I have always liked pancakes, but they were never a must have. It was only during my intern years in Sabah (Borneo) where this love affair began.

It was after a particularly bad call – the wards were already incredibly full, we were short staffed, there were still way too many admissions and to top it all off, just as we thought things were settling a patient collapsed and unfortunately did not make it.

As I was heading home I decided to stop and get breakfast. I parked, made my way over to my usual breakfast spot only to find that it was closed. Next to it however, was a pancake house and I thought, why not? This soon became a bit of a ritual, on particularly bad days pancakes made everything better and the best part of it all – I almost always went alone. And that was perfect!

So as my appreciation for pancakes grew, I of course tried more types. And then these Japanese pancakes literally exploded on the cafe scene in Malaysia and I was hooked! Soft, fluffy and light, they sort of just melt in your mouth and just leaves you wanting more and more. So while there is a place in London that does them, I have yet to stumble across it in Yorkshire, so I guess it was time to try to make them myself.

• 

• 

Dan is ecstatic that I keep fiddling around and experimenting with different recipes in my quest to get the perfect one. The best bit is it does not require any special ingredients, if you bake you are bound to have these lying around at home. (All my fellow gin lovers know lemons are a staple ingredient in the pantry)

Ingredients

40grams flour
30 grams sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla essence

Method
1. Warm pan on low heat ( I used 3/6 on our hob, then reduce it to 2/6)
2. Separate egg yolks and egg whites
3. Put egg whites in the fridge while mixing rest of ingredients
4. Whisk egg yolks, milk, vanilla essence and vegetable oil. Sift flour into mixture with baking powder and mix well.
5.Whisk egg whites on low speed, then once they are foamy add the lemon juice.
6. Continue to whisk at medium speed until you get soft peaks.
7. Gradually add sugar while whisking the eggs, until you get slightly more firm peaks.
8. Add a third of the egg white mix to the yolks and mix well.
9. Then add the remaining two-third gradually and be careful not to over mix.
10. Now, place the mix on to the heated pan with a ladle/spoon and top it up with a second/third layer.
11. Then, add a tablespoon of water into the pan and cover for 2 minutes to let it steam.
12. Flip/roll the pancake over, add a tablespoon of water and repeat the steaming process.
13. Garnish with whatever you like and ENJOY!


Additional Notes

1. You can use a crumpet ring/cookie ring if you have one and want perfectly symmetrical pancakes. I did not have one so I did not use it.
2. Like all pancakes, the first one will be wonky (If you are impatient like I am)
3. You cannot always flip them over, it is more like rolling them over.
4. Even if you dont want to get stiff peaks, you can use a more watery mix and it will still become fluffy, just less pillowy.
5. If you are impatient like I am – you can make one REALLY BIG Pancake.
6. Don’t get disappointed if they deflate a little from what they look like immediately off the pan. They still taste fluffy and delicious.
7. CONSUME ASAP


What do you think about these pancakes?