It is fairly obvious that the majority of Americans prefer breakfast as their favorite meal to eat when dining out. But why is? What is it about breakfast food that transcends state lines, age, race, or political belief systems? Many argue that breakfast foods are the best loved because they are relatively easy to prepare compared to elaborate lunches or dinner options. But while breakfast may be relatively easy to prepare, few know how to prepare it well. This is perhaps no more obvious than with the preparation of the perfect pancake.

The secret of the perfect pancake is an elusive mystery in kitchens all across this great country. Every day thousands of people start their morning with a torn or undercooked pancake, choosing to smother it in syrup or butter in an attempt to cover up the imperfect doughy mess on their plates. The truth is that it simply doesn’t have to be this way. As time goes on, more people have come to realize the solution to creating a great set of pancakes: cooking on an electric griddle.

Electric griddles provide the perfect amount of heat to cook pancakes while also employing non-stick surfaces to keep the cake from sticking. When cooking pancakes on an electric griddle you should preheat the griddle to 350 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Give the griddle a fair amount of time to warm up to ensure the pancakes will cook all the way through – the last thing you want is a golden brown pancake with a cold center! Next, mix up the pancake batter using a store-bought powder or your own homemade recipe. Here’s a tip from the professionals: if buying your batter from the store, buy generic! It is much cheaper and usually uses the same quality of ingredients. Once you are done mixing your batter pour onto the electric griddle surface to create circular shapes about the size of two half-dollars. If you prefer large pancakes, this is the time to create them!

You should then let the pancakes sit for about two minutes on the electric griddle, or until they start to turn golden brown. You should use a spatula to check on the underbelly of the pancake and to eventually flip the pancake when the time comes. As you take the pancakes off, make sure they stay warm. Sometimes keeping them in a toaster oven or even re-heating them in a microwave oven can do the trick.

If you are the creative type, feel free to add some ingredients to your pancake creations. Consider chocolate chips, blueberries, raspberries or maybe some delicious peanut butter cups! If you have small children, adding food dye is a great way to keep the kids entertained. After all, there is nothing quite like eating green pancakes on a Sunday morning.

So if you would like to get that much closer to creating the perfect pancake, consider investing in an electric griddle. You can pick one up from almost any department store for an average price of under fifty dollars.