What’s better than waking up to a tall stack of pancakes dripping with syrup and butter? Nothing, as long as they’re worth waking up for: evenly cooked, fluffy, and tangy.
But achieving the perfect pancake—especially early in the morning, when you’re half asleep and waiting for the coffee to kick in—takes a bit of finesse. To keep them as light as possible, the key is to not overmix the batter. If you strive for a completely smooth batter, you’ll overmix it and turn the pancakes tough and chewy.
Above: A Pale, Gummy Pancake (left) versus a Perfect, Fluffy Pancake (right)
The pan’s heat is just as important as the batter. A skillet that hasn’t been allowed to heat up properly will produce pale, gummy pancakes, while a pan too hot will result in ones that are dark and unevenly cooked. If you aren’t sure how hot your skillet is, test it by cooking a small pancake to get the lay of the land. What’s one sacrificial dollop of batter if it ensures a tray full of perfectly cooked pancakes?
1. Make a well: Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour the buttermilk mixture into the well, and gently whisk together until just incorporated. We like using this “well” method when making liquidy batters, because it helps incorporate the wet ingredients into the dry without overmixing.
2. Leave some lumps: When whisking the batter, be careful not to overmix it—the batter should actually have a few lumps. Overmixed batter makes for dense pancakes.
3. Get the skillet hot but not scorching: Heat an empty 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. If the skillet is not hot enough before cooking the pancakes, the pancakes will be pale and dense. Knowing when the skillet is hot enough can take some practice; if you’re not sure if the skillet is ready, try cooking just one small pancake to check.
4. Brush lightly with oil: Before adding the batter, brush a thin layer of oil onto the pan. If you use too much oil, the delicate cakes will taste greasy and dense. If you don’t have a pastry brush with heatproof bristles, just use a small wad of paper towels dipped in oil.
5. Use a ¼-cup measure: Add the batter to the skillet in ¼-cup increments (2 or 3 pancakes will fit at a time). Using a measuring cup ensures that the pancakes are the same size and that they cook at the same rate. Don’t crowd the pan or the pancakes will run together and be difficult to flip.
6. Flip when you see bubbles: Cook the pancakes on the first side until large bubbles begin to appear, about 2 minutes. The bubbles indicate that the pancakes are ready to be flipped over. If the pancakes are not browned when flipped, the skillet needs to be hotter; alternatively, if the pancakes are overly browned, turn down the heat.
About the Author: America's Test Kitchen
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Thanks for the wonderful tips. Love and hugs
Another helpful tip I read elsewhere is that if you accidentally overmix your batter, you can prevent toughness by letting the batter rest (covered w/plastic wrap) in the refrigerator for at least 15-30 minutes or as long as overnight. This helps to relax the gluten. I believe that ATK also recommends using a lower-protein all-purpose flour like Gold Medal or Pillsbury. Another tip that definitely works is to separate the eggs and beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add the yolks & liquids to the dry ingredients, and then fold in the beaten egg whites to the batter. It really does make majorly light & fluffy ‘cakes.
Is it safe to heat a nonstick skillet with nothing in it?
Hi ubernonnie, great question. The safety issues with PTFE (the chemical used to make nonstick pans not stick) are all about fumes. If you heat up an empty nonstick pan to 650 F, the PTFE gives off fumes that are harmful, and can make you feel like you have the flu. These fumes can kill small birds that may be in the kitchen, and won’t make you feel so good, either. If you don’t heat the pan to 650 this won’t happen, and there’s no problem in cooking in it. Once a pan has food in it, it rarely gets up to 650 F.
I made these for my son this morning but for some reason they didn’t come out the same. I used two cups of low fat cultured buttermilk along with two cups of 100 % white whole wheat flour and the mix was extremely thick, almost like cookie dough. I ended up adding another cup and a half of buttermilk to thin out the batter but I’m sure the the texture and consistency wasn’t what it was supposed to be.
I really want to make these the right way. Can anyone tell me what I did wrong?
I made these pancakes this morning for my husband they were super! I used the buttermilk substitution suggested in Cook’s Illustrated “The Science of Good Cooking” because I didn’t have buttermilk. I also prepared the bacon in water as suggested in one of the video tips. The result was excellent the bacon and pancakes had finished cooking at the same time. Thank you.
urgnabymychkn, you used whole wheat flour; too thick, too much protein, and as a whole flour, it still contains wheat germ.
Could someone point me to the technique of cooking bacon in water mentioned above. I can’t seem to find it… thanks.
Hi Mary, here’s the bacon-cooking tip: http://www.americastestkitchenfeed.com/super-quick-video-tips/2012/05/make-the-most-perfect-bacon-ever-video/
Why doesn’t this include the Test Kitchen’s tip for perfectly browned pancakes? Add the oil to a cold pan, heat and then wipe with a paper towel to leave just a thin layer of oil.
yummy! Love buttermilk pancakes! Is there a pretzel recipe on here?
Hi littlemixfan_123, thanks for stopping by! We have a recipe for soft pretzels in our Baking Illustrated cookbook.