How to Make Scotch Pancakes on a Cast Iron Griddle: A British Kitchen Classic

There is a particular kind of Saturday morning in Scotland — grey sky pressing low over the Cairngorms, a smell of woodsmoke drifting in from somewhere down the glen — when the only sensible response is to pull out the cast iron griddle, heat it slowly over the hob, and make a proper stack of Scotch pancakes. Not the thin, crepe-style affairs you fold around lemon and sugar on Shrove Tuesday, and not the towering American-diner stacks drowning in maple syrup. Scotch pancakes, also called drop scones in England, are something altogether their own: small, thick, slightly springy, golden on the outside and soft in the middle, eaten warm with butter and golden syrup or cold with jam from a pot your aunt made last September.

This guide is written for anyone who takes their cast iron seriously — whether you cook on a Lodge griddle bought from a UK outdoor retailer, a vintage Scottish girdle passed down through the family, or a Le Creuset reversible grill pan you treated yourself to after years of eyeing it in the shop window in Edinburgh’s St Andrew Square. Cast iron is the traditional and, many would argue, the only proper surface for making Scotch pancakes. Here is how to do it correctly, from the batter to the bubble, from the flip to the plate.

What Are Scotch Pancakes, and Why Do They Matter?

Scotch pancakes have a documented history in British cooking stretching back centuries. The word “girdle” — the traditional Scottish name for a flat cast iron cooking plate — derives from the Old Norse word gerdill, a reminder that the cooking traditions of northern Britain share deep roots with Scandinavian culture. A girdle or griddle was once a standard piece of equipment in every Scottish and northern English household, hung over an open fire and used daily for everything from oatcakes to flatbreads.

By the Victorian era, drop scones had become a popular teatime treat across Britain, and there is a famous, if probably embellished, story that Queen Elizabeth II served drop scones to President Eisenhower during his 1959 visit to Balmoral and later sent him the recipe in a handwritten letter. Whether or not every detail of that story is accurate, it speaks to how deeply these small pancakes are woven into British domestic life.

Today, Scotch pancakes are sold in every supermarket from Aldi to Waitrose, but the pre-packaged versions are a pale shadow of the freshly cooked original. Making them yourself on a properly seasoned cast iron griddle is one of the most satisfying and straightforward things you can do in a British kitchen.

Understanding Your Cast Iron Equipment

Choosing the Right Griddle for Scotch Pancakes

A flat griddle is ideal. You want a smooth, flat cooking surface with even heat distribution and good heat retention — exactly what cast iron provides. The options available to UK cooks today are genuinely excellent.

Lodge cast iron griddles are manufactured in South Pittsburg, Tennessee, and have been sold in the UK through various retailers including Lakeland, Amazon UK, and independent cookshops for many years. The Lodge Pro-Grid reversible griddle, which has a smooth side and a ridged side, is a popular choice. For Scotch pancakes, use the smooth side. Lodge griddles come pre-seasoned with vegetable oil and are reliable, affordable, and virtually indestructible.

Le Creuset, the French manufacturer whose factory sits in the town of Fresnoy-le-Grand in northern France, has a strong following in the UK and sells a cast iron reversible griddle that is widely stocked at department stores including John Lewis and House of Fraser. Le Creuset pieces are significantly more expensive than Lodge, but the quality is exceptional, the enamel coating on some pieces eliminates the need for traditional seasoning, and they come with a lifetime guarantee. For Scotch pancakes on a Le Creuset enamelled surface, be aware that the smooth side works perfectly and the enamel does not require oil seasoning in the same way bare cast iron does.

Traditional Scottish girdles can still be found at antique markets, car boot sales, and specialist retailers. Smithfield market in London and the markets along Edinburgh’s Grassmarket occasionally turn up beautiful old pieces. A well-cared-for Victorian girdle can be decades into its cooking life and still perform magnificently.

Field Company, Solidteknics, and Netherton Foundry are smaller manufacturers worth noting. Netherton Foundry, based in Shropshire, makes spun iron and cast iron cookware in Britain and their griddles have attracted considerable admiration among serious home cooks and professional chefs across the UK.

Seasoning Your Cast Iron Griddle Before You Begin

If you are working with bare cast iron rather than enamelled pieces, proper seasoning is not optional — it is the difference between pancakes that release cleanly and ones that stick, tear, and ruin your morning. Seasoning is the process of baking thin layers of oil onto the metal surface to create a natural, non-stick polymer coating.

