Few foods are as loved, well-known, or appreciated worldwide as pancakes. Every cuisine has a take on the pancake, whether savoury or sweet.
However, when most people in the UK or America talk about pancakes, they refer to the slightly sweet, super delicious pancakes usually served at brunch or as an afternoon treat.
Though they are easy enough to make, making the perfect pancake batter can take time, so they are usually reserved for quiet mornings. But freezing your pancake batter could allow you to enjoy the perfect breakfast even on your busiest days!
How to Freeze Pancake Batter
There are a couple of ways to freeze your pancake batter depending on how you are likely to use the batter in the future and how much batter you need to freeze:
How To Freeze Pancake Batter In An Ice Tray
A hack went viral recently online for freezing your leftover pancake batter in an ice tray for perfectly portioned pancakes the next time you have a busy morning. This is a creative and easy way to freeze your batter, and here is how to do it:
- Make The Batter
First, make your pancake batter as you would if you were cooking the pancakes straight away. - Pour
Use a jug to pour your pancake batter into your ice cube tray of choice. Ensure that each cube has an equal amount of batter where possible. - Flash Freeze
Place the batter directly into your freezer to freeze until solid. Depending on how big your ice cube tray compartments are, this should only take 1 hour. - Transfer
Transfer the frozen solid pancake batter to a freezer bag or air-tight container for longer-term storage to prevent freezer burn. - Label
Use a marker and tape to note down a use-by date for the batter (up to 3 months) as well as the flavour of the batter. Then place it in your freezer until you are craving pancakes again.
Pop out however many portions of pancake batter you want to cook up from the ice tray and lightly butter a pan. Wait for the pan to get hot, then add the frozen pancake batter to the pan to cook.
How To Bulk Freeze Pancake Batter
When you plan ahead and want to make enough pancake batter to last a while, you can bulk freeze the batter so long as you have enough space in your freezer and enough freezer bags. Here is how:
- Ready Bags
Open a freezer bag as wide as possible to prevent spillage of that precious batter. - Portion Out
Use a ladle or jug to pour pancake batter into the freezer bag until there is around 2 inches of space left at the top of the bag. - Seal
Close the freezer bag most of the way. Then carefully push any remaining air in the bag out of the remaining opening before sealing it securely shut. - Label
With a marker, note down the flavour of your pancake batter (if it has a particular flavour) and the use-by date (up to 3 months). - Freeze
Now move the secured pancake batter to your freezer and lay the bag flat if possible. - Repeat
Close the freezer and repeat the process for the rest of your pancake batter, portioning it out into equal measures. Make sure to label every freezer bag with its flavouring if you are using various flavours.
Pull out however many bags of pancake batter you want to defrost and leave the bags to defrost naturally in your fridge for a few hours or until liquid enough to scoop out of the bags. Then cook the batter as you typically would.
How to Freeze Pancake Batter Successfully
Pancakes are so popular because making a good pancake batter is easy and uses basic ingredients.
Because of this, pancake batter is easy enough to freeze. But here are a few extra tips you can use to ensure that you have great-tasting pancake batter, no matter if you freeze it for 1 week or 3 months:
- Add Extra Flavour – Plain pancakes are good, but there are so many ways you can flavour your pancakes, from chocolate chips to blueberries. Mix your favourite flavouring into the batter before freezing it. You can even mix and match flavours if you are using the ice cube method by adding your extras to individual portions.
- Thicken Up – Once your bulk pancake batter defrosts, you may find that it is a little more watery than you like due to the freezer’s influence on the batter’s moisture content. You can easily fix this by mixing in a little extra flour before cooking the batter as usual.
- Try Containers – Not everyone likes using freezer bags, but luckily you can freeze pancake batter just as well in a plastic, freezer-safe container so long as you ensure that the container is as airtight as possible before freezing the batter.
- Longer Cooking Time – Though you can cook ice-cube frozen pancake batter directly from the freezer, it will take a few minutes longer to cook properly than your thawed bulk pancake batter.
Does Pancake Batter Freeze Well?
While some other breakfast foods may be difficult to freeze, pancake batter is simple to freeze and freezes very well.
Any change in the batter’s consistency once frozen can easily be fixed before you cook the batter, but even then, the change will be minimal.
Freezing Pancake Batter FAQs
Do you have more questions about freezing pancake batter successfully? Then check these FAQs out:
Yes, gluten-free pancake batter can be frozen for around 3 months either in bulk or in an ice cube tray.
Sources
We have verified the information on this page using the following resources:
Acacia may be a freelance writer by day, but they are a food fanatic by night. They are always trying out new recipes or finding different ways to elevate classical dishes. But their biggest culinary aim is to educate others on the basics of the kitchen so that they too can enjoy delicious food.
