Japanese Soufflé Pancake Recipe

Japanese Soufflé Pancake Recipe

• January 10, 2019

A very belated happy new year guys! I've definitely been MIA on the blog, December came round so quickly and the WHOLE month became Christmas month with baking, parties and so many outings. I hope you all had a fabulous festive break and ready for 2019 - I totally am! This year, my blog will be more focused on sharing recipes, great places to eat out in London and travel blogs. I'll be cutting back on home + lifestyle posts since I realised my real passion is food and I really should dedicate more time to it.  

To kick things off, I'm sharing this amazing Japanese soufflé pancake recipe which was made by my sister and not I, since she is the queen of pancakes and I know a lot of you ask for her recipe whenever I post pictures like this to my Instagram. 

It is, hands down, the fluffiest and most cloud-like pancakes you'll ever eat! They do require a lot of patience to make and takes quite a bit longer than the usual pancakes but you will be rewarded for it. And trust me, they are so worth it. 

Japanese soufflé pancakes have been a rage in Tokyo for quite a few years, then I saw it make its way to Hong Kong and finally to London in the form of Fuwa Fuwa cafe. I've not been able to make my way to Fuwa Fuwa to try them, but when my sis can make the exact same pancakes at home (having never eaten them before herself) who needs to join a queue of hungry pancake lovers hehe.

Pancakes are my absolute favourite weekend brunch treat, and these Japanese soufflé pancakes really do take pancakes to a whole new level. I hope you guys can all give it a try, and now with the recipe written up, I may even give them a go myself instead of waiting for my sister to dish up this delightful treat.

Recipe adapted from Just One Cookbook

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1½ tbsp whole milk

¼ cup (30g) fine sponge flour or self-raising flour

½ tsp baking powder

2 tbsp caster sugar

2 tbsp water (for steaming)

Directions:

1. You will need a large non-stick frying pan with a lid. Separate the egg whites and egg yolks in to 2 different bowls

2. Add milk to the egg yolks and whisk until thick and frothy 

3. Shift the flour and baking powder into the bowl and whisk to combine, but take care not to over mix. Set aside

4. In the other bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric beater until they turn frothy and white. Once they are a creamy white colour, but not yet firm, start to add in the sugar slowly as you continuously beat the egg white. The egg whites should get glossier after the sugar has been added and will get firmer. Beat egg whites until firm peaks form and egg whites do not move even if you tip the bowl upside down. A firm meringue is crucial for making fluffy pancakes 

5. Take 1/3 of the egg whites and combine with egg yolk mixture and whisk together gently using a manual whisk. Repeat with another 1/3 of egg whites until all egg whites have been used up. Remember to gently fold with the whisk to keep as much of the air bubbles in the egg white    

6. Turn the heat onto the lowest setting on your large non stick frying pan and let it warm up evenly for 5 minutes (you could start this stage before step 5 to decrease waiting time)

7. Make 3 pancakes on the frying pan. Put 1 tablespoon of pancake mixture for each pancake until you get 3 blobs, then add another 1 tablespoon of batter to each pancake alternately. Each pancake should get 4 tablespoons of batter. By adding a tablespoon at a time to each pancake, you are creating height and making taller/thicker pancakes

8. Set the timer for 6-7 minutes, add 1 tablespoon of water in the 3 empty spaces inside the pan (where the rim is) and cover with lid to create steam. The water will keep the pancake moist

9. After 2 minutes of steam-cooking, open the lid and add 1-2 more scoop of batter to each pancake, depending on how much batter you have left. Make sure to stack the pancakes high and not wide. If the water has evaporated, add a little more in the empty spaces of the pan, cover with lid and cook again

10. After 6-7 minutes have passed, gently lift one side of the pancake. If it lifts easily, it is ready to be flipped. If it's still sticky, cover with lid and cook for another 1-2 minutes

11. Once all the pancakes have been flipped, add 1 tablespoon of water inside the empty spaces of the pan, cover with lid and cook for 4-5 minutes 

12. The pancakes should now be golden brown on both sides. Transfer to serving plate, top with whipped double cream, fresh berries and maple syrup and tuck right in! 

Have you tried Japanese Soufflé pancakes before?