Which is the best choice: ready-made or homemade pancakes?

Can’t you easily bake pancakes yourself?

Naturally! Simply whisk together flour, milk, an egg and a pinch of salt. And fry in some oil or butter. You don’t have to take the proportions so closely. You can also make the batter with any type of (vegetable) milk and various types of flour. A child can do the laundry.

So why are there so many ready-made pancakes for sale?

Apparently many people think baking themselves is too much work, because you don’t buy them for the good stuff. In general, ready-made pancakes are quite spongy and floury. And sweet: in addition to vanilla flavor, manufacturers often add extra sugar. Most pancakes contain around 7 percent sugar, the small soggy breakfast pancakes (American pancakes) sometimes contain 16 percent sugar and considerably more fat. The OaYeah! breakfast pancakes are fluffier.

Are ready-made pancakes healthy?

No. They don’t have much nutritional value. White flour and saturated palm or coconut oil are the main ingredients, with some egg and milk powder. Quite a few preservatives and flavorings have also been added to it.

Are there better varieties?

Some pancakes contain healthier (rapeseed) oil, less fat or sugar, but the differences are small. Ready-made whole-wheat pancakes contain a quarter of whole-wheat flour and therefore more healthy fiber. Spelled pancakes, with white spelled flour, are not healthier, protein pancakes contain extra pea protein. Redundant, most people get more than enough protein.

What about sustainability?

All pancakes are wrapped in plastic, not very durable. Newcomer OaYeah! bakes his pancakes with oat drink instead of milk. Not so much healthier, but better for the climate.

Better for the environment?

Vegetable oat drink has a lower greenhouse gas emissions than cow’s milk. OaYeah! substantiates its claim ’25 to 30 percent less CO2 than regular chilled cow’s milk pancakes’ with a so-called ‘life cycle analysis’, performed by a reliable institution. The claim ’45 percent less sugar and fat’ is incorrect. Purely vegetable could be even more sustainable, but the OaYeah!’s also contain eggs. You really have to bake vegetable pancakes yourself, then replace egg with baking powder.

So which pancakes should you buy?

Baking yourself costs less packaging, is tastier and much cheaper.