For Lighter, More Flavorful Pancakes, Add This Sweet Powdered Mix

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There are plenty of ways to elevate boxed pancake mixes, from adding mix-ins to swapping water with milk. But using instant pudding mix in your next batch of pancakes will transform the flavor and texture of the pancake crumb effortlessly. Instant pudding mixes have flavoring agents, sugar, and cornstarch, making them a smart addition to pancakes.

Because the mixes contain sweeteners, if you're using a full package of instant pudding mix, you might want to omit sugar or any other kind of sweetener altogether. Consequently, a full pudding packet is best used in easy, scratch-made pancake batter, that is, a blend of flour, eggs, milk, oil, and baking powder, so you can leave out the sugar. There are, however, store-bought pancake mixes with no or reduced sugar, like Bob's Redmill and Kodiak Power Cakes, both of which ranked highly on our list of the best pancake mixes of 2025. If you're using a sugary pancake mix, you can reduce the amount of pudding mix you add to it. Even a tablespoon of dry pudding mix will make a difference in both flavor and texture for your next batch of pancakes.

You can also incorporate pudding mix by adding it as a liquid mix-in. You can prepare the pudding mix separately from the pancake mix, drizzling or dolloping it into pancakes as they fry on the griddle. You'll get swirls of flavor along with a creamy moisture that you can pair with crunchy mix-ins for more textural depth. 

The pudding flavor can also inform tasty pairings. For example, you can add peanut butter chips or pecans to a banana pudding mix for a nutty complement. Chocolate pudding mix will pair well with mix-ins like strawberries, bananas, and almonds. Top chocolate pancakes with whipped cream and cherry preserves for a Black Forest cake experience. Sprinkle toasted pistachios into pistachio pudding pancakes as they griddle and serve with a slathering of pistachio cream.

Another simple technique to ensure the fluffiest results, for homemade pancakes or boxed batter mix, is to run the combined dry ingredients through a sifter. This will effectively aerate mixes that have become dense by sitting for long periods on pantry shelves.