The Best Fluffy Cornmeal Pancake Recipe- Fearless Dining (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to making fluffy pancakes? ›

The secret is in the egg whites!

Yep, egg whites are THE determining factor here. To give your pancakes that fluffy text, beat only the egg whites for 3 minutes on medium speed. They'll start turning creamy, which means it's time to add them to the pancake mixture.

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.

Tips for the Perfect Pancakes

Baking soda should be no more than six months old. Stir the batter only until the wet and dry ingredients are incorporated; overbeating will make pancakes tough and chewy instead of fluffy. No Buttermilk, No Problem!

If you stir your pancake batter too much, the gas bubbles that your acid and base just produced will be released. Over stirring causes tough, rubbery pancakes. You should barely stir your pancake batter.

Using extra virgin olive oil in place of the melted butter in this recipe adds moisture in addition to flavor, resulting in a light and fluffy pancake that's perfectly tender and moist, not dry or doughy in the least.

Don't be tempted to add more than the recipe suggests, as too much baking powder will make pancakes taste soapy. Alternatively, you could use self-raising flour, which will add to the amount of raising agent in the recipe and potentially make your pancakes fluffier.

Flour is the main ingredient to any pancake. It provides the structure. Different types of flours alter the structure because some flours absorb more moisture or create more gluten (which binds the structure together) than others.

The combination of homemade buttermilk (milk and vinegar) and two leaveners (baking powder and baking soda) create lots of air bubbles in the pancake batter, resulting in the lightest and fluffiest pancakes imaginable.

Most baking powders are "double acting," meaning they produce carbon dioxide once upon coming in contact with moisture, then again after heating. Because of this, baking powder-leavened goods are generally lighter and fluffier than those that rely on baking soda alone.

Restaurants use better quality ingredients

However, along with that ease, you may be taking a hit in the overall taste department. Restaurants tend to use real, farm-fresh eggs and real milk when making their pancakes, which as you might guess, adds to a richer, higher-quality eating experience.

Why are IHOP pancakes so delicious? ›

What makes IHOP buttermilk pancakes so good? The combination of flavor and texture in these delicious pancakes can't be beat. The batter has a subtle sweetness, complemented by the characteristic tang of buttermilk. This works perfectly with rich butter and sweet syrups or other toppings.

As the pancakes cook the proteins form a network and tense up, becoming rigid and providing that structure. A word of caution though — if you add too many eggs you'll end up with a loose pancake batter that will need to be balanced with more pancake mix.

Why are my pancakes flat and not fluffy? A flat pancake is usually the result of the batter being too wet. This is because there isn't enough strength from the flour to trap the bubbles produced by the baking soda.

Too much egg, however, will make the pancake dense and custard-like; not enough will make it drier and more biscuit-like. Baking powder and baking soda are the chemical leaveners typically used in pancakes. They are responsible for the bubbles in the batter, and for making the cakes light and fluffy.

Pancake lovers' biggest complaint when adding water instead of milk is that the flavor seems to change. Pancakes aren't as richly flavored with water. There are a few ways to improve your batter when you've used water, including: Add extra butter.