Recipe

Cook up a batch of thin pancakes with this easy recipe that's perfect for a breakfast stack.

These thin pancakes with their soft texture will convert traditional pancake fans. Easy to pour, quick to cook, and so good with fruit or syrup.

Thin Pancakes

At my house, thick fluffy pancakes are a weekend staple, but when Jaime, our exchange student from Spain, stayed with us, he asked for something thinner, more similar to the ones back home.

This thin pancake recipe has a soft, spongy texture that makes them stackable without being as thin as a crepe. They’re perfect plain, with fresh fruit, or some strawberry pancake syrup.

Ingredients

These are made with ingredients you’d expect to make pancakes, including all-purpose flour, baking powder, milk, eggs, vanilla, a little sugar, and melted butter.

thin pancakes being cooked on a griddle and stacked to one side when done

Check that your baking powder is aluminum-free, as the metallic taste tends to transfer into the batter.

How to Make Thin Pancakes

The batter is made like traditional American pancakes‘ batter by measuring and mixing the dry ingredients first, then adding the wet ingredients, and mixing just enough until there’s no visible flour. The batter is thinner than normal but not liquid.

Most noticeably, these cook faster, about 2 minutes on the first side and then a little over a minute after flipping them. The key is to use a non-stick pan and cook them over medium heat.

stack of thin pancakes topped with sliced strawberries

Soft or Crispy

These are soft pancakes that, although thin, are not crispy unless you grease the pan generously with butter, in which case you’ll get crispy edges. If you like soft pancakes, check out my copycat McDonald’s pancake recipe.

Perfect Thin Pancakes Recipe

large stack of thin pancakes topped with strawberries

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 15

Cook up a batch of thin pancakes with this easy recipe that's perfect for a breakfast stack.

5 from 20 votes

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Ingredients

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch salt, omit if butter is salted
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup milk
2 eggs
3 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Make the batter:

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Make a well in the middle and pour in the milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla extract. Break up the eggs first with a fork and incorporate them with the liquid. Then, mix in the flour, working from the outside of the bowl in, until just combined and mostly smooth.

Cook the pancakes:

Heat a non-stick griddle or large pan over medium heat. Once hot, grease the pan and immediately pour ¼ cup of pancake batter per pancake. For soft pillowy tops, omit greasing but make sure the pan is non-stick. The batter is thin but not runny. If needed, use the back of the scoop to spread it out a little.
Cook the pancakes for about 2 minutes on the first side, until the edges appear defined and bubbles form on the surface. Flip the pancakes over and cook for another minute on the other side. Remove the pancakes from the pan onto a plate and keep them warm while you cook the remaining batter.