It’s easy to make your own delicious pancake breakfast at home. And you don’t need a fancy mix or box of frozen pre-made pancakes to do it. Here’s how to make pancakes step by step quickly and easily.
How to Make Pancakes
The biggest questions with pancakes are how to cook them. After all, how can you tell if one side is done when you can’t see the side that’s cooking?
Well-practiced pancake makers just seem to “know” when to turn them over. Do they have x-ray eyes? Or do they just know a few simple secrets?
Three Secrets to Cooking Light and Fluffy Pancakes
Secret #1
Start with the batter. Mix the dry ingredients first. Place the wet ingredients into a second bowl and mix well until smooth. Then add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix together just until well combined.
If the batter a little bit lumpy, that’s okay. It should be thin enough that it’s easy to pour, but thick enough that ¼ cup of batter will only spread out a few inches.
Secret #2
Second, heat a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Grease it lightly with oil. You can use butter, but butter can burn quickly, so lower the heat a little.
The heat setting varies from stove to stove and griddle to griddle. If you want perfectly golden brown pancakes, make a few small test pancakes first. Just drop a small teaspoon of batter onto the hot skillet to adjust the heat to the best setting.
Secret #3
Third, watch for bubbles to form on the top of the pancake and for the sides of the pancake to look dry. Once the bubbles start to pop and remain open, gently lift the side of the pancake with your spatula and check to see if it’s golden brown on the bottom.
If so, it’s ready to turn over. Slide the spatula all the way under the pancake, lift it up a few inches and flip over. The second side will cook a bit faster than the first, so keep a close eye on it.
How to Make Pancakes Step By Step
Making pancakes is easy if you follow these simple steps.
Mix the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a bowl.
Mix the milk, melted butter and egg together in a separate bowl.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir lightly to combine. It’s okay if the batter is a little bit lumpy.
Heat a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Grease it lightly with oil.
Once the skillet is hot, pour ¼ cup of the batter into the skillet. You may need to lightly spread it out with the back of a spoon to make a round pancake.
Watch it carefully. As it cooks, the sides will start to look dry and bubbles will form on the top of the pancake. When the bubbles burst, lift the pancake with a spatula and flip over to cook on the other side.
Serve with your favorite toppings, such as butter, jams or jellies, or try our recipe for buttery homemade pancake syrup.
How to Make Pancakes Step By Step
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Mix the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a bowl.
- Mix the milk, melted butter and egg together in a separate bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir lightly to combine. It’s okay if the batter is a little bit lumpy.
- Heat a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Grease it lightly with oil.
- Once the skillet is hot, pour ¼ cup of the batter into the skillet. You may need to lightly spread it out with the back of a spoon to make a round pancake.
- Watch it carefully. As it cooks, the sides will start to look dry and bubbles will form on the top of the pancake. When the bubbles burst, lift the pancake with a spatula and flip over to cook on the other side.
- Serve with your favorite toppings, such as butter, jams or jellies, or pancake syrup.
For more made from scratch breakfast ideas, check out our post on homemade blueberry muffins.
