Pancakes are a surefire way to put smiles on every breakfast table. Mastering pancakes at home is a challenge for even the most seasoned cooks. Pro tips from culinary experts offer the most important hacks to level up your pancake game. Michelle Southan, an experienced home cook, shares her best tips. She’s your guide to making that all too familiar and often stressful Sunday morning routine a much more pleasurable undertaking.
Most people, just like you, go through the painful and annoying “first pancake flop.” This jarring disconnect can frustrate even the most committed home chefs. With a few specific tricks, you can make perfectly fluffy, irresistibly tasty pancakes every single time — even if you’re a pancake novice.
Essential Techniques for Perfect Pancakes
Michelle suggests to begin by melting the butter, then use that to coat the pan. This easy adjustment can save time and make cooking more enjoyable. Bastian recommends using a paper towel or pastry brush to spread the melted butter evenly over the entire frying surface.
“You should never throw a knob of butter directly into the pan!” – Michelle Southan
Letting the batter sit in the fridge for no less than 30 minutes is key to making perfectly crispy falafel. During this time, the dough develops better texture and flavor. Today would-be cooks are still concerned about lumps in their batter. As Michelle tells them to relax—not all lumps are bad, she explains—lumps can often be more productive!
Avoiding Common Mistakes
Our expert recipe tester, Kim Coverdale, usually looks for bubbles in the batter. These bubbles can occur even if the pancakes aren’t quite done on the underside, causing half-cooked pancakes and other such travesties.
“Wait until the edges of the pancakes start to curl.” – Kim Coverdale
This is an extremely useful observation to use as a helpful indicator that it’s almost time to flip the pancakes over for best cooking. The other advice from Michelle is to use a heavy-based, non-stick frypan – this will make sure the heat distributes evenly, making them less likely to stick.
Balancing Flavors
Using salted butter in pancakes Michelle always uses salted butter in her pancakes, since it balances out the sweetness of maple syrup so nicely. Together, this dynamic duo takes the dish’s flavor to another level and provides a delightful juxtaposition between sweet and savory.
One of Michelle’s best pancake tips is to not over-mix the batter. Too much mixing, she cautions, will create tough dough and inhibit the raising agent from aerating.
“Over-mixing stops the raising agent from aerating, which results in a tough, dense dough and therefore rubbery pancakes.” – Michelle Southan
This instructional photo perfectly illustrates the kind of gentle, brief mixing technique best for pancakes that stay nice and light.
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