There is nothing more comforting than settling into the weekends with pancakes for breakfast. And this scrumptious and richly flavored dish can be made quite easily on an induction cooktop.
The word pancake speaks for itself… it uses similar materials used to make a cake or a thin cake of batter and is made in a pan. They are also known as hotcakes or griddle cakes.
There are a few things you have to take care of before I guide you towards cooking the pancakes on an induction cooktop.
I am sure you must have cooked them on electric or gas before and even if you have not, don’t worry. Whether you are cooking to satisfy your palate or to impress someone or just whisking up for your kids, I am here to guide you towards making the most mouth-watering pancakes ever.
And before you get started with cooking pancakes, you need to choose the right cookware for pancakes.
Selecting the Right Cookware for Pancakes
You have to make sure you use the right cookware that is suited to cook pancakes and can also work on an induction cooktop.
Unfortunately, you can not use any cookware on an induction. There is a specific type of cookware only that work on an induction cooktop
One way to check whether your pan will work on induction is to place a fridge magnet near the base of the pan. If the magnet sticks, it is good enough for induction.
Go for an induction friendly skillet preferably a non-stick cast iron skillet or griddle. An enameled cast iron pan will also work great. You can also use a non-stick stainless steel pan.
Make sure the Pan covers the entire area of the heating element and not beyond the ring drawn on top of the cooktop. That will lead to more heating towards the center whereas the sides will heat up slowly.
Remember the correct size will lead to beautiful evenly cooked pancakes.
Use a thick and stable frying pan so that it doesn’t get imbalanced when you use a spatula to flip.
Now if you have the cookware ready, it time to get to the real work of cooking the pancake.
Step 1 – Get your ingredients ready ( preparing the batter and mixing)
Since induction heats up really quick make sure to assemble your ingredients. You can use a variety of ingredients to your taste and likes.
The seven essential ingredients are:
- Flour (1 cup)
- Sugar ( 2 tablespoons)
- Salt (½ spoon)
- Butter melted ( 3 tablespoons)
- Milk (1 and ¼ cup)
- Egg (1)
- Baking powder (2 tablespoons).
Some like to add baking soda ( ¼ teaspoon) for the extra softness and light texture.
The key to great griddle pancakes is the mixing technique.
To get a fluffy outcome, mix the dry and the wet ingredients separately in two bowls. The dry being flour, baking powder, sugar and salt, and the wet being egg, milk, and butter. Then make a well in the dry mixture and pour the wet ingredients and mix. For a thinner pancake, keep adding milk little by little until you reach the desired consistency.
To make the batter without eggs, just increase about half a teaspoon more of baking powder and quarter cup extra milk to make it a smooth pourable batter.
Those who don’t want to use dairy milk can use almond milk or other vegan milk options or just use coffee or juice. They will turn out just as tasty. Just make sure the liquid is about a quarter cup less to avoid a runny batter.
If you do not want to cook in all-purpose flour and are looking for healthier options, use equal amounts of whole wheat and all-purpose flour. Tastes fabulous. You can add fruit, nuts, cream, cheese or yogurt to the batter as well according to taste. Or leave it for toppings later on.
For a soft and tender pancake, let the batter rest from 5 minutes to 30 minutes before cooking in on induction. The resting period relaxes the activated gluten and gives it time to settle down.
The starch molecules also get time to absorb the liquid in the batter giving a thick consistency.
Step 2 – Cooking the Pancake Batter
Place the Pan on the cooktop. Grease it with butter or coconut oil or any vegetable oil according to taste. Switch the induction power on.
Never set the temperature too high. That will lead to overcooked or burnt exterior and raw and uncooked inside. For a soft and well-cooked pancake inside and a golden brown outside, use medium heat on induction.
Power level 5 (from 1-10) on the induction cooktop.
Make sure the pan is hot before placing the batter. If it’s not, that will lead to non-crispy and greasy pancakes as it will absorb all the oil in the pan. It should be hot, but not smoking hot.
Take about ¼ cup batter for 3-4 inches pancake and pour making it fall as a disc-shaped batter. Some like 3-4 inches pancakes while some like it bigger.
Size and thickness is something that I leave for you to decide.
When the bubbles on the pancakes form, it’s one minute left to flip. When the bubbles burst, that’s the time to flip the pancake.
It takes about two to three minutes to reach this stage. They should only be flipped once. Repeatedly flipping them will lead to deflated pancakes.
Wait for two whole minutes for the other side to cook and brown before removing them from the pan.
Step 3- Add Toppings to the Pancake
Pancakes are incomplete without toppings. Use the maple or honey and good old bananas chopped for topping.
For variety, you can try different combinations like strawberry syrup and cream. Simply toss in strawberries in half a cup brown sugar. Let it sit for an hour. Top the pancake with the berries and its juices and add sour cream.
Another variation can be maple syrup and cream. Or marmalade butter and yogurt. Marmalade can be simmered along with butter for some time. Drizzle your pancakes with marmalade and add plain yogurt.
You can also top the syrup with cinnamon, sugar or ice cream. So with toppings, you get the idea – whatever you love.
Advantages of cooking pancakes on induction
Remember the times when you wait for the pan to heat up? Adieu to that. A beautiful thing about cooking on inductions is that it heats up your cookware within seconds
The entire cooking process gets speeded up. What that amounts to is less time spent cooking. Yippee.
Only the heating element gets heated up. The rest of the induction remains cool to touch. The heat generated is only on the cookware and not into the atmosphere leading to a cool and comfortable environment while making pancakes. Cook great and look great as well. It’s a win-win.
It also maintains stable temperatures leading to even cooking. That means cooking pancakes in batches will get you the same look on all pancakes every time.
Conclusion
Having made pancakes on induction several times, I can confidently say that the success depends on the type of pan you use and the way you prepare your batter, the temperature you use and the correct timings.
Remember a good non-stick griddle works best and the pan should be placed aligning to the center of the circle of the heating element. It should not be larger than the circle of the heating element.
Now, that you have read all the tips of whisking the batter and choosing the right cookware, the right temperature and right timing you are on your way to becoming a pro in cooking pancakes on induction.
Having broken into the code, isn’t it all very simple in the end?
Enjoy the Pancakes!
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