Light, soft, and fluffy buttermilk pancakes with crisp golden edges. A simple and easy pancake recipe that you can make at home!
Serve the pancakes in an irresistible stack with maple syrup and fresh berries for the perfect weekend brunch or Shrove Tuesday breakfast!
My kids absolutely love this breakfast of fluffy buttermilk pancakes. Why not experiment with different toppings, flavourings, and mix-ins to create your own unique pancake creations? Happy flipping!
👩🍳 Love pancakes? Try my easy scotch pancakes (aka drop scones) next!
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Why use buttermilk in pancakes?
Buttermilk is a slightly sour, acidic dairy product that's often used in baking to add a tangy flavour and help with leavening. It's made by fermenting milk with lactic acid bacteria, which causes it to thicken and develop a tangy taste. Buttermilk is great in pancakes for the following reasons;
Flavour: The tangy flavor of buttermilk gives the pancakes a really unique flavour.
Activates raising agent: Buttermilk also helps to activate the raising agent (in this case bicarbonate of soda) in the pancake batter, which means light and fluffy pancakes from the off!
Breaks down gluten: The acid in buttermilk helps to break down the gluten in the flour, resulting in soft, moist, and melt-in-the-mouth pancakes!
💡 Pro Tip: Buttermilk is great in other baked goods too such as scones and muffins. My cherry and almond scones are made extra light and fluffy with buttermilk!
Homemade buttermilk
Buttermilk can sometimes be a little tricky to find, so if you can't find it in your local supermarket, or you've just run out, you can easily make some at home with milk and fresh lemon juice (or white vinegar if you prefer)!
Follow my easy recipe for homemade buttermilk and in just 15 minutes you'll be ready to make these fluffy buttermilk pancakes!
✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
Here's why these are the best buttermilk pancakes!
- Light, fluffy, and soft pancakes.
- Feeds a crowd - the batter will make around 30 pancakes which is just about right for my family of 5, but you can easily half the recipe if you like!
- Perfect for weekend brunch.
- Serve on Shrove Tuesdays for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!
🛒 Ingredients
Ingredients you will need to make buttermilk pancakes;
- Buttermilk - most supermarkets sell buttermilk, but you can also make your own buttermilk with milk and lemon juice!
- Milk - I use whole or semi-skimmed milk for creaminess, which helps balance the tanginess of the buttermilk.
- Flour - self-raising flour to make the pancakes light and fluffy.
- Bicarbonate of Soda - acts as the raising agent.
- Salt - ¼ teaspoon is needed for the batter.
- Caster Sugar - for a little sweetness.
- Eggs - 2 large free-range eggs.
- Butter - melted and allowed to cool.
- Vanilla Extract - use a good quality extract and not vanilla essence.
🥄 Equipment
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🔪 How to make buttermilk pancakes
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
One: Mix together the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda, and caster sugar in a large mixing bowl.
Two: Whisk together the cooled melted butter, eggs, buttermilk, milk, and vanilla extract.
Three: Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients (be as gentle as possible) and leave the mixture to rest for 10 minutes.
Four: Heat a teaspoon of butter in a pancake pan or frying pan then use a ⅓ cup measuring cup to pour your batter into the pan, so you get evenly sized pancakes (if you don't have American cups, half fill a small teacup). You want the pancakes to be about 7-8cm wide. Cook on a medium heat until you see bubbles on the surface of the batter. Flip over and cook for another minute, lightly greasing the pancake pan regularly.
💭 Top tips
- The less that you mix the batter, the better! A few lumps are fine and they will dissolve when you give your batter some time to rest.
- Lightly grease the pancake pan with butter between pancakes to ensure they don't stick!
- Flip the pancakes with a thin plastic spatula. Slide it underneath each pancake fully first, before you attempt to flip it over!
🍴 Serving suggestions
Here are a few pancake topping suggestions to try!
- Maple syrup and berries
- Chocolate sauce
- Raspberry Coulis
- Mixed Berry Compote
- Stewed Plums
- Blueberry Compote
- Strawberry Coulis
- Stewed Apples
- Honeycomb Ice Cream if you're serving them for dessert!
- Greek Yogurt and Roasted Rhubarb if you're feeling healthy!
- Serve the buttermilk pancakes on Shrove Tuesday with traditional toppings of lemon juice, sugar, and golden syrup!
Check out my what to serve with pancakes post for more ideas!
📖 Variations
- Add 200g of milk chocolate chips for chocolate chip buttermilk pancakes!
- Add 200g of raisins to the batter for fruitiness.
