This is the first dairy free pancake recipe that has worked out for me! Tender and fluffy yet didn’t fall apart nor remain uncooked in the middle. I’m super happy with how these turned out! Saving this to use again! I used oat milk for my milk substitute. Delicious!
You’ll never buy pancake mix again.
Six years ago, before we ever moved to France, I had never made pancakes for myself. Not once. I never even considered it. It was something I could get at any restaurant that served breakfast, and I never really liked breakfast that much.
But, somehow, when you can’t have something, you want it even more. So of course, when we were faced with spending several euros for the smallest box of sub-par pancake mix or making some from scratch, I figured it out.
More dairy free breakfast ideas: no milk French toast / asparagus quiche / homemade waffles / tater tot breakfast casserole
Can you make pancakes without milk?
I slightly adapted this recipe – using oil because I didn’t like melting butter, and eventually switching to dairy free milk – and we never looked back. Why would we when it literally takes 2 extra minutes to measure out ingredients instead of paying for pricey pancake mix.
Maybe pancake mix isn’t that pricey, but it’s still something I don’t need to spend money on. Plus, I almost always have all of these ingredients in my pantry.
So anytime we want pancakes, I whip up a batch of this batter, and Marc mans the griddle. He’s really strangely good at making pancakes. I know I’ve told you that before.
More pancake recipes: Bananas foster pancakes / Birthday pancakes / Gluten free pancakes / Cornbread pancakes / Whole wheat pancakes
How do you make dairy free pancakes?
We’ve used all different kinds of milk in the recipe – coconut milk (from the refrigerated section, not the can), almond milk, lactose free milk and regular milk – and it turns out great every time.
They’re the fluffiest with traditional milk, but they are still so fluffy and good no matter what we use. Use whatever you have on hand, and I promise it will still work. If you use flavored or sweetened nut milks, adjust the recipe accordingly.
More dairy free breakfast recipes: Scrambled eggs without milk / Cinnamon apple bread / Asparagus quiche / Zucchini muffins
Tips for making dairy free pancakes:
- Don’t skip the baking powder. I know the recipe seems like an excessive amount, but if you want them to be fluffy, especially without dairy, you need it.
- Use canola oil or other vegetable oils. This is my go-to substitute for melted butter because I always have it on hand.
- Keep the eggs. I know these pancakes could easily be made vegan, but the eggs do wonders for the texture of these pancakes.
- Keep your cooked pancakes warm in the oven (about 200˚F) while you’re making the rest.
Extra Fluffy Dairy Free Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cup almond or coconut milk*
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Add milk, canola oil, egg and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth.
- Preheat a non-stick griddle or large skillet to medium heat. (Coat pan with butter or oil if not using non-stick).
- Pour about ⅓ cup batter onto the griddle for each pancake. Allow it to cook until bubbles are visible throughout the pancake before flipping.
- Repeat until all batter has been used.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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THE BEST!
We went dairy free when my baby had CMPI and discovered this recipe. We later discovered she is dairy, soy and gluten intolerant, and allergic to eggs, so had to give up pancakes. Now she is able to eat eggs, so we are slowly introducing again, and this recipe is great as it only has 1 egg! ?
This recipe is very forgiving too! I’ve made it with coconut milk and also with plain water with a little more flour to keep the batter consistency. I’ve used to rice bran oil, coconut oil and olive oil (vegetable oil contains soy so we can’t use it). I’ve also used normal flour, pre-made gf flour, and a few different use up the pantry ingredients type gf flour mixes too! Each batch that I have varied from the recipe might taste a bit different, or have a slightly different texture, but they always come out the perfect combo of crispy outside and soft, fluffy inside! ? My family always love them, and we will never go back to a dairy pancake recipe.
THANK YOU!!
Good base recipe, but made some tweaks for both flavor and fluffiness:
I used the 1x recipe.
I added:
4 bananas
3/4 cup nuts of choice
50% more vanilla
1 TBS maple in addition to sugar.
Doubled the eggs
Cut down the milk by about 40% (thicker batter = more fluff. Why I assume the photo is of very non-fluffy pancakes, too much liquid.)
Let batter rest 5-7 mins to give baking powder chance to start 1st action leavening.
Cooked on griddle at about 275-300° F.
Wish I could show a photo. Made about a dozen or so 1/3 cup pancakes. They are fantastic. Very fluffy.
Did you ever try the original recipe? I think if you gave it a chance (the way it was actually written), you might actually like it, regardless of the photos not looking “fluffy” enough. They are older photos and definitely don’t do the fluffiness justice. But thank you so much for your review and the variation you created. Bananas and nuts sound like a great addition to any breakfast!
Agree 100% the original recipe is the best fluffiest pancakes I’ve ever had/made best pancakes I’m sticking with this recipe for a longgggg time i wish they’d try the original recipe too it’s so good
Any reviews on making the batter the night before? Does it work out well?
Thanks!
I haven’t tried it. If you do, I’d love to know how it turns out! Thanks!
Wow! What an awesome recipe. We have been transitioning out of dairy, but I kept finding that I’d have to buy milk to make pancakes and then it would just get wasted. Now I can use the almond milk we already have in the fridge! These pancakes taste just like… pancakes! They were fluffy and rose beautifully in the pan. The only thing I did differently was used vegetable oil as I didn’t have Canola on hand. FOLLOW THE RECIPE EXACTLY. You shouldn’t have any problems.
These are so tasty and fluffy! I can’t have dairy anymore and this gives me my little fix! I also add dairy free chocolate chips 🙂 Just to check, do you use imperial cups in your measurements ot US cups? I transfer them into grams and mL and whilst it doesn’t make a huge difference I wanted to be sure!
I use US cups, so 240mL for 1 cup liquid, but you’re right. It should work either way. When we were in France, I always went just shy of 250ml.
I tried them with vanilla sugar instead of sugar and vanilla extract and they’re excellent. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
My experience with the recipe as written wasn’t the best. I used almond milk. The outside was too crispy, and the center was way too thin. It wasn’t fluffy at all. I checked my baking powder and it was active, so I don’t know what went wrong.
I kept making modification until finally the last pancake turned out great. I added a little baking SODA as well as a tsp of apple cider vinegar. The end result was a perfect, fluffy pancake.
Also, erring on the side of less oil in the pan led to more perfectly round pancakes.
Just wondering…woud soy milk work? It wasn’t listed as a milk substitute option
Oh yes! It will definitely work! Really any dairy free milk would work.
Curious to how this recipe would hold up to Lactose Free Whole Milk like Lactaid? I am fixing to find out as I am not a fan of soy and nut milks!
It would be totally fine! We used to make it with regular milk before we switched to dairy free. It just won’t be fully dairy free. I hope you like it!
I made these and I used canned coconut milk cause that’s all I had in the house. I just added 1/4 cup of water to the 1 cup of coconut milk since it called for 11/4 cups and I also used veg. oil and they were great. It’s been two years since I’ve had pancakes and I would like to thank you guys for the recipe.