Pancakes are so easy, they’re the first thing many of us learn to cook. From Indian dosa to Ethiopian injera, Vietnamese bánh xèo to Russian blini, the world loves a pancake, but perhaps nowhere more than the US, where fluffy stacks drenched with maple syrup are the weekend breakfast of choice for millions – not least because they’re simplicity itself to make.
Prep 5 min
Cook 10 min
Makes About 10
45g butter, plus extra for frying
115g plain flour
115g fine cornmeal/polenta
¼ tsp salt
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
100ml whole milk
300ml buttermilk
1 egg
1 Organise your toppings
Turn the oven on low and put a wire cooling rack inside, to warm up. This is to keep the first pancakes warm while you cook the rest, so if you plan to serve them up straight from the pan, skip this step. Prepare your toppings – see steps 7-9, if you fancy them. Melt the butter in the microwave or a small pan.
2 Mix the dry ingredients
Put the flour, cornmeal, salt, sugar, baking powder and bicarb into a large bowl and whisk to combine. You can use all plain flour if you don’t have cornmeal, but the corn gives the pancakes a lovely, yellow colour and a sweet flavour, as well as making them slightly crisp. It’s often in the Caribbean section of supermarkets, or look for polenta instead, which is the same thing.
3 Add the wet ingredients
Measure the milk and buttermilk into a jug, then crack the egg on top. Beat this all together until it’s well mixed, then stir in two tablespoons of the melted butter.
Make a dip in the top of the dry ingredients (the flour, etc), then pour the milk mix into it. Stir just until you can see no more dry patches, then stop; if you stir it too much, your pancakes will be tough.
4 Prepare the frying pan
Put a large, heavy frying pan on the hob over a medium heat, and brush all over with a thin layer of melted butter, so it’s completely covered. Once it feels hot when you hold your hand above the pan, you’re ready to cook. Put the bowl of pancake batter near the hob.
5 Start cooking
Use a large spoon to dollop circles of batter of whatever size you’d like (they’re normally about 5-8cm diameter) into the pan, leaving enough room between them so they don’t run into each other – you won’t be able to do them all at once.
Cook until the pancakes begin to look dry and bubbly on top, which, depending on the size of your pan, should take about three minutes.
6 Flip and finish cooking
As they become ready, flip all the pancakes over using a palette knife or tongs, and cook on the other side for a couple of minutes, until golden brown. Serve immediately, or carefully arrange them on the rack in the oven to keep warm while you cook the rest of the batter.
7 Top with maple syrup and bacon …
These pancakes are lovely with a drizzle of maple or golden syrup or honey, and a knob of butter, but there are other delicious things to serve with them, too. A few rashers of bacon are a classic accompaniment – you can cook this under a hot grill until crisp, or fry it in a pan with just a dash of oil, if you prefer, turning it once halfway.
8 … or fruit
To add some fruit to your breakfast, beyond a scatter of berries or slices of apple, make a quick compote by heating 500g fresh (or frozen and defrosted) berries in a saucepan with four tablespoons of sugar. Bring to a simmer and bubble gently for three minutes, then taste (remember, it will be hot!) and add more sugar, if you like. This is good with thick yoghurt.
9 … or chocolate
To make a chocolate sauce for pudding pancakes, break 100g chocolate (dark works best) into pieces and put in a saucepan with 150ml water. Heat gently, stirring to melt the chocolate, then stir in 60g sugar until dissolved. Turn up the heat a bit and simmer until the sauce is thick. Pour over the pancakes and top with sliced banana, flaked almonds and ice-cream, if you have it.
