Mango Pancakes (Japanese Style)

Mango pancakes make for a fluffy and delicious start to your day! These Japanese-style mango pancakes are made up of soufflé pancakes topped with delicious fresh mango. A beautifully, bright recipe to start your day. 

Sometimes you want something a little out of the ordinary. These Mango soufflé pancakes aren’t a breakfast recipe you see everywhere, but for mango-lovers, it’s going to become a breakfast favorite!

This post will tell you everything you need to know to make restaurant-worthy Japanese mango pancakes from what they are, how to make them, and plenty of tips and variation options to make sure they’re just right.

What are Mango Pancakes

Mango pancakes is a catch-all term for pancakes with mangos. There are several ways this can be done – the simplest being topping your pancakes with chopped mango pieces. This recipe is slightly more involved than that…we’re creating a Japanese mango pancakes, similar to what you may find at a proper Japanese pancake restaurant. 

Another popular option are the Hong Kong style mango pancakes, which is essentially a piece of mango (or several pieces) wrapped in a crepe, and usually found in Hong Kong bakeries and Asian dessert shops. 

What is Japanese-style?

Japanese pancakes (also known as soufflé pancakes) are a type of fluffy, airy pancake. The pancakes gain extra fluffiness due to the process of separating the egg whites and yolks and forming a meringue before recombining them.

For these mango pancakes, I’ve added mango puree to the batter so that the pancakes have a distinct mango flavor to them. As a result, they rise ever-so-slightly less than a plain soufflé pancake might, but they’re still wonderfully airy. 

Ingredients

To make the mango topping

• Cream cheese
• Milk
• Whipping cream
• Fresh mangos, cubed

To make the mango pancakes

• Egg yolks
• All-purpose flour
• Mango puree
• Milk
• Egg whites 
• Lemon juice 
• Granulated white sugar

How to make mango pancakes

Making the mango topping

For the sake of convenience, I recommend preparing the mango pancake topping first. Mix the cream cheese spread, milk, and whipped cream. You can use an electric whisk to beat until the mixture is fluffy and light. Store in the refrigerator until it’s time to top your pancakes. 

Making the mango pancakes

Begin by mixing the egg yolks, flour, mango puree and milk, in a large mixing bowl, until well combined. Set the mixture aside. In another large bowl, whisk the egg whites and lemon juice until foamy. Continue whisking at a low speed and gradually add sugar. Continue to mix at a low speed until stiff peaks form.  

This next step requires a bit of a delicate touch. Gently fold a third of the egg white mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Carefully pour the egg yolk/egg white mixture into the remaining egg white mixture, and using a spatula, fold until combined. 

Heat a heavy-bottomed non-stick pan over low. Using an ice cream scoop, pour two scoops of batter into the pan (per pancake). If you don’t have an ice cream scoop, you use some like a quarter cup measuring spoon (something to help you be consistent in your scoop size). 

Cook the pancake over low heat for about eight minutes. (You can add a few drops of water to the pan, and cover, to slightly speed up the process.) Carefully flip the pancake, and cook for another five minutes. The cooked pancake should have risen, and be cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Tips

Like most Japanese pancake recipes, these Japanese mango pancakes can be a bit tricky. Getting the meringue to the perfect consistency is a bit of an art, as is flipping the soufflé pancake without breaking it. These tips will help make the process as easy and accessible as possible.

What kind of mango to use

You can use any sort of ripe mangoes for this recipe. I’d recommend opting for fresh mangos with a bit of sweetness to them. My personal preference are Alphonso mangos, but ataulfo mangos are another fantastic option.

Use a mold

One of the best kept secrets of Japanese-style pancakes, is that many people (including restaurants) use a mold to make them. There’s no shame in this. If you have a pancake mold available, feel free to use it. It’ll make cooking a tall pancake that much easier.

Flip, gently.

I say this so often that someone will probably add it to my tombstone. Be gentle when turning your pancakes over. The pressure of the flip will push air bubbles out of the pancakes resulting in a less airy, more dense pancake. So for best results, be as delicate as possible.

Heat management

Japanese souffle pancakes are notoriously slow to prepare (relatively speaking for pancakes!). Part of the reason for this is the use of a low heat to cook them over.

Sometimes the impatience that comes with hunger or excitement might tempt you to attempt to speed the process by adjusting your stove to a high or medium heat. I’d suggest being very cautious as it’s fairly easy to end up cooking the outside of your pancakes too quickly over higher heats (while the inside remains uncooked!). 

Easier version

Most of the challenge to this recipe comes from the soufflé pancakes (with mango puree). If you’re willing to have a slightly less fluffy, more traditional pancake, you can swap out the pancake base for your favorite pancake recipe. 

Make the pancakes using a more traditional pancake recipe, and use the mango topping to create a simpler mango pancake recipe.

Variations

Assuming you’re not looking to prepare the “easy version” of these pancakes, the ability to create variations is limited to adjusting toppings (this is due to the batter including mango puree). Switching out the mango puree for another puree likely won’t be a one-to-one switch, so I wouldn’t recommend it unless you know exactly what you’re planning to do.

Mangos and cream. Keeping it simple is often a good idea. The very first test version of this recipe was made simply with a chopped mango and whipped cream topping.

Extra sweetness. If you prefer your breakfast on the extra sweet side, feel free to drizzle some maple syrup or sprinkle some icing sugar over your pancakes.

Storage suggestions

This Japanese-style mango pancake recipe is best eaten immediately. The topping can be stored in the fridge for up to two days. The mangos may start to darken/brown during this time. If you do have leftover pancake, the pancakes can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to one day. 

If you’ve tried these mango pancakes, I want to know what you think. Comment below and tell me.