These pillowy pancakes are a delight! By separately whipping the egg whites and then gently folding them into the batter, you preserve all the incorporated air that makes these pancakes so fluffy (and a little jiggly!), but it also means the batter is quite delicate. Use it as quickly as possible to prevent it from deflating, and gently pile scoops of batter only once the base has cooked—that way, you get maximum height without losing any of the rise.
Japanese Soufflé Pancakes
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites (120 grams), cold
- 3 large egg yolks (56 grams), cold
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) cold whole milk
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) neutral oil
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5 tablespoons (40 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- Confectioners’ sugar, salted butter, and maple syrup, to serve
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, place cold egg whites; freeze for 15 minutes. (See Note.)
- Heat an electric nonstick griddle with lid over medium-low heat (300°F/150°C to 325°F/170°C).
- In a medium bowl, whisk together cold egg yolks, cold milk, oil, and vanilla until slightly thickened and frothy, about 2 minutes. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt onto egg yolk mixture; whisk until just combined. (Mixture should fall off the whisk in a slow stream.)
- Return mixer bowl to stand mixer. Add cream of tartar; using the whisk attachment, beat at medium speed until foamy and almost at soft peaks. With mixer on medium speed, add granulated sugar in a slow, steady stream. Increase mixer speed to medium-high, and beat until stiff peaks form. (Be careful not to overbeat.) Using a balloon whisk, gently whisk one-third of meringue into egg yolk mixture until just combined. Using a silicone spatula, gently fold in remaining meringue until just combined.
- Spray griddle with cooking spray. Using a paper towel, spread spray to coat griddle lightly but evenly.
- Using a 1⁄4-cup spring-loaded scoop, scoop 4 scoops of batter onto griddle, gently spreading each with back of scoop to about 3 1⁄2 inches wide. Place a few drops of water close to edges of griddle, and cover with lid; cook until top of batter looks set and shiny and starts to dry around edges, about 5 minutes. Scoop another 1⁄4-cup scoop of batter on top of each pancake. Cover and cook until batter looks set and shiny and starts to dry around edges, 4 to 5 minutes, adding drops of water as needed. Using a 1 1⁄2-tablespoon spring-loaded scoop, scoop remaining batter on top of pancakes. Cover and cook until bottoms are golden brown, about 2 minutes, adding drops of water as needed. Gently turn pancakes, cover, and cook until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes, adding drops of water as needed. Serve immediately with confectioners’ sugar, butter, and maple syrup as desired.
Notes
Note: If the bowl of your stand mixer is too big to fit in your freezer, freeze the egg whites in a smaller bowl and then transfer them to the stand mixer bowl when ready to use.
PRO TIPS: Be gentle when spreading batter to minimize deflation during cooking, and try not to disturb the bowl of remaining batter; don’t stir, scrape, leave the scoop in the batter, or do anything else to knock out the air.
If you’re feeding a crowd, it’s best to make and cook one batch of batter at a time rather than doubling or tripling it; the longer the batter stands, the more likely it is to deflate.
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