I’ve got breakfast covered today with my classic Buttermilk Pancakes recipe — made completely from scratch (and tips to make them if you don’t have buttermilk, too!)! I’ll be showing you how to make thick, fluffy pancakes that can be ready in under 15 minutes! Recipe includes a how-to video!
The Best Pancake Recipe
Buttermilk pancakes are an American classic breakfast food, but despite their unfussy ingredient list, too often people grab for the box mix because it’s just “easier”. Too many home bakers have struggled with dense, flat, or rubbery pancakes, or ones that have charred exteriors, raw centers, or are just all-around lacking in flavor. Today we’re going to fix that with my favorite, fool-proof buttermilk pancake recipe.
While you’d be hard-pressed to find a truly complicated buttermilk pancake recipe, many recipes sadly leave out important tips and tricks that can make or break your breakfast. Do you know the right time to flip? The right heat for your stovetop? Which substitutions are acceptable and which definitely aren’t? How to make buttermilk pancakes if you don’t even have buttermilk?
My recipe has not only been carefully perfected to yield fat, fluffy, and super flavorful pancakes (the cousin to my paper-thin crepes), but I’m also answering all of these questions and sharing my super simple tips and tricks so you’ll never reach for that box mix ever again.
Grab your (preferably non-stick) skillet and get ready for perfect, golden pancakes every time. Let’d do this.
What You Need for Perfect Pancakes
This recipe is easy and uses pantry staples, but let’s talk about a handful of the ingredients before we get started:
- Buttermilk: When combined with the baking soda, this gives the pancakes a nice lift, making them thick and fluffy. It’s purpose isn’t only a chemical one, though, it also gives buttermilk pancakes a great flavor with a classic but subtle tang. See my FAQ section below to make this recipe if you don’t have buttermilk.
- Eggs. Ideally these should be room temperature. Ideally all your ingredients should be so that the batter combines easily but I’m realistic about the fact that most people aren’t going to wake up two hours early to set their buttermilk out to come to room temperature and I’d never ask you to do something I don’t do myself. Fortunately, this recipe is fairly resilient.
- Butter. This should be melted. Do this first so it has time to cool a bit before you add it to your buttermilk.
- Baking powder and baking soda. The combination of these two leaveners give the pancakes the perfect fluffiness and lift.
- Flour. I recommend using all-purpose flour. You can experiment with substituting some of the flour with whole wheat flour, but since that is a much thirstier flour you might need a bit more buttermilk to keep the batter from being too thick. Self rising flour is not recommended as the baking powder and salt are already accounted for.
This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Buttermilk Pancakes
- Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Whisk together buttermilk, egg, and vanilla separately and drizzle the melted butter into the mixture while whisking. Add to the dry ingredients.
- Very gently fold together the wet and dry ingredients until almost completely combined. Don’t overdo it or your pancakes will be flat and dense rather than fluffy.
- Cook on medium heat until golden brown on each side. Don’t crank up the heat, this will yield pancakes with burnt outsides and raw centers, and that’s just sad 🙁
SAM’S TIP: You can tell your buttermilk pancakes are ready to flip when the edges begin to look set and the bubbles in the batter begin to burst. At this point you should easily be able to flip a spatula underneath to gently lift up an edge and take a peek: look for a golden brown color!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Zach and I often make a half batch of buttermilk pancakes for breakfast, it divides easily and results are exactly the same! For the buttermilk, you would use 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons.
You can use my buttermilk substitute recipe instead (you only need milk and vinegar or lemon juice). Pour 2 Tablespoons + ¾ teaspoon of white vinegar or lemon juice into a large measuring cup then add milk until you have the 2 ¼ cup called for. Stir.
However you should know that “homemade” buttermilk is thinner than the real thing. You may not need to use the full 2 ¼ cup called for, it could make your batter runny and your pancakes too thin. If using the substitute, set aside about ½ cup of your buttermilk (so only use 1 ½ cups) and use the recipe as indicated. If the batter seems too thick, gradually add more of the buttermilk substitute as needed.
