South African Pannekoek (Pancakes) - aninas recipes (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between milk pancakes and water pancakes? ›

Can I Use Water Instead of Milk in Pancakes? Milk adds both flavor and texture to pancake batter, so if you are looking to make pancakes without milk, a simple swap to water doesn't always do the trick. For pancakes made without milk, you'll want to add some flavor through melted butter and vanilla extract.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Stir in the buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla. Pour ¼ cup of pancake batter for each pancake onto the griddle. Cook until the edges start to set and the pancakes are golden-brown underneath.

Stir your batter until the dry and wet ingredients are just incorporated. That means mixing until the flour streaks have disappeared, but leaving the pesky lumps. If you over-mix, the gluten will develop from the flour in your batter, making your pancakes chewy instead of fluffy.

For fluffier pancakes, use buttermilk. The acidity of buttermilk helps to tenderize the gluten in the flour, which results in fluffier pancakes. If you don't have buttermilk, whole milk will give the pancakes a richer flavor, while skim milk will give them a lighter and fluffier feel.

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.

Milk and butter: Milk and butter add moisture and richness to the pancakes. Egg: A whole egg lends even more moisture. Plus, it helps bind the pancake batter together.

Vinegar and baking soda

Mixing 1 tsp (7 g) of baking soda with 1 tbsp (15 g) of vinegar can replace 1 egg in most recipes. When mixed together, vinegar and baking soda start a chemical reaction that produces carbon dioxide and water, which makes baked goods light and airy.

Adding baking powder is the easiest way to make fluffy pancakes. There's more than one way to make the bubbles that make a pancake fluffy, but the easiest way is by adding a raising agent such as baking powder.

When cooked, the chemical leaveners (the baking powder and baking soda) in the pancakes created large air bubbles. The loose gluten network captured the air bubbles and maintained the each pancake's shape while still keeping it fluffy with air.

Should you let pancake batter rest in the fridge? ›

A – If you are going to let your batter rest, leave it for at least 30 minutes in the fridge. If you've got time, leave it for longer – even overnight in the fridge. Some say that there is no point in letting the batter rest and there's certainly no harm in using it straight away. Go ahead if you're in a rush.

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.

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.