🤤 This Game-Changing Banana Hack Actually Works

Plus: You’re only five minutes away from the creamiest dessert ever 💕

Author

Livia Lun
July 26, 2025

What’s up, friends? Happy weekend!

It’s bloody cold in Australia right now, which means I plan to cook all weekend — and that’s my idea of heaven, TBH. We just posted Chef Ryan’s Parmi Flights and boy oh boy, I need to try it immediately! Though I’m thinking of adding one extra parmi…a whipped feta and dukkah version. Maybe with a splash of chilli oil, because I like my food hot.

I’ve been cooking up a storm (slash absolute mess) in the Tasty kitchen with a new KFC Krusher flavour. You guys were begging us for more, so we’re delivering. But I need your help — slide into our DMs and tell me what Krusher flavour we should make next. I’m thinking Caramello Koala?

I’m going to try and make some rice paper dumplings tonight, and I’ll let you know how they turn out.

Enjoy your well-deserved weekends!

Until next time,

Nacho Hash Brown Slab

✨ Serves 6 ✨

Ingredients ✍️

  • 12 hash browns

  • 3 tsp MasterFoods Taco Spice Blend

  • 3 cups Mexican beef

  • 1 cup corn

  • 1 cup black beans

  • 1 cup white onion, diced

  • 1 cup tomato, diced

  • 1 cup jalapenos

  • 3 pieces bacon, halved

Method ✍️

  1. To an air fryer, lay the hashbrowns down, overlapping if needed to make them fit, and

    season with Masterfoods Taco Seasoning. Air fry at 180°C for 15 minutes. Remove then set

    aside.

  2. Layer the basket of the airfryer with baking paper in a cross pattern, so the entire base and walls are covered. Be careful not to let the paper sit above the basket, or it could burn easily.

  3. To stack the dish in the air fryer, create a base with 6 hashbrowns, then top with half the cheese, half the Mexican beef, half the onions, half the tomatoes, half the black beans, half the corn, and half the jalapenos. Press down with a spoon to even out. Repeat the layers adding the rest of the beef, onions, tomatoes, black beans, corn, jalapenos, and cheese. Add 6 hash browns on top, facing the same way as the ones on the base, then place a rasher of bacon on each hash brown, then air fry for 20 minutes at 180°C.

  4. Open the air fryer, then carefully remove the hash brown taco slab by lifting the baking paper out. Place it on a serving plate.

  5. Serve with guacamoles, sour cream, jalapenos and coriander. Enjoy!

Bonus Tip: Make sure your air fryer isn’t pushed up against a wall. Give it enough space on all sides to allow for proper airflow — 12cm of clearance is a good rule of thumb.

Tanika’s Tips 👩🏻‍🍳🥘

Bought a fresh batch of bananas and noticed they’re browning way too quickly? Try separating them and wrapping each stem with a bit of plastic wrap — it can help them last longer.

Bananas naturally release ethylene gas, which speeds up ripening. Most of it escapes from the stems, so wrapping them slows the process down! Also, take the bananas out of plastic produce bags as soon as you get home, as those bags trap moisture and lead to rot. Make sure the bananas are placed out of direct sunlight and away from other ripening fruit or veggies too.

Totti’s Crab Alla Vodka

✨Serves 4 ✨

Ingredients ✍️

  • 500g reginette pasta

  • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

  • 1 shallot, finely chopped

  • 3 heaped tbsp tomato paste

  • 1 tsp Masterfoods Garlic, Finely Crushed

  • 60ml vodka

  • 1 cup heavy cream

  • 1 cup pasta water

  • 1 tsp pepper

  • 1 tsp salt

  • 2 tablespoons butter

  • 1 tsp Masterfoods Chilli Flakes

  • ½ cup parmesan, grated

  • 400g crab meat, cooked

  • 4 sprigs parsley, leaves only

For the pangrattato:

  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

  • 1 tsp Masterfoods Garlic, Finely Crushed

  • 1 cup panko breadcrumbs

  • 2 tbsp parmesan, grated

  • 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

Method ✍️

  1. For the vodka sauce, heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the shallot and Masterfoods Garlic, cooking for a few minutes until softened. Add tomato paste and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring every now and again, until the tomato paste goes from bright red to dark red. Add the vodka and stir until the liquid evaporates. Take off heat.

  2. Add the reginette to a large pot of salted boiling water, reserving one cup of pasta water for the sauce. Once cooked, drain the rest of the water and set aside.

  3. While the pasta is cooking, place the vodka sauce over low heat, then add cream and stir through, then loosen with pasta water as necessary and combine. Season with pepper, salt, then add butter, and Masterfood Chilli Flakes and stir until well combined. Add the parmesan and the crab meat, and stir gently until just combined.

  4. To the sauce add some extra pasta water to loosen once more, and then add the cooked reginette, gently rotating to coat. Garnish with parsley leaves and add to a serving plate.

  5. For the pangrattato, add olive oil to a frying pan over medium heat, then add Masterfoods Garlic, panko breadcrumbs, parmesan and parsley. Stir until all the olive oil is soaked up and cook until the breadcrumbs turn a dark golden colour.

  6. Garnish the final dish with pangrattato. Serve and enjoy!

If You’re Feeling A Cheeky Aussie Snack… Try This Milo Banana Mousse!

When Beyoncé said “1+1=2,” she was definitely talking about this mousse. Two-ingredient Milo mousse is simply too good to be true.

All you need are overripe bananas and Milo. Peel the bananas, slice them into coins, and freeze them in a sealed bag or container for at least 12 hours. Once frozen, blend the banana pieces in a food processor. Add a splash of warm water to help it cream up, then blend in as much Milo as your heart desires. And that’s all folks!

For more delicious inspo and rapid recipes, make sure you’re following:

Pies 101

Use A Hard Fat

For the dough, use a solid fat instead of a liquid one. Olive oil and vegetable oil are runny and harder to work with.

Stick with cold butter (or margarine if you’re vegan) — it’s cheaper, has better flavour, and makes for a flakier crust.

Rub Butter Into The Flour

Rub the butter into your flour mixture, instead of blending it in.

Use your thumbs to rub until the mix looks lumpy and crumbly, not smooth or pliable. This texture is exactly what you want before adding any liquids.

Add Egg Yolk To Dough

For added richness, mix in an egg yolk. It’ll give your crust that extra oomph and golden richness everyone loves.

For a flakier crust, add ice-cold water gradually to the egg yolk mix. It helps keep the fat in your dough cold too.

 

Move With Rolling Pin

Roll your dough around a rolling pin to lift and move it into your pie tin without tearing. Be gentle so you don’t rip the base.

Brush an egg wash on the base before filling — it’ll help moisture-proof the crust and give the top a nice glossy finish.

Tap To Remove Bubbles

After pouring in your filling, gently tap the pie tin on the counter to release any trapped air bubbles.

It’s a small step, but helps give your pie a smoother finish.

Let Apple Slices Macerate

If you're making an apple pie, let your slices sit in a sugar and salt mix before baking. This draws out excess moisture, so your pie doesn’t end up watery or collapse in the oven.

Bonus tip: pop the slices in a lemon-water bath first to stop them browning while you prep.

Prep Crust Before Baking

Before baking, sprinkle raw sugar over the top crust for added crunch and shine.

Also, don’t forget to cut slits in the top crust of your fruit pie to let steam escape. This prevents the pie from puffing up or bursting open.

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