Most likely this is a result of over-mixing the batter, this can yield flat, dense, or even rubbery pancakes. Do not over-mix your pancake batter — I can not overstate how important this is. When combining your wet and dry ingredients, gently fold together with a spoon or spatula until just combined. A few flour streaks remaining in the batter is actually a good thing!
Absolutely! You can add up to a cup of add-ins to your buttermilk pancake batter. Because you want to avoid over-mixing your batter, it is best to fold these in when your flour is halfway incorporated rather than waiting until you’ve already mostly combined your wet and dry ingredients.
You can also skip the mix-ins and instead top off your pancakes with whipped cream or blueberry sauce, instead. Or do mix-ins and fancy toppings, I don’t judge!
Yes you can! While I have a waffle recipe that I love and would recommend, my buttermilk pancake batter actually makes delicious waffles, too.
These are great with simple butter and syrup, but sometimes I like to get fancy and add whipped cream, strawberry sauce, blueberry sauce, caramel sauce, chocolate gravy, or hot fudge sauce!
Have you ever tried a pancake sundae before with ice cream and toppings? Not health food, but so good!
Alright, I think that pretty much covers it! I hope you’ll try these out and please let me know what you think!!
Enjoy!
Other Breakfast Recipes You Might Like:
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! Make sure to check out the how-to VIDEO in the recipe card!
Best Buttermilk Pancakes Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (250g)
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ¼ cups buttermilk¹ (530ml)
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten, room temperature preferred
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled (57g)
Recommended Equipment
- Non-stick skillet
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, until well-combined.
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together buttermilk,, eggs, and vanilla extract.
- Take your melted butter and slowly drizzle it into your wet ingredients while whisking, stirring until well-combined (the butter may separate and curdle if your other ingredients are cold, this is OK, just whisk to combine).
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and use a wooden spoon to stir until just combined — do not overmix your pancake batter or your pancakes will be flat. Use a light hand when stirring, and a few flour streaks in the batter are fine.
- Spray a non-stick skillet with cooking spray or lightly brush with canola oil and place on burner on medium-low heat.
- Allow skillet to preheat before adding batter (about 5 minutes, it's good for your pancake batter to sit several minutes as well, which is why you prepared that before preheating your pan), and once skillet is heated (I usually test this by hovering my hand several inches above the pan and making sure I can feel the heat radiating from it) scoop pancake batter into pan (I use about ½-⅔ cup of batter per pancake).
- Allow pancake to cook until edges begin to appear cooked and bubbles in batter begin to burst. Using a pancake spatula, carefully flip pancake and continue to cook several more minutes until pancake is golden brown.
- Repeat until all batter is used — I recommend spraying or brushing the pan between each batch of pancakes.
- Serve warm topped with salted butter and maple syrup!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Buttermilk Pancake recipe originally published 01/29/2018, updated just in time for Fat Tuesday! Recipe is unchanged but additional tips have been added and a video is now included!
DavidaRochelle
Absolutely outstanding. Lightest, fluffiest pancakes I’ve ever tasted.
Neighbor gave me some buttermilk she’d bought by accident. Found your recipe.
Only change, I beat the eggs 1st before adding the buttermilk.
Thanks for sharing.
Robin Justice
These are totally the best pancakes I have ever ate in my life and I am not a big fan of pancakes, I am more a waffle person but these are super delicious light and very fluffy the only thing I did different is I used 2 cups of buttermilk and 1/4 cup of cool water. My buttermilk was the Bulgarian buttermilk which is extremely thick so I used the 1/4 cup of water to thin it out just a bit the batter was just the right consistency.😋😋😋😋😋😋
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you loved them Robin ❤
Bev
By far the BEST buttermilk pancake recipe I’ve tried. Will use this one from now on
McLain
Very good instructions. They were great. thank you.
Candace
These were delicious, made them exactly as instructed and appreciate all your tips. Served with fresh peach slices and whipped cream! But too much batter for my husband and I to eat! I will cook up the rest and have again soon. Wondering would the batter keeo in fridge?
