The Best Golden Diner Honey Butter Pancakes Recipe

But we’re going to use a rice cooker!

Dear friend,

If you’re in New York, I’m a little jealous of you because you get to stand in line for 3 to 3 ½ hours at Golden Diner and try what some say are the best pancakes in America, thanks to Chef David Yoo. His maple honey butter pancakes are straight-up magic, according to everyone who’s had them. But since I’m no longer living in New York (my family and I made the move back in 2017), I figured out how to hack this at home. And if you’re in the same boat, this recipe is dedicated to you!

So, what makes Chef Yoo’s pancakes so special? It’s all about the method and of course the ingredients: yeast, buttermilk, and—yep, soy sauce. Instead of using baking powder or whipped eggs, Chef Yoo lets the yeast do all the heavy lifting, making the pancakes fluffy and tall. There’s a bit of baking soda as well with helps with more air tunneling in the pancakes. Then, buttermilk adds a classic, creamy tang, and then—here comes the magic—soy sauce. That umami flavor really helps balance the sweetness of the maple butter syrup, which is chef’s kiss. Chef Yoo knows what’s up.

I went a little rogue and used my rice cooker to make one giant pancake, but you can definitely make classic smaller pancakes too. If you’re using a frying pan to make giant pancakes, heat the bottom until golden, then put the pan with the pancake into an oven preheated to 350°F and bake for about 8 minutes. The top should just be lightly toasted and the pancake cooked through. The bottom will be golden-brown. and when you flip it out of the pan, the browner side will be the top of the pancake.

And just so you know, this batter stays fresh in the fridge for up to a week, so you can keep the pancake party going for a while, especially if you’re dividing the batter to make smaller pancakes.

Now, when it comes to toppings, go wild! You can’t go wrong with whipped cream, a little butter, and fresh berries (I love sliced strawberries). But honestly, the maple butter syrup with that soy sauce twist is the real MVP. It will make you feel like you’re sitting in Golden Diner, even if you’re miles away.

Trust me, when I’m back in NYC, I’ll definitely be standing in line to see how my version stacks up. I’m all about supporting another Asian American who is crushing it in the food world!

XOXOXO,
Kat Lieu

---

108 Asian Cookies: Not-Too-Sweet Treats from a Third-Culture Kitchen

By Lieu, Kat

Buy on Amazon

---

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kat Lieu (@katlieu)

---

Yield 2 large pancakes or multiple smaller ones

Author Kat Lieu

Prep time

15 Min

Cook time

60 Min

Total time

1 H & 15 M

Print

With ImageWithout Image

How to make the famous Golden Diner Pancakes but in a rice cooker recipe by Kat Lieu

New Yorkers, I'm jealous of you because you can go line up at Golden Diner and try the best pancakes in America by Chef David Yoo, the maple honey butter pancakes that his restaurant is famous for. People wait hours to eat these pancakes. And since I no longer live in New York, I must hack a version for my family and I to enjoy at home, as we won't be visiting NYC any time soon. (We moved away in 2017!)

The trick to Chef Yoo's amazing pancakes are a few notable ingredients: yeast, buttermilk, and soy sauce. Instead of using whipped eggs or baking powder as the leavening agent, Chef Yoo uses yeast, which makes his pancakes light, fluffy, and tall. Buttermilk adds a beautiful tang to the batter and soy sauce adds umami and a balancing note to the maple butter syrup that the pancakes swim in.

Now, while I used a rice cooker to make one gigantic pancake, you can divide the batter to make smaller pancakes. This batter can also be covered and refrigerated for up to a week!

Ingredients

For the pancakes

• 1 cup water, warmed to 110 degrees Fahrenheit
• 1 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon red or white miso
• 1 cup buttermilk (or milk mixed with 1 tablespoon apple cider or white vinegar)
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the maple butter syrup

• 4 tbsps honey
• 3 tbsps maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon high quality soy sauce, adjust to taste
• a little cornstarch slurry
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

For the toppings

• Whipped cream (optional)
• Butter (optional)
• Berries like sliced strawberries (optional)

Instructions

Make the pancakes

1. Add the warm water and yeast to a small mixing bowl and mix. Set aside to allow the yeast to bloom for about 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Mix the eggs, sugar, oil, and miso in a medium to large mixing bowl, using a whisk, until homogenous. Add the buttermilk or vinegar-laced milk, then the yeast mixture. Give everything a good mix before adding the flour and baking soda. Mix gently until all flour trails and dry spots disappear. The dough should remain a bit lumpy and scraggly rather than full smooth. Remember this, the lumpier the batter, the taller and fluffier your pancakes. The smoother the pancake batter, the flatter the pancakes will be!
3. Grease the inside of a rice cooker bowl with butter or neutral oil. Pour the pancake batter into the bowl and close the lid. If using a Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy rice cooker like I do, cook on 1 mixed cycle, then 1 quick cycle. Note that the rice needs time between cycles to cool down, and it will give you the error code of H01 or H02 if you try to quickly activate the second cycle.
4. While the pancake is cooking, make the maple butter syrup.

Maple the maple butter syrup

1. Mix the honey, maple syrup, soy sauce, and about 1 to 2 teaspoons of cornstarch slurry (cornstarch mixed with water) until well combined. (My cornstarch slurry was a mix of 1 teaspoon of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water. I used only 2 teaspoons of this mixture.)
2. Melt the stick of butter until melted in a small saucepan. Lower the heat to low and add in the syrupy mixture. Stir over the low heat until slightly thicken, but very syrupy and pourable.

Serve the pancake

1. After two cycles in the rice cooker, your pancake should be cooked through. To check, poke a hole in the center with a toothpick or bamboo skewer. If the skewer comes out clean, the pancake is thoroughly cooked.
2. Flip the pancake out of the rice cooker bowl. The dark bottom should now be the topside of the pancake.
3. Drizzle with the maple butter syrup and top with your toppings of choice and enjoy. This serves at least 4 people.

Notes

Instead of using a rice cooker, you can use a frying pan or skillet to make standard-sized flapjacks or pancake rounds.

Golden Dinner adds about half of this batter to a greased skillet or frying pan, cooks until the bottom is golden, and then finishes the pancake in the oven. The top of the pancake, as Chef Yoo points out, never touches heat directly.

Please note that this is not the exact Golden Diner recipe, but Kat Lieu's own version and rendition after watching this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rWNO3bM_BY

Recommended Products

Zojirushi 5.5 cups Neuro Fuzzy Rice Cooker

108 Asian Cookies

Modern Asian Baking at Home Cookbook

All rights reserved for the respective recipe author and modernasianbaking.com

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @katlieu on instagram and hashtag it #subtleasianbakes