- Swap the vanilla extract for a teaspoon of ground cinnamon (good with the raisin pancakes).
- Stir in the zest of an orange or lemon for a citrus zing!
🥡 Storage
Buttermilk pancakes are best eaten fresh from the pan.
To Store: Place leftover pancakes in an airtight container (layer the pancakes between sheets of nonstick baking paper to prevent them from sticking together), and store in the fridge for up to 3 days. Warm in the microwave before eating.
To Freeze: The pancakes can be frozen for up to 3 months. Allow them to defrost at room temperature before heating them in the microwave.
❓ FAQs
Yes, this recipe makes about 30 pancakes, but can easily be cut in half if serving fewer people!
Make your own with milk and lemon juice, using my easy homemade buttermilk recipe!
Buttermilk pancakes are best eaten fresh, but you can make them ahead of time and reheat them later if you prefer.
Yes, just swap the white self-raising flour with wholemeal (whole wheat) self-raising flour, but bear in mind the pancakes may be denser and less fluffy. You could also try half white and half wholemeal flour.
Buttermilk pancakes are versatile and can be topped with a wide variety of sweet or savoury toppings. Some popular options include maple syrup, honey, whipped cream, fruit, chocolate chips, peanut butter, jam, Nutella, bacon, sausage, eggs, or avocado. You can also experiment with different flavourings and mix-ins, such as cinnamon, vanilla extract, lemon zest, or blueberries.
😋 More breakfast recipes
- Peanut Butter Granola
- Air Fryer French Toast
- Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats
- Nutella Porridge
- Air Fryer Breakfast Frittata
- Slow Cooker Porridge
- Cheese & Ham Waffles
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Recipe
Easy Buttermilk Pancakes (UK recipe)
Ingredients
- 350 g Self Raising Flour
- 1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 3 tablespoon Caster Sugar
- 300 ml Buttermilk
- 300 ml Semi Skimmed Milk
- 2 Eggs large
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 80 g Butter melted
- 25 g Butter for frying
Instructions
- Mix together the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda, and caster sugar in a large mixing bowl.350 g Self Raising Flour, 1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda, 3 tablespoon Caster Sugar, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Whisk together the cooled melted butter, eggs, buttermilk, milk, and vanilla extract.300 ml Buttermilk, 300 ml Semi Skimmed Milk, 2 Eggs, 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract, 80 g Butter
- Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients (be as gentle as possible) and leave the mixture to rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat a teaspoon of butter in a pancake pan or frying pan then use a ⅓ cup measuring cup to pour your batter into the pan, so you get evenly sized pancakes (if you don't have cups, half fill a small teacup). You want the pancakes to be about 7-8cm wide (if you have a large pan you should be able to cook 2 or 3 pancakes at a time). Cook on a medium heat until you see bubbles on the surface of the batter. Flip over and cook for another minute. Lightly grease the pancake pan regularly with more butter between batches.25 g Butter
- Serve in stacks with your favourite toppings!
Notes
- The less that you mix the batter, the better! A few lumps are fine and they will dissolve when you give your batter some time to rest.
- Lightly grease the pancake pan with butter between pancakes to ensure they don't stick!
- Flip the pancakes with a thin plastic spatula. Slide it underneath each pancake fully first, before you attempt to flip it over though!
- Add 200g of milk chocolate chips for chocolate chip buttermilk pancakes!
- Add 200g of raisins to the batter for fruitiness.
- Swap the vanilla extract for a teaspoon of ground cinnamon (particularly good with the raisin pancakes).
- Stir in the zest of an oragne or lemon for a citrus zing!
Dannii
These pancakes look so light and fluffy. I can't wait to try them.
Pam
I made these pancakes for my grandkids and they loved them!
Michelle
Love using buttermilk in pancakes, these were incredibly fluffy! Thanks for sharing!
Ieva
Easy and delicious! Works every time. We have these with mango and toasted coconut!
Veronica
Your pancakes look amazing - definitely going to try them. Sunday breakfast seems like the perfect time!
Marisa Franca
We made these pancakes to go along with our bacon this morning. The kiddos loved them and I didn't think they'd ever stop asking for more. I've made pancakes in the past but they were always ho hum about them. This recipe is a keeper.
Kate - Gluten Free Alchemist
Love a buttermilk pancake! I mean what's not to love? Light, soft and fluffy. They look utterly delicious.
Thanks for sharing #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano | Easy Peasy Foodie
These pancakes look so good - so light and fluffy! Eb 🙂