The science behind a stack of fluffy pancakes (2024)

FAQs

The science behind a stack of fluffy pancakes? ›

When cooked, the chemical leaveners (the baking powder and baking soda) in the pancakes created large air bubbles. The loose gluten network captured the air bubbles and maintained the each pancake's shape while still keeping it fluffy with air.

When chemical leaveners, such as baking powder, create bubbles in a cooked pancake, the gluten network traps these bubbles and allows a pancake to rise and stay fluffy yet still keep its shape.

Use buttermilk and self-raising flour—the acid/base reaction

The lactic acid reacts with the bicarbonate in the self-raising flour to produce carbon dioxide (CO₂) gas. Bubbles of gas are caught in the batter as it cooks and this is what makes the pancake fluffy. This also explains why you should make your batter fresh.

You may hear a little bit of a sizzle. This sizzle helps indicate our next step taking place: the Maillard Reaction! This step creates the aroma and golden-brown color on the pancake. The Maillard Reaction is a chemical reaction between amino acids in the proteins and the carbon and oxygen atoms from sugars.

Gluten formation is the step that gives pancakes their texture. You may have already learned the hard way that too much mixing makes tough pancakes. Leaving the batter barely mixed and still lumpy creates the ideal gluten formation for fluffy pancakes. The leavening agent fills the gluten with air.

When chemical leaveners, such as baking powder, create bubbles in a cooked pancake, the gluten network traps these bubbles and allows a pancake to rise and stay fluffy yet still keep its shape.

600 BC - The first recorded mention of pancakes dates back to ancient Greece and comes from a poet who described warm pancakes in one of his writings. 1100 AD – Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day) becomes a traditional way to use up dairy products before lent – the pancake breakfast is born.

Baking powder

The reaction shows the acid and base reacting to form carbon dioixide bubbles, water, and Na+ ions. These bubbles get trapped in the batter and start to increase the volume. This is essential for making the pancakes light and fluffy in texture.

For the perfect pancakes, stop mixing as soon as you can't see dry flour. This means that there will be some lumps in the batter, but that's okay. The resulting pancake will be perfectly fluffy. with a light and airy texture.

Is eating a pancake a chemical change? ›

The batter browns and hardens into a spongy, solid, cakelike material. When you eat pancakes, more chemical changes take place as your body digests the food. Some other examples of chemical changes are rusting, tarnishing, and burning. Each of these chemical changes produces different matter.

Overmixing the Batter

Overmixing can lead to tough, chewy pancakes. That's because excess stirring can overdevelop gluten. Instead, make a well in your dry ingredients and stir in the wet components. Whisk until the batter is just combined.

In order to get a fluffy pancake, we need to have gas (carbon dioxide) bubble up through the gluten just as the mixture is heated. This reaction requires an acid and a base. Almost all pancake recipes use baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) for the base.

Pancakes and waffles typically both contain baking soda, which causes them to rise. As soon as the baking soda is combined with the wet ingredients (which contain an acidic ingredient, like often buttermilk), it starts producing carbon dioxide gas bubbles that cause the batter to rise.

Can I Use Water Instead of Milk in Pancakes? Milk adds both flavor and texture to pancake batter, so if you are looking to make pancakes without milk, a simple swap to water doesn't always do the trick. For pancakes made without milk, you'll want to add some flavor through melted butter and vanilla extract.

Eggs are a crucial ingredient. They provide the cakes with the structure to hold light bubbles. Eggs also give the batter additional, richer flavor from the yolk fat. If you add too many eggs, you'll have “pancakes” that look more like custard or crepes.

In pancakes, gluten forms strands that give the cake its structure. But too much gluten results in a pancake that is dense and gummy. The dry ingredients are rounded out with just a bit of sugar and malted milk powder, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.

Flour, for example, provides the structure of your pancakes. When combined with wet ingredients like milk and eggs, the two proteins contained in flour (glutenin and gliadin) link to form gluten. Gluten 'captures' air bubbles, which cause your pancakes to rise.

Whipping egg whites for pancakes (or waffles) helps to incorporate air into the batter, which creates bubbles. When you cook the pancakes, these bubbles expand due to the heat from the cooking surface, making the pancakes fluffy.

Stiffly whipped egg whites contain tons of tiny air bubbles that are sturdy enough to remain intact when folded into pancake batter. Once the batter goes on a hot griddle, the air bubbles expand, giving the pancakes the ideal fluffy texture.

Why are restaurant pancakes so fluffy? ›

The secret to fluffy restaurant style pancakes? Buttermilk! The acid in the buttermilk reacts to the leavening agents in the pancake batter, creating air bubbles that make the pancakes tall and fluffy. It's a simple switch that makes all the difference.