Sour Milk Pancakes

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Sour milk pancakes are the fluffiest pancakes you could have, made with a homemade version of buttermilk that gives them just a little tang and so much tenderness. Baking powder and baking soda work together to give these pancakes a lot of lift, and they are fantastic!

This recipe is barely adapted from an allrecipes one, with over 11,000 reviews. Great reviews, so I knew it would be a winning recipe. I’ve been making it for years now and it’s never failed to please!

How to sour milk at home:

Sour milk is the equivalent of buttermilk, but instead of buying ready made buttermilk that you might not have so many uses for, just make your own easily at home!

The way you sour milk is to add vinegar or lemon juice (I always prefer vinegar so I don’t have to juice a lemon) to regular milk. Let it stand for 5 minutes or so at which point you’ll start to see some curdled clumps form. Whisk briefly to combine, and you can use as directed in recipes.

Why use sour milk or buttermilk in pancakes?

The acidity of the soured milk helps to activate the baking soda in the pancakes, giving them that fluffy height that is a trademark of this recipe. It also helps to break down the gluten in the flour, which also gives a tender crumb.

Ingredients in sour milk pancakes:

Milk+ White Vinegar to give us the sour milk

All Purpose Flour

Granulated Sugar- just a little for sweetness

Baking Powder + Baking Soda- using both together is another way to get great lift and fluffiness

Salt: I reduced the amount slightly from the original recipe, I found 1/4 teaspoon to be just enough for me!

Egg: Make sure it’s room temperature so it combines with the rest of the batter easier. Just take it out of the fridge about 30 min before starting your batter, or you can dunk a cold egg in some warm water for 5 minutes

Vanilla: The original recipe didn’t have this but I love adding vanilla to my pancakes for a little flavor.

Butter: melted, plus I recommend extra grease your skillet with. Gives a great flavor, just make sure the heat isn’t too high so the butter doesn’t burn.

How to make pancakes:

First make your sour milk. In another bowl combine all the dry ingredients. Once the milk has soured, add the remaining wet ingreients to it )the egg, vanilla and melted butter).

Finally, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once and stir until just combined. Lumps are ok!

I like to let the batter rest, just 5- 10 minutes. This gives me enough time to heat the skillet, and also allows the gluten in the batter to relax and the batter to hydrate evenly. This also helps any lumps in the batter to ease!

I like to cook 1/4 cup measures of pancakes at a time, this gives you really uniform sized pancakes. Wait until bubbles form and edges set before flipping the pancakes.

For the most flavor, cook your pancakes in melted butter. Just make sure the heat isn’t too high so the butter doesn’t burn. You might need to add a little more butter to the pan as you go on.

Tips for pancake success:

Ingredient temperature: Make sure your egg is at room temperature so they combine well with the other ingredients. The milk can be room temperature too, which will tend to happen anyway since you are letting it sit for five minutes to combine with the vinegar.

Mixing: Don’t over mix the ingredients! That’s what will give you tough and chewy pancakes. Mix just enough so that ingredients are combined, and don’t worry too much about lumps.

It’s really hard to get these pancakes wrong!

Scale up: If making these pancakes for a crowd, scale up. Double the recipe. This makes six pancakes, so in my book its perfect for two!

Keeping pancakes warm while you finish cooking:

One of the best pancake making tips I got from Joy the Baker . Heat the oven on really low heat, 200 F (100C), and place a baking sheet in the oven. As soon as a pancake is done, transfer it to the baking sheet. Spread them out so they aren’t on top of each other so they don’t get moist. This will keep them warm without drying them out until you are ready to eat!

How to store leftover pancakes:

Leftover pancakes last 2-3 days in the fridge, or you can freeze them (first on a baking sheet separately so they don’t stick, then once solid you can transfer them to a freezer bag) for 2-3 months.

You can heat them in a microwave, an oven at low heat, or even in a toaster. They’ll still taste really good!

What to serve pancakes with:

You can keep them simple with maple syrup and a pat of butter.

You can top with chocolate chips (and even dot chocolate chips to the batter once it’s on the skillet), and pecans.

Sliced bananas, berries, greek yogurt.

These are extremely versatile!

If you liked this recipe, you might like:

Sparkling Water Pancakes

Lemon Poppy Seed Pancakes

Sourdough French Toast

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