Make Basic Pancakes

Yum! It's time for a special breakfast! Or perhaps you want to surprise a special someone. What could be easier, yummier, and more fun than pancakes? It is also a great way to introduce children to cooking. Once you know how to make a basic pancake, you can easily customize it by adding more ingredients. This article will show you how to make a basic pancake, and give you additional ideas for customization.

  • Serves: About 10 people

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups (210 grams) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups (281.25 to 337.50 milliliters) milk
  • 2 tablespoons of cooking oil or melted butter
  • 2 eggs

Makes: 8 pancakes

Steps

Preparing Basic Pancake Batter

  1. Mix the dry ingredients first. In a large bowl, combine 1 ½ cups (210 grams) of flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Mix together using a fork, spoon, or whisk.
  2. Make a hole in the center of the dry ingredients. You will be pouring your liquid ingredients into this hole, so you want it to be large enough to hold the milk and eggs.
  3. Mix the liquid ingredients together. Crack open two eggs into a separate bowl. Then, add 1 ¼ cup (281.25 milliliters) of milk and 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Mix everything together with a whisk until the egg yolks break.[1]
  4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the hole you made in the middle of the dry ingredients. Gently mix everything together with a spoon, spatula, or whisk. The batter should be smooth. Some clumps and bubbles are normal.
    • If the batter is too clumpy, however, you may add another ¼ cup (50 grams) of milk.[2]
  5. Consider adding additional ingredients for more flavor. At this point, your batter is ready to be fried. You can also add some spices or fruits to enhance the flavor of your pancakes. Use as many berries, fruit pieces, or nuts as you like, but be sure that the batter is still smooth, or else it will not spread evenly on the frying pan or griddle. Here are some ideas on what you can add:
    • Consider adding 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon or vanilla extract
    • Add some chocolate chips
    • Add some berries.
    • For more ideas, refer to the section on making pancakes with variations.

Frying the Pancakes

  1. Consider heating your oven to keep the pancakes warm. Frying all of those pancakes can take some time, and by the time you finish making the last one, the first few might turn cold. You can keep your pancakes warm by turning the oven on and setting the temperature to 200°F (94°C). You can keep an oven-safe dish in the oven, and place the pancakes into the dish once you take them off the frying pan. This will help keep your pancakes warm while you finish making the rest of the batch.[3]
  2. Prepare your heating surface. You can make pancakes over a griddle or in a frying pan. While griddles take up more space than frying pans, you can also make multiple pancakes at one time over a griddle. The surface will need to be very hot before you can start frying the pancakes. Here is how you prepare both surfaces:
    • If you are using a griddle, lightly grease the surface of your griddle with some butter. Turn on your griddle and set the heat to medium-high. You can tell if the surface is hot enough by sprinkling some water onto it. If the water droplets bounce and sizzle, it's ready.
    • If you are using a frying pan, turn on the stove first and set the temperature to medium-high. Set the pan on the burner and drop in a small cube of butter (or any kind of grease). Tilt the pan around to spread the butter evenly.
  3. Spoon some batter onto the griddle or frying pan. Once the griddle or frying pan are hot enough, spoon some of the batter onto the surface. Each pancake with require thee to four tablespoons. Consider using a soup ladle.
    • If you have added other ingredients to your batter, such as chocolate chips or fruit pieces, then lightly stir batter before scooping it onto the griddle or frying pan. This prevents the bulky ingredients from settling to the bottom.
  4. Fry the batter, then flip it over. This will take about four minutes. When the batter starts to bubble and form tiny holes on the top, the pancake is probably ready to be flipped over. Slip a spatula under the pancake and peek at the color underneath. If it's golden, flip the pancake over and let it cook for two more minutes. The pancake is ready when it is golden-brown on both sides.
    • If you are using a frying pan, you may tilt the pan from side to side to make the pancake bigger and thinner.
  5. Take the pancake off the griddle or frying pan and keep it warm as you make more. Once the pancake is finished, use a spatula to take it off a griddle. Slide it onto a plate, and spoon more batter onto the griddle or frying pan. If the pancake starts to burn, you may have to add more batter.
  6. You can keep the pancakes warm by piling them on a plate and covering them with a towel or piece of aluminum foil. You can also store them in an oven set to 200°F (94°C).
  7. Serve the pancake. Once you have made all of the pancakes, you may serve it. The traditional topping is maple syrup, but you can also top it with various other ingredients. Refer to the section on pancake variations for some ideas.

