Super Savory Pancakes

IN JUST ABOUT EVERY CULTURE AROUND THE WORLD, people make a version of pancakes or flatbreads for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. In the United States, buttermilk or buckwheat pancakes are popular morning foods, but in other countries, pancakes become street vendor snacks or savory dinner fare. In India, dosas are pancakes that are composed of rice flour or rice and bean batters and are dipped into curry or chutney. In Ethiopia, injera, the nation's famous flatbread, is made of fermented ground teff, the world's tiniest grain. In southern France, socca prepared with garbanzo flour is sold by street vendors, and in Scotland, oatcakes are cooked on a griddle and served with savory dishes or marmalade. The book Flatbreads and Flavors by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid is filled with recipes gathered from around the world. The many cross-cultural recipes can spark ideas for unusual pancakes. Asian noodle pancakes, potato pancakes, and spicy polenta pancakes are just a few pancakes ideas that I turned into dinner favorites.