I grew up eating German pancakes aka Eierkuchen, and not the fluffy American variety. Think of German pancakes as a slightly thicker crepe… Mom would fry them so that the edges were just beginning to crisp, and they came to the plate piping hot. We ate sprinkled with sugar, spread with jam, or even Nutella. My favorite way is a combination… spread with jam, rolled up, and sprinkled with sugar. So delicious! Today, I still use my mother’s authentic German pancake recipe… and now you can too.
Making Eierkuchen is easy, with a blender (or food processor) to bring the flour, eggs, and milk to the proper smooth consistency. The batter will even keep in the refrigerator (covered) overnight, so you can make it ahead of time. Add sugar if you are making pancakes with a sweet filling.
You can also make the the pancake savory. Feel free to stir fresh herbs into the batter, or diced bacon. Top with a mushroom sauce or bolognaise for a filling main dish. (It’s a great way to use up leftover pasta sauce… without making more pasta). You can also slice the Eierkuchen into strips for a soup called Fladelsuppe.
Authentic German Pancake Recipe
Authentic German Pancake Recipe- Eierkuchen Goldgelb
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup 250g Flour
- 4 Eggs
- 2 cups 1/2 liter Milk
- 1 tbl Sugar
- canola oil or butter for frying
Instructions
- In a blender, combine flour, eggs, milk, and a spoonful of sugar. Blend until fully combined.
- Let sit for 5 minutes.
- Now... here's where you make a decision.... if you feel really confident in your flipping ability.. use a large frying pan. If... like me... you tend to make a mess of things when you make them too big... get a smaller one.
- Heat tablespoon of oil or butter in small nonstick frying pan. Pour about a half a cup, or more, of batter into the hot pan. Pick it up and swirl it around a bit to spread it out. You can add more. (I find 1/2 a cup works) Fill the bottom of the pan... should go about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick (don't get your rulers out.. eyeball it)
- When bubbles start forming, peek under a corner (I know, I know, there are no corners on a round pancake! that was just a test) Peek underneath. If it's starting to get golden, flip it.
- Let other side cook a while, peek occasionally. When golden, put it on a plate in front of a hungry child... or put it on a plate in a warm oven
- Repeat until batter all gone. (you'll need to add butter or oil to the pan between every one or two pancakes... it's ok... tomorrow you'll be back to your fiber cereal)
- Keep in mind, the first pancake generally doesn't work. Don't know why. Don't fret. Take it out back, throw it like a frisbee to the dog. He'll be happy.
- Serve the pancakes with jam, fruit fillings, NUTELLA!! or sugar
Find moreRecipes in my Easy German Cookbook!
Looking for more easy German Recipes? Try my Easy German Cookbook! It’s packed with 80 traditional recipes made simple for the American Kitchen.
Order from Amazon… or order a signed copy from my online shop.
Easy German Cookbook: 80 Classic Recipes Made Simple
Easy German Cookbook SIGNEDGermanGirl Shop
Topping Your German Pancakes
Be Creative
When we make pancakes, I put a load of different toppings on the table and let everyone chose what they want to put on. My youngest likes to put on everything!!! Fruit, jam, sugar, and most of all whipped cream!
-Jam or Preserves
-Fresh strawberries, blueberries, ANY berries!
-Sauteed Apples with cinnamon
-Fruit Compote (like Rhubarb or Fig or Apple)
-NUTELLA (this is a favorite)
-Powdered Sugar
-granulated sugar
-whipped cream
Apple Pancake Variation – Apfelpfannekuchen
On special occasions (like when she had a little more time) my mother would make Apfelpfannekuchen, or German Apple Pancakes. Find that recipe HERE–>German Apple Pancake Recipe
German Pancakes can also be topped with Savory fillings.
This makes a nice dinner or lunch, and a great way to get rid of leftovers.
In Ulm we went to a Pancake Restaurant… EVERYTHING came in or on a Pancake!
The Allgauerhof in the Fischerviertel of Ulm serves Pfannekuchen all day long!
The Speckpfannekuchen were delicious. Bits of Speck (lean bacon) were fried into the batter.
Try them with:
Spaghetti Sauce
Beef Stroganoff (instead of noodles)
Sauteed Mushrooms
Sloppy Joe meat
And of course, my kids all firmly believe that ANYTHING tastes better with melted cheese on it.
My Oma used to cut them in strips and put them in a clear broth to make flaedle suppe.
My mom did that too!
My mom did the same thing. so good.
Thank You, this is the closest one I found to legit
Dr Oetker works every time!
My mom cut some of the left overs into strips and made soup. I loved it!!!
Mine too!
Grew up eating these with sugar, applesauce or stewed blueberries. Recipe sounds right. You can beat the ingredients together with a whisk.
True… I just find that it’s easier with a blender
(Maybe I’m just lazy?)
My Oma used to make them all the time and shed make a meat+gravy concoction and fill the left over ones with it!
yum! People really underestimate Eierkuchen… they can make any leftovers spread to fill a family!
I am a very senior German girl and always thought these pancakes where made only by my grandma(my cousins and I always called them “grandma pancakes”). No one ever had a recipe; it was just eggs, flour, milk, and a pinch of salt. We ate them with sweetened fruit, jam, sugar, syrup, or whatever made us happy. They are the only pancakes i eat1
my kids are the same way
Try for dinner-one stuffed with creamed spinach & one stuffed with lingonberry jam for dessert 😋
YUM!! That sounds so good
Has any of you tried separating the egg whites from the yolk before mixing it into the batter, then using a mixer to blend the whites until you can stick a knife through it and it come out clean, then mixing it into your already mixed ingredients? (Yes, you add the yolk into the already mixed ingredients).
Try that with your recipe next time you make it if you haven’t before. It’s amazing.
Doesn’t that make them fluffier? Sort of like a Japanese Pancake? I will try
Try these pancakes rolled with salad in the middle. Makes my mouth water just thinking about it. It was a favorite at our house. Just plain head lettuce tossed with Italian dressing.
I grew up on Eierkuchen and make them for my family too. They love them more than American pancakes. My first pancake never comes out either, but the dogs love it 🙂
My doggie always waits patiently for the first pancake fail
I just asked my mom how to make these a few days ago!! I love these with applesauce!!
Lovely Oma memories! Great recipe with a bit of vanilla extract and 1/2 & 1/2 instead of milk. Sometimes i add lemon zest in the batter or use orange zest mixed in butter with a little honey as a light Eierkuchen topping.
♡ Debi
OhhhH! That sounds delicious! I will give it a try next time! I do love the zing you get from lemon zest
Palaschicken in die Suppe, nudlig geschniten
schmeckt lecker!
Oh, yes. My mother never showed me how to make these! Loved them with just sugar and a little extra butter!!
I’m so glad!!
Yes! This is the way my Oma made them! They are thick and fluffy but also a little dense. You can only eat one or two. We love it with syrup, canned fruit, jam or applesauce, whatever is handy. I thought we were the only ones who made it this way!
I grew up wondering how people could eat STACKS of pancakes… One, maybe two, delicious Eierkuchen would always be enough here.
Yes, the first one never comes out good. Thank you that someone else has the same problems.
It’s just a weird fact of life.
But it makes the dog happy
Oh!! Thank you for the recipes!! I have always wanted to try this… an authentic recipe and not thick ones!! It just dawned on me when i was reading these that the topping was NOT syrup… but jam or sugar … I always liked that instead of syrup …. must be the German in me!!! Never thought of that!! 🤣
My husband gave me the strangest look the first time I sprinkled sugar on my pancake… he got over that