Light and airy, these Fluffy Gluten Free Buttermilk Pancakes will have everyone wanting more, and no one will ever know they're gluten free!
Fluffy Gluten Free Buttermilk Pancakes were updated on February 18, 2022 with new pictures and a video, and they have now been updated even more with a whole new video, a slight change in the technique to make them easier, and more information.
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These pancakes are based on my Grandma's original recipe, which were legendary in her day. She used to work at a hospital and would have all her nursing friends over for a pancake breakfast. Everyone would go absolutely CRAZY for them, and for good reason.
Without actually changing her recipe, I decided to alter how the batter is mixed together, just to make it easier on us. The ingredients are the exact same that they've always been. How they're manipulated is the only thing that's changed.
The Ingredients You'll Need
- Kim's all purpose gluten free flour blend -- A store bought blend may be substituted, but hasn't been tested.
- Eggs -- eggs are used for binding, as well as leavening.
- Buttermilk -- My grandma called it "thick buttermilk." If you don't use whole fat buttermilk, your batter and pancakes will be much thinner. Still delicious, but different than my pictures and video.
- Butter -- butter adds flavor, but also when it melts it helps create the outer crust. My grandma specifically called for soft butter, not melted.
how to make the best gluten-free pancakes ever!
- Whisk eggs and sugar in a large bowl and slowly pour in buttermilk.
- Sift gluten-free flour blend, baking powder, and salt over the wet ingredients in the bowl. Whisk to combine well.
- Add really soft butter and whisk to combine. Not all of the butter will combine thoroughly with the rest of the batter, which is normal.
- Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet over medium low heat.
- Using a large spoon or scoop, ladle pancake batter onto griddle. Cook pancakes until you see tiny bubbles start to form around the edges. If you lift one corner with a spatula, you should see the bottom is golden brown. Flip them over to finish cooking on the other side.
Tips for Pancake Success
- Before beginning, make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. If you put the very soft butter into cold buttermilk, you won't be able to mix it in well.
- I use a large cookie scoop to scoop the batter into the pan. It's a thick batter and I find the scoop to be perfect for getting even-sized pancakes.
- Because these pancakes are pretty fluffy and tall, they do well with lower heat and more time. Cook them on medium low to medium for as long as 3-5 minutes per side.
- My grandma's original recipe said to whip the egg whites until stiff and fold them into the batter. I don't know about you, but when I see recipes that call for egg whites to be whipped separately (especially breakfast recipes), I usually skip over them because I don't have much time. A couple of years ago I read an article on NOT whipping egg whites separately and obtaining the exact same results. While the article suggests still separating the egg yolks and whites, I chose to do neither of those and they still resulted in the best pancakes I've ever had. I wish my Grandma were alive so I could tell her of this discovery, because I'm sure she whipped her egg whites by hand.
Grandma's Famous Pancakes FAQs
You can certainly make these pancakes thinner if you'd like. They get a little lacy and delicate and still taste amazing! Either use a lower fat buttermilk or increase the amount of buttermilk by ½ cup (120 ml) or more until a thinner batter is obtained.
Yes! I always double the recipe because I like to keep extra in the freezer.
Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer and flash freeze them for about an hour. Then store them in a gallon-sized ziptop bag and pull out as many as you need at a time. They'll keep in the freezer for 1-2 months. To reheat, pop them in a toaster for a few minutes, or microwave for about 30 seconds at a time, until they reach the desired temperature.
You can use less low-fat buttermilk, which will make the batter thinner. You can also try to make your own buttermilk using whole milk and lemon juice or vinegar. Add 1 tablespoon per cup of whole milk and stir. Let it sit until the milk u0022curdlesu0022 and thickens, about 5-10 minutes.
variations
- For blueberry pancakes, add a handful of fresh blueberries to the top of the pancakes after they've been ladled onto the griddle, before flipping.
- For chocolate chip pancakes, add a tablespoon or so of semi-sweet chocolate chips (regular sized or mini) to the pancakes before they're flipped over.
- Top with butter and warm real maple syrup for the most traditional of pancakes.
- My favorite way to eat pancakes is smeared with soft butter and peanut butter. Sounds unusual, but don't knock it till you try it! The peanut butter gets melty and almost sauce-like.
