Here I have an ayurvedic pancake recipe for you with just a few ingredients, yet gluten free and dairy free. These Ayurvedic pancakes are super easy to make! I love a good pancake breakfast (and lunch, and dinner…). I go through phases where I’ll have them every day for days in a row, and then don’t eat them for two months. This is definitely one of these every day episodes…
So why are the pancakes ayurvedic, you ask? Good question :)
All fresh food can be considered therapeutic. It can either bring balance or disbalance, depending on who you are and what you need. There are millions of recipes for pancakes out there, and a lot of them can be considered ayurvedic depending on the ingredients and therapeutics. It’s important to know what you are eating and how it’ll affect you (more on that when you scroll down).
How to make these ayurvedic pancakes
Ingredients
Makes 10 small pancakes:
- 1 cup oat flour (you can make your own by adding oat flakes to a blender and blend until you get a flour like consistency)
- 1 egg (vegan Ayurvedic pancake option below)
- 1 cup canned coconut milk (I used the cream inside the tin and watered it down to a milk like consistency)
- pinch of salt
- half a teaspoon of cinnamon
Instructions
Mix oat flour, egg, coconut milk (watered down to milk consistency), a pinch of salt and half a teaspoon of cinnamon in a bowl until you get a nice pancake batter. The batter shouldn’t be too solid; if it is, add a bit more water. Heat a pan and cook your pancakes with coconut oil, ladling the batter in the pan with a tablespoon or sauce spoon. With these quantities you can make about 10 small pancakes.
Ayurvedic qualities of these pancakes
Let’s start with the ingredients:
Oat flour
Oats are Vata and Pitta decreasing, and Kapha increasing. They are sweet in taste (rasa) and aftertaste (vipaka) and cooling in energy (vīrya). Oats have laxative properties and help stabilise blood sugar.
Egg
Ayurveda considers eggs a tamasic food (impure) but it has certain indications. They provide vigor, are nutritive and building, good for convalescence (recovering after illness). The egg whites are Vata, Pitta and Kapha neutral; the yolk is Vata decreasing and Pitta and Kapha increasing. Eggs are sweet in taste (rasa) and aftertaste (vipaka) and their energy (vīrya) is heating. Read more about the Ayurvedic properties of eggs in this article.
Coconut milk
In this recipe I used the cream inside the tin and watered it down to a milk like consistency
Coconut is very good for Pitta and also Vata decreasing. It is Kapha increasing. It is sweet in taste (rasa) and aftertaste (vipaka) and its energy (vīrya) is cooling in nature. Coconut is also diuretic and good for the skin.
Vegan Ayurvedic pancakes
If you want to make these pancakes vegan and don’t want to use eggs, you can replace them for flax eggs.
How to make a flax egg?
Making a flax egg is very easy. Mix one tablespoon of ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of lukewarm water. Let sit for 5 minutes (this is important!). Soaking the flax will release the soluble fiber, so that you get a slimy, egg-like consistency. After 5 minutes you can use the flax egg as you would a chicken egg.
Flax seed properties
Flax seeds are good for Vata. They are heavy, oily, contain a lot of omega 3 and are good for adding bulk in the digestive tract, helping with elimination. An area in which Vata often has issues!
Ayurvedic pancake toppings
The way pancakes are usually covered with blueberries and other raw fruits is definitely not Ayurvedic (see my article about good Ayurvedic food combinations). So what Ayurvedic topping can you put on your pancake?
Honey
Honey is a great topping for pancakes. Though make sure your pancake is not steaming hot anymore – heated honey loses its beneficial properties and is considered toxic in Ayurveda. It is especially good for Kapha. Pitta and Vata could also use maple syrup.
Cooked fruit compote
Berries, apples, plums: anything that you can make into a compote is a good topping. While you’re cooking the pancakes, toss some berries in a pot, add a bit of water and cook the fruits until soft. Then use this as a topping. Some extra coconut cream will give it a luxurious finish (not for Kapha though).
Nut & seed butters
Again not a great option for Kapha as it’ll make this recipe very dense and heavy on calories, but great for Vata and Pitta. Peanut butter, tahini, almond butter, sunflower seed butter,… you name it.
In summary
These ayurvedic pancakes are very good to balance aggravated Pitta and Vata due to the coconut milk and oat flour. This is also exactly what makes them heavy and Kapha increasing. That’s why we add a bit of cinnamon to the dough (and because it’s yum, of course!). The cinnamon will boost your agni (digestive fire) so that you can digest the pancakes more easily. You can also drizzle them with honey (if you are not vegan) to further reduce Kapha. Honey is one of the only sweeteners that is good for Kapha!
If you made these ayurvedic pancakes yourself, post a picture on Instagram and tag me @foreversunday . I’d love to see your creations!
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Read more:
Chocolate: the ayurvedic perspective
