3 Genius Tricks For The FLUFFIEST Pancakes Ever!

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Last Updated on November 3, 2025 by Toya

Fluffy pancakes aren’t just made by accident. They are instead the result of a few small, smart tricks that anyone can do. If you’ve ever made pancakes that turn out flat, gummy, or tough, this guide gives you all the fixes you need so this never has to happen again.

Below you’ll find the three game changing fluffy pancake tricks (plus a quick baseline batter and troubleshooting tips) that I’ve been using for years to get tall, soft fluffy pancakes every single time!

What You’ll Need for Fluffy Pancakes

• Nonstick Pancake Skillet (Even Heat, Golden Edges) – A nonstick pan like the one below heats up evenly so your pancakes rise instead of spreading out. They’re perfect for getting that light, fluffy center with golden edges.

• Stainless Measuring Cups & Spoons (Accurate Pancake Ingredients) – Fluffy pancakes need the right liquid-to-flour ratio, and eyeballing it ruins the texture. These sturdy measuring cups and spoons make it easy to measure precisely every time, so your batter isn’t too thin or too heavy. Also, if you have a food scale, this works to.

• Pancake Batter Dispenser for Same-Size Pancakes – Dispense the same amount of batter every time so all your pancakes cook evenly and stay tall. This tool helps you so you get no drips and no weirdly shaped pancakes! Instead, all your pancakes will be evenly shaped and they’ll look as good as they taste. Thisis great for kids’ breakfasts and big batches. Also, uniform pancakes cook evenly so no undercooked large pancakes or overcook small pancakes in the same batch!

A quick baseline pancake batter (so the tricks make sense)

Use your favorite recipe, or try this reliable base so you can taste the difference the tricks make:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoons sugar
• ½ tablespoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 large egg
• 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
• Cooking spray or extra butter for the pan

Whisk the dry ingredients in one bowl, then mix the wet ingredients in another. Then pour the wet mix into the bowl of dry mix and follow the tricks below.

Trick #1: Mix less than you think—leave visible lumps

Overmixing pancake batter knocks out air and overdevelops the gluten. This leads to rubbery pancakes. Your batter should look lightly combined with small flour streaks and visible lumps. Those lumps hydrate as the batter rests and create tiny pockets that puff on the griddle.

How to do it right:

• It’s best to stir with a spatula, not a whisk. And use 8–10 gentle folds. Stop as soon as most dry spots disappear.
• If you see a few tiny flour clumps? This is perfect. Leave them alone.
• Any add-ins (chocolate chips, berries) go in at the end with 1–2 soft folds.

Signs you overmixed: batter looks glossy-smooth and stretchy and finished pancakes are uniformly flat with tight crumbs.

Trick #2: Let the batter rest for 5–10 minutes

This is the cheat code. Resting pancake batter allows the starches to hydrate and the baking powder/soda to start building micro bubbles. This results in taller rise and a tender crumb that stays moist instead of drying out on the skillet.

How to do it right:

• After mixing, set the bowl aside for 5–10 minutes while you heat the pan up.
• If the batter thickens a bit, that’s normal. If it becomes too thick to pour, loosen with 1–2 tbsp buttermilk or milk. Do not add more than this.
• Don’t rest more than 20 minutes or you can lose leavening power.

Bonus: Resting also calms gluten so your pancakes stay soft even if you did a few extra folds.

Trick #3: Dial in heat + flip timing (medium, bubbles, dry edges, then flip once)

High heat scorches the outside of your pancakes while leaving the inside dense. While low heat dries the batter before it can lift. Aim for steady medium heat and flip only once.

How to do it right:

• Preheat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium for 3–4 minutes. Lightly butter or oil, then wipe off any excess. Note, A flat nonstick griddle like this one makes the biggest difference for even browning
• Pour ¼ cup batter per pancake.
• Wait for the cues from the pancakes: bubbles should form across the surface and edges should look set and slightly dry (about 2–3 minutes).
• Flip once. Cook the second side for about 1–2 minutes until the underside is golden and the center springs back.
• Resist pressing down with a spatula. This pressing motion squeezes out steam (aka your fluff).

Quick temperature check: before you place any pancake batter do a qikc test. Pour out a drop of water onto the skillet. It should dance and evaporate, not explode or sit still.

Small Tricks for Extra Lift

• Buttermilk trick: The acid in buttermilk reacts with baking soda for tall rise and delicate tang. If you don’t have any buttermilk, use milk + lemon juice or vinegar (1 cup milk + 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vingear. Mix and let sit for 5 minutes).
• Fresh leaveners: Baking powder loses oomph as it ages. If your tin is 6–12 months old or more, replace it.
• Egg white whisk: Separate the egg, then whisk the egg white to soft peaks, and fold in at the end—very gently. (Not required, but this is a neat tricks that makes pancakes fluffy.)

Step-by-step (putting it all together)

1. Combine dry: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt.
2. Combine wet: buttermilk, egg, melted butter/oil.
3. Fold to combine: pour wet into dry and fold gently. Leave lumps.
4. Rest: 5–10 minutes while your pan heats on medium.
5. Cook: light grease, ¼ cup scoops, bubbles + dry edges → flip once.
6. Serve immediately.

Troubleshooting: Why pancakes go flat (and Useful Fixes)

• Flat + pale, spread too much: Batter is too thin. Go ahead and add 1–2 tbsp flour and rest 3 minutes.
• Gummy center: Heat too high, rushed flip, or batter did not rest for long enough. To fix, lower the heat and wait for full surface bubbles before flipping.
• Tough/chewy: The batter was likely overmixed. Next time, fold the batter fewer times and stop early. Also resting the batter is highly important.
• Bitter taste: Too much baking soda or old baking powder. Stick to the baseline ratios and use fresh leaveners.
• Burnt outside, raw inside: Heat is too high. Drop it to medium, preheat the skillet evenly, and use the bubble/edge cues for perfect pancakes!

These easy tricks help you make the best fluffy pancakes that taste so good! Save for later! And also check out some of my fluffy pancake recipes here:

Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes