Poffertjes is a typical Dutch dish, a real delicacy that we as a country can really be proud of. Because say it yourself. Who says no to a delicious batch of mini pancakes. We usually make them in the famous poffertjes pan. Not everyone has one. Does that prevent you from making delicious poffertjes? Of course not! Today I’ll take you through how best to make poffertjes without a poffertjes pan.
The empty sauce bottle
All you need to make poffertjes without a special pan is an empty sauce bottle. This can be an empty ketchup, curry, or mayonnaise bottle. Basically, any kind of bottle with a nozzle is totally fine. Rinse the bottle clean, fill it with your freshly made batter, then screw the cap back on.
Bake away!
Now the baking can begin. Grab a large frying pan, put it on medium-high heat and preheat it. Add a dash of butter or oil and wait until the pan is nice and hot. Take the bottle and then carefully squirt the batter into the pan in small tufts. Make sure the tufts of batter have a diameter of about 3 centimeters, just make them nice and thick. After that, just bake the poffertjes the same way you bake pancakes.
The average recommendation is to bake them for around 3 minutes per side. However, this can vary from person to person depending on the type of cooking equipment you have. On a gas stove, for example, this is an excellent indication, but on a ceramic cooktop, it may be a bit faster. Check every now and then how the poffertjes are doing and turn them over when they are golden brown, then let them bake on the other side for the same amount of time as well. Then you will get
delicious golden brown poffertjes!
Make your own delicious poffertjes batter
If you want to make poffertjes, you obviously need batter. This too you can make all by yourself. It is actually quite simple. You can think of it as the thicker version of pancake batter. For 4 servings of poffertjes, mix 250 grams of flour with 2 eggs, a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of baking powder and 300 milliliters of milk.
In addition, you can also very easily make your own powdered sugar. This is very easy. You throw a cup of sugar into the blender and then let it blend until the sugar looks powdery. And voila, powdered sugar!
Tips for the best poffertjes
Then I’d like to give you some bonus tips. There are a few things you need to pay close attention to when making poffertjes to prevent them from failing. So I’d like to give you a few more tips to help you make delicious poffertjes time after time!
Grease properly
It is important to grease the frying pan well before frying. Otherwise, your poffertjes will burn quite easily. Of course, that is not the intention. You can also use oil. That burns a lot less quickly than butter.
Special poffertjes fork
The special poffertjes fork is really a panacea. You can move and turn your poffertjes a lot easier in your frying pan with this fork. This is incredibly convenient. You would think that a pastry fork would be fine for poffertjes, but this is often quite disappointing. Otherwise, this handy tool is made specifically for poffertjes for a reason. I’d say give it a try! I guarantee you, you will never use a normal fork again.
Especially if you make poffertjes without a poffertjes pan, this is one of the most valuable tips I can give you.
Finish your batter as soon as possible for the best poffertjes
It is important to finish your batter as soon as possible if you want them to taste the best. Poffertjes batter can actually be stored for a maximum of 2 hours. Therefore, it is best to finish it right away. The poffertjes themselves, after they are baked can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, and even 2 months if you freeze them.
So you can keep poffertjes for quite a long time, but of course they taste better if you eat them faster. So the advice remains, do you want the tastiest experience? Then eat them as soon as possible. But you can keep them longer if you want.
Don’t make them into pancakes!
This sounds very logical, but many do it anyway from time to time, especially when you don’t have a pancake pan it can sometimes be tempting. Making pancakes with poffertjes batter is not a good idea. Because of the large amount of raising agents, you will not get beautiful and tasty pancakes. So be careful not to overdose either!