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These types are the quickest to heat up, but have typically lower peak temperatures and are the most difficult style to clean due to the gaps in between the nonstick surface and the base handle. Lodge is known for cast iron cookware and makes this durable 10.5-inch griddle pan that can be used as a crepe maker. The pan has low side walls and a a cooking surface that makes it easy to spread crepe batter and flip pancakes.
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Lodge 10.5-Inch Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Griddle
You can use it in the oven to cook your personal-sized pizzas, too. It can be cleaned in the dishwasher or hand-washed with hot soap and water. This includes a wooden batter spreader and spatula for making and handling the crepes. Since there is no lip around the cooking surface, you might not want to cook foods that would release liquid or fat during cooking, since it would drip off the edges. Crepe makers can either be round electric griddles or special pans with low sides that make it easy to spread batter and remove thin crepes from the pan. These tools aren't limited to just making crepes; most can also be used as a griddle to cook all sorts of "flat" foods, including tortillas, fried eggs, South Indian dosa and uttapam, and bacon.
Electric crepe makers are good at regulating their temperature and usually offer multiple heat settings to achieve your preferred doneness. They are great for making crepes for large families and their nonstick surfaces are easy to wipe clean, which is important since none of the electric models are safe to submerge in water. Non-electric crepe makers are less cumbersome than electric crepe makers and allow for more manual control by the user both when it comes to the heat level and batter spreading. If you add too much batter to a pan, it’s easy to pour off the excess.
Nordic Ware 03460 Traditional French Steel Crepe Pan
"I never had to worry about batter spilling over, and I was able to cook eggs, bacon, and sausage just as well," she says. It’s made from aluminized steel and has a nonstick surface so the crepes release easily and cleanup is easy—just hand wash with a mild detergent. The steel conducts heat well, so the super-thin crepes cook evenly. The nonstick coating releases the crepes easily and makes cleanup easy, too. There’s a temperature control knob to adjust the temperature for perfect cooking, whether you’re making crepes or eggs. A light indicates when the cooking surface has reached your desired temperature.
It has a tidy cord keeper under its base and we found the batter was much less likely to drip off the cooking surface when dipping into the crepe batter than with other models. The pan is nonstick and can be easily wiped clean but as with all cordless models, batter tends to get stuck between the cooking surface and the base. If you're looking for an electric model, we recommend the NutriChef Electric Griddle and Crepe Maker. With a 12-inch nonstick cooking surface, an easy to use temperature dial, and an included batter spreader and spatula, it's got everything you need for making crepes. The Nordic Ware Traditional French Crepe Pan is affordable and has a nonstick surface to help crepes release easily.
NutriChef Electric Griddle and Crepe Maker
If you’re really serious about crepe making, you might want to upgrade to an electric crepe maker that’s more professional. This one offers a whopping 1000-watt heating element for fast heating and a 13-inch diameter surface for cooking regular or large crepes. You can also make two or three mini crepes perfectly sized for kids, or heating tortillas or flatbreads. Most electric crepe makers have nonstick cooking surfaces that are easy to clean. Simply unplug the unit and let it cool completely after making your crepes, then wipe the cooking surface clean with a damp cloth. This crepe maker lets you dip the cooking surface into the batter—so you can let the excess drip off to create the thinnest crepes possible—and then set the crepe maker down to finish the cooking.
It has five temperature settings and cooked crepes faster than any other electric model we tested. The sticky rubber feet will keep it from shifting around on the countertop. Thanks to its design, you can use it as a multipurpose appliance.
Le Creuset Cast Iron Crepe Pan
It comes pre-seasoned to help foods release from the pan, but you'll still need to properly clean and oil it after each use to maintain the cast iron and its nonstick properties. You'll also want to remember to use an oven mitt when reaching for the pan's handle since cast iron gets extremely hot, but all that heat means food cooks quickly and evenly. Our top performers made consistent evenly cooked crepes — crisp on the edges but with a thin and flexible texture. Our top pick for the best cordless electric crepe maker is made by Salton.
While this is designed for making crepes, you can also use it to fry an egg with the cooking surface upright. Controls are simple—just an on-off switch and an indicator light. The power cord tucks away neatly for storage, and a batter tray is included. Then, the crepe pan or crepe maker should be preheated with a small amount of butter, oil, or cooking spray. The ideal amount of batter to add to the pan is about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of batter per crepe.
The cooking surface is 7 1/2 inches in diameter and has a nonstick surface so the crepes release easily. Cleanup is just as simple, but you shouldn’t immerse it in water. To remove the crepes, just flip the cooker over, or use the included spatula. Morning Star's professional-looking electric crepe makers have handles that make it portable and a tapered base, which makes it less likely that batter will drip down the sides. It has a temperature dial, but we found it needed to be on the highest setting in order to quickly get a nice golden color on our crepes. Despite its large 12-inch cooking surface, it has a relatively low profile, making it easy to store.
This enameled cast-iron pan has Le Creuset's signature bold and colorful exterior, making it an attractive addition to your stovetop. It comes with both a wooden batter spreader and spatula and can be used on all heat sources. In order to maintain the nonstick qualities, Le Creuset recommends hand-washing the pan and not using metallic pads or abrasive cleaning agents. Crepes are the French version of pancakes but unlike the fluffy American style, crepes are thinner and generally larger. They can be filled with both sweet and savory fillings and are typically folded or rolled. Crepes can easily be made at home with a crepe maker, though there is a learning curve.
Some crepe makers are designed with just crepes in mind, while others are meant to cook other foods as well. Consider the food you want to cook, as well as the other pans and tools you have. If storage space is tight, a model that can serve double duty can be helpful. If you're using a raw cast iron pan, it will need to be thoroughly dried and oiled after each wash to prevent rust.
Different crepe makers produce crepes of varying sizes, so if you have a preference, pay special attention to the surface area. Also, if you plan to use the crepe maker for other purposes—like frying eggs or making bacon—make sure it has enough room to get the job done. Because the pan tends to get hotter in areas where it contacts the burner, she found that she had to make her crepes a little smaller so that the edges cooked too. She also added that after a few tries, "Once I got the temperature right and figured out how to use the pastry spreader, the crepes started turning out better."
Best Crepe Makers in 2022
There are a few styles of crepe maker on the market, and each requires a slightly different technique to master perfectly thin crepes. But practice makes perfect, and we have rounded up the best crepe makers that will make that practice all the more fun. The finished crepes may not be as thin and flat as traditional crepes, since most pancake mixes contain a leavening agent, which produces a thicker and fluffier texture. Milk, egg, and any optional extracts will need to be added to the pancake mix, and the cooking process is the same as using standard crepe better.
There are also cordless electric crepe makers that are more beginner-friendly if your batter spreading or flipping technique is rusty or nonexistent. This is because cordless electric crepe makers allow you to dip the surface of the crepe maker into a batter versus pouring it in and trying to level it out. It allows for an easy release without the manual spreading or flipping of crepes.
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