How to get flippin’ perfect pancakes!

In perfect time for Shrove Tuesday, Emma Connolly asked some of our local chefs and foodies to divulge their most mouth-watering pancake recipes 

Diana Dodog, MasterChef Ireland winner

Diana Dodog, who lives in Courtmacsherry is a big fan of her native Hungarian pancakes, or palacsinta. The private chef said: ‘They are paper thin (similar to French crepes) with a filling and are served rolled. The filling can be anything from homemade apricot jam, cocoa powder, walnut, cinnamon sugar. We usually have it for dessert, a lot more than once a year.’

• Grab a large mixing bowl and mix 3 eggs, 250g plain flour, 300ml milk, 200ml soda water, 30ml neutral oil like sunflower, or melted butter, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 pinch of salt.

• Whisk until all combined, no lumps.

• Let it sit for 20 mins, then using a ladle fry the pancakes in a preheated non stick pan, 1-2 mins per side.

• The pancakes should be thin and nearly see through.

• Serves six.

Mark Jennings, Pilgrim’s, Rosscarbery

He admits it’s ‘dirty’ but chef Mark Jennings of Pilgrim’s Rosscarbery likes nothing more than filling his Shrove Tuesday pancake with a thinly sliced Mars Bar and vanilla ice-cream.

‘Try it, it’s so disgustingly delicious. But the classic lemon juice and granulated sugar is great too, for old time sake,’ he said.

‘Pancakes aren’t something I ate at home much until our three-year-old realised he loved them and he really likes cracking the egg. This fluffy coconut pancake recipe is great – it’s quick and easy, gluten free, so light and sweet but still low in sugar. It’s great eaten with frozen blueberries and natural yoghurt on top.’

20g melted butter (or coconut oil)

100g gluten free flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 banana

juice of half lemon

1 egg

125ml coconut milk

• In a bowl mash the banana well with the lemon juice.

• Add the coconut milk and melted butter with a pinch of salt, stir to combine.

• Add flour, baking powder and sugar, stir well to form a batter, it’s ok if it looks lumpy.

• Heat a frying pan, brush with oil or melted butter.

• Drop 2 tbsp of batter per pancake, cook on a medium heat until golden and flip.

• Serves 8.

Caitlin Ruth, chef with food truck, Timoleague

Being American, Caitlin Ruth says she’ll always prefer thick and fluffy pancakes: ‘That’s not to say that there isn’t a certain pleasing quality to a rubbery flat pancake, soaked with lemon juice and sprinkled with gritty sugar, but in general, I do prefer mine hot, buttery, drizzled with maple syrup and in a tall, impressive stack.I’m feeling generous, so here’s my secret recipe for the best fluffy pancakes ….’

120g strong white flour

2 tsp sugar

1 good pinch salt

half tsp baking powder

quarter tsp bread soda

175ml buttermilk

65ml milk

1 egg separated

30 g melted butter

More butter for the pan

• If you have a hand blender with a whisk attachment, this is your chance to finally use it, and the beaker it came with.

• Start by mixing the dry ingredients in a bowl.

• Separate the egg, put the egg yolk into a small bowl and the egg white into a beaker or small jug.

• Pour the two milks into the small bowl with the egg yolk and the melted butter, mix well.

• Whisk the egg white with the whisk attachment of your hand blender until medium peaks form (you can also use a normal whisk).

• Stir the milk and yolk mixture into the dry ingredients until well mixed, then fold the whisked egg white in.

• Preheat a skillet or frying pan to medium heat, and grease with butter.

• Pour small spoonfuls of batter into the hot pan, and when the bubbles on the raw side start to pop, flip carefully with spatula, and cook on other side.  Keep warm until ready to serve, with more butter and maple syrup.

Paul McDonald, Bastion, Kinsale

Pancakes were the first thing Michelin-star chef Paul McDonald learned to make: ‘I used to have a “pancake off” with an older lady next door who we all knew as nana, to this day I have no idea what her real name is!

‘My top tip is cook them over a medium to medium low heat. What’s that? If the knob on your stove goes from 12 o’clock (the off position) all the way round to 11 o’clock (full heat), then medium is around 6 o’clock, medium low is 3 o’clock, medium high being 9 o’clock.

‘Only turn the pancake when all the bubbles on the raw side have burst (or at least most of them have). If the pancake has browned before this, the heat is too high.

‘Also remember your first pancake is always going to be rubbish – but the dog will love it! I love mine with grilled bacon, fried banana and lots of maple syrup.’

500g plain flour

150g castor sugar

30g baking powder

4g teaspoons bi carb

8g salt

6 eggs

550g buttermilk

• Add all wet ingredients into a bowl and mix well

• Sift all dry ingredients (sugar doesn’t go through a sieve very well so just make sure there are no lumps)

• Add the wet mix to the dry mix beating with a hand whisk all the time to avoid lumps

• Cook as per my above instructions and enjoy!

Kela Hodgins,  Dunowen House, Clonakilty

Instagram followers of Dunowen House, which recently won Best Country House Wedding Venue SaveMyDay.ie, are regularly treated to amazing recipes from proprietor Kela Hodgins.

The accomplished baker says their buttermilk pancakes are  all about the eggs: ‘To make these extra fluffy, you can separate the eggs and whisk the whites until stiff, then fold into the pancake mix as a last step.’

She likes to serve them warm with fresh fruit, Greek yoghurt and honey or maple syrup.

They are also delicious served with apples stewed with cinnamon.

245g plain flour

3 tsp baking powder

2 large free range eggs

265ml buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp caster sugar

50g melted butter

• Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl.

• In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, vanilla, sugar and melted butter until combined.

• Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

• Grease the frying pan well with sunflower oil or melted butter and place over a medium heat.

• Add large tablespoonfuls of batter to the pan, normally 3 to 4 pancakes at a time.

• When little bubbles begin to appear on the top, gently flip the pancake over to cook on the other side. They should be lightly golden in colour.