Recipe

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An easy recipe for fluffy whole wheat pancakes you'll want to make on repeat!

Plus this post shares my best tips of making them for over a decade so your stack turns out delicious when only using whole-wheat flour!

stack of whole wheat pancakes topped with sliced apples

You’re about to enjoy an epic stack of whole-wheat pancakes. While you could jump straight to the recipe or one of these sections, I’ve added tons of tips that ensure success throughout.

Jump to:

Whole Wheat Pancakes from Scratch
Are Whole Wheat Pancakes Healthy?
Ingredients
How to Make Whole Wheat Pancakes
The BEST Whole Wheat Pancakes

Whole Wheat Pancakes from Scratch

It took me years to get my family to approve a whole wheat pancakes recipe that could compete with my viral fluffy pancakes recipe. While they’re used to mom making pancakes from scratch, and they even love the heartier texture of my banana oatmeal pancakes, it was only when I created this recipe that I won their approval.

I’ve now made these so many times that I know this is a fantastic recipe you and your family will enjoy; plus, this post has been updated to include all of my tips for making sure they become a favorite at your house too!

Are Whole Wheat Pancakes Healthy?

Whole wheat pancakes can be considered a healthy breakfast option for families. This recipe in particular is made with 100% whole wheat four, where the entire wheat germ is intact, making them rich in vitamins such as all the B Vitamins, and minerals. Each serving also provides nearly 5 grams of dietary fiber, an important nutrient in a healthy diet.

Ingredients

These light and fluffy whole wheat pancakes are a cinch to whip up. You’ll find the amounts to the recipe in the printable recipe card. But first, a couple of notes regarding each ingredient in case you’re tempted to omit of swap:

Whole-Wheat Flour: 100% stone-ground whole wheat or white whole wheat will work for this recipe. It also works with flour milled at home, make sure to set your grain mill to very fine.
Baking Powder: it’s what will give your whole wheat pancakes a fluffy texture and help them rise.
Salt: to enhance the flavor of the other ingredients.
Sugar: just enough to make these pancakes lightly sweet and give your pancakes a crisp, golden exterior.
Milk: this recipe works with dairy and non-dairy milk.
Egg: to bind the ingredients and help the pancakes hold together. I’ve not been satisfied with the texture of whole wheat flour and an egg substitute for pancakes.
Butter: a little, which you can omit, but it adds a delicious buttery flavor to the batter.

Want to mix things up? Try my Whole Wheat Banana Pancake recipe next.

How to Make Whole Wheat Pancakes

Making whole wheat pancakes is simple. And if you’ve had some bad outcomes in the past, read the tips I marked in each of the steps below:

Sift the whole wheat flour:
Since whole-wheat flour is denser than all-purpose flour, I’ve found that sifting it into the bowl helps provide these pancakes with a fluffier and lighter texture.
Make the batter:
Add the other dry ingredients into the flour bowl and mix to combine to distribute the baking powder evenly. Then, add the wet ingredients to the bowl and using a fork, break up and whisk the eggs before mixing the rest into a pancake batter. This helps not overmix it.
Cook on the first side:
Heat your non-stick pan or griddle first, before greasing, over medium-high heat. Once hot, grease it well -with oil or butter. Then pour the pancake batter onto the hot surface and cook the pancakes on the first side.
Flip:
You know the whole wheat pancakes are ready to flip when the edges look defined and bubbles form. Flip them and cook the other side for one more minute. Remove them from the pan and cook the rest.
Serve:
Stack them high and enjoy warm.

The Best Whole Wheat Pancake Batter

Whole wheat flour is naturally denser than traditional all-purpose flour, which is what is used in most pancake recipes and because of this, I recommend sifting the flour into the bowl when measuring it to help give the pancakes a lighter texture.

Something else I recommend when making this batter is to break up the eggs and whisk them with a fork (directly in the bowl is ok) before mixing all the wet ingredients to create a batter. This will help avoid overmixing the batter, which is a common pancake mistake that yields chewy pancakes.

two plates with stacks of whole wheat pancakes topped with sliced apples

Success Tips for Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes

I’ve made these incredible whole-wheat pancakes many times and continue to make them regularly because my family really enjoys their whole-grain flavor. Here are some tips I’ve learned along the way that yield a fluffy texture when making pancakes with whole wheat flour:

Sift the whole wheat flour
Whole wheat flour tends to pack easily when measured and is naturally denser. This simple step separates it and helps yield a good batter consistency and a lighter pancake.

Heat the pan first before greasing
Get your non-stick pan, cast iron skillet, or griddle nice and hot before greasing or buttering. This is especially important if using butter because you’ll brown the butter before the surface is hot enough. Once you grease, pour the batter immediately.

Wait to flip
Make sure the edges or the pancake look defined and bubbles have begun to form before flipping. This means that the batter has cooked through enough and you won’t have raw middles.

Adjust the heat
If you find yourself flipping these whole wheat pancakes too early because the bottoms are browned but you don’t have bubbles formed or defined edges, this means the heat is too hot.

Make some additions
When I want to mix things up I add fruit to make them blueberry whole wheat pancakes or even whole wheat banana pancakes!

Watch this short video showing you how these are made to make sure your stack turns out perfect!

Freezing Whole Wheat Pancakes

Have leftovers or decided to double the batch and make extra? Freeze them! Once they cool down, you can freeze pancakes on a sheet pan or plate, and once frozen, transfer them to a zip bag and they can stay frozen for up to 3 months!

Reheating Whole Wheat Pancakes

Whether you decided to refrigerate pancake leftovers or froze them for another day, you can easily reheat them by microwaving them for 30 to 60 seconds or toast them in a toaster or toaster oven.

Best Pancake Toppings

These whole wheat pancakes are the perfect base for some of the best pancake toppings. From fresh fruit, nut butter, and syrups, they pair great with everything! Here are some of my family’s favorites:

The BEST Whole Wheat Pancakes

Servings: 12 pancakes

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 15

An easy recipe for fluffy whole wheat pancakes you'll want to make on repeat!

4.94 from 15 votes

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Watch how it’s made:

Ingredients

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar, or honey
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Instructions

Make the batter:

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Sifting will help your whole-wheat pancakes have a lighter texture. If using honey, add it to the bowl with the wet ingredients.
Make a well in the middle and pour in the milk, eggs, and melted butter. Using a fork, break up the eggs first, and then whisk the wet ingredients, incorporating them from the outside of the bowl in, until the batter has no visible lumps.

Cook the pancakes:

Heat a non-stick pan, skillet, or griddle over medium-high heat. Once hot, grease, spray, or melt butter on the hot surface.
Immediately, pour ¼ cup of pancake batter onto the greased pan. Cook the pancakes for about 2 minutes, until the edges begin to look defined and bubbles form. Flip the pancakes over and cook for another minute on the other side. Do not press down with a spatula. Remove from the pan onto a plate and cook the remaining pancakes.

Serve:

Stack them high and enjoy them warm topped with your favorite pancake toppings and syrup.

Notes

You can use traditional whole-wheat flour or “white whole-wheat” also known as whole-wheat pastry flour. The latter will yield fluffier pancakes since it’s been ground finer.
Use the right baking powder: Since pancake batter naturally has a mild, neutral flavor, it’s important to use aluminum-free baking powder. The metallic flavor will ruin the taste, especially in fluffy pancake recipes that call for 2 or more teaspoons. Trust me on this one.