Here's everything worth knowing about creme de banana and how to pick it, what it is, how to store it, and what to use instead, plus 6 recipes to cook tonight.

What is creme de banana?

Creme de banana is a sweet banana liqueur, bright yellow and syrupy, that tastes like ripe banana candy. Despite the French name, there is no cream in it. The "creme" signals a high-sugar liqueur rather than a dairy ingredient.

It is built on a neutral spirit flavored with banana and sweetened heavily, usually landing somewhere around 17 to 25 percent alcohol depending on the brand. The color ranges from pale gold to an almost neon yellow.

Think of it as concentrated banana flavor in a bottle.

A spoonful adds fruit and sweetness to drinks and desserts alike.

How to Use Creme de Banana

Its home turf is the cocktail shaker. It is the defining flavor of a Banshee, blended with cream and creme de cacao into a dessert in a glass, and it rounds out a banana daiquiri or a tropical blend with rum and pineapple.

It also works beautifully in flamed desserts. In Banana Foster and the classic Bananas Foster - De Carle, a measure goes into the buttery brown-sugar sauce alongside the rum, deepening the banana note before the whole pan is set alight.

For baking, treat it as both flavor and moisture. A drizzle over a finished cake soaks in and amplifies the fruit, which is why it suits Banana Yogurt Cake and Banana Cream Cake with Strawberry Cream Filling so well.

You can also fold a spoonful into whipped cream or custard, or stir it into a glaze for banana bread.

A little is plenty. The flavor is intense and the sugar adds up fast.

Cooking and Pairing

Banana liqueur is happiest with partners that are rich and tropical. It loves rum, brown sugar, butter, and cream, and it plays well with chocolate, coffee, vanilla, and toasted nuts. A squeeze of lime or lemon keeps it from cloying.

The most common mistake is pouring too much. Because it reads as candy-sweet, a heavy hand makes a drink syrupy or a dessert one-note. Start with half an ounce in a cocktail and build from there.

The second pitfall is heating it too hard in a sauce. The flavor is delicate and the alcohol burns off quickly, so add it toward the end and let it warm through rather than boil.

Substitutes

The simplest swap is banana extract or banana flavoring plus a little simple syrup, which rebuilds both the taste and the sweetness without the alcohol. Use a few drops of extract and sugar to taste, since extract is far more concentrated.

In a pinch, mashed very ripe banana with a spoon of sugar works in a baked dessert, though it adds body and will not dissolve like a liqueur.

For cocktails, another fruit liqueur such as creme de cacao or a coconut rum changes the character but keeps the sweet tropical feel.

When alcohol is the issue, banana syrup, the kind sold for coffee and sodas, is the closest non-alcoholic match for both flavor and texture.

Buying and Storing

Look for it with the liqueurs, often near the other creme de fruit bottles. Brands vary a lot in color and intensity, so a clear, natural-banana version tastes cleaner than a heavily dyed one. Check the proof too, since some run sweeter and lower in alcohol than others.

Sealed, a bottle keeps for years in a cool, dark cabinet. The high sugar acts as a preservative.

Once opened, the banana aroma and color slowly dull, so use it within a year or so for the brightest flavor.

Keep the cap tight and store it upright, out of the direct light that fades the yellow. Refrigeration is not needed, though a chilled bottle is pleasant in cold drinks.

Quick facts

In Chinese

奶酪和香蕉

British (UK) term

Creme de banana

en français

crème de banane

en español

crema de plátano

Recipes using creme de banana

There are 6 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 6 recipes