Black Southern Banana Pudding Recipe: Get Ready for a Soulful Treat

If you ever visit the South in the summertime, you’ll probably get offered a banana pudding. That one is a national treasure down there, with deeper cultural roots that go back many years. Possibly the most popular treat in the summer, every cook in the South knows a version of the black Southern banana pudding recipe. After all, what’s better than soul food?

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Substitutions
• Variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• Tips
• Black Southern Banana Pudding Recipe
• Comments

Ingredients

• Bananas — 3-5 pcs., sliced.
• Nilla Wafers — 1 box.
• Whole milk — 1 ½ cups.
• Heavy whipped cream — 3 cups.
• Granulated sugar — 1 ½ tsp.
• Instant vanilla pudding mix — 1 box.
• Condensed milk — 1 can.

Instructions

1. Peel and slash the bananas.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine the vanilla pudding mix, whole milk, and condensed milk.

3. Whisk well, until there are no visible lumps.

4. Optional — chill the bowl for a few minutes in the fridge.

5. In another bowl, combine the vanilla extract with heavy cream to make whipped cream.

6. Beat the mixture well for a minute or two, until it reaches the desired consistency.

7. Pour half of it into the pudding mixture, and set aside the other half to be used as topping for later.

8. Layer the bottom of your baking dish with Nilla Wafers.

9. Follow by creating a layer of sliced bananas on top.

10. Pour half of the pudding mix over the bananas.

11. Repeat the last two steps once more, and finish with another layer of Nilla Wafers.

12. Add some granulated sugar to the whipped cream. Mix well.

13. Pour the whipped cream on top of the Nilla Wafers.

14. Refrigerate for a few hours, or ideally, overnight.

Substitutions

• Heavy cream — Whipped cream works great as a topping, and we used heavy cream to make it. If you do not want to make it, you can always use store-bought whipped cream.
  
  What about half-and-half? Well, it works well, but only if you combine it with butter, and it is less fat. The same goes for the pairing of milk and butter as well.

• Instant vanilla pudding — In our black Southern banana pudding recipe, we used instant vanilla pudding mix, but if you’re short on that, you could mix it yourself. Keep in mind that it will take time. The ingredients are cornstarch, sugar, and vanilla flavor. You can also use all-purpose flour instead of cornstarch.
  
  You can also go with dry custard powder instead of instant vanilla pudding. It has a similar taste and texture, but the taste will be sharper.
  
  Lastly, butterscotch pudding mix would fit this black Southern banana pudding recipe too, although it has a different taste.

• Granulated sugar — We prefer our whipped cream, the topping, a bit sweeter, so we went ahead and used some granulated sugar. If you’re short on granulated sugar, however, you can also use brown sugar; which will provide a caramelized flavor. If you’re feeling bold enough, experiment with honey and maple syrup.

Variations

• The toppings — Though whipped cream works the best when it comes to toppings, why stop there when you can have a richer taste and better looks? Go ahead and top your black Southern banana pudding with chocolate sauce or caramel sauce!

Equipment

• 2 mixing bowls.

• Skillet.

• Baking dish, at least 3 inches deep.

Storage

• Transfer any leftover banana pudding into an airtight container.

• Store it in your refrigerator, where it will last for up to a week.

• It is preferable to eat it sooner, while it still tastes great.

Tips

• The bananas — The bananas are the heart and soul of our black Southern banana pudding recipe, so you really ought to be picky. While we definitely wouldn’t want green, underripe bananas, going with the brown ones wouldn’t be ideal too. Opt for ripe and yellow bananas.

• The baking dish — Layering is a crucial part of this recipe, and you really don’t want your pudding to look a mess, so opt for a baking dish with at least 3 inches of depth.

• Prevent browning — If you are worried that your bananas will start to go brown while you are doing the other steps, a splash of lemon juice will help prevent this.