• I tested four national brands of buttermilk-pancake mixes.
• The mixes I tried were Hungry Jack, Krusteaz, Pearl Milling Company, and Birch Benders.
• Hungry Jack's buttermilk-pancake mix was classic, but my favorite was the affordable Krusteaz brand.

Pancake mix is a pantry staple in most American households, but which one is the best?

I set out to determine which boxed pancake mix is the best value based on flavor, texture, and price.

To do so, I compared the buttermilk flavor of four different pancake-mix brands: Hungry Jack, Krusteaz, Pearl Milling Company, and Birch Benders.

Here's how I ultimately rated the pancake mixes, from worst to best.

I tried the buttermilk flavor from four different pancake mix brands: Hungry Jack, Krusteaz, Pearl Milling Company, and Birch Benders.

For each mix, I followed the recipe on the back of the box for the most basic pancakes and the fewest pancakes.

Many of the recipes required the same mix-to-water ratio, but one required oil, milk, and an egg. I cooked all the pancakes for 1 1/2 minutes on each side, using about half a tablespoon of butter to grease the pan as needed. I also used about a quarter-cup of batter for each pancake.

To keep things as fair as possible, I also served all the pancakes the same way, with a half-tablespoon of butter and a drizzle of Maine maple syrup.

My least favorite brand I tried was also the most complicated.

The 32-ounce box cost $4.99 at my local Stop & Shop in New York City. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup mix
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 egg

Unlike the other pancake mixes, this batter called for milk, oil, and an egg.

Pearl Milling Company has another complete buttermilk pancake mix that only requires adding water, but this kind requires a few extra steps.

After I mixed the ingredients, I noticed the batter was slightly thicker than the batter from other pancake mixes I've tried.

It took a little extra effort to remove all the clumps and make sure the egg was fully incorporated into the batter.

The pancake puffed up slightly and thickened while cooking.

It looked almost cake-like in texture, and it turned a nice golden brown.

This pancake was thicker and more cake-like than the others.

The texture was slightly stodgy and crumbly, but also a bit dry. The pancake had a nice, crispy outer layer, but it desperately needed butter and syrup to add some moisture.

My third-favorite brand was the Hungry Jack buttermilk complete pancake mix.

The 32-ounce box cost $3.99 at my local Stop & Shop in New York City. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup mix
• 3/4 cup water

The batter was slightly runnier than the others.

However, it was extremely easy to work out the clumps and create a smooth batter.

The pancake browned easily in the pan.

The pancake was slightly thinner than the others I made, even though I used the same amount of batter for each pancake.

The pancake had a sweet, buttery flavor. I thought it was the most classic of the mixes I tried.

It tasted like something I'd get in a diner, or even a frozen pancake you'd heat up in the microwave.

While the flavor on its own didn't blow me away, I thought it was a great vehicle for maple syrup and butter. It took me back to my childhood.

My second-favorite was the organic Birch Benders buttermilk pancake and waffle mix.

The 16-ounce bag cost $6.99, making it half the size and double the price of the other brands I tried. I also thought the packaging was beautifully designed and easy to reseal after each use.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup mix
• 1/2 cup water

The batter was slightly thicker, and I could practically smell the buttermilk.

For a recipe that only required mixing the powdered pancake mix with water, it looked strikingly similar to the Pearl Milling Company buttermilk pancake mix, which also required an egg, milk, and oil.

The delicious smell of the buttermilk pancake wafted through the kitchen.

The pancake puffed up slightly, becoming about an inch thick, which I thought was the perfect thickness.

I thought the Birch Benders buttermilk pancake had the right balance of sweet, buttery, and savory flavor.

The pancake had a good balance of flavor for a "just-add-water" pancake mix, and it is arguably the mix I would reach for again over the others, based on flavor.

However, for half the amount of pancake mix of the other boxes and at double the price, I couldn't say it was the best value compared to the others. I'm simply not convinced it's so much better that it warrants the higher price tag.

My favorite was the Krusteaz buttermilk-pancake mix.

The 32-ounce box cost $3.59 at my local Stop & Shop in New York City, making it the cheapest brand I tried.

Ingredients

• 1 cup mix
• 2/3 cup water

The batter was perfectly smooth without being too watery.

