How To Make The Perfect Pancake

Take three ingredients 

Flour, eggs, and milk. How can three such simple ingredients make such a variety of delicious treats? From thin and delicate crepes to thick and fluffy American pancakes, every country claims there’s is the perfect recipe, but we think the classic British pancake is hard to beat.

Thin, but not delicate, perfectly flippable and covered in sugar and lemon - this is the pancake of your childhood, of school pancake races and supper at granny’s house.

With a recipe borne of a last feast before the austere meals of Lent, you need to make these pancakes a gourmet affair. When the ingredients are this simple, the quality counts. Choose organic full fat milk, organic eggs and organic white plain flour for a batter that is glossy, smooth and nutritionally rich.

The batter

To achieve the perfect pancake consistency, aim for a ratio of half flour to milk and one egg per 100 grams of flour. To make enough for a family of four, we recommend:

1 cup / 250ml organic full fat milk
½ cup / 125g organic plain white flour
3 organic eggs

Whisk the ingredients together so that the batter is thin enough to pour easily but thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, similar to the consistency of single cream. Let the batter rest while you prepare your pan.

The key here is to use a good non-stick pan and allow it to get nice and hot before you start. Add a small knob of organic unsalted butter to just coat the pan and when it is sizzling hot,  pour a ladleful of batter into the pan, tilting it gently to spread the batter out into a thin, even layer. When the top is covered in little bubbles, carefully lift the edge of your pancake with a spatula to see the underside, the bottom should be a light mottled brown - it is now ready to flip.

The art of the flip

Master the art of the pancake flip and you will have the respect and admiration of every child in your family (at least for an hour anyway). When your pancake is ready for flipping,  gently peel back the edges of the pancake with a spatula to ensure they don't stick, then give the pan a gentle shake to loosen the pancake. Using both hands, flip the pancake away from your body with a precise, controlled motion. You are aiming for a small movement - precision rather than height.  It is universally acknowledged that the first pancake may not be the prettiest, and also that eating it is the chef’s privilege.

A spoonful of sugar

You will find hundreds of recipes for child friendly, American style or healthy toppings like chopped banana and chocolate spread, bacon and maple syrup or fresh berries and greek yoghurt. For those making pancakes the main meal of the day, savoury fillings are also an option. 

However, nostalgia wins the day for us.

All a pancake needs is to be hot, fresh from the pan with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a sprinkling of sugar, rolled up and consumed greedily whilst lemon juice drips down your chin and your fingers get sticky.