3 Ingredient Banana Muffins (Plus How to Make Ripe Bananas in the Air Fryer)
Sometimes a good banana muffin recipe can be hard to find, but let me tell you, this is the only one you will need from now on. This 3 ingredient banana muffins recipe is perfect; you don’t have to measure anything and can use up your ripe bananas.
However, if you are craving banana muffins or bread and don’t have ripe bananas, don’t worry, we have you covered! There are also easy instructions on how to ripen your bananas in the air fryer in less than 10 minutes.
Ingredients and Supplies Needed
Ingredients:
- Very ripe bananas
- Yellow cake mix
- Large eggs
Supplies:
- Air fryer
- Large mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon
- Muffin liners
Since for this recipe you are using the air fryer, I would definitely suggest taking a look at the Cosori 5.8QT air fryer if you don’t already have one they are great! You can also use silicone muffin cups instead of paper for this recipe too plus they are super cute and reusable!
Make Easy Changes
You can leave these delicious muffins as is, or you can jazz them up even more. While I would suggest sticking with the 3 core ingredients, but you can add other ingredients to them!
- Chocolate chips
- Peanut butter chips
- Butterscotch chips
- Chopped walnuts
- Caramel bits
- Ground cinnamon
Why Do the Bananas Need to Be Very Ripe?
When you work with super ripe bananas, they break down a lot easier and will mix perfectly into the cake mix to make sure that you will get that wonderful banana flavor in every bit!
Plus, you really don’t want to take a bit and get a chunk of baked banana that did not get mixed in well enough into the dough.
Are the Eggs Necessary?
The eggs provide a lot of added flavor to this banana muffin recipe as well as turn this recipe into a wonderfully moist muffin. So yes, I would definitely say that eggs play a vital role in this banana muffin recipe and would not try to skip them.
How to Make Ripe Bananas in the Air Fryer:
Step 1: Place the bananas in the air fryer basket
Step 2: Turn the air fryer on to 300F or 150C for 8 minutes (more or less depending on the ripeness of your bananas so be sure to keep an eye on them).
Step 3: Let the bananas cool down completely.
How to Make Banana Muffins in the Air Fryer:
Step 1: Make up the Banana Muffin Mix
Start by mashing up the bananas and try to measure out about 1 ½ cups of the mashed bananas.
Then place the mashed bananas, cake mix, and eggs in a large bowl and mix it all together.
After the batter is made up, place a few liners in the air fryer basket and carefully scoop the batter into them, filling them about ⅔ of the way full.
Step 2: Bake the Muffins
Once the muffin liners have been filled, return the air fryer basket to the air fryer, and then turn it on to 330F or 165C for 10-13 minutes or until the internal temperature of the muffins are 200F or 93C.
You can fit about 10-12 muffins (quite snuggly) in the air fryer but they won’t be a perfect round muffin (if that is important I would fill the air fryer less and do multiple baking times).
After about 10 minutes the muffins on the outside were more done so I remove those and let the rest continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes. Just keep an eye on them since you won’t want dry muffins.
Then just carefully remove the muffins and enjoy!
Optional: Make Banana Bread in the Air Fryer
If you want to turn these muffins into traditional banana bread, then with the batter use a small loaf pan (find one that will fit in your air fryer about 7 in by 3.5 in) and fill the pan about ⅔ full.
Then place the pan in the air fryer at 330F or 165C and let it cook for 15 minutes. It will probably need more time than that.
If you are worried about the top burning, cover the bread with some foil and cook for 4-5 minutes at 350F or 175C, or until the bread reaches an internal temperature of 200F or 93C. Then just let it cool for 10 minutes before removing it from the pan and letting it cool completely.
Use Your Air Fryer to Bake More!
The air fryer is such a great invention! The things you can make and bake in it are probably endless.
A Few Favorites to Bake in the Air Fryer:
- Little Caesar’s Crazy Bread Copycat Recipe
- The EASIEST 2 Ingredient Donuts in the Air Fryer!
- Quick and Easy Air Fryer Cake Donuts
- Fudgy and Perfect Air Fryer Brownies Recipe
Final Thoughts
I feel like banana muffins and bread are an all-year recipe that is great to have, especially if it can be made in the air fryer! Sometimes I will have the best of intentions to make banana bread but a recipe with lots of ingredients seems like too much work sometimes. But, now with this 3 ingredient recipe, making banana muffins is easier than ever!
Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth with Our Amazing Air Fryer Recipes!
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Air fryer tips and tricks
- Air Fryer 101
- Learn these common Air Fryer Mistakes!
- All about the Best and Worst Air Fryer Accessories
- How to Clean Your Air Fryer
- How to Cook Any Recipe in the Air Fryer
- FREE Download → Air Fryer Tips & Temps
- Air Fryer Buying Guide
Watch Fabulessly Frugal YouTube Channel for Air Fryer Recipes

3 Ingredient Banana Muffins (Plus How to Make Ripe Bananas in the Air Fryer)
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon
- Muffin liners
Ingredients
- 3-4 Very ripe bananas
- 1 Box Yellow cake mix
- 2 Large Eggs
Instructions
How to Make Ripe Bananas in the Air Fryer
- Place the bananas in the air fryer basket.
- Air fry at 300 °F or 8 minutes. (The time will vary depending on how ripe your bananas already are).
- Let cool completely before using.
Banana Muffins Recipe
- Mash the bananas. You will need 1 1/2 cup of ripe mashed bananas.
- Combine the mashed bananas with cake mix and the eggs in a bowl.
- Fill muffin liners with the mixture and cook at 330 °F for 10-13 minutes or until the internal temperature of the muffins reach 200 °F. I was able to put 12 muffin liners in the air fryer basket. It fits snuggly, so they aren't the cutest muffins. The outside muffins were done before the middle muffins, so to avoid burning I removed the outside muffins after 10 minutes, and continued cooking the middle muffins for 2-3 more minutes.
Optional: Banana Bread Recipe
- With the remaining batter, you can either make 12 more muffins or you can make banana bread! To make banana bread:
- Use a small loaf pan (about 7in by 3.5 n) that will fit in the air fryer basket. Fill the pan with the remaining batter.
- Cook at 330 °F for 15 minutes. Check the internal temperature, it is likely it will need more time. If you are worried about the top burning, cover the bread with some foil and cook for 4-5 minutes at 350 °F, or until the bread reaches an internal temperature of 200 °F. Let it cool for 10 minutes before removing it from the pan and letting it cool completely.
Nutrition
Recipe Adapted From: Taste of Home
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