It was a perfect balance between thick and runny, and it spread easily in the pan.

The pancakes turned a delicious-looking golden brown in the pan.

The pancakes were slightly thicker than the Hungry Jack-brand pancakes, but not as thick or cake-like as the Pearl Milling Company pancake.

The pancakes had a tasty buttermilk flavor and were the perfect thickness.

The outside was crispy, but the pancakes themselves were still moist and slightly crumbly on the inside.

Not only did this pancake mix have great flavor and texture, but it was also the cheapest among the brands I tried. This is hands-down the brand I would purchase again.

• I followed Bobby Flay's recipe for perfect eggs using crème fraîche.
• I also tried making the recipe with cheaper ingredients like sour cream and Greek yogurt.
• The eggs made with crème fraîche tasted the best, but I'd use sour cream next time.

Scrambled eggs can be a difficult breakfast staple to master, but according to celebrity chef Bobby Flay, you can avoid a rubbery or dry texture by using crème fraîche, a dairy product similar to sour cream.

Since I don't often buy crème fraîche, however, I tried Flay's recipe alongside two two cheaper, similar alternatives — sour cream and Greek yogurt — to see if they would yield similar results. Here's how it went.

First, I made eggs using sour cream

I began with testing out sour cream, which isn't as rich as crème fraîche but offers a similar tangy flavor and texture.

Following the basic steps of Flay's recipe, I put a pat of cold butter and sour cream in a pan. I was careful not to use too much since I wanted enough to moisten the eggs without making them too wet.

Then, I turned the burner to medium-low heat and added two whisked eggs. I constantly stirred the mixture with a rubber spatula, adding black pepper once the eggs began to hold their shape.

I turned the heat off shortly before the eggs looked done to keep the moisture and prevent overcooking, and added the salt. I let the eggs cook for about a minute in the hot pan with the gas burner turned off.

Using sour cream was cost-effective, but the texture wasn't even throughout

The eggs definitely looked smoother than they usually do when I make them, and they smelled buttery and even slightly cheesy.

When I took a bite, they tasted good, too — a little buttery and no tang from the sour cream.

However, despite my constant stirring, I thought they had an uneven texture, as a few bites were slightly rubbery and dry, or a little too wet for my taste.

This ingredient is the cheapest of the three options I tried so, even if the eggs weren't the best, I'd still add a little sour cream if I had it on hand and wanted scrambled eggs.

The Greek yogurt didn't add the same richness as the other ingredients I tested

Next, I followed the same recipe and steps using a similar amount of Greek yogurt, which blended into the eggs seamlessly while cooking.

I knew after the first bite that this ingredient was not a good alternative to Flay's recommended crème fraîche.

The dish looked creamier than the eggs made with sour cream, but the non-fat Greek yogurt created a uniform rubbery texture.

I think one issue is that I accidentally used a yogurt without fat. Because Greek yogurt is so tangy, even more so than sour cream, I think the flavor masked the taste of the butter, salt, and eggs, and resulted in an overall blandness.

The dish also was slightly watery and left a small pool of liquid on my plate.

Finally, I tested Flay's tried-and-true crème fraîche, which pleasantly surprised me

The crème fraîche had the thickest texture of the three, so I expected the eggs to be pretty rich.

I followed the same steps, noticing how effortlessly the crème fraîche melted into the whisked eggs.

This dish with crème fraîche took slightly longer to cook, but the eggs seemed moist and fluffy without looking underdone.

Out of the three recipes, this one resulted in the best flavor and definitely didn't feel undercooked.

When I took a bite, I thought the flavor was amazing. They tasted soft, rich, and buttery and nearly melted in my mouth.

The creamy eggs would work so well with salty, crispy hash browns, roasted veggies, or a really good crusty bread.

The eggs with crème fraîche tasted the best, but I'd use sour cream if I made the recipe again

Though I thought the eggs made with crème fraîche tasted the best, I would use the cheaper alternative, sour cream, if I tried Flay's recipe again.

I don't often have crème fraîche on hand, so it would also be easier to use the sour cream since I usually buy it anyway.

That said, if I wanted a more indulgent version of this breakfast staple, I'd totally add crème fraîche to my grocery list.

This story was originally published on March 5, 2022, and most recently updated on October 26, 2026.