July 24, 2020
updated
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Whether you ran out of milk or just want a recipe for pancakes without milk that uses water, today’s recipe and tips will show you how to make fluffy no milk pancakes every time!
This recipe has saved pancake morning at my house on more than one occasion and I’m so happy to be able to share it with you today.
Can You Make Pancakes Without Milk?
Of course, you can make no milk pancakes, that’s why we’re here today!
Flavor aside, the purpose of milk in a pancake recipe is to dissolve the flour and other ingredients and to provide the liquid structure. This means that any liquid will do the trick.
If you’re still weighing your breakfast options for today, you can also make French toast without milk!
Making Pancakes with Water
Making pancakes with water is as simple as making regular pancakes. The main difference with a water-based pancake recipe and a milk-based recipe will be the flavor of the cooked pancakes.
Whether you use dairy milk or non-dairy milk in a recipe, using “milk” adds a creamy flavor to pancakes. Even pancake mixes that say “just add water” have powdered milk in the ingredients.
So, if you want great tasting pancakes with water, make sure to not skimp on the melted butter, vanilla, and the little bit of sugar that’s added to the recipe.
If you try a pancake or two and find them a little bland, add one of the “flavor add-ins” listed below.
No Milk Pancakes Ingredients
To make no milk pancakes, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Granulated sugar
- Water
- Egg
- Butter
- Vanilla extract
If you have those ingredients, let’s keep going!
Pancake Batter Consistency without Milk
The consistency of pancake batter without milk is the same as my milk-based pancake recipe.
Check out this video so you can learn the consistency of good pancake batter. Granted, I add milk to the bowl, but the consistency is the same.
Other Milk Substitutes for Pancakes
Milk adds both flavor and the “liquid” to a pancake recipe. There are other milk substitutes for pancakes and below I share both options: for flavor and liquid texture.
Liquid Milk Substitutes for Pancakes
As a liquid substitute for milk, use equal parts of:
- almond milk
- oat milk
- soy milk
- hemp milk
- half & half + water (50/50 ratio)
- heavy cream + water (50/50 ratio)
- cashew milk
- rice milk
- coconut milk
- eggnog (check out this eggnog pancake recipe)
- water
Milk Substitutes for Pancakes to add flavor
If you’re using water to make a pancake recipe, you’ll need to add a little more “flavor.” Here are some add-in options:
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons maple extract
- 1 extra tablespoon melted butter
- 1 cup blueberries, chopped berries
- ¼ cup jam or jelly
- Zest of 1 orange
After you make your traditional pancakes or fluffy gluten-free pancakes be sure to try one of these pancake toppings to make your breakfast complete.
Fluffy Pancakes without Milk
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ Tablespoons sugar
- 1 ¼ cups water
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
- Make a well in the middle and pour in the water, egg, butter, and vanilla extract. Mix with a whisk or fork until smooth.
- Heat a non-stick griddle or large pan over medium-high heat, I set my griddle at 300-350 F.
- Pour or scoop ¼ cup of batter for each pancake. Wait until bubbles form to flip. Continue cooking for an additional minute to cook through, and brown on the other side. Remove from the pan or griddle and serve.
Ashley
Made them twice, added extra vanilla. second time I added berries for flavor.
Chelsea
Surprisingly good texture, even with a GF mix! Better than some pancake recipes with milk and reg flour. Impressive.
Laura Fuentes
Thanks for sharing you enjoyed these pancakes without milk!
Will
Oh my god these are perfect! They’re so fluffy and delicious. In case anyone prefers fruit pancakes: I got rid of the extra 1/4 cup water and added some chopped lychees instead, and they turned out lovely, with just the right amount of juicy lychee.
Laura Fuentes
that sounds like it added a great flavor!
Rubee
I use this recipe every time I find out we don’t have milk. It’s SO amazing! You don’t even have to use butter, you could use coconut oil or (my favorite) olive oil. They’re so fluffy and thick at the same time. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Laura Fuentes
Thank you for sharing how much you enjoy this recipe!
Cmj
I was out of milk so found this recipe. They have a great texture but are bland. I also did not have vanilla or butter so that’s probably why they tasted like that.
Denver
Great recipe, but for some reason mine came out rather dense and flat! Where did I go wrong?!
Laura Fuentes
If your pancakes did not rise and were flat (given that no substitutions were made) the most common culprit might be the baking powder.
