Crepe Makers are small appliances that are about the same size as a crepe pan. They are used to make crepes or pancakes and have one side of them made of non-stick steel that is capable of heating extremely high. Crepes need this high temperature to be prepared adequately.
Crepe Makers can get as hot as 204ºC (400ºF), and this is the temperature where is advisable to start preparing crepes or pancakes.
After one has mixed the crepe or pancake batter, they should preheat the crepe maker to the aforementioned temperature and pour the batter on its hot metal part until there is a very thin layer across its surface.
Crepe makers cook crepes or pancakes in as little as ninety seconds because of how hot it can get; and after this period, one should be able to slide off that already-done crepe or pancake off the maker and be ready to pour more batter on it to make more food.
Some crepe makers have spreaders attached to them that let users spread out batter evenly across its surface and create thin layers so heat will be evenly distributed through the batter and the crepe will be fully done at all sides. The heat on the crepe maker has to be sustained throughout the cooking process so that the batter can be cooked evenly.
There are light indicators on the appliance that blinks to let the user know that it is currently supplying heat. When this light goes out, then one should know that the crepe is ready to be cooked on the maker.
Do They Have Variable Heat Settings?
Almost all crepe makers have variable settings but not all of them have the exact temperature of each heat level labelled on the appliance. In many cases, the words “min” and “max” would be used to indicate the minimum and maximum heat levels the appliance can be allowed to reach.
The part of the appliance used to adjust the temperature is a circle-shaped knob that one can rotate in one spot. The indicator on the appliance will let one know when heat is being supplied to the griddle.
Do not be alarmed if the first two crepes you prepare do not come out looking the way you expect even though you have adjusted the heat to the right temperature. The first batch of crepes you prepare should be the tester batch because the appliance is just getting warmed up.
Also, if you have been used to preparing crepes in pans, it would take some time to adjust your technique to using crepe makers. The heat is enough for you to just cook the crepe on one side – no need to flip it over.
The minimum and maximum heat levels of crepe makers vary from model to model but on average, they go from 176ºC (350ºF) minimum to 232ºC (450ºC) maximum. Depending on the heat settings you have selected, the cooking time might be longer or shorter than ninety seconds.
The shape and the fact that crepe makers fact can reach high temperatures makes it suitable for the appliance to be used to prepare other foods like flatbreads, tortillas, and foods that could only otherwise be prepared in cast-iron pans.
Cast-iron pans are great at retaining heat, so the fact that heat is constantly supplied to crepe makers makes them a suitable alternative for some foods that are prepared in such pans.
What Is the Best Heat Setting to Make Crepes?
The best heat setting to make crepes is 204ºC (400ºF), so it would be helpful to adjust the heat settings to close to that temperature when preparing a batch of crepes. Leaving the heat level too high might burn some parts of the crepe before some parts can cook properly.
On the other hand, if the heat setting is too low, the crepe will take longer to cook and might be moister than usual.
At 204ºC, the batter only needs 90 seconds to turn into an edible crepe regardless of the thickness of the batter poured on the maker.
Some crepe makers have heads one has to dunk into a bowl of batter before they can start cooking it. In those cases, one should dunk the crepe maker head into the batter for three seconds to make ultra-thin crepes, and for five seconds for regular-sized crepes.
At this temperature, both thicknesses of batter would not impact the final appearances of the crepe being prepared as the heat will be sufficiently distributed around it.
Crepe makers are worth having if you make them often – around a few times per week – but if you make them just a few times a month, you might be okay with using a pan instead. The appliance is not expensive and since crepes are fun snacks to eat so it would not do any harm to own a crepe maker.
Hi all! I’m Cora Benson, and I’ve been blogging about food, recipes and things that happen in my kitchen since 2019.