Recipe · Weekend breakfast

Matcha pancakes that stay green.

Name: Fluffy matcha pancakes
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Japanese inspired
Ingredients: 150 g plain flour; 2 tsp baking powder (not bicarb soda); 1 tbsp caster sugar; 4 g culinary matcha (1 teaspoon is about 2 g); A pinch of salt; 1 egg; 200 ml milk; 20 g butter, melted, plus extra for the pan

Most matcha pancakes come out of the pan a sad khaki. These stay bright, taste properly of matcha, and are fluffy enough for a slow Sunday.

MMelissa TzountzourkasTea taster in training, TeafyUpdated 4 October 20225 min read

The short answer

Sift 4 g (2 teaspoons) of culinary matcha into 150 g of flour, use baking powder rather than bicarb soda, and cook on medium low heat so the outside sets before it browns. Heat and alkaline batters break down chlorophyll, which is what turns matcha pancakes khaki.

In this guide

Recipe card
How much matcha should you use?
Why matcha pancakes turn khaki, and how to stop it
Which matcha to use
Soufflé matcha pancakes
Vegan matcha pancakes
Toppings that work
Questions people ask
Sources

Recipe card

Fluffy matcha pancakes

Prep10 min

Cook15 min

Makesabout 8

Matchaculinary grade

Serves2

Ingredients

150 g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder (not bicarb soda)
1 tbsp caster sugar
4 g culinary matcha (1 teaspoon is about 2 g)
A pinch of salt
1 egg
200 ml milk
20 g butter, melted, plus extra for the pan

Method

Tap a step to tick it off.

Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and matcha together into a bowl. Sifting matters: matcha clumps easily.
Whisk the egg, milk and melted butter in a jug, pour into the dry mix and stir until just combined. A few small lumps are fine.
Rest the batter for 5 minutes while the pan heats on medium low.
Butter the pan lightly and pour in about 3 tablespoons of batter per pancake. Cook until bubbles break on top, about 2 minutes.
Flip and cook for about 1 minute more. Pull them off before they brown underneath.
Serve with whipped cream, strawberries and a final dusting of matcha.

How much matcha should you use?

Colour and flavour by matcha amount, per 150 g flour

Our pick is 4 g: clearly matcha, still kid friendly.

1 tsp, 2 g: pastel

2 tsp, 4 g: bright jade

1 tbsp, 6 g: deep green

Matcha per 150 g flour

Colour

Flavour

1 tsp, 2 g

Soft pastel green

Subtle, kid friendly

2 tsp, 4 g

Bright jade

Balanced, clearly matcha: our pick

1 tbsp, 6 g

Deep green

Bold, a little bitter, great with sweet toppings

Why matcha pancakes turn khaki, and how to stop it

Matcha is green because of chlorophyll, and chlorophyll is fragile. Heat breaks it down. So do alkaline ingredients like bicarb soda, which is why so many matcha bakes come out olive or brown.

What turns a green pancake brown

BicarbMakes the batter alkaline. Chlorophyll fades fast.

High heatBrowning reactions take over the surface.

Old matchaAlready oxidised before it reaches the bowl.

Long cookingEvery extra minute dulls the colour.

Use baking powder, not bicarb. It lifts the batter without making it alkaline.
Cook low and quick. Medium low heat sets the pancake before the surface browns. Golden brown is lovely on plain pancakes and wrong on these.
Use fresh matcha. Bright powder gives bright pancakes.

Which matcha to use

Use a culinary grade. Ceremonial matcha is made for whisking with water, and its delicate sweetness vanishes in batter and butter. Our Superior Culinary is bead milled from first and second harvest leaf so its flavour carries through baking.

Soufflé matcha pancakes

For the tall, wobbly Japanese style:

Separate 2 eggsYolks in one bowl, whites in a clean, dry bowl.
Make the yolk baseYolks with 30 g flour, 2 g matcha, 2 tablespoons milk and half a teaspoon of baking powder.
Whip the whitesWith 25 g caster sugar, to firm peaks.
Fold gentlyA third at a time. Keep the air in.
Cook covered, lowTall mounds in a lidded pan with a teaspoon of water. 5 minutes, flip, another teaspoon of water, 4 minutes more.

Vegan matcha pancakes

Swap

For

1 egg

1 flax egg: 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed and 3 tablespoons water, rested 5 minutes

Milk

Oat or soy milk, plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice for extra lift

Butter

A neutral oil

Toppings that work

Classic

Strawberries and cream

The classic, and the prettiest.

Japanese

Red bean, anko

Sweet bean paste and a little butter. Very Japanese cafe.

Easy

Banana and maple

For people who say they do not like matcha.

Treat

White chocolate and raspberry

Sweet and sharp against the matcha.

Questions people ask

How do you keep matcha pancakes green?

Use baking powder instead of bicarb soda, fresh matcha, and medium low heat. Take them off before they brown.

How much matcha do you put in pancakes?

About 4 g, or 2 teaspoons, per 150 g of flour for a bright colour and clear matcha flavour.

Can I use ceremonial matcha for pancakes?

You can, but culinary grade is better value and holds its flavour better in batter.

Can matcha pancakes be made vegan?

Yes. Use a flax egg, oat or soy milk with a little lemon juice, and oil instead of butter.

Can I make the batter ahead?

Rest it no longer than 30 minutes; baking powder starts working once wet, and the colour slowly dulls.

Melissa Tzountzourkas

Tea taster in training, Teafy

Melissa is training as a Teafy tea taster and has three years of tasting behind her. She writes the Teafy recipes: drinks and bakes that work in a normal Australian kitchen, judged for flavour, colour and fuss.

Sources

MAFF, 茶をめぐる情勢, October 2026 (how tencha and matcha are made)
MEXT Food Composition Database, matcha (16035): caffeine 3.2 g per 100 g
Google Ads Keyword Planner, Australia, searches October 2025 to September 2026, checked 11 November 2026

We update this page when the numbers change, and date every change here.

Teas in this guide

Superior Culinary Grade MatchaFirst and second harvest, bead milled. Built for lattes and baking.From $21.99 Bamboo Chasen, Holder and SpoonMade in Japan. The whisk, the stand that keeps it in shape, and the scoop.From $32.99