- Top with butter and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Another family favorite.
More Gluten Free Quick Breakfast Ideas
- Sweet Potato Pancakes
- The Best Pumpkin Bread
- Mochi Waffles
- Soft and Fluffy Cream Biscuits
- Sausage Gravy
- Zucchini Bread
- Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins
- Basil Cream Biscuits
- Pineapple Coconut Muffins
- Apple Crumb Muffins
- Strawberry Scones
I'm telling ya, these Fluffy Gluten free Buttermilk Pancakes are the only ones you'll want to eat once you try them.
Fluffy Gluten Free Buttermilk Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2¼ cups (562ml) buttermilk, whole fat, at room temperature (Real whole-fat buttermilk is very thick. If you use homemade buttermilk or low-fat buttermilk, reduce the amount to 1¾ cup to compensate for this).
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1½ cups (210g) Kim's all purpose gluten free flour blend (a store bought blend containing xanthan gum should also work, but hasn't been tested)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon very soft butter (not melted)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk eggs and sugar well. Slowly add buttermilk, whisking until fully incorporated.
- In a sieve over the bowl, sift the flour blend, baking powder, and salt over the wet ingredients. Whisk to combine (small lumps left in the batter are fine). Add in the very soft butter and whisk.
- Heat a griddle or large nonstick skillet over medium low to medium heat. Greasing is not necessary.
- When skillet is heated, using a ladle or large cookie scoop or spoon, scoop batter onto skillet, 3-4 pancakes at a time. Allow to cook for about 3 minutes on the first side before flipping over. Cook about 3 minutes on the second side.
- Serve hot with softened butter and syrup or toppings of choice. Butter and peanut butter are my favorite!
Katie K
Can I make these into sheet pan pancakes? Wanting to serve for a crowd!
Kim
Good question! I haven't tried that, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.
Kim M
Just made these at sheet pancakes...hadn't heard of this before this comment... they turned out fabulous!! Such much better than cooking the 4 at a time my griddle allows... 400 degreesF for 18 min. I added vanilla to the batter
Kim W
Love your recipes! My son with celiac loves pancakes and these are a hit with ALL my kiddos. Instead of softening the butter, I grated frozen butter- distributes more evenly in the batter. I also added a little vanilla and blueberries.
Adrienne
I've been searching for a GF pancake recipe that works well with powdered milk and vinegar as an exchange for buttermilk. I put 4 tbs of white vinegar in a large measuring cup and added enough water to make 2 cups. Then I added 1/2 cup of whole milk powder and let it sit until it was time to add it to the batter. I whipped the egg whites until they formed stiff white peaks and followed the rest of the recipe exactly. They turned out AMAZING!!! Thank you for the recipe, and I can't wait to try others from this site.
Kim
That's great, Adrienne! So glad they worked well for you 🙂
elizabeth a fraccaro
I Love your recipes, especially cinnamon bread and rolls. I tried the pancakes today, and mine didn't turn out well. Not sure what I did wrong. My batter, unlike some of the others, was very thick and almost rubbery, jiggly. I used your flour blend, and double checked to make sure I didn't add too much xanthan gum. After cooking, they almost seemed uncooked, but they were cooked. The texture was very ......mushy I guess would be the best way to describe them. I tried adding more buttermilk (full fat so quite thick) but that didn't seem to make a difference. I know it's hard for you to give advice since you weren't here to see them, but if you have any ideas about what might have gone wrong, I'd love the feedback. I've been gf for 20 years and taught high school foods, so I'm not a novice baker. Plan to try it again and see if I get a better result. Love your site and the fact that you share your recipes. If you ever want to write a book, I'm ready to buy one!!
Kim
Oh no!
Here's what I would try--instead of adding the lightly beaten egg whites, go ahead and whip them to full still peaks and then fold them into the batter. That might help!
Sunshine
Thank you so much for all the yummy recipes on your site. My daughter has just been diagnosed with Celiac, so I've made your flour blends and am we're enjoying trying your recipes. I wondered if you have any tips (or even a step by step process) on how to take family recipes and convert them to gluten free using your flour blends. Would you try them first just subbing one for one with wheat flour? Or would you increase the liquid by a certain ratio? Thank you for all the kitchen success you've given our gluten free change-over!
