Cáitriona Redmond: My recipe for fuss-free pancakes 

Quick and easy pancakes

With Tuesday being the day that’s in it, this week my recipes are for making simple pancakes the quick and easy way. It’s nothing too stressful, and requires very little skill in the kitchen.

The ingredients that I use are always in my store cupboard, so I always have a fast-food option to cook. When I am in the rhythm of cooking pancakes I like to make double quantities, once cool I freeze the pancakes for a ready meal another day. Pancakes will keep for about a month in the deep freeze providing you don’t have to raid your stash earlier.

My frying pan gets used at least every second day, pancakes on a Sunday are a regular treat, and I like to use it to add colour (and flavour) to meat before cooking in the oven. The beauty of this pancake recipe is that it doesn’t take long to put together, you don’t need to wait for the batter to get smooth, it contains very few ingredients, and it becomes a balanced meal once we have some fruit on the side. 

Mind you, there’s nothing stopping you making them a savoury dish. I suppose we’ve become used to pancakes as a sweet treat. The sweetness is all in the extras, not from the ingredients.

A decent frying pan is something to be tended to; oiled, cleaned with care, and used with the appropriate utensils. You really do get what you pay for here. Last year I got a €10 frying pan which buckled as soon as I heated it, it quickly ended up in the bin. Plastic handles are great if you want to use the pan on the hob but should never be put into the oven or on top of the BBQ.

Shallow frying pans are better for flipping thin items with, deep frying pans are used for large quantities, and heavy cast iron frying pans are perfect for cooking directly on the coals of a hot barbecue. “Season” your frying pan according to the manufacturer’s instructions and you’ll be able to clean it in hot soapy water in a matter of seconds. You’ll also be able to get great golden colour on your food as it cooks.

For pancakes, I favour a shallow non-stick frying pan with a heavy base. To flip them, I use a silicone spatula. I’m not brave enough to go with an actual flip! 

When using a non-stick coated frying pan, never use a metal or wooden implement as you could scratch the coating. Don’t store or stack anything inside of your frying pan to prevent scratches or damage. Instead store the frying pan either from a hook, or resting sideways in a press.

Quick And Easy Pancakes

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

No resting time makes these pancakes as close to instant as possible

Servings

5

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Baking

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• 250g (1 cup) plain flour

• 1 teaspoon bread soda/bicarbonate of soda

• 2 small-medium eggs (1 large egg should be fine either)

• 150ml buttermilk

• Optional

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 tablespoon sunflower oil for frying/greasing the pan.

Method

1. Put the flour and bread soda into a large bowl and stir so that they’re combined.

2. Make a well in the centre and crack in the 2 eggs, pour in the buttermilk (add the vanilla extract if using). Whisk until you have a batter. Don’t worry too much if you have small lumps, as these should disappear after the next stage.

3. Put the oil in a heavy, shallow non-stick frying pan (see notes on frying pan below). Before you put the pan on the heat, spread the oil over the surface. I like to use a little bit of kitchen paper for this.

4. Next, put it on a medium heat and allow it to come to temperature. This takes about 5 minutes or so.

5. Once the pan is hot, give the batter a second vigorous whisk and you should see those lumps disappear (or at worst get smaller, they’ll be gone completely in the cooking process don’t worry).

6. Using a tablespoon as a measure, pour out 3-4 pancakes onto the surface of the frying pan. Once the bubbles begin to appear on the surface of the pancakes, and the batter has changed colour from pale to slightly darker, flip the pancakes using a non-stick spatula.

7. Cook for a further 1-2 minutes, until the pancakes turn golden on both sides. Lift and serve.

8. If you want to wait for all the pancakes to be cooked before serving, pop them onto a heat-proof plate and cover with a bit of baking parchment/tin foil, then a heavy tea towel to stop them from getting cold.

9. Lift the “insulation” everytime you cook another batch to add to the pile.

Lazy Porridge Pancakes

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

Get these prepared the night before and stick 'em on quickly of a morning!

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 30 mins

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 American

Ingredients

• 50g plain flour

• 30g rolled oats

• 1 medium egg

• 60ml buttermilk

• Pinch of salt

• 1 tbsp sunflower oil (or similar) for frying

Method

1. The night before you want to eat these pancakes put the flour, oats, egg, buttermilk and salt into a large clean jam jar with a tight sealable lid. A Kilner-style jar or plastic flask also work well here. Seal the lid tightly.

2. Shake the heck out of the jar. Turn on the music and pick a seriously good and long tune. Give the jar to small people in the house, and let them shake it (under supervision if it's a glass jar).

3. Once you're sure that you've combined the ingredients as best you can, put the jar in the fridge. Don't worry if there are lumps, they will work out overnight. If you see that there is some flour stuck to the inside of the jar maybe just use a fork to loosen it. The following morning, give the jar a quick last shake, and heat a frying pan on a medium heat with the sunflower oil. Use a tablespoon to drop small amounts of batter onto the pan. Cook for three minutes either side or until golden brown.

4. I like mine with jam but they would really set you up for the day with some crispy bacon and maple syrup.

Special Offers 

You can find 150g of blueberries for 99c at Aldi.

At the time of writing many Irish supermarkets were still selling Valentine’s products but here is the best I’ve been able to find this week with an eye to Tuesday.

Lidl’s meal deal this week is a bottle of premade pancake mix, chocolate hazelnut spread, and a lemon juice for just €3.

Tesco’s clubcard holders can pick up “Old El Paso” dinner kits for €2 per box. You may be able to persuade your family that a fajita or enchilada is an acceptable main course on a pancake based dinner menu. These would fit the bill nicely.

SuperValu’s bundle offer 2kg of plain flour and 1 topping (choose from either chocolate hazelnut spread or runny honey) for €2.50. As 2kg of plain flour is normally €2.55 this is great value and worth stocking up on.

Aldi has lemons for 49c (reduced from 99c) and 150g of blueberries for 99c (reduced from €1.99), both of which are perfect pancake toppings.