Why Pancakes Don’t Work: Error Analysis and a Win-Win Recipe

The perfect pancake recipe has many nuances, without following which you can ruin the dish. Very soon will come to Shrovetide 2023, a spring festival, the traditional dish of which is pancakes. Thin pancakes are a very finicky dish, which is easy to spoil. Even experienced cooks find that pancakes burn, harden, fry unevenly, and tear.

Improper batter consistency

Cooks who rarely make pancakes find it difficult to “feel” for the right batter consistency by eye. To keep the batter from being too liquid or too thick, take flour and liquid in a 2:3 ratio. For example, for 2 cups of flour pour 3 cups of milk. Don’t forget to also beat eggs (1 egg per 500 grams of dough), a pinch of flour, and a couple of spoons of oil.

The pancakes become dry and stiff when they cool

Pancakes retain their elasticity only when they are warm and become hard and cracked when cold. This can happen if there is no acid in the batter. Try pouring a little kefir or sour milk into the batter – then the products will be tender and openwork.

Pancakes tearing in the pan

Often it is completely impossible to turn a pancake – it tears at any touch and turns into mush. The problem may have two reasons: you put too few eggs, or the batter has not had time to infuse. Try scrambling an egg into the batter and letting it stand for 20 minutes.

Pancakes have brittle edges

The edges of pancakes dry out and start to crumble if left outdoors. It’s easy to solve the problem: Cover a stack of pancakes with a wide lid or plate. Then they will be evenly soft.

Pancakes are soggy on the inside

Pancakes can bake unevenly if poured on an insufficiently hot pan or flipped too early. There may also be lumps of raw batter in the pancake if the flour is not sifted.

Delicious pancakes: tips and secrets

  1. Ingredients for the dough should be at room temperature – so they combine better. Therefore, milk and eggs should be taken out of the refrigerator in advance.
  2. To make the pancakes openwork and with holes, add kefir or baking soda to them.
  3. Heat the pan well, and only then pour the batter.
  4. To make the pancakes easy to flip and always successful, use a special pancake pan.
  5. Fry the products on medium heat and do not cover them.
  6. Add a pinch of sugar to the batter, even if the pancakes are salty. This will make the batter tastier.

A recipe for pancakes that always turn out

  • Higher grade flour – 2 cups.
  • Nonfat kefir – 1,5 cups.
  • Water – 1,2 cups.
  • Eggs – 1 egg.
  • A pinch of salt and sugar.
  • Sunflower oil – 2 tablespoons.

Whisk eggs with water and kefir until smooth. Then stir in salt and sugar. In small portions, sift flour and mix thoroughly. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes. Pour in vegetable oil. Heat a pan well and fry pancakes on both sides. Put the pancakes on a plate and make sure to cover the top.

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Written by Emma Miller

I am a registered dietitian nutritionist and own a private nutrition practice, where I provide one-on-one nutritional counseling to patients. I specialize in chronic disease prevention/ management, vegan/ vegetarian nutrition, pre-natal/ postpartum nutrition, wellness coaching, medical nutrition therapy, and weight management.

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