Are Flapjacks And Pancakes The Same Thing?

Head to a diner somewhere in New England and odds are you'll see "flapjacks" on the breakfast menu, but visit a diner in South Carolina and you'll see "buttermilk pancakes" named instead. Grandma invited you over for "flapjacks and coffee" on Sunday, but you had the same thing when your coworker took you to the IHOP pancake house yesterday morning. Two different names, but the same food, right? Those warm, fluffy, circular cakes served with butter and syrup? Turns out, the two names are only interchangeable in North America and Canada.

Whether you're in Toronto or Ontario, New York or Los Angeles, asking for a "flapjack" or a "pancake" will produce the same result. It's theorized that both the terms "pancake" and "flapjack" originate from a similar description of the same food. A small cake fried in a pan equals pancake, while "flapjack" comes from the flopping motion of the batter in the pan. The words encompass a wide variety of flavors and ingredient combinations — hello, flaky almond pancakes – but ultimately mean the same thing. However, if you travel to the United Kingdom and ask for "flapjacks" expecting the soft and doughy breakfast treats, you're in for a crunchy surprise.

In the United Kingdom, asking for a "flapjack" will get you a small, crispy bundle of oats more similar to a sweet granola bar than a pancake. These flapjacks don't even go near a griddle or frying pan and are instead prepared in a baking tray which then goes in the oven. The bars are made not from dough batter, but from a mixture of oats, brown sugar, golden syrup, and honey pressed down into a tray and then baked to a crisp texture and divided into squares. More traditional U.K. flapjacks are made with just these basic ingredients, but there are modern versions that incorporate fruits, chocolate chips, and nuts.

The way Brits use the word "flapjack" today wasn't common until about the 1930s when more and more people started to associate the term with the rolled bars. Historically, "flapjacks" could be used to describe any number of flat, simple cakes, but after the early 1900s, the name stuck on the baked oat dessert. Canadians may follow the same colloquial rules as Americans when it comes to "pancakes" and "flapjacks," but Australian "flapjacks" are an even smaller and thinner version of U.K. style pancakes. So, are pancakes and flapjacks the same thing? Yes. No. Honestly, it depends on where you grew up. Either way, both are sure to fill that sweet breakfast-time craving.