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Chocolate Covered Bananas are the perfect summer dessert. Frozen bananas are coated in a dark chocolate shell, and have an ice-cream-like texture that’s hard to resist. 

They’re like an ice cream bar, only better for you!

chocolate covered frozen bananas on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Now, if you’re like me, you may assume this recipe should be super-easy to make without any additional direction. You just dip a banana in melted chocolate right?

Well, it’s almost that easy.

As it turns out, it can get kind of messy if you dip a fresh banana into melted chocolate and then try to freeze it. The chocolate can drip off before it starts to harden in the freezer, so you’ll wind up with a huge flat disc of chocolate on one side of the frozen banana.

It’s much more successful if you start with frozen bananas first, so check out the photo tutorial for these frozen treats below.

Ingredients You’ll Need

All you need for a basic chocolate-covered banana is chocolate chips, coconut oil, and ripe frozen bananas. With that being said, feel free to gather more toppings if you’d like to make these extra fancy. 

I highly recommend chopping up some salted peanuts for a crunchy coating!

You can also sprinkle these with chopped almonds, pecans, hazelnuts, pistachios, walnuts, rainbow sprinkles, or shredded coconut.

Ingredient Tip

Use refined or expeller-pressed coconut oil if you’d like the bananas to have zero coconut flavor.

sliced bananas near a bowl of melted chocolate and toppings.

How to Make Chocolate Covered Bananas

  • Freeze the bananas. 

Line a large baking sheet or plate with parchment paper or wax paper. (Make sure it will fit on a flat surface in your freezer!)

Peel the bananas and cut them into thirds. I think this size is the easiest to manage, especially if you have kids in the house who need smaller portions, but you can also cut them in half if you’d like to make larger banana pops. Or cut them into 4 smaller pieces, if you want even smaller banana bites.

Insert a popsicle stick into the bottom of each banana, going at least halfway into the banana, so it will stay securely in place. Then place the banana on the lined baking sheet, and repeat with the remaining pieces. You should get 6 banana pops from 2 large bananas.

Place the pan on a flat shelf in the freezer and let them freeze until firm, about 3 hours.

bananas sliced into thirds with popsicle sticks inserted.
  • Melt the chocolate.

Add the chocolate chips and coconut oil to a heat-safe bowl that will snugly sit on top of a small saucepan.

Create a double boiler by filling that saucepan with 1 inch of water and then bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Place the bowl of chocolate chips and coconut oil on top of the pan, so the steam will gently melt them. Stir well until the melted chocolate is smooth.

Detoxinista Tip

This method above is the best way to melt chocolate for dipping bananas. The steam will keep the bowl of chocolate warm while you work, so you won’t have to worry about re-melting everything during the process. However, you can also microwave the chocolate and coconut oil in 30-second increments, stirring in between each round, until the chocolate is melted.

chocolate chips melted with coconut oil until smooth.
  • Coat the bananas.

Be sure to gather any additional toppings you might need before getting started, as this process will move quickly. If you’d like to roll the bananas in crushed peanuts or sprinkles, make sure they are standing by in a separate bowl.

I also recommend keeping a large plate nearby, to catch any mess you make as you add the toppings to the banana.

Remove the frozen bananas from the freezer and work with just 1 banana at a time. Hold the banana over the bowl of melted chocolate, and use a spoon to drizzle the chocolate evenly over the banana, until it is covered on all sides. 

Let any excess chocolate drip back into the bowl.

melted chocolate added to frozen banana and coated in toppings.

If you’d like to add a topping, quickly move the banana to hover over the large plate nearby, to catch any drips. Use your fingers to sprinkle your topping of choice onto the melted chocolate. The chocolate coating will start to harden in just 60 to 90 seconds, so you don’t have long to get the coating on.

Hold the dipped banana in the air as the chocolate sets, which shouldn’t take much longer than 2 minutes or so. Then place it back onto the parchment paper-lined pan.

Repeat with the remaining frozen bananas, adding the remaining chocolate and toppings. Let them harden before placing them back on the pan, for the prettiest results.

  • Freeze briefly.

Return the bananas to the freezer for at least 10 minutes, so the chocolate can harden. Then the bananas are ready to serve.

You can store frozen chocolate-covered bananas in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months, but I think the texture is best if you eat them within 30 days of making them.

chocolate banana coated in peanuts and sprinkles on a white plate.

Homemade Chocolate Shell

If you prefer to skip the refined sugar found in chocolate chips, here’s how to make a chocolate shell that is naturally sweetened with maple syrup.

