These vegan buttermilk pancakes are light, fluffy, and ready in under 30 minutes! They are 100% vegan and use simple pantry staples like dairy-free "buttermilk" made using non-dairy milk and lemon juice. Easy to freeze or double!
It's hard to beat fluffy homemade buttermilk pancakes on the weekend. Over the past few years, as I decreased my dairy intake, I developed this recipe for fluffy and tender vegan buttermilk pancakes. It's now in constant rotation alongside my vegan waffles recipe.
As far as I know, you can't find actual vegan buttermilk at the store, but it's easy to make a version of it at home. I have an entire guide on how to make vegan buttermilk, but it's really as simple as combining non-dairy milk and an acid.
Combining milk with an acid causes it to thicken and clump up like buttermilk! This is the same method I use for my vegan buttermilk biscuits.
The result is vegan pancakes that are tender, fluffy, and just plain delicious.
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Recipe features
- Quick & easy: These buttermilk pancakes are ready in 30 minutes from start to finish.
- Pantry-friendly: Made using just 10 pantry staples. As always, there are a lot of ways you can modify this recipe to make it your own based on the ingredients that you have on hand.
- Flavor: Makes 8 light, tender, and fluffy pancakes that have a hint of cinnamon and are subtly sweet.
- Easy to customize: Add dairy-free chocolate chips, make lemon blueberry vegan pancakes, add a few slices of banana, etc.
Ingredients
Just like a classic buttermilk pancake recipe, these vegan pancakes use mostly pantry staples.
- All-purpose flour: Spoon and level flour into a measuring cup for the most accurate measuring. To do this, spoon flour into the measuring cup until overflowing. Use the back of a knife to wipe off excess flour. Don't shake or pat flour down.
- Vegan buttermilk is made using non-dairy milk and lemon juice. I use unsweet, unflavored soy milk but you can also use oat milk. Use apple cider vinegar if you don't have lemon juice. Vegan buttermilk does not work well with almond milk due to the low protein content in almond milk.
- Melted vegan butter: I usually use unsalted Flora plant butter or Earth Balance buttery sticks. I melt my butter in the microwave but you can do it in a small pot over medium heat if you don't have a microwave.
- Flax egg: This is made by combining ground flaxseed and water. You can also use an equal amount of chia seeds. One egg can usually be replaced with this combination of 1 tablespoon ground flax or chia seeds and 3 tablespoons warm water.
- Baking powder yields the fluffiest vegan pancakes!
Step by step instructions
- Make a flax egg by combining 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons warm water. Set aside for 5 minutes before using. Make buttermilk by combining the milk with lemon juice in a small bowl. Let rest 10 minutes before using.
- Add dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl: all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir to combine.
- Add wet ingredients (the flax egg, vanilla extract and melted butter) to the "buttermilk". Stir to combine.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined, careful not to overmix. The batter will still be lumpy.
5. Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat. Lightly spray with cooking oil. I find that the pancakes cook best over a lower heat. Add ⅓ cup batter to make one pancake.
6. Cook on each side for 2-3 minutes, flipping once the batter is consistently bubbling and the other side looks golden.
Recipe variations
These vegan buttermilk pancakes can be customized with whatever fruit, nuts, or other add-ins you like. Here are a few of my favorite ideas:
- Lemon blueberry pancakes: Add 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest to the dry ingredients. Add a handful of fresh or frozen blueberries to each pancake. Add the blueberries after pouring the batter onto the pan.
- Banana chocolate chip pancakes: Add ⅓ cup chocolate chips to the batter. Add 3-4 slices of banana to each pancake after pouring the batter onto the pan.
- Whole wheat pancakes can be made by replacing the white all-purpose flour with 100% whole wheat flour. You can also do half white/half wheat. The whole wheat pancakes will be a little more dense. You might also like these non-vegan whole wheat yogurt pancakes.
- Gluten-free pancakes: You can try using a 1:1 substitution of all-purpose gluten free flour blend for white wheat flour, but do note that I have not tested this method.
You might also like my vegan sweet potato pancakes!
Recipe FAQ and expert tips
- Letting the batter rest for 10 minutes before making the pancakes makes them extra tender. It's definitely worth it but you can skip this step if you're short on time!
- You can make these ahead and keep them warm in the oven. Turn your oven to the lowest heat (usually 180-200 degrees F) and place cooked pancakes on a heat-safe plate. Place in the oven until ready to eat (I usually do this for no more than two hours for best quality).
- Serving ideas: Enjoy a diner-style vegan breakfast with tofu scramble and smoked tempeh or vegan maple sausage. Or keep it simple with a dollop of your favorite nut butter.
Storage tips
Storage and reheating: Keep refrigerated in a closed container for 3-4 days. Reheat in a skillet over low heat, flipping as needed for even reheating.
Freezing: Pancakes freeze well. Place cooked pancakes in a freezer safe container. Place layers of wax paper between pancakes to prevent sticking.
More vegan breakfast ideas
Did you try this recipe? You can leave a star rating in the recipe card or a review in the comments below. Or check out my cookbook and keep up to date with my YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, or newsletter!
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Easy Vegan Buttermilk Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 and ⅔ cup unsweetened soy milk see note #1
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from ~1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 3 tablespoons warm water
- 2 cups all-purpose flour see note #2
- 3 tablespoons organic white sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon optional
- ¼ cup melted vegan butter see note #3
Instructions
- In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup mix together the soy milk and lemon juice to make "buttermilk". Stir and let sit for 10 minutes before using. It will thicken and may clump- it's supposed to do this. In a small bowl, mix together the flaxseed and water to make a flax egg. Let rest for 5 minutes before using.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon.
- Combine the buttermilk mixture, melted butter and flaxseed egg together (I usually mix it together in the bowl that I made the buttermilk in). Whisk together.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients. Whisk gently until just combined. Some lumps may remain, that's okay.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat. Lightly coat with non-stick spray. Use a ⅓ cup measure to measure out pancakes.
- Flip when bubbles rise and pop on the pancakes, about 2-3 minutes. They are ready when golden brown on each side. Enjoy with a drizzle of maple syrup and additional cinnamon.
Video
Notes
- Soy milk: You can use almond or coconut milk instead.
- Flour: For most consistent measuring, spoon flour into the measuring cup until overflowing. Wipe off excess with the back of a knife.
- Butter: You can use melted coconut oil, olive oil or canola oil in place of vegan butter. Vegan butter makes the pancakes richer but oil will yield a similar result.
- Storage and reheating: Keep refrigerated in a closed container for 3-4 days. Reheat in a skillet over low heat, flipping as needed for even reheating.
- Freezing instructions: Place cooked pancakes in a freeze safe container. Place layers of wax paper between pancakes to prevent sticking.
Nicole says
Idk why I’ve never tried cinnamon in my pancakes before! I’ve always used vanilla or almond extract. The cinnamon gives a nice sweet flavor and I don’t feel like I have to use as much syrup. Yummy pancakes. I’ll definitely be making again!
Cassidy Reeser says
Thanks so much for the review! Once you start adding cinnamon to pancakes it's hard to start, I've been doing it most of my life!