Because the baking soda is so integral to fluffy pancakes, only use baking soda that’s newer than six months. [1] X Research source
If you don’t have a sifter, combine all the dry ingredients in the bowl and whisk them together for a minute. You can proportionally increase the ingredients’ quantities if you want to make extra dry pancake mix for later.
This dry pancake mix will be good for the next three months. [3] X Research source
When the butter has melted, set it aside to cool a bit so it doesn’t cook the eggs when you combine all the wet ingredients. [4] X Research source
Continue beating the eggs for four or five minutes, until they form stiff peaks.
You can substitute more buttermilk instead of the sour cream. However, it’s important to use buttermilk rather than milk in this recipe, because the acidity in it will activate the baking soda. [6] X Research source
You don’t want to overmix the wet ingredients at this point because you could pop the air bubbles that are fluffing up the egg whites.
Stop when everything is just combined. Some small lumps in the batter are perfectly acceptable. Overmixing the batter will develop the gluten, and this will result in pancakes that are chewy and tough, rather than light and airy. [8] X Research source
Drop a pea-sized dollop of batter into the oil. When it starts to sizzle and cook in three or four minutes, the pan is ready for the pancakes. If you don’t have a griddle, you can use a wide, heavy-bottomed pan instead. This will prevent the pancakes from burning, and make them easier to flip. [9] X Research source Don’t cook your pancakes in butter, because the smoke point of butter is too low, meaning it will burn when you’re cooking pancakes over medium heat.
Depending on the size of your griddle, you may be able to cook between two and four pancakes at a time.
Flip the pancakes and cook them for another two minutes. When the first batch of pancakes is ready, remove them from the griddle and pour more pancakes. The batter must be used immediately, and if you wait to cook the pancakes, they will be dense instead of fluffy. [12] X Research source Although you cannot store the battery for later use, you can refrigerate cooked pancakes for a couple of days if you have leftovers.
Transfer the cooked pancakes to a foil-lined baking sheet or an oven-safe dish. Cover them loosely with foil to keep them from drying out. Transfer the dish to a 200 F (93 C) oven to keep the cooked pancakes warm while you finish cooking the remaining batches. [13] X Research source
Spread a small dollop of butter onto each pancake Sprinkle cinnamon on top of the stack Smother the pancakes with maple syrup, corn syrup, honey, or another liquid sweetener Sprinkle nuts or berries on top Add a swirl of whipped cream to the top of the stack
