Perfect Pancakes
Note: the term ‘pancake’ does not refer to quite the same dish across the English-speaking world, this recipe is for British-style pancakes, though Americans might thing of these as closer to crêpes (as the smaller, thicker American variety uses a different recipe and has its own unique charms, to be discussed in a future post).
Pancakes are incredibly easy to make and to cook, and yet being able to do them well still elicits surprised approval from even the most experienced cooks. Part of the problem is that people are too bogged down by recipes and measurements and end up making a hash of their batter, leading to frustrating disappointment when cooking (well a certain level of disappointment since, as mere vehicles for their sweet toppings, outside of burning them black its hard to really screw up a pancake).
This recipe is very simple, I doubt that after reading it you will ever need to refer to it again as it follows an extremely simple ratio which can be scaled up or down depending on your need (and once people learn you can make perfect pancakes that need will be great).
Ingredients
1 cup plain flour
1 cup milk
1 large egg (or 2 medium/small)
Vegetable oil for frying
Notes: (1) At a pinch, self-raising flour can be used, since the cooking time is too short for any ‘raising’ to occur; (2) The better the egg, the better the pancake, buy large free range eggs if available; (3) Obviously quantities will differ slightly depending on the size of the cup used and how large your frying pan is, this recipe usually yields about 5-7 pancakes.
Instructions
Using a whisk, combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Pour a splash of vegetable oil into the best non-stick frying pan you have in the house (if you don’t own a decent non-stick pan, buy one, it will make your cooking and washing-up infinitely easier).
Wipe the oil with a paper towel. Ensure that there are no visible drops of oil, just a thin coating on the surface of the pan. Don’t throw away the oily paper towel as you’ll need it to re-oil the pan after cooking a few pancakes.
Turn on the heat and wait until the pan is very hot. Pour in just enough batter to cover the surface of the pan.
Once the pancake has become solid, flip using a spatula or the pan itself. Cook until both sides are slightly browned.
A traditional British pancake should be served with lemon and sugar. I however, strongly believe that the best possible topping is high-quality Canadian maple syrup.
Any comments or suggestions? What recipes would you like to see in the future?
