This easy homemade buttermilk pancake recipe makes the most incredible pancakes! They turn out super fluffy with a deliciously tangy flavor.
Thanks to the buttermilk, these pancakes are tangy, super fluffy, and tender in the middle. If you don’t have real buttermilk, I’ve got you covered with an easy substitute below! You can also use our easy pancake recipe, which calls for milk instead of buttermilk.
My family loves these so much! For more pancake recipes, take a look at these buttermilk banana pancakes or my favorite blueberry pancakes!
Key Ingredients
- Buttermilk: This adds a lovely tangy flavor to pancakes. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can still make this recipe. See my tips for an easy buttermilk substitute below (it’s a mixture of milk and vinegar or lemon juice). For pancakes made with milk, see these homemade pancakes.
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour, but whole wheat, spelt, or even your favorite gluten-free flour blend will work in this recipe.
- Baking Soda and Baking Powder: I use both. The baking soda reacts with the acid in the buttermilk, and the baking powder adds a little lift for extra fluffy pancakes.
- Sugar, Vanilla, and Salt: These make our pancakes taste amazing. I don’t like super-sweet pancakes (and leave the extra sweetness to maple syrup later), so the little sugar I add balances the buttermilk and flour.
- Butter: I love buttery pancakes, so I’m generous with butter. I also cook these in melted butter for crispy edges.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
Tips for Making Buttermilk Pancakes
Tip 1: Shake your buttermilk. Real buttermilk separates easily, so before you use it in your favorite buttermilk recipes, give it a really good shake to bring it back together.
Tip 2: Know when to flip. For the best pancakes, you want to know the best temperature to use and when to flip. I like medium heat, but may lower or increase the heat as needed. Pancakes usually require 1 to 2 minutes per side, so if they are browning too quickly, reduce the heat a little; if not quick enough, raise the heat a little. Then, wait until the edges look dry and bubbles appear and pop on the top surface before you flip.
Tip 3: Make a double batch and save them. These pancakes freeze really well, so whenever I have buttermilk in the fridge, I always make a double batch and freeze any leftovers for another day! Freezing and storing tips are below.
Serving Suggestions
I love topping my pancakes with sliced strawberries or berries, butter, and maple syrup. The butter pecan syrup I make for these pumpkin pancakes is also amazing. Add whipped cream or whipped coconut cream (delicious!), nuts, apple butter, or some of our maple pumpkin butter for something a little different.
Also, don’t forget a side of crispy baked bacon, scrambled eggs, or sausage. See more of our breakfast recipes.
Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
This makes the best buttermilk pancakes from scratch. They turn out super fluffy and buttery, with the most tender texture in the middle. Buttermilk adds a lovely tangy flavor. If you do not have any, we have provided a note below sharing how to make buttermilk at home (all you need is dairy or non-dairy milk and an acid like white vinegar or lemon juice).
Buttermilk tends to vary in thickness, so you might need more to achieve the right batter consistency. Our recipe below shares a visual cue to get it just right.
You Will Need
1 ¼ cups buttermilk, well-shaken, see tip below for substitute (295ml)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for skillet (56g)
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled (195g)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
1Optional: If you don’t have buttermilk and need a substitute, make one now and set it aside.
2Combine dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until well blended.
3Combine wet ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Don’t worry if the butter solidifies slightly.
4Make batter: Create a well in the center of your dry ingredients. Pour in the buttermilk mixture and stir gently with a fork until the flour is just incorporated. A few small lumps are okay. When you lift the whisk or fork out of the batter, it should slowly run back into the bowl. If this does not happen and the batter is too thick, add an extra splash of buttermilk.
5Preheat skillet: Place a large skillet or griddle over medium heat. Sprinkle in a few drops of water to test if it’s ready. You want them to dance around a bit and evaporate.
6Cook pancakes: Brush the skillet with melted butter (this creates crispy edges, but you can skip it if using a quality nonstick pan). Scoop the batter onto the skillet using a ¼ cup measure or large cookie scoop, and spread each pancake into a 4-inch circle.
7Flip pancakes: After 1 to 2 minutes, the edges will look dry, and bubbles will form and pop on the surface. Flip the pancakes and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes, until they are lightly browned and cooked in the middle. Serve immediately with warm syrup, butter, and fresh berries.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or freeze them for up to 2 months. If freezing pancakes, line the pancakes on a baking sheet and freeze for about 30 minutes. Then, transfer them to a freezer-safe bag with parchment paper between each pancake to prevent sticking.
- Reheating: To reheat, place on a microwave-safe plate and cook for 20 seconds per pancake (add more time for multiple pancakes). Or wrap the pancakes in foil and bake at 350°F for about 10 minutes. You can also rewarm using a toaster oven.
- Buttermilk substitute: Combine 1 ½ cups of milk (dairy or non-dairy) with 1 ½ tablespoons of white vinegar or fresh lemon juice. Set aside for 10 minutes before using the recipe above. The recipe calls for 1 ¼ cups, but you will have enough to thin the batter if you need to.
- Measuring flour: Fluff the flour in its container, then gently scoop it into your measuring cup until slightly mounded. Level off the top with a knife for accurate measuring. For even more accuracy, use a scale and measure the flour by weight (in grams).
- Optional add-ins: Add berries, chopped strawberries, nuts, cooked bacon, or chocolate chips to the batter. Use ¼ cup to ½ cup.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
My new go-to pancake recipe! I have always had trouble making good pancakes. They were either flat or rubbery, but these turned out fluffly and light. We loved them! This will be the only recipe I use from now on. Thanks!
My hubby is a big pancake (flap jacks, as he calls them) & he raved about them! I did have some difficulty w/the batter–it was too thick & I had to add about 3-4 splashes of buttermilk. Do you think it made a difference that I used low-fat buttermilk? Thanks for all the recipes!
These pancakes were amazing! At first I was concerned about how thick the batter appeared, but wow! They fluffed up and created the perfect edges and tasted delicious 😋
I love your recipes they are very easy to follow and make
I made these fluffy, light, easy and delicious pancakes last evening and they were so good. The recipe was easy to follow. I used blueberries. I definitely will follow Inspired Taste. Thank you!
I love to bake
Makes 3 cups batter. I make 3 big thick pancakes at 400, 6 min in air fryer. Love’em love’em
What is the reason for using baking soda (combined with the acid of buttermilk) and baking powder together? Thanks.
It helps it rise by producing gas bubbles when your dry meets your wet ingredients..
The combo makes a better texture in the middle.
Just made these amazing pancakes. The recipe is simple and they turn out really well. It made 6 thick fluffy ones.Had them with blueberries, banana and maple syrup. Thank you for your lovely recipe.
Just as described – soft, fluffy, and buttery 🙂 Had it with maple syrup, cream cheese and figs and was soooo yum! Thank you so much!
I tried this recipe today and they’re great!!!! Thank for sharing!!!
These were the best and easiest to make pancakes!!! So good they did not even need syrup! This is by far the best recipe I have ever tried for pancakes.
I’ve been trying to get pancakes right for as long as I can remember. Mix; scratch; using a recipe; eyeballing the ingredients; nothing has ever worked. Pancakes I make have always ended up heavy, wet/half raw, and unappealing. I’d come to believe I had an unconscious preference for non-fluffy cakes. Until this morning. I found a recipe that works for me! Fluffy and flavorful!