Sam
Hi Candace! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them so much! The batter should be good for a day or two in the refrigerator. Make sure to cover it. 🙂
Simone
I’ve seen other recipes that call for the exact same amounts of baking soda as baking powder. Can you explain why you use the amounts that you use, and what would happen if I used the same amounts of each? Can you also give me your opinion on powdered buttermilk. I use powdered buttermilk instead of liquid because I only make pancakes once per week and only 3 pancakes at a time and I feel the liquid buttermilk will go bad before I can use all of it. Thank you!
Sam
Hi Simone! I use the amounts I use because it produces the best results in my opinion. I tested these pancakes probably 15 different times before I got here. I definitely would not change the ratios. I have never used powdered buttermilk so I can’t really give any feedback on it. 🙁
Jeff
I only have 1 egg is it okay to make a half batch with no eggs because I want eggs and pancakes for breakfast. Maybe I should go to IHOP, or maybe you can come over with some eggs and make me breakfast. I think I’m funny 🙂
Sam
Hi Jeff! I do not recommend leaving the eggs out of the recipe. 🙂
Jules
Greetings from Singapore! I woke up today craving for buttermilk pancakes, Googled for a recipe and your recipe came up tops – followed your recipe and tips and I agree wholeheartedly that this is the best buttermilk pancakes I ever tasted! I topped mine with big chunk of butter, fresh sliced strawberries and sprinkled with icing sugar. Heavenly delicious! Perfect way of starting my lazy Sunday morning 😍😍😍 Thank you for posting this!
Sam
Thank you so much, Jules! I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much. 🙂
Penny
if i only have 2 cups of buttermilk, can i just add the extra 1/4 cup of normal milk?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
That should be fine! Enjoy 😊
Pam
Not nearly as fussy as other buttermilk pancake recipes, this one has been my go-to for a while now. Sorry I didn’t praise it earlier. Excellent!
KEB
Question, can I make this batter ahead of time and refrigerate overnight? Thank you for any suggestions!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yes! The batter becomes a little bit runnier in the refrigerator overnight, but the pancakes should still turn out great. 🙂
Donna Matera
This receipt is the best ! Can i just add slices of banana s in the pan when I am making one.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Sure! Enjoy, Donna 😊
Tina
Lots of recipes through around “the best… this or that”.
THIS RECIPE TRULY delivers THE BEST buttermilk pancakes I’ve ever had! Amazing!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Tina! 🙂
Amanda Still
Best buttermilk pancake recipe,by far! I cook and bake often and have tried many different recipes…..this one is the one that my family calls “better than Cracker Barrel”!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We love that, Amanda! So glad our recipe is a hit for you family 😊
N &J
These are great and were a huge hit for Mother’s Day. Our two year old loved them without having to drown them in maple syrup too 🙂
Over the years we’ve tried multiple recipes to obtain that classic fluffy, flavorful pancake that doesn’t sit in your stomach like a lead balloon without much success. Wanted to give these a try since we’ve really enjoyed other recipes you’ve shared and this was no different. So thank you once again!
Jeff Winett
I never thought I would need another Buttermilk Pancake recipe EVER. But gosh, how fun to be mistaken, when eating pancakes that are much more than simply a way to curb hunger. Every bite of these was fantastic and now it’s time to throw away my other versions of Buttermilk Pancakes. The hint of vanilla was brilliant, and a first for me. I used an electric griddle for the cook, and my pancakes had the most desirable pillowy thickness, and were so tender and flavor filled. Thank you Sam, for this one! Additionally, watching your video helped me gently and expertly not overwork the batter. What a difference that makes.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are SO glad you love them, Jeff! Thanks for being so kind and coming back to leave a review ❤
Lynn Arledge
I’ll never try another homemade pancake recipe again. This one is the “bomb!” My husband has asked for them twice for our “Breakfast for Dinner” meal. Thank you, Sam.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Breakfast for dinner is the BEST! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a review ❤
Tracy
This was the best pancake recipe i have ever tried. My search is finally over for finding one, thanks!!!!!