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My mother made pancakes every Saturday morning for forty years, and her batter always looked like a mistake. She would pour the milk into the flour, stir it maybe ten times with a fork, leave a bowl full of lumps and floury streaks, and go pour her coffee. My brother, at about nine years old, decided to help her once and whisked the batter until it was smooth as cream. Those were the flattest, rubberiest pancakes our family ever ate, and she let him eat every one so he would remember.
Here is what she knew. Flour has gluten in it, and every stroke of the spoon builds it up. A little gluten holds a pancake together. Too much turns it into a chewy, flat disc that bakes up tough no matter how fresh the baking powder is. Those lumps in the bowl are little pockets of flour that have not been worked yet. On a hot griddle they melt away, and what you get is a tall, soft pancake full of holes. Then she let the bowl sit for ten minutes while the griddle heated, so the baking powder could start its work, and she flipped each pancake exactly once.
Why this homemade pancakes works
- Ten strokes, no more. Stirring only until the flour is wet keeps the gluten relaxed and the pancakes tender.
- The lumps stay. They are dry flour that has not been overworked. They disappear on the griddle.
- A 10 minute rest. The flour soaks up the milk and the baking powder starts to bubble, so the batter thickens and puffs before it ever hits the pan.
- Medium heat, one flip. Medium cooks the inside before the outside burns. One flip, when the bubbles pop and stay open, keeps the air in.
- No pressing. Every press with the spatula squeezes out the air you just waited for.
Ingredients
Makes about 10 pancakes of 1/4 cup batter each, enough for 4 people. The measurements are in US cups with grams in brackets.
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (190g)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (25g)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1 1/4 cups milk (300ml)
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (42g), melted, plus a little for the griddle
Check the date on your baking powder. If it is older than six months, drop half a teaspoon in hot water: no fizz, no fluffy pancakes.
How to make homemade pancakes
- In a large bowl, stir together the 1 1/2 cups flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- In a second bowl or a large measuring cup, whisk the 1 1/4 cups milk, the egg and the 3 tablespoons melted butter together. (Let the butter cool a minute first so it does not cook the egg.)
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir with a fork about ten strokes, only until no big pockets of dry flour remain. The batter should be thick and lumpy. Leave it that way.
- Let the batter rest for 10 minutes. It will thicken and puff a little. Do not stir it again.
- Heat a griddle or a large skillet over medium heat and wipe it with a little butter. It is ready when a drop of water skitters across it.
- Pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake, leaving room between them.
- Cook about 2 minutes, until bubbles rise on top, pop, and stay open, and the edges look dry. That is the moment to flip.
- Flip once and cook 1 minute more, until the second side is golden. Never press the pancake down with the spatula.
- Serve hot with butter and syrup, and wipe the griddle with a little more butter between batches.
Tips that make the difference
- Use a fork, not a whisk. It is much harder to overmix with a fork.
- The first pancake is the test. If it browns before the bubbles appear, turn the heat down a little.
- Pour from a measuring cup so every pancake is the same size and cooks in the same time.
- Keep finished pancakes warm on a plate in a 200 degree oven, uncovered, so they stay crisp at the edges.
- Do not flip twice. The second flip deflates them.
Variations
- Buttermilk pancakes. Use 1 1/4 cups buttermilk (300ml) in place of the milk and add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda to the dry ingredients.
- Blueberry. Pour the batter, then drop a few blueberries onto each pancake before flipping, so they do not sink or turn the batter purple.
- Cinnamon. Add 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon to the flour, and serve with butter and a dusting of cinnamon sugar.
- Banana. Lay thin banana slices on the wet side of each pancake just before the flip.
Storage and make-ahead
Leftover pancakes keep in the refrigerator, in a covered container, for 3 days. Reheat them in the toaster or in a warm skillet.
They freeze well for up to 2 months. Cool them completely, stack them with a square of parchment between each one, and freeze in a bag. Toast straight from the freezer.
The batter itself is best used within 30 minutes. After that the baking powder tires and the pancakes come out flatter.
Frequently asked questions
Why are my pancakes flat and rubbery?
Almost always because the batter was stirred too much. Stir only until the flour is wet, leave the lumps, and let it rest 10 minutes. Old baking powder and pressing the pancakes with the spatula also flatten them.
Should pancake batter have lumps?
Yes. Small lumps mean the batter has not been overworked. They cook out on the griddle and leave the pancakes tender and tall.
How do I know when to flip a pancake?
When bubbles rise to the top, pop, and the little holes stay open instead of filling back in, and the edges look dry and set. That takes about 2 minutes on medium heat.
Can I make the batter the night before?
It is better not to. Baking powder starts working as soon as it gets wet, and overnight batter makes flatter pancakes. Measure the dry ingredients the night before instead, and mix in the morning.
Ten strokes, ten minutes, one flip. Leave the lumps alone, and keep the spatula off the top. That is the whole Saturday morning.
Homemade Pancakes (Leave the Lumps In)
Fluffy homemade pancakes from scratch: flour, sugar, baking powder, milk, one egg and melted butter, stirred ten strokes and left lumpy, rested 10 minutes, flipped once when the bubbles pop and stay open. Cups and grams, griddle heat and timing.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (42g), melted, plus a little for the griddle
Instructions
- In a large bowl, stir together the 1 1/2 cups flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- In a second bowl or a large measuring cup, whisk the 1 1/4 cups milk, the egg and the 3 tablespoons melted butter together. (Let the butter cool a minute first so it does not cook the egg.)
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir with a fork about ten strokes, only until no big pockets of dry flour remain. The batter should be thick and lumpy. Leave it that way.
- Let the batter rest for 10 minutes. It will thicken and puff a little. Do not stir it again.
- Heat a griddle or a large skillet over medium heat and wipe it with a little butter. It is ready when a drop of water skitters across it.
- Pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake, leaving room between them.
- Cook about 2 minutes, until bubbles rise on top, pop, and stay open, and the edges look dry. That is the moment to flip.
- Flip once and cook 1 minute more, until the second side is golden. Never press the pancake down with the spatula.
- Serve hot with butter and syrup, and wipe the griddle with a little more butter between batches.
