BEST FLUFFY PANCAKE RECIPE - Chefjar (2024)

FAQs

What is the key to making fluffy pancakes? ›

The secret to fluffy restaurant style pancakes? Buttermilk! The acid in the buttermilk reacts to the leavening agents in the pancake batter, creating air bubbles that make the pancakes tall and fluffy. It's a simple switch that makes all the difference.

Gordon Ramsay's recipe

You will need 2 eggs, separated, 2 tbsp sugar, ½ tsp salt, 2 tsp baking powder, 60g vegetable oil, 300g buttermilk, 160g plain flour, and 1 tsp vanilla essence. Whisk the egg whites “*ntil foamy”. MiX all the other ingredients in a second bowl, then fold in the egg whites.

Pancakes and waffles typically both contain baking soda, which causes them to rise. As soon as the baking soda is combined with the wet ingredients (which contain an acidic ingredient, like often buttermilk), it starts producing carbon dioxide gas bubbles that cause the batter to rise.

Adding baking powder is the easiest way to make fluffy pancakes. There's more than one way to make the bubbles that make a pancake fluffy, but the easiest way is by adding a raising agent such as baking powder.

While the griddles themselves likely vary from one diner chain to the next, diners are pretty much all working with a waffle iron or griddle that's already hot. IHOP, for instance, requires its pans to be heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and uses Crisco instead of butter to grease it, says Grimm.

Restaurants have professional griddles

The constant heat leads to a more evenly cooked pancake, that never runs the risk of having the batter poured too early. If the heat is always at the right level, it's always the correct time.

Before pancakes could be fresh and fluffy from an easy pinch of baking soda, chefs would use snow (which contains ammonia) to create the same effect. In the 1800's, Thomas Jefferson loved his fluffy pancakes so much that he sent his special recipe from the White House to his hometown.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Stir in the buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla. Pour ¼ cup of pancake batter for each pancake onto the griddle. Cook until the edges start to set and the pancakes are golden-brown underneath.

When cooked, the chemical leaveners (the baking powder and baking soda) in the pancakes created large air bubbles. The loose gluten network captured the air bubbles and maintained the each pancake's shape while still keeping it fluffy with air.

Why aren't my American pancakes fluffy? ›

If your pancakes aren't fluffy, it may be time to get new baking powder. If you're making buttermilk pancakes, the key is in the reaction of buttermilk to baking soda.

Easy Pancake Ingredients

Baking powder: Baking powder acts as a leavening agent, ensuring perfectly fluffy pancakes. Salt: Salt enhances the overall flavor of the pancakes, but it won't make the pancakes taste salty. Milk and oil: Milk and oil add moisture and flavor to the pancake batter.

Bubbles of gas are caught in the batter as it cooks and this is what makes the pancake fluffy. This also explains why you should make your batter fresh. If it sits uncooked for too long, the gas can escape and you'll end up with flat pancakes.

In order to get a fluffy pancake, we need to have gas (carbon dioxide) bubble up through the gluten just as the mixture is heated. This reaction requires an acid and a base. Almost all pancake recipes use baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) for the base.

In pancakes, gluten forms strands that give the cake its structure. But too much gluten results in a pancake that is dense and gummy. The dry ingredients are rounded out with just a bit of sugar and malted milk powder, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.

Some of the common causes of deflated pancakes include: Over-mixing the batter: Overmixing will 'deflate' the egg whites. Plus it can cause the gluten in the batter to develop too far, making the pancakes dense and heavy.