To make basic homemade pancakes, you only need a few simple pantry ingredients and a nonstick pan or griddle.

Quick Scoop: What You Need

Core ingredients

These amounts make about 8–10 small pancakes; you can scale up or down.

  • All-purpose flour (about 1 to 1½ cups) – the base of the batter.
  • Sugar (1–2 tablespoons) – for light sweetness and browning.
  • Baking powder (about 2 teaspoons) – helps pancakes rise and get fluffy.
  • Optional: a little baking soda if you use buttermilk instead of regular milk.
  • Salt (about ½ teaspoon) – boosts flavor; it won’t make them taste salty.
  • Milk or buttermilk (about 1–1Âź cups) – gives moisture and tenderness.
  • Eggs (usually 1–2) – bind the batter and add richness.
  • Butter or neutral oil (2–4 tablespoons, melted) – adds flavor and keeps pancakes soft.
  • Optional: vanilla extract (about 1–2 teaspoons) for extra aroma.

Equipment

  • Mixing bowl and whisk or fork.
  • Measuring cups and spoons.
  • Nonstick pan or griddle.
  • A little extra oil or butter for the cooking surface.
  • Spatula for flipping.

How to Put It Together

Here’s a simple step-by-step flow you can follow next time you wake up craving a stack:

  1. In one bowl, mix the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder (and baking soda if using), salt.
  1. In another bowl, whisk the wet ingredients: milk or buttermilk, egg(s), melted butter or oil, vanilla if using.
  1. Pour the wet into the dry and stir gently until just combined; a few small lumps are okay (overmixing makes pancakes tough).
  1. Heat a lightly greased pan or griddle over medium to medium‑high heat.
  1. Scoop about Âź cup of batter per pancake onto the hot surface.
  1. Cook until bubbles form on top and the edges look set, 1–3 minutes, then flip and cook until golden on the other side.

Simple Variations and “Latest” Pancake Trends

Even classic pancakes get little “upgrades” every year in recipes and forums:

  • Buttermilk pancakes – use buttermilk plus a bit of baking soda for extra tang and softness.
  • Extra‑fluffy batter – keep the batter a bit thicker so you get taller pancakes full of bubbles.
  • Mix‑ins – chocolate chips, blueberries, or sliced bananas stirred into the batter are still hugely popular on social and recipe sites.
  • Toppings – butter and maple syrup are standard, but people now pile on yogurt, nut butters, fresh fruit, or flavored syrups like strawberry or blueberry.

A lot of home cooks online say that once you realize you probably already have flour, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs, and oil or butter at home, you rarely feel like going back to boxed mix.

Mini FAQ From Forum-Style Discussions

“I only have self-rising flour—can I still make pancakes?”
Yes, many forum and beginner‑cooking threads suggest using self‑rising flour and reducing or skipping extra baking powder and salt, since self‑rising already has both added.

“Do I really need sugar?”
You can reduce or skip it; your pancakes will be less sweet, but syrup or toppings can make up for it. Most basic recipes still use a little sugar for flavor and browning.

“Why are my pancakes flat or dense?”
Common reasons people mention: too little leavening, overmixing the batter, cooking on a very low or very high heat, or flipping too early before bubbles appear and edges set.

HTML table: Basic Pancake Setup

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Component</th>
      <th>What You Use</th>
      <th>What It Does</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Base</td>
      <td>All-purpose flour[web:1][web:3][web:5][web:9]</td>
      <td>Gives structure to the pancakes.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Sweetener</td>
      <td>Sugar[web:1][web:3][web:5]</td>
      <td>Adds mild sweetness and helps browning.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Leavening</td>
      <td>Baking powder (plus optional baking soda)[web:1][web:3][web:5]</td>
      <td>Makes pancakes rise and turn fluffy.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Liquid</td>
      <td>Milk or buttermilk[web:1][web:3][web:6][web:9]</td>
      <td>Hydrates the flour and creates batter.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Binder</td>
      <td>Eggs[web:1][web:3][web:5][web:9]</td>
      <td>Binds ingredients and adds richness.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Fat</td>
      <td>Butter or neutral oil[web:1][web:3][web:5][web:7][web:9]</td>
      <td>Adds flavor, tenderness, and prevents dryness.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Flavor</td>
      <td>Salt and optional vanilla[web:1][web:3][web:6][web:7][web:9]</td>
      <td>Boosts overall flavor and aroma.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Cooking setup</td>
      <td>Nonstick pan or griddle with a little oil or butter[web:1][web:5][web:7]</td>
      <td>Lets pancakes cook evenly and release easily.</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

TL;DR

You need flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, milk or buttermilk, eggs, and butter or oil, plus a pan and spatula; whisk, cook on a lightly greased hot surface, flip when bubbly, and enjoy.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.