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 2 tablespoons cacao powder
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup

Melt the 3 ingredients together in a double boiler as directed above. This will keep the mixture warm, which is key to keeping the texture runny enough for drizzling on bananas.

Drizzle it over the frozen bananas, and watch it harden in just 60 to 90 seconds. This mixture should make enough to cover 6 banana pops (made from cutting 2 ripe bananas). The homemade chocolate shell is softer to bite into if you prefer a less crunchy coating.

Looking for more banana recipes? Try Chocolate-Covered Banana Bites, which are made with frozen banana slices and peanut butter.  Or make a loaf of gluten-free banana bread!

chocolate covered frozen bananas on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Chocolate Covered Bananas Recipe

5 from 6 votes
Chocolate Covered Bananas are an easy frozen dessert! Bananas develop an ice-cream-like texture when frozen, so they taste like an ice cream bar, only with less added sugar.
prep10 mins cook5 mins Freeze Time:4 hrs total4 hrs 15 mins
Servings:6

Ingredients
  

Optional Toppings

Instructions

  • Peel the bananas and cut them into thirds. (Or cut them in half for larger pops, or into quarters for smaller pops.) Line a plate or baking sheet with parchment paper, and make sure it will fit on a flat shelf in your freezer. Insert the popsicle sticks about 2/3 of the way into the center of the bananas, and lay them down on the lined pan. Place the pan in the freezer until the bananas are frozen solid, about 4 hours, or overnight.
  • Once the bananas are frozen, melt the chocolate. Fill a small saucepan with an inch of water, and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the chocolate chips and coconut oil to a heat-safe bowl that will fit snugly over the top of the pan. Place the bowl on top of the pan with the water, and let the steam gently melt the chocolate chips. Stir until smooth.
  • Working one at a time, lift one of the frozen bananas over the bowl of melted chocolate, and use a spoon to drizzle the chocolate evenly over all sides of the banana. Let any excess chocolate drip back into the bowl.
  • If you'd like to add a topping, like chopped peanuts, be sure to have the toppings nearby and ready. I recommend keeping an empty plate nearby the bowl of melted chocolate, so you can immediately move the banana over and sprinkle any toppings you like. (The plate will catch any drips as you hover the banana over it.) Be sure to work quickly, as the chocolate may harden in just 60-90 seconds
  • Repeat with the remaining bananas, and return them to the parchment-lined pan as soon as the chocolate has hardened. Place the pan in the freezer until you are ready to serve them. Frozen bananas can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

Nutrition information is for 1 of 6 banana pops, with only chocolate as the coating. This information is automatically calculated, and is just an estimate, not a guarantee.
Make your own homemade chocolate coating: Combine 2 tablespoons of melted coconut oil, 2 tablespoons of cacao powder, and 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup. Whisk well in a double boiler, then drizzle it over the frozen bananas. This amount should cover 6 banana pops.

Nutrition

Calories: 130kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 11mg | Potassium: 141mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 59IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 0.3mg
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chocolate covered bananas

If you try these chocolate-covered banana pops, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like them!

Megan Gilmore leaning on her white countertop.

Megan Gilmore

Hi, I’m Megan. A former fast food junkie turned best-selling cookbook author. I create healthy recipes made with simple ingredients to make your life easier.

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Comments

  1. Fun to do with the kids! Dipping was made much easier by melting the chocolate topping in a tall microwave safe glass!

    1. These are freaking amazing! Thank you so much for the recipe I’ve already lost weight eating these instead of ice cream !

  2. Turned out perfectly. I soaked one end of the wooden pop stick before inserting in banana and it held strong thru dipping and eating.

  3. I used to own a DG in the 80s and 90s. We used our too ripe bananas this way. We inserted a popsicle stick into 1/2 bananas, froze them, dipped them in the same chocolate we dipped ice cream cones in (the chocolate hardened instantly}, wrapped them, and sold them. Customers loved them. I never thought of doing it this way at home. What a great idea! I wonder if a way could be devised to hang them while freezing to keep them from going flat on one side. Just a thought.

  4. I followed the recipe for the chocolate coating and it turned into a watery, yet gelatinous sticky mess. Very odd. I tried whisking it, using a spatula, giving it some time. It never changed. Any idea what happened?

  5. I can’t wait to try these, and will put bananas on my shopping list this week just for this! Can I sub honey for maple syrup in the homemade coating?

  6. Megan, these are so much fun and so much more nutritious than other treats.My grandsons love to make homemade ice cream and your magic shell recipe is their favorite topping!

    Thank you for sharing your recipes and ideas.