Mancakes ~ Savoury Pancakes
Mancakes are savoury pancakes with a touch of sweetness & a hint of spice made all the more delicious with bits of bacon fried crisp! These make for the perfect weekend breakfast! Drizzle some spiced up maple or date syrup and you are good to go!
Servings 6 mancakes
Ingredients
- 8-10 bacon rashers * see note for substitute
- 1/4 cup chopped spring onion greens plus extra to garnish
- 1- 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon red chilli powder adjust to taste
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 2 eggs beaten lightly
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1-1/3 cups milk
- 1/2 cup grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese
To serve
- 2 tablespoons warm maple syrup or honey
- 1/4 teaspoon red chilli powder
Instructions
- Chop the bacon rashers into small bits. Heat a skillet and fry these bits till crisp and the fat begins to separate. Remove a fourth of these bits and set aside. This will be used as garnish. In a small bowl or sauce boat, mix the maple syrup or honey & chilli powder well. This will be used to drizzle on top of the pancakes.
- To the remaining bacon bits add the chopped spring onion greens and fry on a medium heat for half a minute, then drain the fat and keep the bacon & greens aside. Return the fat to the skillet. Turn off the heat.
- In a bowl add the all purpose flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, sugar, pepper powder and chilli powder and mix everything well. Beat the eggs in another bowl, add the milk & melted butter to it and whisk everything well. Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and use a whisk until everything is mixed well and lump free.
- Add the grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese, bacon & spring onion greens mixture to this and mix again. Check the taste and adjust the salt & sugar if required. Keep the batter aside to rest for at least 10-12 minutes so that the cornmeal soaks up the liquid. This is a must. Do not skip this step or else your pancakes will taste gritty.
- After the batter has rested, stir it once more. If it feels too thick, loosen up the batter by adding 2 tablespoons of water at a time till you are able to scoop it out and pour it.
- Heat the skillet again. If you are not comfortable to fry the pancakes in the bacon fat, you can drain it off, wipe the skillet clean and use butter, ghee (clarified buttre) or oil instead. A combination of butter & oil works best
- If using a cast iron skillet ensure that it is not overheated. When the fat/butter has melted and is medium hot, pour about 1/4 cupfuls of batter into the skillet, about 2-3 pancakes at a time with enough space to spread a little and help you flip them. Do not overcrowd the pan.
- Fry the pancakes on a medium-low heat till golden brown, then flip and cook on the other side. Drizzle a little oil if necessary to aid easy flipping.
- Remove on a plate. Stack up 2-3 pancakes on top of each other. Drizzle with the prepared spicy maple syrup mixture. Garnish with the reserved bacon bits and the spring onion greens. Serve hot!
Notes
Instead of bacon you can use chicken/turkey/beef salami/ham or sausages