Best Crepe Pans
Did you know?
Legend says crêpes were born from a 13th-century housewife in Brittany who accidentally spilled buckwheat porridge onto a hot stone, creating the first crêpe.
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La Chandeleur
There's a tradition in France called La Chandeleur.
It's more of a religious event, but since the Middle Ages, French people have been making (and of course eating) crepes every February 2nd.
Now, I don’t know about you, but I eat crepes way more than once a year, and let’s just say, the kids certainly don’t complain—quite the opposite!
A lot of French people will have a "crêpière", crepe pan, to make them. There are basically 2 kind of crepe pans (or frying pans in general):
Single-material construction: like carbon steel, cast iron and stainless steel.
Two-part composition with a base material (usually aluminum) to conduct heat, and a coating to protect the base from touching the food, because the base is either toxic when in contact with food and/or heat, or is too sticky.
When it comes to coatings, they’re usually made of ceramic or PTFE (better known as Teflon). Some will add an extra material to those, to add strength and scratch resistance. Examples are marble, granite (both are just mineral dust), Titanium, or other proprietary materials like Whitford Quantanium. All those are non-toxic (even Teflon, since 2013 or so) but if they were to wear off, or scratch, or chip (in the case of ceramic), then the aluminum underneath risk leaching into your food. Or if you heat your pan too much, you may exceed the recommended max temperature for Teflon and it might start to break down and cause serious health issues for you.
When I buy a crepe pan, I pay attention to certain things. Those criteria might be different for you, like you have strong arms or make crepes differently, a heavier pan might be fine by you.
Crepe Pans
Here are the things I watch out for when buying a crepe pan:
High quality materials: The pan will last you as long as you use it properly. I use wooden spatulas to avoid scratching the coating. I only wash by hand as there isn’t much to wash really, and I store them face down on the shelf, so the bottom of the pan is in contact, maybe, with other pans, but not the inner coating.
For coating I’ve used Titanium from Tefal (a lot), Carbon Steel, Granite, Stainless Steel (if I’ve got nothing better to make my crepes), and Ceramic.PFOA-free, lead-free, cadmium-free: And whatever else they may come up with tomorrow or in the future. Life is already pretty fragile as it is, I don’t need to add the risk of cancer or Alzheimer’s to my cooking.
Handle: I try to stay away from anything mostly metal. Usually heat will propagate to the handle and since I spend quite a bit of time making (tons of) crepes, it’s annoying for me to have to wear hoven mittens or the sort to handle the pan. But some handles are better than others (de Buyer is OK, not very comfortable in hand though). As for durable, it’s hard to tell, and I don’t trust what marketing can say about their own crepe pans.
Gently sloped sides & shallow: That's really how you can see it's a crepe pan vs. a regular frying pan. If the sides are straight up, it’s difficult to swirl the batter around the bottom to make the crepe. Some pans have no sides (like roti pans, called tawa), some being a real eye-catcher like Tawa Tava Marble Coating.
Weight: I like light pans. I make crepes by lifting the pan, pouring in the batter, and swirling it around to cover the entire bottom. Do that 20 to 40 times and it takes a toll on my forearm. As it gets heavier for my arm, I might bring the pan a little too fast to the cooktop. No matter your pan or cooktop, “banging” things is never a good thing…
Size: this will play a part in the weight of the pan. But if you think about it, the bigger the crepe, the less crepes you need to make. If you have to feed a dozen people or so, you’ll spend less time making crepes, and more time enjoying those with them. I personally use two 25-28cm (10-11”) pans when I make crepe, so it goes much faster.
Manufacturer: Believe it or not, I’ve come across pans where I couldn’t even find the manufacturer! I’m biased, but I like more European companies when it comes to food safety, especially French ones but only because I don’t know the laws of the other countries that well.
The things that don’t matter to me:
Dishwashe-safe: the pan doesn’t get that dirty. Even if the first crepe sticks to the pan, use the wooden spatula to scrape everything off, clean with a paper towel with a bit of coconut oil to take off the remaining bits, and you’re back in business. When done making crepes, wait for it to cooldown (while you’re eating your crepes!) and just wash with gentle side of your sponge and dish soap. Wipe it dry and store it on a shelf face down or with some fabric on top of your coating if stored face up. Done.
Spreader: some pans are sold with it, or you can buy one separately. You might get thinner crepe, using less batter, that’s mostly why food trucks and restaurant use it.
Heat type: I don’t use induction and it’s usually the exception in a list of compatible cooktops, rather than the rule, so I don’t pay attention to it much.
There are certain things that might also happen to your pan. Some are due to the model/manufacturer, some are just bad luck. I’ve seen and had bad Tefal items as well as good ones (turns out items sold in USA are not the same as those sold in France/Europe for example, even if it’s the same company). This should not deter you from finding a good pan to enjoy your crepes. Go for easy returns (Amazon-like) when possible.
Conclusion
Your best bet is carbon steel. Cast iron works too, but since it’s heavy and you need to manipulate the pan to swirl the batter, it’s best to go for carbon steel instead. You can make it work with stainless steel but it’s tricky (water test, can’t get too hot or loses it’s non-stickability) and personally I don’t want to bother if I don’t have to.
If seasoning, and wiping it dry after hand washing your pan isn’t your thing, then coated (non-sticky) pans is your way to go. In order of most durable to least: 1) marble coating (super hard to find), 2) granite, 3) proprietary coating (e.g. Titanium, Whitford Quantanium, etc.), 4) ceramic (chips easily), 5) PFTE (aka Teflon). Now remember that in most situations where the coating failed (scratched, chipped, overheated), it’s best to throw out your pan and buy a new one.
The De Buyer MINERAL B Carbon Steel Pan offers professional-grade performance with natural, chemical-free nonstick properties that improve with every use. Lighter than cast iron, this pan heats evenly and is perfect for crepes, tortillas, and pancakes.
Now I own one and the handle does get warm (borderline hot) when making 12+ crepes…
Rooted in French culinary tradition, it's a durable, long-lasting addition to any kitchen.
The SENSARTE Nonstick Crepe Pan features a Swiss ILAG granite coating for healthy, low-oil cooking. PFOA-free and suitable for all cooktops, including induction, its 10-inch size and lightweight design make flipping crepes and pancakes effortless. I own one and haven’t had any issues with it so far.
With even heating, a cool-touch handle, and easy cleaning, it’s perfect for making tons of crepes!
The ROSSETTO Non-Stick Crepes Pan brings authentic French elegance to your kitchen with its vibrant red design and even heat distribution. Induction-ready and PFOA/PTFE-free, it features a healthy ceramic coating for perfect crepes every time.
Durable, easy to clean, and complete with a spreader, this pan makes crepe-making effortless and stylish.
The Tefal C38510 XL Force Crepe Pan combines a durable titanium non-stick coating with Tefal’s unique Thermo Signal technology, ensuring perfect preheating and even cooking. Free of PFOA, lead, and cadmium, this 25 cm pan delivers golden brown crepes effortlessly, with a sturdy handle for secure grip. I own different versions of this one and haven’t had to complain about any of those yet.
Designed and made in France, it’s built for both performance and safety.