To season or refresh the seasoning on your griddle before a pancake session, follow these steps. First, wash the griddle in warm water with a small amount of washing-up liquid — yes, this is acceptable for a light clean — then dry it thoroughly over low heat on the hob. Apply a very thin layer of a high-smoke-point oil across the entire surface using a folded piece of kitchen roll. Flaxseed oil, which you can find at Holland and Barrett and most health food shops across the UK, has long been recommended by cast iron enthusiasts for its high linolenic acid content, which polymerises well. However, refined rapeseed oil — widely available in British supermarkets and significantly cheaper — also works very well. The key is thin layers. A thick coating of oil will turn tacky and gummy rather than hardening into a proper seasoning.

Place the oiled griddle upside down in an oven heated to around 220°C (200°C fan, Gas Mark 7), with a baking tray on the shelf below to catch any drips. Leave it for an hour, then turn the oven off and allow the griddle to cool completely inside the oven. Repeat this process two or three times for a new piece of cast iron, and your surface will be ready for use.

For full guidance on cast iron seasoning, the cast iron cooking community in the UK is active and knowledgeable. Forums and groups on social media platforms host thousands of British cast iron enthusiasts who share their methods, and the advice found in those communities often surpasses anything in a printed cookbook.

The Classic Scotch Pancake Recipe

Ingredients (Makes approximately 16 to 18 pancakes)

225g self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons caster sugar
A pinch of fine salt
2 large eggs, beaten
150ml whole milk (semi-skimmed works but full-fat gives a better result)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus a little extra for cooking

These quantities are deliberately simple and follow a proportional logic that is easy to remember and easy to scale. If you are cooking for a larger family gathering — perhaps a Burns Night supper in January where drop scones are appearing as part of a larger spread — simply double the quantities. The batter holds in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, though it will thicken slightly and may need a small splash of milk to loosen it back to the right consistency.

Making the Batter

Sift the self-raising flour and baking powder together into a large mixing bowl. Add the caster sugar and the pinch of salt and stir briefly to combine. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. In a separate jug, whisk together the beaten eggs and the milk, then pour this mixture gradually into the well, stirring from the centre outward with a wooden spoon or a balloon whisk. Work slowly and methodically — the goal is a smooth batter with no lumps and no overworking. Overworking develops gluten and produces pancakes that are rubbery rather than tender. Finally, stir in the melted butter.

The finished batter should have the consistency of thick double cream. It should fall from a spoon in a slow, steady ribbon. If it seems too thick, add milk a teaspoon at a time. If it seems too thin — which can happen in humid kitchens or if your eggs were particularly large — sift in a tablespoon of additional flour. Leave the batter to rest for ten minutes while your griddle heats up. Resting allows the starch granules to fully hydrate and the baking powder to begin its initial reaction, which gives you a lighter, more tender pancake.

Heating Your Cast Iron Griddle

This is where cast iron earns its reputation, and where understanding your equipment makes the difference between a good cook and a great one. Place your griddle over a medium-low flame or electric hob ring. Do not rush this stage. Cast iron heats slowly and unevenly if you apply too much heat too quickly, which leads to hot spots and inconsistently cooked pancakes. Allow the griddle to heat gently for five to seven minutes.

To test the temperature, flick a few drops of cold water onto the surface. If they skitter and evaporate immediately, the surface is too hot. If they sit on the surface and bubble slowly, it is not yet hot enough. What you want is a surface where the water drops dance energetically for a second before evaporating — this is the Leidenfrost effect, and it indicates a surface temperature in the region of 175°C to 190°C, which is ideal for Scotch pancakes.

Rub the surface lightly with a small knob of butter applied via a folded piece of kitchen roll. The butter should melt and spread instantly without burning. If it browns very quickly or turns black, reduce the heat and wait a minute before trying again. On a well-seasoned cast iron surface, you need very little fat — just enough to encourage that characteristic golden colour and to prevent any sticking.

Cooking the Pancakes

Dropping and Watching the Batter

Using a tablespoon or a small ladle, drop portions of batter onto the griddle, spacing them apart to allow for spreading. Each portion should be roughly two heaped tablespoons. They will spread to approximately 7 to 8 centimetres in diameter — a size that is characteristic of the traditional Scotch pancake and one that makes them easy to handle.

Moving Forward

Once you have the fundamentals in place, the possibilities open up considerably. The UK offers fantastic opportunities for anyone interested in this hobby, and with the right foundation you will be well placed to make the most of them.