread that is more hardy than sandwich break but doesn't have a crust that is too rough. You don't want the bread to disintegrate in the custardbut you also don't want it to be too dry and hard.

Grease a loaf pan or an 8 inch round cake pan and begin to layer the bread and banana pieces into the pan. You can either randomly throw in the mixture with banana coins and bread pieces, or carefully layer bread pieces with banana halves, as shown in the photo. There's no rhyme or reason to it; just layer it in a way that you'll get a bit of banana and bread in every bite.

Add a layer of banana on top of the mixture before baking. I chose to lay banana halves over the loaf pan. Be creative with the shape and formation of the bananas.

Let the bread come to room temperature and chill before eating.

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4.65 from 37 votes

Vietnamese Coconut Banana Bread Pudding (Bánh Chuối Nướng)

Change up the way you use ripe bananas with this delicious coconut bread pudding. Rich gooey bread pudding with crispy caramelized edges make this a delicious snack.
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine Asian, Vietnamese
Keyword Baked, Bananas, Bread
Prep Time 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time 1 hour hour
Resting Time 8 hours hours 15 minutes minutes
Total Time 9 hours hours 25 minutes minutes
Servings 10 slices
Calories 612kcal

Ingredients

  • 10-15 Thai bananas (about 200-250 g)
  • 30 ml rum
  • 100 g granulated sugar
  • 1 loaf Italian bread or brioche, cut or torn into 1 inch pieces (about 300-350 g)
  • 1 13.6 oz can of coconut milk (about 400 ml)
  • 100 ml whole milk
  • 200 ml sweetened condensed milk
  • 50 g butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • Peel the bananas. Keep the bananas whole, cut in half lengthwise or cut into coins. Marinate them in sugar and rum for at least 8 hours or overnight.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
  • Mix coconut milk, whole milk, sweetened condensed milk,butter, egg, vanilla and salt together in a large bowl
  • Add the bananas with all of their liquid and the bread chunks to the custard mix. Let the mixture sit for 13-20 minutes so the bread can soak up all of the liquid
  • Grease a loaf pan or 8 inch cake round and add the bread and banana mixture. You can layer the bread pieces and banana pieces for a better look once the slices are cut
  • Arrange banana pieces on top of the bread mixture and bake for 60-70 minutes until the bananas and bread on the surface are a deep golden color. If any pieces start to burn, cover the surface with aluminum foil.

Notes

  • You can use regular bananas for this but don't let them get too ripe because they will lose all of their shape. Regular bananas may not give you the same purple color once cooked. 
  • Use a bread that will hold it's shape but isn't too tough to absorb most the liquid

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 612kcal | Carbohydrates: 68.4g | Protein: 17.7g | Fat: 30.5g | Saturated Fat: 19.16g | Cholesterol: 80mg | Sodium: 503mg | Potassium: 671mg | Fiber: 1.83g | Sugar: 39.26g
Nutrition Facts
Vietnamese Coconut Banana Bread Pudding (Bánh Chuối Nướng)
Amount Per Serving (1 slice)
Calories 612 Calories from Fat 275
% Daily Value*
Fat 30.5g47%
Saturated Fat 19.16g120%
Cholesterol 80mg27%
Sodium 503mg22%
Potassium 671mg19%
Carbohydrates 68.4g23%
Fiber 1.83g8%
Sugar 39.26g44%
Protein 17.7g35%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.


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Comments

  1. Daisy says

    January 17, 2025 at 12:14 pm

    Do u have to add rum? Does it make a big taste difference?

    Reply
    • Suzanne Nuyen says

      February 17, 2025 at 1:08 pm

      The rum will help the bananas turn into the pretty purple color you see when baking, but can easily be omitted.

      Reply
  2. Anonymous says

    October 17, 2024 at 7:35 pm

    Why so little egg?

    Reply
    • Suzanne Nuyen says

      January 12, 2025 at 12:16 pm

      I find that I don't need that much egg in this recipe for the pudding to come together.

      Reply
  3. Alex says

    May 18, 2024 at 11:27 pm

    5 stars
    I made this today with some minor substitutions to make it vegan (oat milk, vegan butter, sweetened condensed coconut milk, JUST Egg). It turned out fantastic! The reddish purple color of the cooked Thai bananas was especially delightful. Thanks for sharing this recipe!

    Reply
    • Suzanne Nuyen says

      September 17, 2024 at 6:06 pm

      So glad you enjoyed it Alex! The beautiful purple color of the bananas is one of my favorite things about this recipe.

      Reply
  4. Kim says

    June 13, 2023 at 9:30 am

    Hi, would like to sub Thai banana for Americans banana! Cuz it’s it easy access for us and trying to use up leftover as well! How many grams for it?

    Reply
    • Suzanne Nuyen says

      June 24, 2023 at 10:40 am

      I would use half as many regular bananas as Thai bananas!

      Reply
  5. Anonymous says

    January 10, 2023 at 3:43 pm

    can you use regular sliced bread?

    Reply
    • Suzanne Nuyen says

      January 29, 2023 at 4:26 pm

      Yes, regular sliced bread is great! You may need a little less liquid, depending on how stale your bread is.

      Reply
  6. nuong says

    October 16, 2021 at 5:05 pm

    hi! how many days does this keep for and can i make it in advance?

    Reply
    • Suzanne Nuyen says

      December 30, 2021 at 1:49 am

      Hi! This can be made well in advance and will keep in the fridge for up to two weeks.

      Reply
4.65 from 37 votes (36 ratings without comment)

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Hi! I'm Suzanne, your Bun Bo Bae. I'm a journalist, professional amateur baker, noodle enthusiast and food photographer living in Washington, DC. My immigrant parents taught me everything I know about Vietnamese home cooking, and now I want to share it with you!

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