We have been making Thermomix® pancakes at weekends for years, when the whole family gathers around the table. It took us a while to realise: the difference between flat, chewy pancakes and truly fluffy ones is not the recipe, it is the buttermilk.
This recipe combines buttermilk with bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. Buttermilk is naturally acidic. As soon as it meets the bicarbonate of soda, carbon dioxide forms and loosens the batter before it even hits the pan. The baking powder takes over the rest once the batter lands in the hot pan. Two leaveners, two stages of lift: that is why these Thermomix® pancakes rise the way they do.
Pancakes with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 10 ✓
- 50 g butter softened
- 400 g buttermilk
- 70 g Greek yoghurt (10% fat)
- 2 eggs
- 300 g plain flour (type 550)
- 40 g sugar
- 1/2 sachet baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 pinch salt
- rapeseed oil for frying
Instructions 0 / 3
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1
Mix the batter.
Add butter, buttermilk, yoghurt and eggs to the mixing bowl and mix for 10 sec / speed 5.
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2
Add the dry ingredients.
Add flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt, stir for 5 sec / speed 5 and leave the batter to rest for 10 minutes.
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3
Cook.
Meanwhile heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the batter in portions, golden brown on both sides.
Nutrition per serving
Why buttermilk is essential here
Regular milk works for pancakes, but it does not deliver that specific lift. Buttermilk has a pH of around 4.5 to 5. When it meets the 1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda in the batter, the acid reacts immediately and releases CO2. These tiny bubbles sit in the batter and expand again during cooking through the baking powder and the heat of the pan.
The Greek yoghurt (70 g, 10% fat) reinforces this effect. It adds extra acidity, but above all proteins that stabilise the batter structure. Without it, pancakes often turn out a little too soft in the middle. The 50 g of softened butter makes sure the batter stays tender despite the structure.
Where pancakes go flat instead of fluffy
The pan is too hot
This happens to almost everyone on the first attempt. The pan is on high heat, the first pancake turns dark brown on the outside in two minutes while the batter is still raw inside. Our fix: medium heat and a small test drop. If a drop of batter turns golden brown in one to two minutes, the temperature is right. Keep the heat there and do not turn it up.
Over-mixing the batter
In the Thermomix® it is tempting to mix everything thoroughly. With pancake batter, that is the mistake. Too much mixing develops the gluten in the flour and the pancakes turn chewy. The recipe gives clear timings: 10 sec / speed 5 for the wet ingredients, then 5 sec / speed 5 after adding the dry ones. We stick to these exactly. The batter may still have a few lumps.
Skipping the resting time
The recipe calls for 10 minutes of resting time after all the ingredients are mixed. This is not an optional note. During those 10 minutes the flour absorbs liquid, the bicarbonate-acid reaction with the buttermilk runs its course, and the batter reaches the right consistency. Going straight to the pan gives you flatter pancakes. We use the waiting time to bring the pan up to temperature.
Blueberry, chocolate or wholegrain pancakes
Blueberry pancakes: fold 100 g of fresh or frozen blueberries into the batter by hand straight after resting. Not in the Thermomix®, by hand. The berries should stay whole.
Chocolate pancakes: add 20 g of cocoa powder together with the flour and fold in a handful of chocolate chips at the end. You can reduce the sugar to 30 g because the chocolate adds sweetness.
Wholegrain pancakes: replace half the plain flour with spelt flour type 630. The batter will be a little thicker and may need 2 to 3 extra tablespoons of buttermilk to reach the right consistency. In return, the pancakes are more filling.
Maple syrup, berries or chocolate sauce as a topping
Maple syrup is the classic choice. For something creamier, serve the pancakes alongside our Thermomix® crepe variation with vanilla cream. For a complete American-style breakfast, homemade strawberries with chocolate chips work very well. If you serve the pancakes as a dessert, try our Thermomix® advocaat as a topping.
Batter, finished pancakes, freezing
We keep the raw batter in a sealed container in the fridge for up to two days. Give it a quick stir before cooking and add 1 to 2 tablespoons of buttermilk if needed, as the batter thickens in the fridge. Finished pancakes stay fresh at room temperature for up to one day and in the fridge for up to three days. Reheating works best at 160°C in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Freezing works well: freeze them individually so they do not stick together, then transfer to freezer bags. Defrost at room temperature or directly in the oven.
What other recipes do differently
Also goes well with: Chocolate sauce.
Also goes well with: Christmas granola Thermomix®.
Many Thermomix® pancake recipes use regular milk and skip the effort of whisked egg whites. That is faster, but it costs exactly the fluffiness that makes a good pancake. We deliberately stick with buttermilk because the acidity reacts with the baking powder and lifts the batter. Other sources work with bicarbonate of soda alone, which in the Thermomix® often leads to a metallic aftertaste if the amount of acid is not exactly right. Pan choice also makes a difference: a crepe pan or cast-iron skillet gives thin, crisp rounds, while a non-stick pan over medium heat gives us the tall, soft American-style pancakes we are after here.
More Thermomix® breakfast recipes: crepes and rice pudding come from the same batter cluster.
