These Filipino Banana Fritters, locally known as Maruya, are a staple in Filipino street food culture. Slices of saba bananas are coated in a light, crispy batter made with rice flour. This delicious snack combines the sweetness of bananas with a slightly crunchy exterior, ready in under 30 minutes!
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Ingredients you'll need
Notes and substitutions
- Saba Bananas: Choose ripe saba bananas-the riper the banana, the sweet and more tender your fritters will be. If fresh ones are unavailable, frozen ones make a great alternative. You can also use ripe plantains, burro bananas, or Thai bananas.
- Rice Flour: A gluten-free flour that provides a light, crispy texture. Don't confuse it with glutinous rice flour, which has different properties. You can use cornstarch, potato starch, or all-purpose flour as alternatives.
- Baking Powder: This leavening agent adds crispness to the batter by creating tiny gas bubbles, making the fritters light and airy. If unavailable, feel free to skip it.
- Sugar: You can use granulated or brown sugar. Feel free to adjust the sweetness depending on your taste or on the natural sweetness of the bananas you're using.
- Oil: Choose a high-temperature neutral oil, like vegetable, canola, peanut, or avocado oil. These oils have high smoke points, perfect for frying.
How to make this recipe
Step 1: Slice the bananas
Slice each banana lengthwise into two or three equal pieces, depending on your preference for thickness.
Step 2: Skewer the bananas
Thread these pieces onto a bamboo skewer, making sure they are tightly aligned. Alternatively, you can skip the skewers altogether and simply fry each piece individually.
Step 3: Make the batter
In a mixing bowl, combine rice flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Start by adding ½ cup of water and mix until smooth. Continue adding water until you achieve a consistency slightly thinner than that of pancake batter.
Step 4: Dip the bananas
Dip the skewered bananas into the batter, making sure each piece is well-coated. Use a wide bowl that can comfortably fit the bananas.
Step 5: Prepare the oil
Set your skillet over medium-high heat. Add enough oil to fully submerge the bananas.
To check if the oil is hot enough, you can insert a wooden chopstick or spoon into the oil; if bubbles form around it, the oil is ready. Carefully place the skewered bananas in it.
Step 6: Fry until golden brown
Fry each side for approximately 3-5 minutes or until they achieve a beautiful golden brown color.
Step 7: Drain excess oil
Remove the fritters from the oil and drain them on a wire rack or paper towel.
Enjoy your Banana Fritters while they're warm and crunchy. For an extra touch of sweetness, a dusting of granulated or powdered sugar is optional.
Recipe FAQs
Saba bananas are perfect for this recipe as they keep their shape and texture beautifully during frying. If you're using regular Cavendish bananas, just be aware they might turn a bit softer and mushier when cooked.
Banana Fritters are best enjoyed fresh to maintain their warm, crunchy texture. However, if you need to make them ahead, you can reheat them in an air-fryer or oven set to 350°F (175°C) for about 5 minutes to regain some of their crispness.
Try these popular Filipino street foods
- Taho: A warm, sweet treat made with soft tofu, arnibal (bown sugar syrup), and sago pearls.
- Banana Cue: Deep-fried saba bananas coated in caramelized brown sugar and skewered on bamboo sticks.
- Turon: Saba bananas and jackfruit (langka) wrapped in lumpia wrappers, then fried until crispy and caramelized. Ube Turon is a variation filled with Ube Halaya.
- Siomai: Steamed dumplings filled with a mixture of ground pork, shrimp, and aromatics, often served with soy sauce, calamansi, and chili garlic oil.
- Adobong Mani: Salted peanuts fried with garlic and sometimes spiced with chili.
Other merienda recipes you may like
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📖 Recipe
Filipino Banana Fritters
Equipment
- Wok or Skillet
- Wide bowl (for dipping bananas)
- Bamboo skewers (optional)
Ingredients
- 6 ripe saba bananas (see note)
- 1 cup rice flour (see note)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder (see note)
- Salt a pinch
- ¼ cup sugar (see note)
- ¾ cup water adjust as needed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Oil for frying (see note)
Instructions
- Prepare the Bananas: Slice each banana lengthwise into two or three equal pieces, depending on your preference for thickness. Thread these pieces onto a bamboo skewer, making sure they are tightly aligned. Alternatively, you can skip the skewers altogether and simply fry each piece individually.
- Make the Batter: In a mixing bowl, combine rice flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Start by adding ½ cup of water and mix until smooth. Continue adding water until you achieve a consistency slightly thinner than that of pancake batter.
- Dip the Bananas: Dip the skewered bananas into the batter, making sure each piece is well-coated. Use a wide bowl that can comfortably fit the bananas.
- Fry the Fritters: Set your skillet over medium-high heat. Add enough oil to fully submerge the bananas. To check if the oil is hot enough, you can insert a wooden chopstick or spoon into the oil; if bubbles form around it, the oil is ready.Carefully place the skewered bananas in it. Fry each side for approximately 3-5 minutes or until they achieve a beautiful golden brown color.
- Drain: Remove the fritters from the oil and drain them on a wire rack or paper towel.Enjoy your Banana Fritters while they're warm and crunchy. For an extra touch of sweetness, a dusting of granulated or powdered sugar is optional.
Notes
- Saba Bananas: Choose ripe saba bananas-the riper the banana, the sweet and more tender your fritters will be. If fresh ones are unavailable, frozen ones make a great alternative. You can also use ripe plantains, burro bananas, or Thai bananas.
- Rice Flour: A gluten-free flour that provides a light, crispy texture. Don't confuse it with glutinous rice flour, which has different properties. You can use cornstarch, potato starch, or all-purpose flour as alternatives.
- Baking Powder: This leavening agent adds crispness to the batter by creating tiny gas bubbles, making the fritters light and airy. If unavailable, feel free to skip it.
- Sugar: You can use granulated or brown sugar. Feel free to adjust the sweetness depending on your taste or on the natural sweetness of the bananas you're using.
- Oil: Choose a high-temperature neutral oil, like vegetable, canola, peanut, or avocado oil. These oils have high smoke points, perfect for frying.
Marissa says
Hahhaha you read my mind!!! Love love love these!!!!!!
Nora Rey says
Haha, great minds think alike, right? I'm so glad to hear you love maruya as much as I do! There's something about those fried banana fritters that just hits the spot. 🍌💛