Top 5 pancakes around the world

We love pancakes here in the office – especially Canadian style with maple syrup. But if you haven’t got a sweet tooth, or are a little bored of the classic lemon and sugar, why not get a little adventurous and try some pancakes from around the world? 

We chatted to a few of our well-travelled specialists in the office about the pancakes they’ve sampled across the globe.

Different types of pancakes around the world:

Dorayaki in Japan

Phoenix, our Japan travel specialist, is a big fan of Dorayaki – small honey-flavoured pancakes sandwiched together with earthy and sweet red-bean paste (anko). The name translates to baked gong, due to the round shape, and they come in a variety of flavours.

“If you’re not a fan of bean paste, they can also be filled with sweeter flavours – custard, matcha cream or chestnuts. They’re a great on-the-go snack, and so tasty with Japanese green tea.” Itadakimasu!

Banh Xeo in Vietnam

Our product specialist, Caroline is a big fan of Banh Xeo from Vietnam, which translates to ‘sizzling pancake’. These pancakes are named after the enticing crackle the batter makes when it’s poured into the smoking hot skillet. It’s a savoury pancake, made of rice flour, water and turmeric powder – which gives it its bright yellow colour. Depending where you are in the country, you might also find them made with coconut milk which gives a richer flavour.

They’re traditionally filled with pork and prawns, as well as green onion, mung bean and bean sprouts, but there are veggie versions aplenty. The pancake is actually vegan – so the simplest switch would be to just to leave out the meat and double up on the veggies. Simple!

Dosa in India

Similarly, there’s another, maybe more well-known savoury pancake made of rice flour – the dosa from South India. It looks a lot like a crepe, but is made of rice and lentils ground together into a smooth batter with a pinch of salt. It’s a favourite of our product specialist Sophia – “Dosa is a famous South Indian breakfast. I love masala dosa, where you fill it with potatoes, turmeric and curry leaves and serve it with coconut chutney or sambar. It’s delicious!”

And, if you’d like something a little sweeter, our website guru, Jitender, suggests kheer puda, a monsoon speciality of North India. Kheer is a creamy rice pudding made with condensed milk which is served with sweet puda – tiny pancakes made from wheat flour, semolina flour and fennel. Yum!

‘Hoppers’ in Sri Lanka

If you’ve ever been to Sri Lanka, you’re sure to have come across ‘hoppers’ if you ventured into the local eateries and roti huts. Hoppers are the tourist-friendly, anglicised name, so you’ll also spot them on the menu as appam. They’re typically  bowl shaped – cooked in a special pan so that they become crispy around the edges and thick on the base. 

They’re made with fermented rice flour and coconut milk, and served with all sorts – fresh coconut, cheese, curry or spicy sauces. Our office manager Clare fell in love with them on her travels, “When I was in Sri Lanka I loved eating these for breakfast with curry and sambol…nom! You can even have them with an egg cracked into the bottom – nom!”

Khur-le in Bhutan

Khur-le are Bhutanese pancakes that are made from buckwheat or barley flour – similar to the Ethiopian Injera or French galette. They’re smaller and are great for on-the-go when you’re out and about in Bhutan. 

They’re often served alongside many different Bhutanese main dishes, like ema-datshi (a spicy stew made of chillies and locally produced yak cheese) or shakam datshi (Dried beef with dried chillies), or even just with eggs and ezay (chilli sauce). 

Our travel specialist Jo discovered them on her trip to Bhutan, “When I was in Haa Valley, I ate khur-le just about every day at my homestay for breakfast. They have a spongy texture, but are a bit more hearty and filling than a white wheat flour pancake. They’re the type of pancake you want to be eating in a cold climate.” Our Bhutan travel specialist, Kate, agrees!