6 Game-Changing Tips For Making Great Pancakes

Tips for making great pancakes, delicious homemade pancake recipe

Hello Blogosphere! Doug here, coming to you with some tips and tricks on how to effectively navigate the most important room in your house – the kitchen.

I was fortunate to grow up as a “husky” little boy, as my mother called me, who loved all things food and caloric intake. What once seemed like an adolescent hurdle, my love of food has manifested into a love of creating food. I dare not call myself a chef, but a curious cook who likes to deviate from established recipes to fit the palettes of myself, my wonderful wife (who loves all things sweet and fruity), two girls (who like candy and cheese) and baby boy (who is TBD). Today, I bring you game-changing tips for making great pancakes. Trust me on this one.

It’s fitting that my first food-related post on this blog is a foray into breakfast – the most important meal of the day (emotionally). The grand daddy of the savory breakfast categories is pancakes. On face value, the humble pancake is a simple amalgamation of cake-like ingredients that are pan fried. However, this sunrise special should not be taken lightly. Screwing up pancakes is punishable by shaming. Ever been shamed by two toddler children? “THIS IS DISGUSTING!” screams the elder child. It’s not fun. And it kinda hurts deep inside – a blend of embarrassment and parental failure.

To avoid such a situation, I have endured all the shamings possible and come out a wiser, albeit ego-bruised, pancake maker. So take this recipe and tips to heart and you too may create a morning worth remembering for your family. BUT BE WARNED – if you make great pancakes, you will be asked to make pancakes…every…single…morning.

6 Game-Changing Tips For Making Great Pancakes

Tip #1: Make Your Own Buttermilk

Who the hell has buttermilk in their refrigerator?! There is nothing more infuriating than having a recipe with an ingredient that can only be purchased at two grocery stores in a 50 mile radius. I’m kidding, but buttermilk IS one of those ingredients!

When you need, you typically do not have it, SO MAKE IT. Here’s how: Before adding the milk to your batter (God forbid you are using water as an alternative), mix the milk and lemon juice together in a separate bowl or cup. As a rule of thumb, add one tablespoon of lemon juice per cup of milk you are using. Then wait 5 to 10 minutes, and presto! Sour-y, buttermilk-like milk will appear. WARNING: it will curdle and also look lumpy – this is good.

Tip #2: Do Not Over Mix

Flour is a delicate substance. So the more you whisk, beat and mix it, the flatter your pancakes can become. In addition, flat pancakes create flat attitudes – the opposite of our objective! When you are mixing, DO NOT try to create a perfectly smooth texture. Unlike store bought pancake mix, homemade pancake batter should be lumpy, ugly and imperfect at the same time.

Tip #3: Separate Your Egg Whites And Egg Yolks

Channeling your inner Rachel Ray? Separate your egg whites and yolks (Here is a good video on how to do it.) Add the yolks first with all the wet ingredients. Then, whip your egg whites with a whisk till your arm is sore. After some time and patience, the egg whites will resemble a whipped-cream like substance (“Stiff peaks” as they are called). Then you’ve done it! Once you have mixed all the other ingredients together, gently stir in the egg whites as a last step before pan frying. Then simply fold the whites in and DO NOT OVER MIX.

Tip #4: Use A Cast Iron Pan

You may or may not have a cast iron pan (I did not use one for the pictured pancake session). But if you have one, dust it off and put some miles on it. Because you will end up creating pancakes with more crunch and additional pockets to sop up butter and syrup. Be sure to grease the pan with butter before cooking the batter, or else dish duty will be painful.

Tip #5: For A Healthy Alternative, Add Chia or Flax Seeds

I try to make myself feel like a responsible parent by cooking healthy additives into otherwise unhealthy recipes. This devious approach can lead to disastrous results. In fact, kids have a sixth sense and repulsion for healthy ingredients; however, after much experimentation, chia or flax seeds go mostly undetected and are very healthy little allies.

Tip #6: Say “No” To Store Bought (Plus, A Recipe!)

You may say “Doug, Bisquick figured out pancake mix a long time and you are overthinking it.” To which I reply, “I beseech you to try, fair reader! For the journey of making thou pancake is noble and rich with joy and pride!” Other than the obvious case that homemade pancakes taste better, the beauty of making homemade pancakes is the time spent with your kiddos mixing the batter, the enduring joy of eventually deviating from this recipe and making your own, and the pride of knowing you have done appropriate justice to the ultimate breakfast staple.

Here’s the recipe we use every time. And every time, it’s delicious.

Delicious Homemade Pancake Recipe

Makes about (6) mid-size pancakes. Need more cakes? Double the recipe.

Ingredients

(1) Cup – Bread Flour or All Purpose Flour (I’m a bread flour guy)
(2) Tablespoons – Sugar
(2) Teaspoons – Sea Salt
(1) Teaspoon – Baking Soda
(1) Tablespoon – Chia Seeds
(1) Cup – Whole Milk
(1) Tablespoon – Lemon juice
(4) Tablespoons – Melted Butter (half a stick)
(1) Egg – yolk and whites separated, set aside your egg whites to be whipped

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, sea salt, baking soda and chia seeds. Then mix all the ingredients together. DAD TIP: If you trust your child’s coordination, have them help you mix these dry ingredients. This is a prime opportunity to keep your kids occupied while making pancakes so you can minimize complaining and maximize participation.
In a separate bowl or cup, add the whole milk and lemon juice to make the buttermilk-like milk.
After 5 to 10 minutes, mix in the melted butter and also one egg yolk to the curdled milk.
Add this wet mixture to the dry ingredients. Then gently combine all the ingredients together. REMEMBER, do not overmix.
Now, take your separated egg whites and begin to whisk them with fervor. After a few minutes, the whites will resemble whipped cream. Keep whisking if they do not look like a fluffy, cloud-like substance.
Add the whipped egg whites into the batter and gentle mix till combined. REMEMBER, the batter should look lumpy.
Heat up your pan and hold steady at medium-low heat. Add butter to your pan, and start dropping pancake batter at whatever size your heart desires.
If adding blueberries or sliced bananas, this is the ideal time to add them on the uncooked side. I always put a little extra batter over the fruit to prevent from burning or sticking when flipped.
Cook the pancakes until you start seeing bubbles appear, then flip and cook for another minute.
Remove the pancake. Butter them up. Serve with maple syrup or Nutella. YOU DID IT!