Perfect Pancakes Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

What are 3 things that are discouraged when making pancakes? ›

Restaurants use better quality ingredients

However, along with that ease, you may be taking a hit in the overall taste department. Restaurants tend to use real, farm-fresh eggs and real milk when making their pancakes, which as you might guess, adds to a richer, higher-quality eating experience.

The tip, via Food52, relies on relaxed egg whites, aka unbeaten whites that have been allowed to sit for a bit. The pancake technique calls for the eggs to be separated and for the yolks to be mixed into a buttermilk, milk, and melted butter mixture.

Before you cook your pancakes, you should allow your batter to 'settle'. 24 hours in the fridge is ample time, but it may have thickened up a little when you take it back out, so just loosen up with a splash of milk. When you come to cook the perfect pancakes, the temperature of your pan is crucial.

Gluten, which is found in flour, keeps pancakes from falling apart. Gluten, a type of protein, forms a “spiderweb” within baked goods, giving them structure. As the starches gelatinize, and turn from a batter to bread, the gluten strands hold them in place.

IHOP, for instance, requires its pans to be heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and uses Crisco instead of butter to grease it, says Grimm. IHOP also has designated griddles that never cook anything other than pancakes, as Jon Kotez, IHOP's senior manager of field operations support, told Restaurant Business.

Pancake lovers' biggest complaint when adding water instead of milk is that the flavor seems to change. Pancakes aren't as richly flavored with water. There are a few ways to improve your batter when you've used water, including: Add extra butter.

Instead of using a boxed pancake mix, Gordon mixes his own ratio of flour, milk, and eggs with a whisk before letting it sit for about 15 minutes to thicken. Then, using a hot nonstick pan and cooking spray, he'll spoon about a ladle full of the pancake batter mixture onto the center of the pan.

Get the pan hot… but not scorching

Heat your pan over a medium to low heat, coat the base lightly with vegetable or sunflower oil, then test the temperature by dropping a small amount of batter on to the pan. It should sizzle but not smoke. If not, increase the heat, wait a bit (be patient!) and try again.

Cook, until bubbles break the surface of the pancakes, and the undersides are golden brown, about 2 minutes. Flip with a spatula and cook about 1 minute more on the second side.

What is the most important ingredient in pancakes? ›

Flour is the main ingredient to any pancake. It provides the structure. Different types of flours alter the structure because some flours absorb more moisture or create more gluten (which binds the structure together) than others.

Pancake lovers' biggest complaint when adding water instead of milk is that the flavor seems to change. Pancakes aren't as richly flavored with water. There are a few ways to improve your batter when you've used water, including: Add extra butter.

Baking soda or another leavening agent will enhance that old boxed mix that's been sitting in your cupboard for a few weeks (or months), leaving your pancakes with a yummy, fluffy texture. If your boxed mix doesn't already call for it, you can also add in a few eggs.

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.