Poffertjes is a typically 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 poffertjes? We often make them in the well-known poffertjes pan. But not everyone has one. Does that stop you from making delicious poffertjes? Of course not! Today I will 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. Grab 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 centimetres, make them nice and thick. After that, bake the poffertjes just like you bake pancakes.
The average recommendation is to fry 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 a fine indication, but on a ceramic hob it can be a bit faster. Check every now and then how the poffertjes are doing and turn them over when they are golden brown, and then let them bake for the same amount of time on the other side 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. You can also make this all by yourself. It is actually quite simple. You can think of it as the thicker version of pancake batter. For 4 portions of poffertjes, mix 250 grams of flour with 2 eggs, a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of baking powder and 300 millilitres of milk.
You can also very easily make your own icing 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, icing 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 avoid failure. I would therefore like to give you a few extra 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 really is a panacea. You can move and turn your poffertjes a lot easier in your frying pan with this fork. This is incredibly handy. You would think that a pastry fork would be fine for poffertjes, but this is often fairly disappointing. Otherwise, this handy tool is made especially for poffertjes for a reason. I would 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, once baked, can be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days, and even 2 months if you freeze them.
So you can store poffertjes for quite a long time, but of course they are all the more delicious if you eat them sooner. So the advice remains, do you want the tastiest experience? Then eat them as soon as possible. But you can keep them for longer if you want to.
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 poffertjes pan it can sometimes be tempting. Making pancakes with poffertjes batter is not a good idea. A large amount of raising agents means you won’t get beautiful and tasty pancakes. So be careful not to overdose either!