Pisang Goreng

Pisang goreng is Southeast Asia’s beloved fried banana street snack, and this version dresses it up into a proper dessert with vanilla ice cream and a warm rum-brown sugar sauce. Ripe banana halves get dipped in a simple batter of flour, egg, water, and baking powder, then deep-fried until golden and crispy on the outside while soft and caramelized inside.

Let the batter rest for 20 minutes before frying. That rest lets the gluten relax and the baking powder start working, which gives you a lighter, crispier coating instead of a dense, heavy shell. Use ripe bananas with some brown spots; they’re sweeter and softer, which creates that creamy interior contrast against the crunchy batter. Fry at a lower temperature than you might expect, which gives the batter time to cook through and crisp evenly without burning.

The rum sauce comes together while the bananas drain. Cream, brown sugar, and butter simmer together until the sugar dissolves into a smooth, toffee-like sauce, then the dark rum goes in off the heat. Don’t let the sauce boil after adding the rum or the alcohol flavor will cook off completely. Serve the hot fried banana over cold ice cream with a generous pour of that warm sauce.

Pro Tips

• Use bananas that are ripe but still firm enough to hold their shape during frying
• Keep the oil temperature steady; too hot and the outside burns before the inside heats
• Drain fried bananas on a wire rack, not paper towels, for a crispier result
• Serve immediately; the batter loses its crunch within minutes

Variations

• Coconut batter: Add 2 tablespoons of shredded coconut to the batter
• Cinnamon sugar: Roll the fried bananas in cinnamon sugar instead of using the rum sauce
• Non-alcoholic: Skip the rum and add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the sauce