My buckwheat flour obsession shows no signs of slowing down. Between buckwheat recipe e-book 1, buckwheat recipe e-book 2 and my gluten free buckwheat bread, I’ve learnt a lot about the flour. And you know what? The more I learn, the more I love. Buckwheat is such a great gluten free grain and the flour is such an asset in the gluten free baking arsenal. It’s great for using as the only flour in some gluten free recipes, which is what we’re doing with these banana buckwheat pancakes
These banana buckwheat pancakes are made with 100% buckwheat flour. They are xanthan gum free, nut free and can easily be made straight in the bowl. The pancakes are thick and filling, with that subtly nutty buckwheat flavour. If you enjoy buckwheat flour, you’ll love these pancakes.
Substitution options
I’ll get this one out of the way early. Not sure why you’d click on this recipe, but if you don’t like banana there is an option. This recipe is adapted from my 100% buckwheat pancake recipe in my first buckwheat e-book. That recipe uses yoghurt instead of banana. It differs from this one, though, so you can’t just sub yoghurt into this recipe.
There is no substitution for the eggs at this stage sorry. I haven’t figured out why, but all my egg free buckwheat pancake tests have gotten majorly stuck to my pan. The eggs seem to help the batter disengage from the pan. I am still working on it, though!
Even with ripe bananas, I think the sugar here is necessary. They are still not overly sweet. I use light brown sugar as I find it compliments bananas nicely. I daresay panela sugar would also work. For those who don’t have issues with fructose, you could also try coconut sugar.
Are these buckwheat banana pancakes low FODMAP?
They can be. Ripe banana is low FODMAP in up to 47g serves person, after which it contains moderate amounts of fructans. This recipe uses 200g (ideally) ripe banana and makes around 8 medium pancakes. This means you can eat just over one pancake and remain under a low FODMAP serve.
One pancake is a rather offensive serve, however, so there are options.
My preferred option is to use ripe sugar bananas. Sugar bananas (sometimes called Lady fingers) have a much higher FODMAP threshold, even when ripe. Ripe sugar bananas are low FODMAP in up to 191g serves, they contain moderate amounts of fructose.
This makes ripe sugar bananas a fantastic option here as you get the best of both worlds. A good hearty serving size without restriction and the unparalleled flavour of ripe banana.
If you can’t find any sugar bananas, you can use firm common bananas. These are low FODMAP in under 100g serving sizes per person. In larger serving sizes per person (100g+) they contain moderate amounts of fructans.
These FODMAP thresholds were last reviewed in August 2026 and will be periodically checked to ensure they remain up to date.
Can I make these buckwheat banana pancakes with dark buckwheat flour?
I don’t know! I am rarely able to find dark buckwheat flour here in Australia. Light buckwheat flour is the one commonly found at the supermarket. I haven’t tested dark buckwheat flour in this recipe.
Light buckwheat flour is made from hulled buckwheat, while dark buckwheat flour is made from unhulled buckwheat. Whether this makes a difference in the absorbency of the buckwheat, I don’t know for sure.
Another thing I’m not sure of is whether this effects the FODMAP content. I know that tahini made from hulled sesame seeds is lower FODMAP than unhulled sesame tahini, which is why I mention it.
Can I make these buckwheat banana pancakes without eggs?
Unfortunately not at this stage. As discussed in the substitution section, I have not been able to develop an egg free buckwheat pancake recipe.
For whatever reason, the versions I test without eggs get stuck to the pan irrespective of how well I heat it. I’m unsure as to the science behind it, but it seems that the eggs form a barrier that enables you to easily dislodge the pancake from the pan.
I promise to keep working on it, but I haven’t succeeded thus far.
Can I use frozen bananas in these pancakes?
I have used half frozen banana in a test trial of these pancakes. Unfortunately my freezer stash of ripe bananas was not large enough for a full batch.
That said, it worked nicely. I might recommend mixing the batter by hand, just in case your frozen bananas are waterlogged. This way you can add slightly less milk to counter balance the added moisture.
More gluten free buckwheat recipes
- Gluten free buckwheat bread
- High protein gluten free buckwheat bread
- My buckwheat recipe e-book #1 (which contains 10 all buckwheat recipes including choc chip cookies, pancakes and chocolate cake)
- My buckwheat recipe e-book #2 (which contains 10 all buckwheat recipes including buckwheat bagels, brownies and oreos)
- Buckwheat wraps
Buckwheat banana pancakes (gluten free)
Ingredients
For the pancakes:
- 150g light buckwheat flour
- 50g light brown sugar
- 3.5g (1/2 teaspoon) baking powder
- pinch of fine salt
- 80ml (1/3 cup)+* milk of choice
- 40-60ml (2-3 tablespoons)* neutral oil
- 200g ripe banana, mashed (see notes)
- 2 extra large eggs (45-55g per egg, weighed out of shell)
- Cinnamon or vanilla (or both) to your tastes (optional)
To finish:
- oil, for greasing the pan
- toppings of choice
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together in a medium mixing bowl.
- Add the remaining ingredients and whisk to combine until a batter forms. It should be reasonably thick and fall off the spoon in ribbons rather than as a liquid. If your batter is thicker than this, add some extra milk to thin it out a tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.
- Thoroughly heat a pan over a medium-high heat. Once really well heated, turn the heat down to low-medium add a little bit of oil. I find it much safer to use oil for the first pancake but you can also get away without using oil if your pan is sufficiently hot.
- Spoon (or pour, as the mixture is sticky) around 2 tablespoons into the pan. Use a spoon to create a circle shape. Cook until bubbles begin to show on the surface then flip and cook for a minute or so more.
- Repeat this process until you have used all your batter. Serve with toppings of your choice.
Notes
- See body of post for notes concerning FODMAP.
- I have only tested light buckwheat flour as that is all that’s available to me at the moment.
- Australian tablespoons are 20ml, whereas US, UK, NZ, European and Canadian tablespoons are 15ml (or within 1ml range). For every Australian tablespoon, use 4 teaspoons if you are based in these locations.
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