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Loading...Pancakes are flat cakes cooked on a griddle or frying pan. It is one of the easiest, quick-to-make, and filling breakfasts one can have.
Majority of people associated this food with Americans. But do you know that it was the Greeks that first made this? Presently, you are going to find many similar dishes of pancakes from all over the world. India let alone have multiple forms of pancakes like Assam’s pitha, South’s uttapam, Malpua in Eastern India, etc.
The shape of this dish will vary from place to place. In the U.K., it will be thinner and resemble a crepe that is of French origin. Whereas in America, it is typically thicker and fluffier.
However, it will taste more like a tart than an actual pancake. These are common in Scotland.
It is a go-to recipe for the majority of Western-European people. Preparing it from scratch is so quick and straightforward that even a person with no cooking experience can ace this.
Variations For Pancakes
As mentioned, there are many different versions of these pancakes. But apart from the regular American pancakes that we are used to, another version is getting as popular. And that is the Japanese version.
If you are aware of the cartoon Doraemon then you must know of this. In the cartoon, it was called Dora cakes. However, its actual name is Dorayaki or bean jam cakes. That version is made of castella i.e. a kind of wagashi (confectionery) that looks similar to bread.
To make the batter for this, you need to add condensed milk and honey along with the other ingredients. Then make the pancakes and combine two of them with a chocolate filling to mimic the dorayaki. Originally, red beans that are similar to kidney beans are used to make the bean paste in the original cake. But since the beans are not available in other places it was replaced by Nutella or chocolate spread.
Another version is the South Indian version which is called Banana Appam Pancakes. They are very similar to these pancakes with the addition of mashed banana, sesame, and grated coconut. Also, there is a use of dissolved jaggery water instead of sugar/honey in the batter. Butter is excluded from the batter. This pancake batter is then cooked on the pan in ghee instead of butter.
You can also add mashed bananas to your regular pancakes too. Either mash them and add directly to the batter or blend them with milk and then add.
Serving Suggestions:
The classic choice to have this pancake is with maple syrup. But you can also use any toppings or sauce to have it with. Honey, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, along chopped fruits are a few popular ones to go with.
You can even use strawberry crush or spread jam over it if you like. If you like, you can make apple sauce with it too. You just need to cook apple pieces with water and sugar until they can be mashed. Green apples will be the best for this jam. But if you do not have them then you can use regular apples and add lemon juice to copy the taste of green apples.
TR’s Extra Shots:
- For an eggless version of this pancake, buttermilk is also an option to use in making it. The buttermilk along with the baking soda will replace the eggs in making this fluffy.
- It is better to use a flat nonstick pan to cook these pancakes or else the cooking might be uneven.
- Make sure the butter is at room temperature while adding it to the batter or else it will be hard work mixing them.
- The consistency of the batter should not be water but not too loose as well. It should be of medium consistency.
- Sometimes you can make a potato pancake as well, using potato in the batter.
- The bubbles at the center of the pancakes are important. They indicate the pancakes will be cooked well and fluffy.
- You can use any sweetening agent. You can add sugar or honey. However, if not, then melted jaggery is also okay.
- The brown on the surface of these pancakes is an indication they are perfectly cooked and not overcooked. Do not think otherwise.
- For aroma, add a pinch of cinnamon powder or cardamom powder with vanilla essence.
- You can use whole wheat flour to make this. In the case of appam, rice flour is also good.
