Name: Parisian Crepes Recipe
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 6 French crepes; 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil; 1 shallot; 10.6 oz. (300 g) champignons; 1 pinch of salt; black pepper to taste; 6 slices of cooked ham; 3.5 oz. (100 g) grated Emmenthal cheese

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Quick Summary: To make Parisian crepes, whisk flour, salt, eggs, milk, melted butter, and a little water into a smooth, pourable batter, then let it rest. Cook thin crepes in a hot, buttered pan, swirling to coat. Fold or roll them around sweet or savory fillings and serve warm.

Garnished Parisian crepes served on plates.

What are Parisian crepes?

Parisian crepes, or crêpes à la Parisienne, are the thin French crepes you find at street stalls all over Paris, cooked large and lacy on a hot griddle and folded around a filling. They are made from a simple batter of flour, eggs, milk, melted butter, and a splash of water.

Unlike thick American pancakes, crepes parisiennes are barely a couple of millimeters thick, soft, and flexible. Sweet versions get sugar, jam, Nutella, or chocolate, while savory ones (called crepes salées) are filled with ham, cheese, eggs, or mushrooms.

The most delicious crêpes in the French capital come from two places: Paris crêperies and crêperies in the streets of Paris. You can get crêpes de froment (meaning wheat crepes) with different savory fillings.

You can also find other options like a real galette de sarrasin, or buckwheat pancake made with buckwheat flour, and salade aux crêpes, which means salad with crêpes.

Why you'll love this recipe

A taste of Paris at home. Thin, lacy French street-style crepes you can make without a plane ticket.
Simple ingredients. Just flour, eggs, milk, butter, and a splash of water, all pantry staples.
Sweet or savory. One batter covers dessert crepes with chocolate or jam and savory crepes with ham, cheese, or mushrooms.
Great for entertaining. Set up a crepe bar with different fillings and let everyone build their own.
Make-ahead friendly. The batter rests happily in the fridge, and cooked crepes reheat well for busy mornings.

Ingredients

For ingredients and detailed instructions, refer to the recipe card below.

Before you start, read about crepe ingredients.

French crepes: follow the foolproof recipe to make French crepes. The recipe makes about 16 crepes; you can scale it down to make half as many.

Mushrooms: the authentic Parisian crepes recipe calls for Parisian button mushrooms or champignon de Paris in French. Use champignons or shiitakes available in your grocery store.

Ham: use thin slices of turkey, pork, or truffled ham.

Shallot: to make your crepes authentic, use shallot or replace it with a more pungent onion.

Emmenthal cheese: use grated or thinly sliced Emmenthal cheese, or replace it with Gruyère or Comté.

Salt and pepper are essential to make the savory mushroom filling.

Olive oil: is used to brown the shallot and cook the mushrooms. You can replace it with butter if desired.

Equipment

You need just a few basic tools to make Parisian crepes at home:

crepe pan or nonstick frying pan
mixing bowl
whisk
ladle or measuring cup
flexible turner or spatula
frying pan for the filling

How to make Parisian crepes

Step 1. Follow the French crepe recipe to make savory-style crepes.

Step 2. To make the garnish, cut off the mushroom stems, wash and brush them, then cut them into pieces or strips. Let them dry on a paper towel.

Step 3. Peel the shallot, and chop it finely. Heat a frying pan with olive oil, and brown the shallot for a minute.

Step 4. Then add the mushrooms and sauté over medium-high heat for about 5-10 minutes, until the liquid is almost absorbed. Season with salt and pepper.

Step 5. Place a slice of ham, grated cheese, and mushrooms in the center of the crêpe and roll it.

Step 6. Or garnish ½ of each crêpe, cover with the other half, and fold again to make a triangle. Serve immediately.

Step 7. If serving later, reheat crepes in the oven at 355°F/180°C for a few minutes.

Step 8. Serve Parisian crepes hot with a dollop of whipped heavy cream (optional) and green salad.

