What You Should Consider Before Cooking Pancakes In Butter

Even the most sincere breakfast-making attempts can be foiled by butter. Unfortunately, dosing griddles and pans in the buttery, gooey stuff can thwart earnest Sunday brunch intentions. Bon Appétit cautions eager pancake makers to keep an eye on the quality of ingredients, not to worry about mixing batter into smooth perfection, and choosing heavy-bottomed pans to ensure pancakes won't burn. 

We have another tip that can help you flip pancakes into golden, delicious perfection. Sure, maybe Aunt Sophie slathered butter into the pan before scooping pancake mix into the sizzling spread, but hold off. While melted butter drizzled on top of warm pancakes provides the perfect finishing touch, a buttery pan might not deliver the final presentation you're aiming for. Read on to decide whether to step onto the pedal of butter or ease up on butter's brakes the next time you set out to prepare fluffy pancakes for your morning crew.

Butter sure does taste good, but it doesn't have the smoke point needed to hold pancake batter, warns Taste of Home. While it can be tempting to drop a spoonful of butter onto your skillet, you may be setting up your pancakes for an overcooked future. If your non-stick pan needs an oily coating, reach for something that can handle heat: ghee, coconut oil, vegetable oil, or a dab of shortening. Feeling brave? Wipe down your skillet or pan to get rid of any browning milk solids and reapply fresh dabs of butter in between batches, advises Yummy.ph. 

The goal here is perfectly golden — not burned — pancakes for the breakfast table. Or, as King Arthur Baking suggests, go wild and double the butter, but keep temperatures at medium heat since high temperatures will likely cause all that butter to smoke and brown. Ready to dial up your pancake skills? Try whipping up soufflé pancakes, a spongy, delicate recipe that pairs exceptionally well with berries, maple syrup, and that square of butter on top.