Cindy
they were bland. probably because I didn’t add anything to flavor the batter. will add next time. Otherwise, the texture was spot on.
Nicole couch
What if I accidently put 1 fourth of cup of water to much in the recipe can I still save it
Laura Fuentes
You’ll need to add about 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup of flour and 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder.
Ann
I never have milk in the house, but always have butter. These came out really good! I doubled the recipe for 4 of us because we like bigger pancakes. Whole family ate them all up!
Cholena
Beating the egg up until fluffy was a great tip from one of the other comments! My kids can’t get enough of these! We took the advice and added 1 extra T of butter as well as the added 1.5 t of almond extract. I will be trying these gluten free and will report back on that 🙂 thanks!!
Laura Fuentes
Thanks for sharing how much you and your kids enjoyed these!
JenD
Simple ingredients and instructions- and the taste was incredible! Will keep this one!
Tay
I wasn’t expecting these to be SO good!! I love, love, love the way they taste and cook up. My new favorite!!
Patricia Hite
I usually read reviews before making recipes, but only read them after I made them and oh my god they were just what the other reviewers said, PERFECT! I didn’t have milk because I don’t really buy it, and I love pancakes and only thought the water thing was only with the box stuff. I will always make these and thanks!
Sandra
Best pancakes without milk. Thanks!
Alice
I LOVE THESE!!!
Nila
Thanks for the recipe. Didn’t have milk at the moment so this came in clutch.
Kitale
This mix was amazing ! I do recommend to beat the egg in a mixer into peeks to make the pancakes more fluffy.
Ashley
We didn’t have pancake mix or milk and I had a pancake craving this morning. Found your recipe and it was very good! Will definitely make again. I actually just realized that I completely forgot to add the egg , and they were still good!
Laura Fuentes
I’m not sure what part of these pancakes failed for you, but as mentioned in the recipe and post, adding flavoring is very important to this recipe. Otherwise, you do taste the flour and water. Store-bought pancake mixes have added flavorings (usually powdered vanillin and buttermilk powder) to mask this.
Burr Battle
Highly impressed! We don’t buy milk often since the kids are gone so this works perfectly and tastes great!
Diane
I was out of milk and wanted pancakes. They were awesome..My pancakes have never been so light and fluffy. Thank you for the recipe.
Laura Fuentes
Thank you for sharing you enjoyed them!
Diana C
This was delicious! And easy to make for Valentines day brunch. I can’t do too much dairy so this was not only perfect, but very tasty. I did add the extra butter for flavor. I went back just now to save the recipe for later and now I’m craving it again. 🙂
Jayne
I am lactose intolerant and even before I was, I could never make a decent pancake. Tried this recipe and the pancakes are absolutely the best I have ever made. Delicious and pretty! Thank you so much for sharing it!
M
Best pancake recipe
Septimus
Spot on!
Erin
This recipe is AMAZING! Didn’t have milk, so we tried the 50:50 coffee cream & water & it worked perfectly! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe, this is a keeper 🙂
Laura Fuentes
That sounds like a great substitute for when you run out of milk, Erin!
Richard Paul
Also, if you have condensed sweet milk, you can substitute that for the milk, butter, and sugar.
Laura Fuentes
great tip!
Sarah McEwan
Thank you for the best pancake recipe, this is my second time making them once last night and this morning… lol… I never ate a pancake that I’ve made that tastes so delicious until now… I also usually have the pancake mix… so this is the one I’m keeping..
Thanks for the recipe..
Hello
These pancakes without milk are so yum, thank you for this recipe, I love it, the fam loves it, we all love it!! This is a keeper, definitely
ginger
we were out of milk and you totally saved pancake day!
Bri Marie
I’ve been struggling to find a good pancake recipe without milk and this has by far been the BEST one!!! Thank you so much. It was so quick and easy.
Laura Fuentes
I’m thrilled you enjoyed this recipe Bri!
Marie Alonso
How can I triple this recipe?! Everyone kept coming back for more ! Used Almond milk and added 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon and 1 ½ maple extract (just had it on hand) for extra flavor and not only was it yummy but our home smelled yummy to ! Thank you !
Laura Fuentes
The easiest and most accurate way to triple a recipe is to measure out each ingredient 3x in the same bowl. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Melissa
Yum! Craving pancakes but can’t have dairy so this recipe came in handy. Definitely satisfied my craving!
