How to Make Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes (2024)

FAQs

What makes pancakes more fluffy? ›

To make the fluffiest pancakes possible, you need to make bubbles in the batter. You can make bubbles by using a raising agent, such as baking powder, and by making and cooking your batter quickly.

Over-mixing the batter will develop the gluten in the flour too much, making your pancakes dense and chewy. Not Letting the Batter Rest: Once you've mixed the batter, stop and do something else, like set the table and heat up the griddle.

The secret to fluffy restaurant style pancakes? Buttermilk! The acid in the buttermilk reacts to the leavening agents in the pancake batter, creating air bubbles that make the pancakes tall and fluffy. It's a simple switch that makes all the difference.

Make sure that your recipe DOES have baking powder and/or baking soda, and if you're not getting enough fluffiness for your liking, considering adding another 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the batter. Play around with amounts of the powder or soda to see how puffy it gets.

Baking powder (double acting) provides two rises: The first occurs when the baking powder comes into contact with a liquid, the second when it's exposed to heat. Too much baking powder will create a very puffy pancake with a chalky taste, while too little will make it flat and limp.

Why were my buttermilk pancakes flat/not fluffy!? Most likely this is a result of over-mixing the batter, this can yield flat, dense, or even rubbery pancakes. Do not over-mix your pancake batter — I can not overstate how important this is.

(Simply add 2 Tablespoons lemon juice to 2 cups milk and let that sit for about 10 minutes.) The acid in the buttermilk or lemon juice is the key to fluffy pancakes; when the acid reacts with baking soda, the combination forms bubbles, which create lighter, fluffier pancakes.

Eggs are a crucial ingredient. They provide the cakes with the structure to hold light bubbles. Eggs also give the batter additional, richer flavor from the yolk fat. If you add too many eggs, you'll have “pancakes” that look more like custard or crepes.

Here's why. Pancakes and waffles typically both contain baking soda, which causes them to rise. As soon as the baking soda is combined with the wet ingredients (which contain an acidic ingredient, like often buttermilk), it starts producing carbon dioxide gas bubbles that cause the batter to rise.

What makes pancakes more airy? ›

Vinegar—an acid—reacts with baking soda to produce carbon dioxide, which gives the batter a lift as it bakes. The acidity also causes the flour's proteins to gently unravel, producing a tender cake that is fluffy and moist.

In an interview with Delish, IHOP's vice president of culinary innovation revealed that the pancake house keeps the wet ingredients “ice cold” in the prepared batter. This eliminates any heat interaction with the glutens that might cause the batter to rise prematurely.

If the batter seems too thick, add a bit more milk. If it's too thin, add a bit more flour. Make sure you sieve it in to avoid creating lumps and whisk to ensure the mixture is combined. If you've left your batter in the fridge overnight, you may need to add a bit of milk in the morning when you come to use it.

Flat pancakes are nearly always because of expired baking powder, too little baking powder for the recipe size, or too thin of a batter. How to fix flat pancakes: First, test your baking powder by adding a teaspoon of baking powder in a glass and adding a tablespoon of water or two.

With additional mixing, the proteins create a tighter and tighter weblike network of proteins that can trap air bubbles. When chemical leaveners, such as baking powder, create bubbles in a cooked pancake, the gluten network traps these bubbles and allows a pancake to rise and stay fluffy yet still keep its shape.