Recipe
🍳 BREAKFAST
Ladob Banann
Ripe plantains simmered soft in sweet, vanilla-and-nutmeg coconut milk, a Creole breakfast or dessert from the Seychelles.
Seychellois · easy · serves 4
prep 10 min · cook 20 min
~589 cal · 5g protein · 88g carbs · 29g fat · 8g fiber · 49g sugars · 25g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Ladob banann is a Seychellois dish of ripe (or bananas) cooked in with sugar and a hint of vanilla or nutmeg until soft and fragrant. It can be eaten sweet, as a breakfast or dessert.
The in the creamy until they soak up its sweetness, making a comforting, tropical dish. Ladob can also be made savory with and salt fish, but the sweet banana version is a favourite morning treat.
In Victoria and across the Seychelles, ladob banann is homey, everyday food.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
4 ripe
2 cups
1/3 cup sugar
1 vanilla pod, split
6 leaves or 4 sticks cinnamon leaves, or cinnamon sticks
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut in chunks (optional)
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
1 tsp salt
Instructions
1
Peel the plantains and cut them into thick chunks on the diagonal.
2
Bring the coconut milk, sugar, split vanilla pod, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt to a gentle simmer in a wide pan.
✎ Chef’s note
Do not be shy with the salt. A full teaspoon sounds like a lot in a dessert, but in a Seychellois ladob it is what stops the coconut and sugar tasting flat, and it is in every version of the recipe.
3
If you are using sweet potato, put it in first and give it a head start of about 10 minutes, since it takes longer than the plantain.
4
Add the plantains and poach gently, uncovered, spooning the milk over them, until they are completely tender but still holding their shape.
5
Let the sauce reduce to a light syrup, lift out the vanilla pod and cinnamon, and serve warm in bowls with plenty of the vanilla coconut sauce spooned over.
Victoria Creole island cooking, Seychelles.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Victoria. Victoria is one of the world's smallest capitals, cooking Creole fish curry with coconut milk, turmeric, and curry leaf. Seychellois food is Indian, African, and French at once, with octopus, breadfruit, and mango chutney common.
🗺️
Seychelles. Seychellois Creole cuisine is fragrant and coconut-rich, fish curries, grilled snapper, and the sweet plantain-in-coconut ladob. French, African, and Indian roots meet over fresh reef fish and tropical spice.
🌍
Africa. The structure repeats across most of the continent: one starch and one sauce. A grain or root is cooked stiff, torn or rolled by hand, and used to carry a stew of leaves, groundnut, okra or fish, usually from a shared bowl and with the right hand. UNESCO listings have followed that logic, inscribing couscous in 2020 as a shared Maghreb tradition and Ivorian attieke in 2024.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Seychelles
Seychellois Fish CurryA fragrant Creole coconut fish curry brightened with lime, ginger, and fresh curry leaves.
Kari ZouritOctopus simmered until tender in a fragrant coconut curry with ginger, garlic, and island masala, a Seychelles classic.
Bourzwa Griye (Grilled Red Snapper)A whole red snapper slashed and packed with a garlic, ginger, and chili paste, grilled over coals and served with a chunky Creole tomato sauce.
Browse all Seychelles recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Thickens as it sits. Reheat with extra water or milk to loosen, and keep 2 to 3 days refrigerated.
Make it a Seychelles meal
Nouga Koko ek Bannann (Coconut and Banana Nougat)Dessert
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Frequently asked questions
What is Ladob Banann?
Ripe plantains simmered soft in sweet, vanilla-and-nutmeg coconut milk, a Creole breakfast or dessert from the Seychelles.
Where does Ladob Banann come from?
Ladob Banann is a Seychellois dish from Victoria, Seychelles.
Can Ladob Banann be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Ladob Banann recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Ladob Banann safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Ladob Banann take to make?
About 30 minutes total (10 minutes prep, 20 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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