How to Make Pancakes

Guide Note Pancakes have a long history as a favorite breakfast food, and they're very easy to make from scratch! No wonder they're so popular. Follow the steps in How to Make Pancakes to make this tasty, satisfying breakfast.

Table of Contents

Tips on How to Make Pancakes

  1. Preheat your skillet before pouring in the pancake batter.
  2. Don't overmix your pancake batter.
  3. Only flip pancakes once to keep them tender.
  4. Serve pancakes immediately after cooking them.
  5. Experiment with different add-ins and substitutions to make your favorite pancake.

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Introduction

  • A homemade pancake breakfast is such a treat! In fact, some people love pancakes so much that they eat them for lunch or supper too.
  • Pancakes are one of those foods that taste much better when they're made from scratch and prepared fresh. Luckily, homemade pancakes are relatively easy to prepare, if you follow these simple steps.

Step 1: Gather Supplies

  • First, gather together all the ingredients and equipment you'll need. This recipe makes about 12 medium pancakes, so it serves 6 people. The recipe can be easily doubled for a bigger batch if needed.
Delicious, homemade pancakes are just a few steps away. (Creative Commons photo by Steve McFarland)
Delicious, homemade pancakes are just a few steps away. (Creative Commons photo by Steve McFarland)

Equipment

    • 2 Mixing Bowls
    • Mixing Spoon
    • Skillet
    • Measuring Cups and Measuring Spoons
    • Metal Spatula

Ingredients

Step 2: Prepare the Batter and Skillet

  • Afer you've gathered your ingredients and all the equipment you'll be using, it's time to combine the ingredients to form a thick pancake batter.
  1. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla and melted butter in a mixing bowl.
  2. Beat until well combined.
  3. Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a separate mixing bowl.1
  4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently stir until all the dry ingredients are moistened.
  5. Don't worry if there are small lumps mixed throughout the batter.2
  6. Don't over-mix and here's why:
  7. The finished batter should be thick, but not too thick to pour. If you need to thin the batter down slightly, add a small amount of milk.4
  8. When your batter is ready, coat the skillet with nonstick cooking spray, or use a paper towel to spread a small amount of butter on the cooking surface of the skillet.1
  9. Preheat Skillet to medium heat (375 degrees F).5

Step 3: Cook

  • Pay especially careful attention to this step. A perfect pancake batter can be easily ruined by overcooking!
  1. Use a ladle to pour small puddles of batter into the preheated skillet.5
  2. You can cook multiple pancakes at once, given enough space between them. (Creative Commons photo by Jennifer)
    You can cook multiple pancakes at once, given enough space between them. (Creative Commons photo by Jennifer)
    It's okay to cook several pancakes in your pan at once, but be sure to leave enough room between pancakes that you can flip each one with a spatula without damaging another pancake.3
  3. You'll know the pancake is ready to flip when it's full of popped bubbles, dry around the outside, and a little bit puffy.6
  4. Flip by pancake by carefully sliding the metal spatula under the center of the pancake, then lifting and flipping in one quick motion.8
  5. Cook the second side of the pancake until it's golden brown. You can use the spatula to slightly lift the pancake and peek at its cooking progress.
  6. Only flip each pancake one time.6 If you flip them several times, the pancakes may get tough on the outside.
  7. Do not press down on the pancake with your spatula! It may seem like you're helping the pancake cook faster, but in reality all you are doing is pushing the air out of the pancake and making it less fluffy.3

Step 4: Serve the Pancakes

  • Now it's time to share your homemade pancakes, and don't forget to eat some yourself!
  1. Pancakes are best served immediately after they come off the skillet. (This may mean serving one at a time and take turns cooking them and eating them, but that's part of the fun!)
  2. If you need to keep the pancakes warm before serving them, place them in the oven heated to 200 degrees on a cookie sheet lined with a napkin or paper towel.6
  3. IMPORTANT: Don't stack pancakes before you serve them, and don't cover them to keep them warm. They'll stick together and get soggy.6

Personalize Your Pancakes

  • There are thousands of varieties of pancakes out there, and you shouldn't be afraid of experimenting in your own kitchen to find your favorite! Here are a few ways you can personalize your pancakes.

Shapes

    • To really impress your guests, many stores sell pancake molds made especially for forming pancakes into fun shapes.

Substitutions

Additions to the Batter

Toppings

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References for How to Make Pancakes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Recipezaar.com: Pancakes
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 MarthaStewart.com: Basic Pancakes
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 AllRecipes.com: Perfect Pancakes
  4. ↑ Recipezaar.com: Pancakes
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Simply Recipes: Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 BettyCrocker.com: Pancake Tips
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 FoodNetwork.com: Pancakes
  8. ↑ Food Network: Flip Crepes, Pancakes
  9. ↑ Cooks.com: Whole Wheat Pancakes
  10. ↑ MarthaStewart.com: Prepare Pancakes
  11. ↑ Simply Recipes: Dee's Oatmeal Pancakes

Additional Pancake Recipes



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