Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancakes
These Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancakes will be your new favorite weekend breakfast! Fluffy buttermilk pancakes are studded with bits of maple-infused bacon and melty chocolate chips for the perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors.
About this bacon chocolate chip pancake recipe
Why serve bacon on the side with your pancakes when you can mix it right into the batter?! If you haven’t tried bacon pancakes yet, it’s one of those recipes that you have to make at least once—but I promise that after you try it, you’re going to want to put bacon in allll your pancakes. The bacon is cooked, chopped, then stirred right into the pancake batter.
Truly, the only thing better than bacon pancakes are Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancakes. Yes!
I like to use maple-flavored bacon to amp up the flavor of these bacon pancakes even more. If you can’t find maple bacon, no worries…I mean, any bacon is better than no bacon at all, right? (I think I might cross-stitch that onto a pillow.)
No one can resist a stack of delicious fluffy flapjacks loaded with savory bacon and rich chocolate chips! Top them with extra bacon crumbles, chocolate chips, and a healthy drizzle of maple syrup and you’ll be in hog heaven!
Sorry, I couldn’t write this post without at least one bacon pun.
What you need
- Maple Flavored Bacon – The maple flavor may come from smoking the bacon over maple wood chips, or adding maple sugar or syrup during the curing process. It’s even better if you can find a brand that does both!
- Butter – Melted butter is used in the batter to add moisture and flavor to the pancakes. For this recipe, use unsalted butter.
- Eggs – Set your eggs on the counter well before you’re ready to start making pancakes. Room temperature eggs yield a fluffier pancake and fluffy pancakes are exactly what we want!
- Water – Your water should also be at room temperature.
- Buttermilk – And yes, your buttermilk should be at room temperature, too. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can make it by combining a scant cup of whole milk with a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. Stir and let the mixture sit for 5 minutes, or until the milk thickens. Check out our homemade buttermilk for more details!
- Vanilla Extract – Swap maple extract for vanilla extract if you like more pronounced maple flavor.
- All-Purpose Flour – If you’d like to make your Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancakes gluten-free, use a cup-for-cup all-purpose flour substitute.
- Mini Chocolate Chips – Mini chips are my go-to for pancakes because they distribute more evenly into the batter. If you have standard-size chocolate chips on hand, you can roughly chop them for the same effect.
- Brown Sugar – I recommend light brown sugar; it has a milder flavor that won’t compete with the other flavors in this recipe..
- Baking Powder – When baking powder reacts with the buttermilk, magic happens: light, fluffy pancakes!
- Dash of Salt – I tested this recipe with standard table salt; if you’re using a flaky sea salt, you can use a touch more to account for the larger crystals.
How to cook bacon in the oven
You can make the bacon any way you like but I usually bake bacon while I’m getting the rest of the ingredients ready. It’s more hands-off than cooking bacon in the skillet and cleaning up is easier, too. Win-win!
To bake bacon, preheat your oven to 400°F. Place the bacon on a sheet pan and cover it loosely with foil (this will cut down on splatters and keep your oven cleaner!). Bake for 12-25 minutes, or until the bacon is crisped up to your liking. The baking time will vary depending on the thickness of your bacon so watch closely after the 12-15 minute mark.
How to make these pancakes
Prepare the bacon. After cooking the bacon, place it on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess grease. Once the bacon has cooled, cut it into bite-size pieces. Kitchen scissors work well for this job!
Warm your cooking surface. Preheat an electric griddle to 375°F or a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat.
Make the batter. Whisk together the melted butter, eggs, water, buttermilk, and vanilla extract. Then, add the bacon pieces and the remaining ingredients. Whisk until just combined and allow the batter to rest for 3-5 minutes.
Form the pancakes. Drop 3-4 tablespoons of batter onto the preheated griddle or pan for each pancake. A muffin scoop works well if you have one, and it will also help you get evenly-sized pancakes. Use a spoon to gently spread the batter a bit.
Cook. Cook the pancakes for 3-4 minutes, then flip and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes on the other side. Transfer to a plate, then serve with syrup and any other garnishes you like!
