How to Make Pancakes

The perfect pancake is fluffy, tender, and moist. I’ve looked for the best pancake recipe over and over pouring through cookbooks and recipe sites only to find out that none came out as delicious as I hoped. After a lot of trial and error, I have finally learned how to make pancakes from scratch with a great pancake recipe I’ve tweaked and perfected over time. You will love this recipe so much you’ll want to make it every morning.
The thing about pancakes recipes, and recipes in general, is that it’s not just about the ingredients. It is important to mix quality ingredients together in just the right amount, but how you mix them together and how you cook them up are equally important. This easy pancake recipe from scratch requires a little extra attention, but it’s still easy to follow and quick to put together. I’ve learned a lot from my pancake-making experience and I’ve put it all together for amazingly delicious and easy pancakes!
Whether you’re having trouble finding a good recipe, or you just can’t get the multitudes of recipes you’ve tried to come out right, I have come up with not only a recipe, but an ultra-detailed recipe that will walk you through each and every step with sufficient explanations. If you follow the recipe exactly, you should end up with the best pancakes you’ve ever had. If they still don’t come out right, I’ve included a troubleshooting section to help you get answers to your pancake woes.
If you’re serious about making amazing pancakes, pick up a copy of The Pancake Handbook: Specialties from Bette’s Oceanview Diner. Bette’s Oceanview Diner is very well-known for amazing pancakes. If you’r a serious pancake addict, or even if you only love pancakes a little, you’ll find a lot of great recipes here you won’t find anywhere else.
The Best Pancake Recipe
Ingredients
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons melted butter or vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions
1.  First, gather all your ingredients together. Get the best quality ingredients you can, and make sure they are fresh. For example, if you have baking powder that’s been sitting in your cupboard for 5 years, you should get some new baking powder. It will lose its effectiveness over time. Whenever I’m making pancakes from scratch, I always make sure I have the ingredients on hand before starting to avoid extra trips to the grocery store.
2.  Get a large bowl for the dry ingredients. Use a sifter or a fine sieve to sift the flour together with the baking powder, salt, and sugar. Do not skip the sifting step or else you’ll end up with very lumpy batter and dense pancakes. You can even sift the flour twice for extra fluffy pancakes. Stir the dry ingredients together lightly with a whisk to combine.
3.  If you’re using melted butter, melt it completely and set it aside to cool slightly. Don’t let it harden again. I find that leaving the melted butter to sit for about 5 minutes is good. This is usually how long it takes for me to prepare the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix it together quickly with the egg, vanilla, and 1 ¼ cups milk with a whisk.
4.  The next step will require limited, gentle stirring. If you mix together the wet and dry ingredients too much, the pancakes will become tough. Excessive stirring can overdevelop the gluten from the flour which creates the tough, chewy texture that is all wrong for good pancakes. They should be light and fluffy.
5.  Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, stirring gently with a wooden spoon. Sifting the flour will make sure there aren’t too many lumps, but there will be some. Stir the batter just until most of the lumps are gone. If you think the batter is too thick, add  the extra milk. Some people like thin pancakes and others like them thick. I like to keep out the extra quarter cup of milk, but this is mostly a personal preference. Next, put the batter in the refrigerator for at least 15 to 30 minutes. This will help to relax some of the gluten and form lots of bubbles for fluffy pancakes. Some people even like to make the batter the night before.
6.  While your pancake batter is resting, prepare your griddle. You can use any pan and they will be cooked, but a good pancake griddle is best. Look here for griddle recommendations. It will cook your pancakes evenly, brown them nicely, and make it easier to flip your pancakes. There are many cast iron griddles and electric griddles on the market. Choose one with low sides and a large enough surface area to cook as many pancakes as possible. The more you can cook at once, the sooner they are done. This ensures that the first batches aren’t cold by the time your done.
7.  Heat the griddle to about medium high heat. Be sure to let it heat through all the way so your pancakes are golden brown and not dry inside. Lightly grease the griddle with brushed on vegetable oil or butter. Don’t put on too much or you’ll fry the pancakes. If you want crispy edges, a little more oil or butter will work great.
8.  Remove the batter from the refrigerator, but do not stir it. Stirring will break up all the bubbles. When the griddle is ready, scoop about ¼ cup of batter and pour it onto the pan spacing the pancakes about 1 to 2 inches apart for easier flipping. You can make them larger or in different shapes if you want to.
9.  Let the pancakes cook on the griddle for about 1 to 3 minutes until tiny bubbles have formed all across the top of the pancake. The bottom should be a nice golden brown color. Flip them over and continue to cook on the other side for 1 to 2 minutes or until golden brown.
10.  Serve the pancakes immediately with your choice of topping. Traditionally, butter and syrup is used. It is delicious, but for an extra treat, you can try sliced fruit, flavored syrups, or other toppings. Experiment with different sweet and/or savory options. My favorite includes traditional pancakes served with butter, syrup, and breakfast sausage.