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Sweet and chewy with a golden brown exterior, Mochi Pancakes are the best kind of breakfast mash-up! Glutinous rice flour imparts the perfect amount of chew. They're naturally dairy-free and can easily be made gluten-free. Top with fresh fruit, maple syrup, and whipped cream for an easy and delicious breakfast!
If you've ever tried Trader Joe's Ube Mochi Pancakes then you know just how delicious mochi pancakes are! This easy mochi pancake recipe comes together in a snap. Thanks to Japanese sweet rice flour, it has an amazing chewy texture. I like to make these pancakes for my kiddos on the weekend and then freeze the rest for busy mornings. There's no need to purchase a mochi pancake mix when you have a recipe this easy!
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Glutinous rice flour is ground from short or long-grain sweet rice. It's also commonly referred to as sweet rice flour and doesn't actually contain gluten like the name suggests. Glutinous describes the sticky and gluey texture of the cooked rice flour. You can also find it under the names mochiko flour or mochi flour. The combination of starchy rice flour and all-purpose flour is what gives this pancake recipe its unique texture.
The whole family will love these easy mochi pancakes. Just like traditional pancakes, half the fun is with the toppings! You can top pancakes with fresh berries, whipped cream, sprinkles, granola, sliced bananas, Nutella, peanut butter, chocolate chips, maple syrup, or strawberry sauce. Enjoy these tasty pancakes for breakfast in less than 30 minutes.
👩🍳 Why This Recipe Works
- It's easy to make gluten-free or vegan!
- Everyone will love these sweet pancakes with a slight chew.
- Tender fluffy mochi pancakes every time.
- Enjoy with your favorite toppings.
- Freeze any extras for a busy weekday morning.
- Perfect for breakfast, lunch or dinner!
- Ready in less than 30 minutes.
🥘 Ingredients
Most of the ingredients for mochi pancakes are pantry staples found at your local grocery store. If you can't find glutinous rice flour, you can find it online or at your local Asian market.
All-Purpose Flour: You will need a combination of all-purpose flour and sweet rice flour for the right texture. You can also make a gluten-free version of these pancakes (see variations below).
Glutinous Rice Flour: Be sure to buy sweet rice flour or glutinous rice flour and not regular rice flour. Normal rice flour isn't as starchy and won't give you the same results.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda: Leavening is essential for pancakes and waffles. It's what causes the batter to rise.
Sugar: Sweet rice flour has sweet in the name but it's not actually sweetened. Sugar sweetens up the batter. Brown sugar works great too.
Salt: Salt doesn't make these pancakes salty. It just accentuates the flavors of the pancakes.
Eggs: Eggs give pancakes structure. They wouldn't hold together without eggs (or vegan eggs).
Soy Milk: Sweet rice flour has a high starch content which means it absorbs liquid readily. Soy milk thins out the batter so it's not too thick. You can use any plant milk you prefer. Coconut milk, almond milk, or cashew milk work great too.
Vegetable Oil: Oil keeps pancakes and sweet treats like cake moist and tender. For a healthier alternative, use olive oil or coconut oil in its place.
Vanilla Extract: For that something extra, vanilla extract adds a hint of sweet vanilla flavor.
📖 Variations
These pancakes are easy to customize. Change them to meet your dietary needs or add fun flavors!
Citrus: For citrus flavor, add orange zest to the batter. Or you can add lemon zest with one tablespoon of lemon juice.
Vegan Mochi Pancakes: To make them vegan, substitute the eggs with chia eggs. Combine two tablespoons ground chia seeds with 1/4 cup of water and use in place of the eggs.
Gluten-Free Mochi Pancakes: Substitute gluten-free all-purpose flour in place of regular flour to make these pancakes gluten-free. Be sure to use a blend that contains xanthan gum for best results. Bob's Red Mill 1:1 All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour has a gluten-like taste and texture.
Butter Pancakes: Feel free to substitute melted butter for the vegetable oil in this recipe. You can grease the skillet with butter too!
Banana Pancakes: Top the pancakes with sliced bananas and whipped cream.
Matcha Mochi Pancakes: If you love the flavor of matcha, you can add one tablespoon of matcha powder to the batter with the dry ingredients.
Ube Mochi Pancake Recipe: Ube is a sweet, bright purple yam from the Philippines. To make ube pancakes, you can add a combination of ube extract with ube powder. Top with ube ice cream for even more ube flavor!
Mochi Waffles: Pour batter into a hot, greased waffle maker to make mochi waffles.
🔪 Instructions
Combine Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, stir together both flours, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt.
Combine Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, soy milk, oil, and vanilla extract.
Make the Batter: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until you have a smooth batter. Add up to 1/4 cup more soy milk if the batter is too thick.
Cook Pancakes: You can use a greased 12-inch cast-iron pan or a large nonstick skillet as a cooking surface. Set the temperature to low-medium heat and let it heat up. Drop 1/4 cup of the batter into the hot pan.
Cook until you see bubbles appear around the edges of the pancake, and then flip to cook for an additional minute or two on the other side until cooked through.
Repeat with the rest of the batter.
Serve Pancakes: Serve the warm pancakes with your favorite toppings!
❓ Recipe FAQs
Can I make the batter ahead of time?
Yes! You can make the batter the day before you plan to use it. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Thin it out with additional soy milk if needed.
Can I freeze mochi pancakes?
Yes, most types of pancakes freeze well. Wait until the pancakes are cool and then place them into a freezer zip-top bag. Use within 3 months for best results! Reheat in the microwave in 20 second increments until warm.
Are mochi pancakes gluten-free?
Sweet rice flour is gluten-free, but most mochi pancakes also contain all-purpose flour. You can easily substitute it for a gluten-free all-purpose flour to make them gluten-free.
Can I use regular rice flour?
No, you need glutinous rice flour or sweet rice flour to make mochi pancakes. Normal rice flour doesn't have the same starch content.
💭 Expert Tips
- Use a nonstick pan to cook the pancakes.
- Let the pan heat up before adding the pancake batter.
- If the bottoms of the pancakes are too brown, the pan is too hot.
- Be sure to grease the pan so the pancakes don't stick.
- One serving size is two small pancakes. You can make 8 giant pancakes if you prefer.