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you were able to enjoy pancakes without milk!
Dale F Gillett
Craving for pancakes tonight. Out of milk. This turned out better than I expected. Very fluffy and mighty tasty. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Liezl
Definitely one of the few recipes for gluten free pancakes that does not flop. Tastes excellent and looks wonderful.
Julianna
I used unsweetened almond milk, but I added *just* a bit more vanilla extract! And then I added a few dashes of cinnamon. Absolutely YUMMY! Biggest tip: make sure the pan is super hot and ready when you pour the batter in. It ensures that they won’t spread out and get too thin.
Felicia
Awesome…nice, fluffy and flavorful
Belinda
I ran out of milk and found this recipe….really nice and easy to make. Added more water to stretch the batch a bit further, didn’t put as much baking powder as I had cake flour…they turned out perfect.
Annette
Thank you for sharing this. Really helped me out in a pench
Leaf
Made these pancakes without milk for my family using vanilla paste and a few tablespoons of homemade seedless blackberry jam. Parents loved it! Thank you
Juloe
Pancakes look great but all I can taste is the baking powder
Laura Fuentes
Did you add any of the flavoring to the recipe?
Annie
Great recipe! We are on a budget being gfdf and a no-milk recipe comes in handy a lot to save money.
Xack
This was such a great recipe they turned out light and fluffy. The first one, normally the worst of the bunch, actually turned out just as beautiful as the rest
no
me kid and i did it!
Faith
I love this so much Made this for my family they loved it and the buttery taste thank you so much
James
outstanding recipe! previous no-milk pancake recipes produced thick, hard, chewy flavorless pancakes. my elderly mother, who loves pancakes, wouldn’t eat them. she loves the ones at iHOP. but those have buttermilk and i’m lactose intolerant. these came out looking and tasting as good as iHOP. i did add sliced strawberries and cherry extract. thank you!
Grateful
My son has IBS (like me) and anything that is called milk messes with him. Pancakes are one of his favorite things so getting this info and this recipe was awesome! Thank you. Whenever I search for “No milk” I get Soy, Almond, or now Coconut. Ugh! I made 4 batches in one morning so that he could take pancakes back to school for the week. Two batches I used Cinnamon and apple cider, that was a big hit.
Jenna
Tried many pancake recipes over the years and all were okay but pretty thin. Tonight we didn’t have any milk so had to find a new recipe that didn’t use it. This one was perfect. They came out thick and fluffy just like pancakes should be. This will be our go to recipe from now on. Thank you.
Trisha
My son can not tolerate any “milk” so if you goggle NO MILK you get 10,000 recipes that use Almond, Soy, or Oat milk. Pancakes are one of his favorite things! and honestly I an SO tired of taking food out of our Menu. THANK YOU! What else or how else can I get rid of allllllllll milk and still exist?
Laura Fuentes
I’m excited that this recipe was enjoyed by your son! And I know exactly what you mean about the “no-milk” 😉
Marci
Great pancakes, I definitely will be making this recipe from now on.
Eddie
This pancake mix makes wonderful waffles that is what my son and I made great
Tina Taylor
I tried it, loved it… still cany believe it taste so good especially with the syrup.
Laura Fuentes
I’m glad you enjoyed these pancakes without milk!
Londyn Dishman
Wow. This recipe for pancakes without milk was absolutely amazing. A great substitute if you don’t have milk. Thanks, Laura!
Bean
I’m 13 and i made these pancake for my mom’s birthday cause she dairy free (she can have butter)
,she loved them will be making these for mothers day breakfast in bed!
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you made these pancakes without milk for your mom. Great job! She’s going to love pancakes in bed.
Azizah Idris
Tried this recipe today and my family enjoyed it. Didn’t miss the milk in it. It was delicious. Thank you
Angel
I tried it, it was supper fluffy and delicious but I didn’t use butter, I used margarine instead, so when it cooled, it had this heavy after taste or would I say settlement on the tounge…can I replace the butter with a healthy oil instead, like coconut oil? And oh, this is now my pancake recipe henceforth
Laura Fuentes
You can definitely swap butter for melted coconut oil or another neutral oil. So glad this recipe is a keeper for you!
carla
Delicious! I screwed up the first pancake by putting it in a small pan. Batter was too thick and it fell apart. Then, I made a smaller, thinner pancake on higher heat, cooked it fast and it came out perfect! Nice and crisp. Used a tad bit of avocado oil to heat the pan. Thank you!
