Chocolate chip banana chai muffins are one of the best ways to use overripe bananas. They’re tall, fluffy and full of cozy chai spices and chocolate chips.

The Best Chai Banana Muffins

In today’s episode of ‘what to do with bananas you forgot to eat’, I present to you these chai chocolate chip banana muffins. They’re like the classic chocolate chip banana muffins you know and love, but packed with chai flavor. The best part is that they’re great not just for breakfast but for any time of day! I’m team normalizing making muffins a midnight snack (cereal already got there so muffins next right?).

Why you’ll love these banana muffins:

• They’re easy to make, using only two mixing bowls.
• Making these banana muffins is a great use for overripe bananas.
• They’re extra tall and fluffy with domed muffin tops.
• Muffins are full of chai spices like cinnamon and cardamom and filled with mini chocolate chips for a little bit of chocolate in every bite. They’re cozy, warm and delicious.

How to Make Chai Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

Ingredients

• Overripe bananas: you’ll get the best flavor from bananas that are super dark and pretty much fall right out of the peel when you pick them up by the stem.
• Mini chocolate chips: I prefer mini chocolate chips in this recipe because it gives the most even distribution of chocolate, so that the chocolate pairs with but does not overpower each bite. Standard size chocolate chips or chopped chocolate work as well though in this recipe.
• Sour cream or Greek yogurt: I’ve made these muffins with both and either will work well in this muffin recipe. Just make sure if you’re using yogurt, it is plain and unsweetened.
• Unsalted butter and vegetable oil: this recipe uses both butter and oil as fats—oil makes the muffins fluffy while butter gives them a nice flavor.
• An egg, at room temperature: to quickly warm up the egg, soak it in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes.
• All-purpose flour: for the best results, I highly recommend using a scale to measure flour. If you do not have a scale, then use the spoon and level method. You can substitute half of the flour for whole wheat flour to make these banana muffins a little heartier.
• Sugar and brown sugar
• Baking soda and baking powder: lots of baking soda and baking powder help give these muffins
  those domed tops.
• Spices: since this is a chai banana muffin after all, you’ll need lots of spices including ground cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, and little salt.

Making the Muffins

There are five key steps to making these chocolate chip chai banana muffins: mix wet ingredients, mix dry ingredients, combine, rest, and lastly bake. It really is that simple! One of the most important steps is to make sure that you give the batter time to rest and thicken up, but more on that in a moment.

Step 1: Mix wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, mash up the bananas until there are no more large
chunks. Then add in melted butter, oil, yogurt, egg, and vanilla extract and whisk it all until it’s smooth.
Step 2: Mix dry ingredients. In a separate, larger bowl, whisk together all the other ingredients until they are well distributed.
Step 3: Combine. Dump the wet ingredients into the dry ones and fold them together until all of the
flour is just moistened. Do not over-mix here as that is what leads to gummy muffins. We’re looking for tall and fluffy, not dense and chewy here!
Step 4: Rest the batter. Cover up that batter and stick in the fridge for at least an hour, or even
overnight. I know it’s a pain to wait, but this is how you’re going to get extra moist and tall muffins. As the batter rests, starches in the flour absorb liquid, which causes them to swell and create a thicker batter. In addition, any gluten that formed in the mixing process has a chance to relax. I like to make the batter right before bed, then bake the muffins first thing in the morning!
Step 5: Bake! Line every other cup in the pan to give the muffins room to grow, then fill them up all the way and sprinkle some sugar on top. Bake the muffins first on very high heat (425°F) for five minutes to puff them up, and then lower the temperature to 350°F to finish baking.

The Best Bananas for Muffins

Using the right bananas is critical to making sure that your banana muffins taste as flavorful as possible (surprise, surprise lol). The general rule of thumb is that the more spotty, dark, and gross-looking the bananas are, the better they will be. If the bananas are completely black, then great!

The only thing you need to watch out for is any off-putting smells or mold. If the bananas smell like they’re fermenting and look like they’re leaking any mushy substances, then trust your gut and don’t use them. All in all, if you see mold or the bananas smell like they’re sour or a step away from becoming alcoholic just throw them out or compost!

How to Store Leftover Banana Muffins

You can store leftover muffins that you’re planning on eating right away on the counter for up to 3 days. Keep them in an airtight container lined with paper towels. Since muffins give off moisture, lining the container with paper towels will help absorb this excess moisture and prevent the muffins from getting soggy.

To freeze banana muffins, tightly wrap them individually in foil, making sure that there are no air pockets, and then keep them in a zip-loc bag. You can also re-use the zip-loc bag to freeze your next batch of muffins (may I recommend these pumpkin spice muffins next?). The frozen banana muffins will last for up to 3 months, but toss them out if they’re freezer burnt.

Did You Make This Recipe?

If so, I’d love to hear from you! Please leave a rating and/or comment to spread the love and help others find this recipe.

Also feel free take a picture and share it with me on  Instagram @toppedwithhoney. Looking forward to seeing your floofy af chocolate chip banana chai muffins!

If you’re not ready to bake yet, no problem! Simply hover over any image in this post (pick your favorite), or tap if you’re on mobile, and click the pin icon in the corner to save for later.

More Banana Fun

Still have more overripe bananas? Go ~bananas~ for these other recipes!

Maple Bourbon Banana Coffee Cake

Funfetti Birthday Cake Banana Bread

Chocolate Chip Chai Banana Muffins