FAQs
The leavening agent is key for making pancakes fluffy. Most often the leavening agent used in pancakes is baking powder but some recipes call for baking soda, or both baking soda and powder. They react with acidic ingredients like buttermilk, creating small air bubbles that give your pancakes lift. (This is why it’s important not to overmix—you don’t want to pop those bubbles!)
Allowing the ingredients to come to room temperature ingredients before using them and giving the batter a few minutes to rest are two more ways to achieve extra fluffy pancakes.
What we have here is a 2-in-1 breakfast, friends. Bacon and pancakes in one recipe which means all we need is an awesome egg dish to round things out. Whether scrambled, over-easy, or in a cheesy quiche with bacon, eggs are the way to go here. Maple syrup also goes with pancakes and bacon, or anything sweet and salty, like maple brown butter or bacon jam!
Hardcore pork lovers will tell you that “real” bacon is always pork. Traditionally, this has been the case but leaner types of bacon are available, such as turkey bacon or chicken bacon; there’s also meatless tempeh and seitan bacon if you’re vegetarian or vegan.
How to make these bacon pancakes your own
- Do you have store-bought or homemade Bisquick mix on hand? Use it as a shortcut!
- Use dark chocolate, milk chocolate, semi-sweet, or white chocolate chips.
- Swap toffee bits for the chocolate.
- Add candied bacon in place of maple bacon for a little extra sweetness!
- Use turkey bacon or chicken bacon instead of pork. They are drier and leaner than pork bacon and don’t have the same flavor but they do add salty, crunchy elements to the recipe.
- Top with homemade pancake syrup or chocolate syrup.
Make Ahead Ideas
Make your bacon in advance to save yourself some time! As mentioned above, the oven is a great way to make a lot of bacon with as little grease splatter as possible. If you have an air fryer, this works too. Once cooled, keep the bacon covered in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
Storage Suggestions
Store bacon chocolate chip pancakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also transfer your bacon pancakes to a freezer-friendly bag or container and freeze for up to one month. Keep the pancakes separated by parchment paper so that they don’t freeze together, then take out as many or as few as you need.
Reheating Tips
The microwave is the best way to reheat bacon pancakes. Heat them for 20-second intervals until they’re warmed through. Alternatively, you can warm up the pancakes in a 350ºF oven for about 10 minutes (or 15 minutes if you’re baking from frozen).
More bacon pancake recipes
Do you love bacon as much as we do! Try these recipes:
- Bacon Pancakes (these have a full slice in each pancake!)
- Bacon Pancakes with Brown Butter Topping (if you’re feeling fancy!)
- Bacon Sheet Pan Pancakes – with jalapeño and cheddar
- Savory Bacon Dutch Baby
Get the Recipe: Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancakes
Ingredients
- 4 slices maple bacon
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup mini chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cook bacon using your preferred method. If you haven’t tried it yet, consider baking your bacon! It’s a great way to cook bacon without splattering bacon grease in your kitchen.
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Place the bacon on a sheet pan and cover loosely with tin foil. Bake for 15-25 minutes or until desired level of crispiness is attained. Baking time will vary depending on the thickness of the cut of bacon; watch closely towards the end.
- After cooking bacon, place it on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess grease. Allow the bacon to cool and then cut into bite size pieces. Kitchen scissors work well for this job!
- When the bacon is ready, preheat an electric griddle to 375°F or a non-stick frying pan over medium low heat.
- Whisk together the melted butter, eggs, water, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.
- Add the bacon pieces and the remaining ingredients. Whisk until combined.
- Allow the batter to rest for 3-5 minutes.
- Drop batter by spoonfuls onto the preheated griddle/pan. A muffin scoop works well to get even sized pancakes. Gently spread out slightly.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes for the first side. Flip and cook for a further 2-3 minutes on the second side.
Notes
- Makes 15-16 3-inch pancakes.
- Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also transfer your bacon pancakes to a freezer-friendly container and freeze for up to one month. Keep the pancakes separated by parchment paper so that they don’t freeze together, then take out as many or as few as you need.
- Reheating: Microwave pancakes in 20-second intervals until they’re warmed through. Alternatively, you can warm up the pancakes in a 350ºF oven for about 10 minutes (or 15 minutes if you’re baking from frozen).