Japanese Souffle Pancakes

Step 1

In a medium bowl, add milk, baking powder, vanilla, mayonnaise and egg yolks. Sift in cake flour using a flour sifter or fine mesh strainer (make sure you don't skip this!). Mix with a whisk until batter is smooth and the mixture is a pale yellow.

Step 2

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add chilled egg whites and sugar. Make sure your mixing bowl and whisk attachment are completely clean and dry. If there is any oil, your egg whites won't turn into meringue. Whip on the highest speed your mixer allows, until stiff peaks form. (About 2-3 minutes.) Your meringue should be able to hold its form and if you turn the mixing bowl upside down, the meringue will not slide out.

Step 3

Using a spatula, scoop out one-third of the meringue and add to your egg yolk batter. Gently fold the meringue into the batter until there are no more white streaks. Make sure you start your folds from the bottom so that the batter at the bottom of the bowl doesn't go unmixed. You need to be gentle when folding. If you mix too hard, the meringue will lose its structure. Once the meringue has been incorporated, add in another third. Fold in. And then the final third. At the end, you batter should be very light and airy, with the meringue only just incorporated to the point where there are not visible white streaks.

Step 4

If this is your first time making these, you may want to start with just one as a test, to determine the heat setting for your stove and how long to cook the pancakes. But the directions I am sharing is for how I would normally cook these. Add two ring molds to a large skillet. Spray the insides of the ring molds with cooking oil spray. I found that this is the best method to grease, as it completely greases the interior of the molds and also the bottom where the pancakes will be, but doesn't spread grease to the rest of the parts of the pan you won't be using.

Step 5

Bring your skillet to low heat. It may take a test one to figure out where exactly you want your heat setting. For me, I turned my dial to heat setting 4 (with 10 being the highest) on my gas stove top. Once the oil and pan are hot, fill each ring mold between 1/2 to 2/3 full with batter, allowing some room for them to rise. Add 1/2 tbsp of water to each side of the pan (preferably not touching the pancakes). Close the lid and allow to cook about 3-4 minutes.

Step 6

Your pancakes are ready to flip when the tops look almost completely cooked and you can move the bottom of the pancakes without batter spilling out. Use a spatula or turner to flip the pancakes (while still in their molds). I prefer to use a cookie spatula because they are thinner and slip under the molds easier.

Step 7

Cover and cook for another 2-3 minutes until pancakes are completely cooked and golden brown on both top and bottom. Place pancakes onto plate. Gently push out of the molds to remove from molds. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve warm with syrup, powdered sugar, whipped cream, fruit, or other toppings of your choice.

Step 8

In a medium bowl, add milk, melted butter, vanilla, and egg yolks. Sift in cake flour using a flour sifter or fine mesh strainer (make sure you don't skip this!). Mix with a whisk until batter is smooth and mixture is a pale yellow.

Step 9

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add chilled egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar. I don't recommend skipping the tartar as it really helps to keep the egg whites stable so that the souffles don't collapse. Make sure your mixing bowl and whisk attachment are completely clean and dry. If there is any oil, your egg whites won't turn into meringue. Whip on the highest speed your mixer allows, until stiff peaks form. (About 2-3 minutes.) Your meringue should be able to hold its form and if you turn the mixing bowl upside down, the meringue will not slide out.

Step 10

Using a spatula, scoop out one third of the meringue and add to your egg yolk batter. Gently fold the meringue into the batter until there are no more white streaks. Make sure you start your folds from the bottom, so that the batter at the bottom of the bowl doesn't go unmixed. You need to be gentle when folding. If you mix too hard, the meringue will lose its structure. Once the meringue has been incorporated, add in another third. Fold in. And then the final third. At the end, you batter should be very light and airy, with the meringue only just incorporated to the point where there are not visible white streaks.

Step 11

If this is your first time making these, you may want to start with just one as a test, to determine the heat setting for your stove and how long to cook the pancakes. But the directions I am sharing is for how I would normally cook these. Add two ring molds to a large skillet. Spray the insides of the ring molds with cooking oil spray. I found that this is the best method to grease, as it completely greases the interior of the molds and also the bottom where the pancakes will be, but doesn't spread grease to the rest of the parts of the pan you won't be using.

Step 12

Bring your skillet to low heat. It may take a test one to figure out where exactly you want your heat setting. For me, I turned my dial to heat setting 4 (with 10 being the highest) on my gas stove top. Once the oil and pan are hot, fill each ring mold between 1/2 to 2/3 full with batter, allowing some room for them to rise. Add 1/2 tbsp of water to each side of the pan (preferably not touching the pancakes). Close the lid and allow to cook about 4-5 minutes.

Step 13

Your pancakes are ready to flip when the surface looks completely cooked. The cakes will rise quite high (possible past the rim of the molds), but they will start to collapse slightly once you remove the lid and let out some of the heat. Be careful not to try to flip these too soon because they will collapse and will stay collapsed. Use a spatula or turner to flip the pancakes (while still in their molds). If you have batter spilling out when you flip these, then they are not ready to be flipped and will likely collapse. I prefer to use a cookie spatula because they are thinner and slip under the molds easier.

Step 14

Cover and cook for another 3-4 minutes until pancakes are completely cooked and golden brown on both top and bottom. Place pancakes onto plate. Gently push out of the molds to remove from molds. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve warm with syrup, powdered sugar, whipped cream, fruit, or other toppings of your choice.