Making Other Variations

  1. Consider adding extracts or spices to the batter. You can make the pancakes more flavorful and unique by adding extra ingredients to the batter, such as: pumpkin pie spice, ground cinnamon, apple pie spice, and vanilla extract. Before you start frying pancakes, add one teaspoon of your chosen flavor to the batter and mix it together.
  2. Consider adding other ingredients into the batter. You can make your pancakes more flavorful by adding other ingredients into the batter before you fry it. Use about ½ cup of whatever ingredient you choose. You can add more to your liking—just make sure that the batter is still smooth, or it will not spread out properly on the frying pan. Here are some ideas:
    • You can use berries, such as blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries. You can also use sliced-up bananas or grated apples.
    • You can add some chocolate chips to the batter as well.
  3. Use other syrups. While maple syrup is the most popular pancake topping, you can also use other sweet toppings instead: chocolate sauce, fruit jams, honey, or chocolate-hazelnut spread.
  4. Add some extra toppings. You can also top your pancakes with nuts, fruits, and other items. Use a handful of whatever topping you choose. Here are some ideas:
    • You can use berries, such as blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries. You can also use sliced-up bananas.
    • You can use chopped up nuts, such as walnuts and pecans.
    • You can also use other ingredients, such as a small cube of butter, fried and crumbled bacon, or a handful of chocolate chips.
  5. Consider substituting the flour and milk. You can also change the flavor of your pancake by substituting park or some of the ingredients:
    • To make whole-wheat pancakes, use ¾ cup (105 grams) of regular, all-purpose flour, and ¾ cup (105 gram) of whole wheat flour.
    • To make buttermilk or yogurt pancakes, use butter milk or plain yogurt instead of regular milk.
  6. Top the pancake with strawberries. You may use fresh, sliced strawberries, or you can prepare a strawberry-sugar mixture. To do this, slice up some strawberries before you start making the pancake batter, and add some sugar to the strawberries. You will need 2 cups of strawberries and ¼ cup of sugar. Mix them together in a bowl and store it into the fridge until you are ready to eat the pancakes.[4]
  7. Top the pancakes with bacon, pecans, and maple syrup. You will need four strips of fried bacon, crumbled, and 1.2 cup of chopped pecans. Fry them with some shortening for two minutes. Combine with 1 ½ cup of maple syrup and keep warm until the pancakes are ready to be served.[4]
  8. Make pumpkin pancakes. Perfect for Fall, these pancakes have a hint of spices and a burst of pumpkin. Prepare the pancake batter as usual (refer to the section on preparing basic pancake batter), but add 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice to the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt), and 6 tablespoons of canned pumpkin to the liquid ingredients (milk, cooking oil, and eggs).[5]
    • You can also make your own pumpkin spice by combining ½ ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, and 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg.[6]

Tips

  • Don't let the butter or oil in the pan burn. If it does, wipe it out with a cloth or napkin and add more.
  • You can make your pancakes any size you want.

Warnings

  • Be careful when putting butter on a hot frying pan or griddle. The butter may sputter and pop. If it lands on your skin, it may burn you.
  • Never leave a burning stove or griddle unattended.

Things You'll Need

  • Frying pan or griddle
  • Two bowls
  • Fork, spoon, or whisk
  • Spatula
  • Soup ladle (optional)

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ Food Network, How to Make Perfect Pancakes
  2. ↑ Food.com, Basic Pancake Mix
  3. ↑ Martha Stewart, Basic Pancakes
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Food Network, 50 Pancakes and Waffles
  5. ↑ Martha Stewart, Pumpkin Pancakes
  6. ↑ Better Homes and Gardens, Emergency Ingredient Substitutions

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