This is our best pancake recipe for quick pancakes that are easy, perfectly fluffy and delicious. Not overly fluffy, not underly so. Despite the fluffy texture, they taste creamy and flavorful. They're quick and easy because this recipe only uses ingredients that don't require additional effort such as squeezing and zesting a lemon or separating the egg as in our blueberry pancakes.
The melted butter can be a trick, but doesn't add time if you do it first, or else you can mix in soft butter or microwave it if melting is too much of an effort. Really our pancake recipe for pancake art is quicker and easier to make, but if you're wanting more flavor, fluffy texture or entertaining anyone with a discerning pallet, these pancakes add the additional easy ingredients that are worth the very small additional time and effort.
You can use a pancake pen to do pancake art with this recipe too, but be sure to mix it well and you may have to add more flour until you have a pancake batter with texture similar to icing. That affiliate link takes you to the product we use from the seller we bought ours from. Your art probably won't be as good as with our pancake art recipe, but you or your guests may think the enhanced taste is worth it.
This recipe is great for a wide range of toppings. Of course butter and syrup are a classic choice. You can use, as pictured, chopped dates, raisins, a pad of butter and drizzled honey. If you want to add berries and have some additional time, we'd recommend following our blueberry pancake recipe (and substituting whatever berry you'd like). Dropping chocolate chips into the batter as they cook is a favorite choice with this recipe.
SERVES 3
As a final tip, the sour cream in these make them taste richer and creamier than most pancakes, but using this also means that you don't want to overcook them for a burnt taste or undercook them for a battery taste. So while the creamy taste is delicious, you'll need to cook until the texture is light, airy and fluffy. You don't want to flip when you see the first bubbles and you also don't want to wait until it's covered in bubbles. It's better to flip a little after it starts to brown around the rim and after seeing several bubbles. That way, if you think it's not enough, you can always flip again.
What is the trick to fluffy pancakes? All the main tricks involve creating air bubbles, which is what creates the fluffiness in pancakes. Baking soda combined with an acid (usually lemon or vinegar) and/or baking powder are the primary reasons pancakes will be fluffy. The reaction between the soda and acid cause a fizz that creates air bubbles. If you do nothing else besides add enough of these, your pancakes will be fluffy. Whipping the egg whites into foam is another trick to make pancakes fluffy. Stirring your batter so that you have bubbles while still retaining some lumpiness will help. You could also use carbonated water for a bubblier batter.
Of course you could do all of the above if you want them very fluffy. If you just follow this recipe, they should be fluffy because of the baking powder, but you can also stir so you have bubbles in your batter, substitute sparkling water for the milk and/or whip the egg whites if you want them even fluffier. If you substitute sparkling water for milk, you may need to add a little less sparkling water than milk or else add a little more flour.
What is the secret to making the best pancakes? Some things are generally agreed to be better: usually people like a little bit of fluff to their pancakes, but not too much. So include some of the "fluffy" tricks from the "What is the trick to fluffy pancakes?" answer above. People usually think that pancakes with some type of dairy taste better than not, so include sour cream and/or butter as in this recipe, cream cheese as in our blueberry pancakes or at the very least milk. Add at least an egg since eggs tend to add richness to the pancake. Of course pick a type of flour that you like.
Do all of those things in a proportion you like with more flour providing more of a biscuit type pancake, too much dairy and it doesn't hold together well and too much egg and it tastes too much like a custard. Finally, put in additives that enhance the flavor. In the case of our quick pancake recipe, our flavor enhancing additive is salt. In our blueberry pancake recipe, we add cinnamon, vanilla, lemon zest and a pinch of corriander.
If you're concerned about what proportions to use, just follow the recipe on this page if you want an easy recipe with general toppings such as butter and syrup. If you can commit a little more time and want to add fruit or a fruit sauce, then make these blueberry pancakes and substitute the blueberries for whatever fruit you want.
Finally, as we mention in the following linked recipe, we've never regretted choosing chocolate as a flavor for anything including pancakes. If you believe that flavors can't get any better than chocolate, then you might have the opinion that following this chocolate cake pancakes recipe is the secret to making the best pancakes. If taste is your concern and you like ice cream better than cake, make those chocolate pancakes without the frosting and put ice cream and flavored syrup on top.
What's the easiest pancake you can make? The easiest pancake to make would be either adding water to a pancake mix or making pancakes with just milk, flour and egg as in our pancake art recipe.