Pancakes. Mmmm! The first thing that comes to mind is IHOP (International House of Pancakes) and the almost endless varieties of pancakes they serve. Earlier, when I knew no better, I used to dine at similar chain restaurants, not realizing the copious amounts of additives in their pancakes and the sugar-laced so-called ‘maple syrup’ they served with it. Luckily, I’m not a big pancake fan, but I do like to indulge myself on occasion. On the other hand, my wife loves pancakes, but she cannot have them because they have gluten. She mostly has eggs, avocado and sweet potatoes for breakfast, but likes some variety every now and then.
Buckwheat
Our Bhutan Trip
You must be wondering how Bhutan fits into this pancake story. Let me cut to the chase. After having booked our Bhutan vacation trip for 2020, we had to keep pushing it out, thanks to COVID travel restrictions. Finally, our travel agent in Bhutan got back to us last summer to let us know that we may be able to get there around September or later. We booked a trip for October last year and we were among the first tourists getting back to the Mountain Kingdom. Bhutan was gorgeous! We had a car with a driver and guide all to ourselves during the entire trip. We had listed out our allergy information and the guide was great at talking to all our hotels in advance to figure out an allergy friendly menu, no matter how small the establishment was. Most of them had breakfast included, and buckwheat pancakes were the highlight – we were amazed with how good they tasted. Of course, they had eggs, fruit, bread and rice too. Apparently buckwheat is grown extensively in Bhutan. We bought pure organic buckwheat flour in Bhutan and brought it back home (made it past US Customs, phew!!).
In Bhutan with our guide Sonam
Gluten-Free Buckwheat Pancakes
After getting back home with our treasured organic buckwheat flour, my wife started researching and experimenting with a few recipes that could work with pure buckwheat flour. Unfortunately, most recipes out there have some sort of combination with all-purpose flour, as it makes pancakes more fluffy. A few attempts later, she came up with a recipe which we have tried multiple times and we are happy with. Adding a combination of milk with lemon juice and using baking soda helps get the pancakes reasonably puffy. The pancakes taste amazing, with some butter and maple syrup. This breakfast dish is great for folks with gluten allergy or gluten sensitivity.
In addition to being gluten free, buckwheat has a host of other nutrients that help lower cholesterol (LDL) and lower blood sugar. It is also rich in dietary fiber and is considered a good source of vegetarian protein.
Check out some of our other Gluten-Free Recipes:
- Make-Your-Own Gluten Free Pizza
- Make-At-Home Gluten & Grain Free Tortillas
- Crunchy Masala Makhana (Fox Nuts)
- Make Your Own Creamy Smooth Hummus
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
- Stir-Fry Tofu & Veggies
- Gobi Pakora: Air Fryer Cauliflower & Broccoli Fritters
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Gluten-Free Buckwheat Pancakes
Equipment
- Measuring utensils
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1 Egg Eggs - Pasture Raised
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1.25 Cups Milk
- 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
Dry Ingredients
- 1.5 Cups Buckwheat - Flour
- 1 Tablespoon Sugar
- 3/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Instructions
- *Add milk to a bowl. Add lemon (or lime) juice, mix well, and set aside for 5 minutes (this has a curdling effect on the milk and helps the batter rise).*Crack open an egg in a small bowl, add vanilla extract and mix well. *To another bowl, add buckwheat flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Mix well.
- *Add the egg and vanilla mix to the milk and mix well. *Pour this mix into the bowl with buckwheat flour and mix thoroughly with a fork till you get an even consistency, with no lumps.
- Heat a nonstick pan on medium flame and pour 1/4th cup of batter on to the pan. You'll start seeing bubbles on the top.
- Let the pancake cook for about 45 seconds; flip over to the other side. Cook for about 30 seconds.
- Transfer to a plate and enjoy with some butter and maple syrup or honey.
