Try my kefir pancakes if you are looking for a different recipe to up your breakfast game!
Russia is famous for her blini; thin and lacy crepes served with caviar or fruit preserves but fat and pillowy soft pancakes are little known outside of the country’s borders.
It’s a shame though because once you try my kefir pancakes aka ‘oladi’, you will find it hard to go back to your regular recipe. It’s a promise!
What are oladi?
If I had to describe oladi, I would say they are somewhat of a cross between a pancake and a fritter. They are fried in a bit more oil than your standard pancakes, which puffs them up to almost a doughnut-like height!
The magic ingredient of course if the kefir, a fermented milk drink made with kefir grains, that has gained much popularity in recent years in the West but has been a staple in Russia for ages.
It’s readily available in the UK and the US but could also be substituted with buttermilk.
How do you make Russian pancakes?
Oladi are traditionally made with an addition of yeast, which makes them “grow’ right in front of your eyes as soon as the batter comes in contact with hot oil.
They are incredibly delicious but more time consuming, as yeasted dough takes time to prove, not something you’d want to wait for in the morning!
So to cut corners one clever soul thought of using kefir and baking soda as rising agents instead, and the rest is history.
Kefir pancakes are more common in Russia nowadays than the traditional yeasted ones. A modern woman waits for nothing, not even delicious yeasted dough!
I hope you give these delicious kefir pancakes a go. They might look very similar to your regular pancakes but I assure you they have quite a unique taste!
What do you eat Russian kefir pancakes with?
They are often served with smetana; Russian sour cream although calling it sour cream doesn’t do it justice.
Smetana is a sweet tasting, silky smooth sauce that does belong on desserts while sour cream is a bit too tart and thick for delicate sweet creations! I did a side by side taste comparison when I made these oladi and was astounded by the difference.
If you have an Eastern European shop nearby, I would recommend getting real smetana and seeing it for yourself!
For more pancake and crepe recipes check out:
Oatmeal Pancakes with Coconut Cream
If you make any of these pancakes, I would love to see you creations! Tag @Vikalinka in your Instagram snaps!
Ingredients
- 500 ml/2 cups kefir plain
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 350 g/2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a large bowl mix kefir, an egg, sugar and salt with a whisk.
- In a separate bowl mix flour and baking soda. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones and stir to combine. The batter will be thick!
- Let it sit for 15 minutes without stirring.
- Heat a non-stick pan with enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan up to 1 cm/1/3 inch deep. Drop kefir pancakes with a large spoon or a small ice-cream scoop into hot oil and fry on one side until golden and the batter is cooked halfway through, then flip carefully taking care not to splash hot oil. Use two spatulas if necessary. The pancakes will puff up as soon as you flip them over. Maintain medium heat to ensure each pancake is cooked all the way through as they are going to be tall. (Add oil throughout the frying process as needed.)
- Serve dusted with powdered sugar, whipped cream or smetana/creme fraiche and fresh fruit.
I discovered your wonderful blog by googling on kefir pancakes. I bookmarked it and will certainly come back in the next future for other culinary discoveries.
Your blogs is beautiful and I love your enthousiasm.
The pancakes were delicious! I made them for dinner, they would probably be too heavy for me at breakfast. Or maybe I ate to much of them. 🙂
I didn’t have sour cream, so instead I used strained kefir with honey. The combination with red grapes was yummy! Thank you for your recepy.
So thrilled you enjoyed them, Angie!!
Planning to make these with my home made kefir, but the mixture maked too much for to of us! If I make the recipe and only use half, will the remainder be Ok to wait in the fridge to be used the following day?
Do you mean if kefir could be kept in a fridge, Catherine? Yes, you can store it safely for a few days. If you meant the pancake mixture, I am afraid I’ve never tried that. I think the baking soda might stop working when activated for this long. I usually fry the whole batch, then store the pancakes in the fridge rather than the batter. They reheat beautiful in the oven or microwave.
Thank you for your reply.
I was thinking of the pancake mixture, but as you say the baking sode might stop working. I will cook them all and reheat what we do not manage to eat!!
What would be the measurements if I wanted to make this with whole wheat flour?
I would use the same measurements, Dina.
How might I maintain the strongest level of flavor authenticity if I sought to yeast this dough with a sourdough starter which never touched commercial yeast? Logic tells me to substitute 1 cup of the sole large liquid apparent; I am partially very concerned about entirely wrecking the effect of kefir on the pancakes, mostly in reducing potency as a large amount of sourdough starter yields a much lower proof time, which (in turn) results in, ideally, a nearly non-existent ‘sour’ effect. And then I wonder if probiotic intent mixes with fermented sourdough starter, the modern spirit implied (where I live, anyway) in invoking kefir MIGHT be in fact carried out by this combination, despite halving the kefir and would the ‘correct’ flavor, or close enough to it, just naturally result?
Baking soda or baking power, and commercial yeast, are off the table for me. Figuratively and literally and I didn’t start out intending to end cleverly; I apologise.
You can absolutely make pancakes with a sourdough starter. I do it all the time since a portion of the starter needs to be discarded daily. It will be a different recipe but it’s nonetheless delicious. Sourdough pancakes don’t really need a long proof time. I usually let the batter sit for about 15-20 minutes before cooking.
This is hands down one of the best pancakes recipes out there! It’s so easy to make and the pancakes turn out beautifully soft and fluffy. Thank you so much for sharing this!
My pleasure, Andrea! So glad you enjoyed my recipe!
Excellent and feel great about getting kefir in my body!
That’s exactly how I look at it, Kim! Thanks for a great review!
I have had a container of Blueberry Kefir in my Frig for some time and today it occurred to me to make Pancakes with it! I Googled and found this Russian Recipe from you for, Oladi!
Reading through it, I am assured of success, and look forward to the taste! Love the simple ingredients, I may add walnuts or Macademia, cinnamon, and use Honey as the Sweetner.
Awesome the best yum
Gostaria de saber que frutinhas vermelhas são essas nas fotos
The berries are red currants.
Delicious!
I am Russian living in Australia . Hubby and young kids loved it! had some blueberry kefir to use up and it worked out very well! Ta!
Thank you for sharing this with me, Vika! Happy you enjoyed the pancakes!
Do all the ingredients need to be room temperature?
Eggs always work better when they are at room temperature but nothing else has to be at room temperature, Milana.
I discovered this product by accident a few years ago and have been using in just about everything I used to make with buttermilk. I had never heard of it. It’s a sensational product. My pancakes and biscuits have been wonderful using kefir. I’m sure we’re all healthier for drinking it every day. My pancakes turn out like yours, light and fluffy!
Thanks for sharing your recipes.
Kefir is really wonderful and so healthy! You are very welcome, Malou.
Hey Julia! Love your recipes! Just wondering…..would smetana be comparable to creme fraiche?
I am planning on making these pancakes for Easter Brunch.
Hi Leslie, yes creme fraiche is more similar to smetana than sour cream and that is why I use it. Smetana would be my first choice though! These would be perfect for an Easter brunch!
these are beautiful. I am wondering what are the berries you used in these photos? Thanks, Olga
Thanks, Olga! The berries are red currants!
Pancakes are always a delicious treat for breakfast, and incorporating new ingredients can be a fun change from the norm! I have been trying to incorporate more Kefir into my diet for digestive support, and adding it to one of my favorite breakfast treats will really help to work it into my breakfast routine. I will definitely be adding this recipe to my personal cloud, so I can quickly pull it up in the morning and get cracking on my meal! I’ll be sure to check out smetana at my local shop, too!
These are such pretty, pillowy pancakes!
Thanks so much, Laura!