Pancakes
small thick batter pancakes
living home tradition
Thick batter, kefir, curd, apples, vegetables, sweet and savory pancakes
Sklindeliai, Thick small pancakes
Sklindžiai and lietiniai
Sklindžiai differ from lietiniai in thickness and shape. Lietiniai are poured thinly across the whole pan, while sklindžiai are spooned as small pancakes.
Because the batter is thicker, curd, apples, carrots, pumpkin, or other additions are easy to mix in.
Not one recipe but a pancake family
In Lithuanian home cooking, the name sklindžiai often covers a whole group of small, thicker pancakes. In one household they may be made with curd, in another with apples, elsewhere with vegetables or grains.
This dish depends heavily on what is available. Thick batter allows leftover curd, grated apple, cooked pumpkin, or another addition to be mixed in, while serving style determines whether sklindžiai become breakfast, supper, or a sweet snack. According to the Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia, sklindžiai were fried from wheat, oat, buckwheat, or pea flour and mashed potatoes; buckwheat sklindžiai were liked in Dzūkija, large pan-sized sklindžiai in eastern Lithuania were often breakfast food, while in western Lithuania and Užnemunė they were small and eaten less often.
Sweet and savory
Sweet sklindžiai are eaten with jam, sugar, sour cream, or berries. Savory ones are served with sour cream, curd, or garlic sauce.
They are a flexible home-kitchen dish that adapts well to available ingredients.
Recipe
How to make sklindžiai
Sklindžiai batter is thicker than lietiniai batter. It should fall from a spoon and hold the shape of a small pancake in the pan.
Ingredients
- 250 g flour
- 300 ml kefir or rūgpienis
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp sugar, if making sweet pancakes
- A pinch of salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- Optional: grated apple or 150 g curd
- Oil for frying
Method
- Whisk kefir with egg, salt, and sugar.
- Mix in the flour and baking powder, and add apple or curd if desired.
- Let the batter rest for 10 minutes.
- Fry small pancakes by spooning the batter into a pan.
- Serve with sour cream, jam, or a savory sauce if the version is not sweet.
Notes
Batter that is too thin will make lietiniai-style pancakes, not sklindžiai.