Kim
It depends on the recipe. With these pancakes, for instance, I just increased the liquid, but the first time I made them I didn't increase the liquid enough and the batter was super thick and the pancakes were dense. For my family's chocolate chip cookie recipe, though, I didn't change a thing and just subbed my AP flour blend and it worked perfectly. Sometimes it takes me literally YEARS to work on recipes, especially bread recipes because they are the ones that are so dependent on gluten in a normal gluten-filled world. Usually, when I've posted a recipe on my blog, behind the scenes it often takes me 2-3 tries to get it right, and other times it might take me 20 tries to get right (those are the recipes like cinnamon rolls and croissants).
Sunshine
That makes sense - and I appreciate all the work you've done for the recipes and that you are sharing them with us. =) They have made the change to gluten free a lot easier for our family.
Sarah Headings
These pancakes were very tasty, but my batter was fairly thin. I wonder what I did wrong? I used your flour blend & weighed it to be exact. The only variation I did was to make my own buttermilk for 1 cup, as I only had 1-1/4 cup of real buttermilk. But I don’t see how that could have changed the consistency that much…? But they were delicious, just not fluffy.
Kim
What type of buttermilk and milk did you use? If it was low fat or fat free, that could have been the problem. I use full fat buttermilk and it's so thick, that's probably why my pancakes come out much thicker. I'll make a change to the recipe that if you use a thinner buttermilk or buttermilk substitute, you'll need less, but that's what I would do (add less buttermilk).
Sarah
Yes- I did use low fat buttermilk since that’s all they carry at our store. It would make total sense for that to be the culprit since it is considerably thinner than buttermilk that is higher in fat.
Thanks again! 🙂
Ashley
Just wondering on what planet these measurements work? My batter was like crepe consistency 😅
Kim
Interesting. What flour blend did you use? If it was a store bought blend, there are so many out there with so many different ingredients in them that that could be the problem. My homemade flour blend makes them thick and fluffy. I've been making these pancakes gluten free for YEARS using these exact measurements so I'm not sure where it went wrong with your batch.
Joy
Kim, I wish I could hug your neck! Your recipes have brought so much joy into my kitchen! Thank you a billion times! I've enjoyed so many of your recipes but I'm just struggling with these pancakes. They fluff up on the griddle but go super flat and eggy off the griddle. I have followed the recipe exactly with the exception of subbing in almond milk, as we are also dairy free. Almond milk has worked so well in all the other recipes, would it make that much difference here? Any suggestions? I'd be thrilled to hear them.
Kim
Oh no, Joy! I'm so sorry they're not working for you!! I don't know enough about dairy free milk to know if this would make a difference, but the acid in the buttermilk does play a role in reacting with the baking powder so that could be the problem. Could you make your own dairy free buttermilk using almond milk and a little bit of vinegar or lemon juice?
Joy
yes, I can do that and I think I have but I'll try again and maybe use a bit more lemon juice.
Maggie Lawrence
WOW! These were simply perfect!!!!! I didn’t have buttermilk, so I substituted KEFIR. I beat the egg whites...not to peaks, but thickened quite a bit. LOVE your site and the recipes! THANK YOU!!!!!
Kim
Oooh, Kefir sounds interesting! That's wonderful, Maggie! So glad you liked them 🙂
Levi
What we we Trynna do make crepes or pancakes 🤣🤣🤣 Needs more flower super thin laughing how thin it is just needs a little more flower is all!!
LauraU
My batter wasn’t thick ,,, 2.1/4 c milk and 1.1/2 flour seems it could be an error? I added another 1/2 c. Perfect. Yum! Thanks!
Drina Boban
Delicious! Actually tastes like pancakes. We made them a bit thinner and my husband wrapped them around a breakfast sausage (pig in a blanket). So. Good. Thank you, Kim. Another fabulous recipe 🙂
Arlene
I love that you are making some of your Grandma’s old recipes! They are usually the best!
Kim
Thanks, Arlene! I agree, Grandma's recipes were always the best!! My mom says I get my love for baking from my grandma. I hope I can continue to revive some of her old goodies into gluten free versions 🙂
Levi
I dont know where my love for baking came from thank you!! Making waffles and pancakes!!!