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Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

buttermilk pancakes on a plate with a glass of milk

I really love pancakes, y’all, and these buttermilk pancakes are my absolute favorite. Saturday mornings with these pancakes and Leon Bridges playing in the background is the highlight of my weekends.

I make these pancakes every time I’m feeding breakfast for a crowd or just for something special on a weekend. They will make you feel so accomplished for making something from scratch, but they’re also super easy to put together, so it feels like cheating. Win-win.

While there are many kinds of pancakes, I find that buttermilk pancakes are the most balanced. They’re light, fluffy, and moist with a subtle tang. And I know that might sound weird, a tang in pancakes? You don’t necessarily taste the tang, but it is a super important element to provide balance against the super sweet maple syrup you will eventually drizzle on it.

Below are a breakdown of the importance of several of the ingredients and options for mix-ins!

buttermilk pancakes on a plate with peaches and maple syrup

Pancake Ingredients

  • all-purpose flour – will be strong enough to hold together eggs, buttermilk, and vegetable oil while still maintaining a light texture.
  • buttermilk – adds acidity and a tang, needed to balance out the super sweet maple syrup.
  • vegetable oil – keeps these pancakes extra moist!
  • eggs – adds lift and richness.
buttermilk pancake ingredients

Mix-ins for Pancakes

I love pancakes because there are so many opportunities for improvising! I’ll often add these ingredients to the pancakes, depending on what I feel like that day:

  • fruits: fresh/ local peaches, berries or bananas
  • nuts: pecans or walnuts, chopped + toasted
  • sweet: chocolate chips, butterscotch chips
  • savory: bacon bits
buttermilk pancakes on a plate with maple syrup
Print
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buttermilk pancakes on a plate with a glass of milk

Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

  • Author: Maria Do
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Resting Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30-40 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Yield: 25 pancakes (4-in each) 1x
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Units Scale

Pancakes

  • 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp (12 g) baking powder
  • 2 tsp (12 g) baking soda
  • 1 tsp (3 g) kosher salt
  • 2 cups (480 ml) buttermilk (*see notes for how to make buttermilk)
  • 1/2 cup and 2 tbsp (10 tbsp total) vegetable oil, melted coconut oil, melted unsalted butter, or melted bacon fat
  • 2 large eggs

For Cooking + Serving

  • cooking spray or vegetable oil for the skillet
  • salted butter
  • maple syrup

Instructions

  1. Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until fully combined. Create a well in the center of the bowl to make space for the wet ingredients. 
  2. Mix wet ingredients. In the well of the same bowl, pour in the buttermilk, eggs, and vegetable oil. Whisk the wet ingredients together, then begin incorporating the dry ingredients with the wet. Mix the entire batter together until fully combined. Then let the batter sit for 15-20 minutes. It will get fluffy and bubbly. 

    buttermilk pancake batter

  3. Heat skillet. Bring a cast-iron skillet, non-stick skillet, or griddle to medium heat. (I often use 2 skillets to speed up the cooking.) Sprinkle a few drops of water to check if the skillet is ready. The water should sizzle immediately and evaporate. Generously spray the skillet with oil.
  4. Cook. Using a scoop or measuring cup, pour 1/4 cup of batter per pancake onto the skillet. Cook until the tops are bubbly and lightly browned underneath, ~2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until lightly browned on the other side, ~2 minutes. Transfer to a serving plate and repeat for the rest of the batter. 
  5. Serve. Serve pancakes warm with a swish of salted butter and a heaping drizzle of maple syrup. I will often serve these with fruits, too – peaches, bananas, and berries work great. Enjoy!

    buttermilk pancakes on a plate with peaches and maple syrup


Notes

  • *Buttermilk – if you don’t have buttermilk or just don’t want to buy it, you can make it at home using milk and vinegar or lemon juice! To make 2 cups of buttermilk for this recipe, add 2 tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice to a measuring cup. Then pour in milk until you have 2 cups of liquid. Voila, homemade buttermilk!

Keywords: breakfast, pancakes, buttermilk pancakes, brunch

buttermilk pancakes on a plate with peaches and maple syrup

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  1. Paige says:

    Bookmark this recipe, I LOVED these pancakes! They’re incredibly fluffy and light, and so easy to make.

    I added 1-1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon and a 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg (but could’ve been more generous with both) alongside the other dry ingredients to get cinnamon spice pancakes, and threw in a side of warm peaches. I’ll be coming back to this recipe for more variations or for a classic stack for sure.

    Fabulous start to the day!!

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