Matilda Charter
That is exactly what happened to me!
Pancakes were DIVINE!!
matheus colhado
amazing oh and if you cover the pan for 3 min it is perfect super creamy though i had to add a bit more of flour but other than that amazingg
Molly Digmann
Found this recipe because my toddler drank all the milk so none left for pancakes 🙁
Though instead of water, we used flavored seltzer water! We had a can of peach ginger Bubly and it made the most fluffy and delicious pancakes! Yum yum yum! Thank you for the inspiration and our new favorite pancakes!
Laura Fuentes
Brilliant substitute!
Salma
it is perfect! thank you laura!
Basil
Insane stuff right there, I’ve never thought about using flavored water in my pancakes! I have to try this
Chrysolite Emelo
I love this pancake so much
Jan
Wow! These are the best homemade pancakes I’ve ever made!! I added cinnamon and vanilla. They were so soft and fluffy. Perfectly sweet!
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you loved this pancake without milk recipe!
Dan
I didn’t have any milk around, but I thought I’d give pancakes a try anyway. These look like pancakes….but taste like white bread. I guess the milk is an important part of pancake flavoring.
Laura Fuentes
Yes, milk adds flavor to the batter which is why it’s important to add vanilla and use syrup if it’s “too plain.”
Samantha clark
Can you make the batter ahead of time like the night before?
Laura Fuentes
Yes. you can absolutely make the batter the night before. Keep it in the fridge and in the morning give it a quick mix and make the pancakes!
Chris
They tasted good but they fell apart too easily.
Amy
I made this recipe. Instead of using an egg used 2 T water. These turned out so very awesome and perfect. My son thought I was lying that we didn’t have box pancake mix that he loves more than anything we have tried. This will definitely be a go to recipe!!! Thank you!
emma
Being allergic to milk is a quite a burden when nearly everything requires milk! But these were so easy to make and are most definitely the tastiest pancakes ever!
Rebecca
Our favorite pancakes! I use half whole wheat flour and often add berries. Yum!
Erin
It’s Pancake Tuesday so I decided to use this recipe because it seemed like a simple and healthy recipe but its just that on Tuesday I am really busy doing online meeting but I just managed to make some delicious pancakes even though it was a bit busy in my kitchen.
Debby
Hi!
Love the recipe
but is there an alternative if I don’t have butter?? can I replace it with oil?
I know is not going to taste the same but I would love to know if I ran out of butter.
Thank you!!
Laura Fuentes
You can use oil that’s mild-flavored instead.I highly recommend not omitting the vanilla extract to maintain some flavor.
Christine
The pancakes were really good! 🙂 Even my son enjoyed them and he’s really picky.
Sharisse
Omg!! Whipped these up for last minute recipe without milk…. AMAZING!!! Best addition to our Xmas morning breakfast!! I’m so excited I’ve found a recipe that I’ll keep forever ❤️
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe for pancakes without milk! Here is to many more “stacks”!
Jacob
Way too much baking soda. I thought I did it wrong. Went back and tried it again. Same result.
Laura Fuentes
This recipe doesn’t use baking soda.
Aftyn
I loved this recipe cause I have pretty busy day and I really don’t wanna go to the store right now and my daughters hungry, and picky so this is one thing she’ll eat. I used brown sugar and a touch of cinnamon. I did 1C water + 1 egg to equal just about 1 1/4 cup liquid.
Laura Fuentes
You must need glasses because this recipe is WITHOUT milk. If you watched the batter or when to flip video, then surely you read that the video is for something else using a different batter. In this post I show you exactly how the recipe turns out using WATER.
Monica
I loved this easy recipe. I was out of milk and sour of store bought pancake mix but, I had all the other ingredients. I had some leftover mix, which I stored in a glass jar. The next morning, the pancakes were fluffier. I think next time I plan on making pancakes, I will make it the night before and store in the fridge.
Laura Fuentes
I often store the mix in the fridge and make them the next day too and find that sometimes they are fluffier. I am glad you enjoyed these pancakes without milk!
Monika
This recipe was delicious! Used almond milk and added in some all spice with cinnamon. Texture was still light and fluffy, def will make again!