Expert tips

The key to wrapping the filling is making a thin crepe. Make sure the batter is thin and smooth.
Pour it into the center of the hot skillet to form a thin layer of batter.
Cook over medium-high heat until the crepe is slightly colored.
Get the batter right. It should be smooth and pourable, about the consistency of heavy cream. Too thick and the crepes turn out doughy; too thin and they tear, so adjust with a splash more milk or a spoonful of flour.
Rest the batter for at least 30 minutes (an hour is even better). This lets the flour absorb the liquid, and the gluten relax, giving you thinner, more tender crepes.
For an extra-smooth batter, blend it for a few seconds in a blender or with an immersion blender, then let it rest.
Aim for a Goldilocks pan temperature. Medium heat is usually right: too hot and the crepes brown unevenly, too cool and they will not develop that light golden color.
Do not worry about the first crepe. It is almost always a practice one while the pan comes up to temperature, so snack on it and keep going.
Keep them warm. Stack the cooked crepes on a plate under a clean towel or in a low oven to keep them soft until serving.
Spread the batter thin. As soon as the batter hits the pan, tilt and swirl it in a circular motion to coat the base in a thin, even layer. In crêperie, cooks use a crêperiereader (rateau), but tilting the pan works just as well at home.

Recipe variations

The beauty of Parisian crepes is how easily you can dress them up. Here are ways to make them your own:

Flavor the batter. Add a little ground nutmeg or grated citrus zest for sweet crepes, or a pinch of chopped fresh herbs for savory ones.
Savory (crêpes salées). Try goat cheese with onion confit, baby spinach, nuts, and honey; smoked salmon with tzatziki; grilled bacon with pickled cucumber and Morbier; or ham with Burrata, dried tomatoes, and spinach.
Sweet. Fill or top with Nutella, homemade jam, salted butter caramel, melted dark chocolate and hazelnuts, caramelized apples with whipped cream, or simply butter, sugar, and a squeeze of lemon.
Classic finishes. Honey, chestnut cream, fresh fruit, maple syrup, or a scoop of ice cream all work well.
Build a crepe bar. Cook a big stack and set out bowls of fillings so everyone can fold their own, sweet or savory.

Storing & freezing

Parisian crepes are best served fresh and warm, but they keep well when stored unfilled. Let them cool completely, stack them with a piece of parchment between each one, and store the stack in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two days. Reheat gently in a warm pan or the microwave before adding your fillings.

To freeze, double wrap the cooled stack in cling film and freeze for up to two months. Let the crepes come back to room temperature for a couple of hours, or thaw them in the fridge overnight, then warm them through. Storing the crepes unfilled keeps them tender and ready for either sweet or savory toppings.

Recipe FAQ

What is a crêperie?
A crêperie is a restaurant or café that specializes in crêpes, serving both sweet and savory versions. Many crêperies also run stalls or street stands that sell crêpes as quick, on-the-go food.

Where to eat crepes in Paris?
You can eat crêpes in specialized crêperies, crêpe stands or kiosks, crêpe cafés, and fresh produce markets, for example, Marche des Enfants Rouges, if traveling to Paris.

What are the most famous crepes in Paris?
Wonderful crepes in Paris are sold at Breizh Café, Crêperie Le Pet, Crêperie Astel, La Droguerie du Marais, Chez Imogène, Brocéliande, Lulu la Nantaise, and La Crêperie Crêperielin. For a takeaway crêpe, Little Breizh Epicerie is the perfect place to visit, located at 111 rue Vieille du Temple.

How to eat savory crepes?
A small bowl of cider accompanies the most traditional way to eat savory crepes.

What is the difference between Parisian crepes and pancakes?
Crepes are much thinner and have no leavening, so they stay flat and flexible instead of rising. Pancakes are thick and fluffy from baking powder, while Parisian crepes are lacy, soft, and made to be folded or rolled around a filling.

Why are my crepes rubbery?
Rubbery crepes usually come from over-mixing the batter or skipping the rest. Whisk just until smooth, then let the batter rest so the flour hydrates and the gluten relaxes, which gives you tender, pliable crepes.

Can you make Parisian crepes gluten-free or dairy-free?
Yes. Use a cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend (rest the batter a little longer), and swap the milk for an unsweetened plant-based milk and the butter for oil or vegan butter.

Do crepes need to be refrigerated?
Yes. Once cooled, store cooked crepes in an airtight container in the fridge and use them within a few days, or freeze them for longer storage.

What is the secret to great Parisian crepes?
The secret is a thin, pourable batter that has rested for at least 30 minutes, a hot pan set to medium-high heat, and a quick swirl to spread the batter into a thin, even layer. Resting relaxes the flour so the crepes turn out tender and lacy instead of rubbery.

How many calories are in Parisian crepes?
One serving of these Parisian crepes has about 258 calories, based on the recipe as written.

Love crepes? Try these next!

Crepes are a cultural tradition in France, where a crêpe day, La Chandeleur, is celebrated on February 2nd. French people also cook crepes on Mardi gras, but many generally eat crepes all year long.

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