Pancake Making Tips and Tricks

Master your pancake technique with these pancake making tips and tricks. From knowing how much to mix the batter to understanding when to flip, you’ll become a pancake expert in no time.

Becoming a pancake-making pro is easy when you have a few simple tips and techniques under your belt. While making pancakes isn’t inherently difficult — just mix up the batter, spoon it onto a hot pan or griddle, and give it a flip — a few simple tweaks to your process will yield the fluffiest, most perfectly cooked and uniformly shaped pancakes. 

Try out these skills on some of my best pancake recipes for pancakes your family will flip for!

• Don’t over-mix the batter. Stir the batter just until the dry ingredients are mixed into the wet ingredients, but let some lumps remain. Just like you shouldn’t over-working biscuit dough, mixing the batter too much can activate the glutens and cause the pancakes to come out tough, rather than tender.
• Let the batter sit. This gives the baking powder or other leavening agent time to develop, which will yield lofty, fluffy pancakes.
• Use a griddle. A stovetop or electric griddle is the best cooking tool for making uniformly cooked pancakes, as the entire surface heats up evenly. They also have a larger capacity than a frying pan.
• Portion batter properly. Use the same amount of batter every time so that your pancakes come out the same size. This means they’ll cook at the same rate and they’ll also make a nice stack on the plate. Use a batter dispenser, a measuring scoop or a large cookie scoop to portion out the batter in equal-sized quantities.
• Grease the pan. As the pan heats up, spread a pat of butter over the entire surface to grease it properly. This prevents batter from sticking to the pan and helps the pancakes brown nicely. Use more butter between batches as needed.
• Know when to flip. There are a few ways to tell when a pancake is ready to be flipped. The edges will start looking dry and browned, and bubbles will form on the surface. Take a peek underneath the pancake: If it’s nice and brown underneath, it’s time to flip. I find a fish spatula is perfect for flipping pancakes since it’s thin enough to slide underneath the pancake and flexible to get between closely spaced pancakes.
• Flip just once. Don’t touch the pancakes after you’ve flipped them, until they’ve had time to cook on the underside. They’ll take less time to cook on the second side. 
• Make a batch of pancakes in a sheet pan. The easiest way to make pancakes for a crowd is by pouring the batter into a baking sheet and cooking it in the oven. Try my Quick Sheet Pan Pancakes to see how easy it is to make a batch of pancakes all at once!
• Keep pancakes warm in the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and keep it in a 300˚F oven. As you cook each batch of pancakes, use a spatula to transfer them from the griddle to the baking sheet so they will stay warm and ready to serve until the very last pancake is flipped.

Related Recipes:

• Raspberry Oatmeal Pancakes
• Fluffy Greek Yogurt Pancakes
• Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes
• Banana Nut Pancakes
• Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

Featured Kitchen Equipment:

• Glass Stacking Bowl Set
• Electric Countertop Griddle
• Batter Dispenser
• Fish Spatula

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