Japanese soufflé pancakes
Japanese soufflé pancakes are a popular dish in foodie circles right now. They cook up tall and airy just like a traditional soufflé.
Equipment
- Disposable lasagna-sized pan (about 13" x 9"; preferred depth of at least 3.5")
Ingredients
- 1 cup cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 large egg yolks chilled
- ½ cup whole milk
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 8 large egg whites chilled
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- unsalted butter for greasing the griddle pan
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the egg yolks, milk and vanilla together until smooth. Slowly fold in the dry ingredients until everything comes together. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes and preferably overnight (8 hours).
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl if using a handheld mixer, place the egg whites. Freeze the bowl and egg whites in the freezer for about 15 minutes or until the egg whites are partially frozen. Place the bowl into the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and add the lemon juice. Whip on medium speed until glossy. Slowly add in the sugar and then whip on high speed until you achieve stiff peaks, about 6-8 minutes.
- Once the egg whites have achieved stiff peaks, gently fold into the chilled egg yolk mixture in two batches. Do not overwork the batter or else it will deflate while cooking.
- Transfer about half of the batter to a piping bag or a ziptop bag with a 1" hole cut in one corner. Chill the rest of the batter in the refrigerator.
- Add a slab of butter to your griddle pan. Then pipe 3" mounds in one continuous motion into a cone shape. Do not layer the batter - it should not be swirled. Just squeeze the bag and slowly move your hand away from the griddle in an upward pulling motion. Pipe out 4 total mounds, leaving at least 2 inches between each mound of batter.
- Sprinkle or spoon about 1-2 teaspoons of water around the pancake batter and cover with your aluminum lasagna pan. Cook for about 5-6 minutes or until the bottom is golden and the tops appear dry. Very carefully flip the pancakes, add more water, and cover again. Cook for another 4-5 minutes.
- Serve with butter, powdered sugar and/or syrup. Pancakes are best eaten immediately.
Notes
Leftover pancakes should be stored, covered, in the refrigerator and can be reheated. They may lose some of their fluffiness as they rest.
Source: Food & Wine