Maiz
Thank you, these were delicious! I made a triple batch for my crowd, and added a scoop of plain yogurt and a touch less water to make up for it. I flavored them up with almond extract and blueberries. Next time I’ll add lemon zest, They were fluffy and delicious.
Laura Fuentes
sounds delish!
Aftyn
Omg blueberry lemon version of these ! So yes !
Shakeela
Fluffy, easy to make! I did half heavy whipping cream and half water. They were amazing. Thank you Laura!
mutinta beene moonga
Very nice recipe enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing
David Ralph
I just made to these pancakes and I think they turned out wonderful. I didn’t have milk or vanilla, Lol. I smothered them with real pure maple syrup.
Thanks Laura!
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you enjoyed your pancakes without milk, David! Maple syrup sounds delish!
Poua Yang
Omg. The best pancakes I’ve ever made or ate in my entire life. I used almond milk and added a couple more splashes than suggested because it was slightly too thick, orange zest, cinnamon, blueberries, and bananas. It was amazing and don’t skip the tips! They were so helpful in making these pancakes AMAZING.
Ben Hawkes
Batter was nicer to work with than the milk variant, I added about 4 teaspoons of cinnamon. Excellent recipe!!
Gracia
Great recipe! Super tasty and so easy! And love the no milk! Thank you
Tiffany Broadwater
The best pancake recipe! Thank you Laura!
Beth
Delicious! I added some cinnamon and fresh blueberries! They turned out great!
Laura Fuentes
I love cinnamon in pancake batter! Good thinking.
Laura
These were SO great! I used almond extract for added flavor. I also forgot to add the egg, which made them accidentally vegan which is an added bonus. I’ll definitely be making these again, with or without the forgotten egg
Tonya
Ours were good but not fluffy. Not sure what I did wrong.
Laura Fuentes
If they weren’t fluffy, was your baking powder “active”? Baking powder is good for about 9months after opening.
Tonja Latham
These are literally THE best pancakes I have ever made. They’re super light and fluffy. I didn’t have milk so I used water and added the recommended amounts of cinnamon and extra vanilla extract for flavor. I also added the extra tablespoon of butter as advised. The flavor was incomparable. I like pancakes that I can eat without syrup if I’d like. These are THAT good! I’ve shared this recipe with everyone I know. Please tell me you have a waffle recipe you can share. I’d be ecstatic. Thanks for sharing this!
Laura Fuentes
Thank you, Tonja for your raving recommendation! I have a waffle recipe that I often use water (instead of buttermilk) and I double the butter listed in the recipe + vanilla extract. You can check it out here.
Janice
I made these pancakes without milk – we ran out- and they were perfect! I added maple extract and OH my! less calories without milk and taste was EPIC. will be making these again
Michael Gutierrez
They turned out great! I love the consistency as the batter is easy to work with on the thinner side but the cakes still come out thick and fluffy. I used almond milk, added a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg, plus I added some fresh lemon juice (from 1/2 lemon) so maybe that’s why the batter was a bit runnier?
Laura Fuentes
Hi Michael! Definitely the lemon juice made it runnier. That is about 2 tablespoons of extra liquid to a recipe with “tight margins”. Next time, for a lemon-infused taste, use the zest and you’ll be golden. I’m glad you enjoyed them none-the-less!
Kelvin
Stomach saver
Laura Fuentes
I’m glad you enjoyed these.
Jacqueline
I made these pancake today I love this recipe will do these again
Deb Polson
We are camping and don’t want to go out for milk. This recipe is perfect for campfire cooking.! Delicious
Laura Fuentes
I’m thrilled these saved the day on your camping trip, Deb!
Tara
I’ve been using this recipe every morning for our Thanksgiving break. I thought I had box mix but realized I’d ran out so I found this recipe instead. I’ve never made pancakes from scratch before. I’ll never go back to the box!! I’ve used this recipe with water and milk. Kids are very happy campers!! Thank you!!
Laura Fuentes
I’m thrilled you and your family enjoyed this recipe!
Paula
Oh my goodness this pancake recipe is a lifesaver! I hate it when I run out of milk, but I promised the kids pancakes… So much better to just make pancakes without milk than to run to the store first thing in the morning.
Jill
Wow! These were amazing. Light and fluffy. Any time I’ve ever used a box mix, the pancakes have always been so heavy. These? I could have eaten the entire batch!!