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The pancake batter blueprint

The pancake batter blueprint

+ squeezing steak juices, bouillon products, & more.

Keith McBrayer & Ethan Chlebowski
June 23, 2024

Good morning…today’s edition breaks down pancake batter. We’re curious, what do you call these morning syrup saucers?

What name do you use?

Silver dollars? Slap jacks? If we’re missing an option, email it in!

RECIPE BREAKDOWN🤯

The pancake blueprint

People claim baking is more of a science than an art. One way to approach that is by understanding the formulas that make up different doughs and batters (e.g. cake vs brioche vs fritter vs cookie).

Today we're focusing on the pancake batter equation. If you want us to cover other baked good blueprints, reply to let us know, or check out Michael Ruhlman’s excellent book Ratio, which inspired this edition.

Why learn this blueprint?

Once you understand the component ratios of a pancake batter, you can whip them up without having to consult a bunch of different recipes. Plus, you’ll be able to:

Scale recipes up or down with ease
Make pancakes out of anything, utilizing different kinds of flour, cooking liquids, or fats you have around
Adjust recipes to match your dietary needs

Instead of running to the store on a Saturday morning, you can keep the pajamas on and McGyver your way to a delicious breakfast.

Base batter ratios (by weight)

2 parts flour
2 parts liquid (usually milk)
1 part egg
1/2 part fat (usually butter)
1/4 part sweetener (usually sugar)
And added leaveners (baking soda) & any extra flavor additions (vanilla, salt, & mix-ins)

Note: These are the ratios for a standard, middle-of-the-road pancake. Japanese souffle pancakes or thin crepes use very different ratios, for example.

Substitution options

Pancakes are forgiving because the “flour” component doesn’t need to have gluten since you don’t want to overmix the batter and develop gluten strands anyway (which would result in a chewy, not tender, flapjack).

Notes

Baking powder: As a general rule of thumb, you’ll want about 5 g of baking powder for every 100 g of flour in pancake batter, or around 5% baking powder by weight of the flour.

For fluffier pancakes, you can use even more — up to 10% of the flour — although more baking powder means your pancakes will brown and go darker much easier, since the browning is also a function of PH.

Flavor adjusters: vanilla extract & salt are standard baked good seasonings, but pancakes welcome other mix-ins like nuts, chocolate, etc.

Method: Mix your dry and wet ingredients separately before combining to avoid overworking the batter. Once it’s together and hydrated, spoon dollops onto an oiled griddle.

Btw — ever wondered why some pancakes are splotchy, while others are perfectly browned? Here’s why.

RECIPE RECCOMENDATION🥡

Our pancake recipe…

For inspiration on how to make pancakes out of almost anything (like saltines) check out the original video for more ideas.

If you want to follow the blueprint alongside specific measurements, check out our standard batch, which makes a few normal portions:

Make sure to check out our FAQs on all Cook Well recipes. They include extra context, substitution guidelines, and food science of how the recipe works.

FOOD TRENDS 🚀

Bouillon products of the world

If making your own broth is simple, why do instant boullion products remain a home cooking staple?

1) The power of umami

Bouillon products are a secret weapon for umami. They're packed with glutamates, the organic compounds responsible for that meaty depth and richness to dishes. As cooks become more familiar with umami, they're reaching for bouillon to achieve it.

2) Global flavors at your fingertips

Bouillon products offer an easy way to introduce global flavors into home cooking. From Japanese dashi granules to Mexican chicken & tomato stock cubes, it's an easy way to switch up the flavor profiles of your dishes at home with minimal effort.

3) They are cost, space, and time-efficient

Storing bouillon products is cheaper and easier than filling your pantry of freezer with liquid broth.
No stockpot needed: provide instant flavor to soups, stews, and sauces without hours of simmering and straining.

Here are our favorites:

Hondashi — Instant dashi powder without having to buy kombu seaweed and bonito flakes.

Tomato knorr powder — Great for Mexican rice & Latin cuisines

Shrimp stock cubes — Seafood stock in seconds

Better Than Bouillon — we use their chicken and beef versions all the time; they keep well in the fridge and taste far better than boxed broth.

READER Q&A 🧠

Does pressing down a steak squeeze out juices?

📸 VietWorldKitchen

In a previous edition, we advised that when searing a steak, you can “use weights or a spatula to press down the steak for better contact and crust development on pans with slicker surfaces.” In response, Leonard C asked:

“Would that not squeeze more moisture out of the meat?”

Answer: We’d love to do more testing on this in the future, but our intuition and meat fiber anatomy suggests that no, excess moisture would not be squeezed out of the meat — but only if you don’t overcook the steak. Why?

As noted in On Food & Cooking, most water is "bound" within the proteins, which have to be cooked or "denatured" enough (with higher temperatures and time) before they release bound water, which is what starts leaking from cooked meat.

When searing a steak, pressing it down might achieve the desired color faster than without a press. This means you’ll likey retain more bound water in the meat, as the steak is in the pan for a shorter time, reducing the risk of overcooking and water loss.

Bigger picture: When cooking, consider which fundamentals have the biggest impact on the final product. For steak, juiciness is primarily determined by the final cooking temperature, followed by other factors and techniques. So as long as you don’t go over temp, squeeze away!