Sourdough Crepes

Sourdough crepes are surprisingly easy to whip up! With a slight tang from discard, they’re also a great way to use up your leftover sourdough starter.

The thought of making crepes may be intimidating, but they’re actually much easier than you think! All you need is a hot pan and a bit of patience.

Essentially a very thin pancake, sourdough crepes are great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Serve them savoury or sweet, stuffed or rolled, or eat them like pancakes drizzled with maple syrup! If you want to get fancy, try your hand at a crepe cake.

Unlike most sourdough recipes, there’s no lengthy waiting time for these crepes. Just mix, using discard from the fridge, and cook.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Method
• Tips and Notes
• Substitutions
• Filling Ideas
• Recipe

Use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top, or scroll to the bottom of the post to see the printable recipe card with full ingredient measurements and complete instructions.

Ingredients

Method

Add the milk, eggs, starter, butter, and vanilla to a large bowl. Mix until well combined.

Add the flour, salt, and sugar (if using) to the mixing bowl. Whisk until well mixed and no lumps are visible.

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Set the batter aside while you preheat the pan. Heat over medium until hot, then brush with butter to coat the base of the pan.

Pour ¼ cup of batter into the middle of the pan and immediately tilt and rotate to cause the batter to swirl out into a large, thin circle. This is easiest in a pan with a long handle.

Cook about 45 seconds, or until the edges peel off easily and the underside begins to brown. Carefully flip and cook another 30 seconds.

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(You can see that the temperature on the hotplate pictured is only at 2, because it runs very hot. On the regular stove top, the temperature is usually set at 6.)

Repeat cooking until the rest of the batter has been used, brushing the pan with butter before each crepe. Serve immediately.

Tips and Notes

• Flipping: Use the thinnest spatula you have. A metal one works best.
• Keeping Warm: Preheat the oven to its lowest temperature. Stack fresh crepes in an oven safe dish with a lid and keep warm until needed.
• Make Ahead: Make the recipe as written. Stack crepes on a plate and keep tightly covered in the fridge for up to three days.
• Storing: Stack together in a container, or on a plate, and keep tightly covered in the fridge for up to three days.
• Freezing: Place a small square of parchment paper in between two crepes. Repeat and stack all crepes with parchment in between. Place the stack in a large zip-top freezer bag and gently squeeze out as much excess air as you can. Store the crepes in the freezer for up to three months.
• Thawing: Take what you need out of the freezer and thaw in the fridge the day before, or on the counter for one hour.
• Reheating: Heat crepes individually in a pan on the stove top until warmed through before serving. Alternatively, reheat one at a time for 15-30 seconds in the microwave (time depends on the power of your microwave).

A Note on Pans

You can buy pans specifically for crepe making, however they’re not a necessary requirement to make great crepes. Any large non-stick skillet will do.

The most important factor in crepe-making is the non-stick factor. Use a well-seasoned cast iron pan, or any other clean, damage-free, non-stick frying pan you have on hand.

Make sure the pan is well preheated before beginning to cook your sourdough crepes. Crepe batter will stick to a cold pan – you know how the first one is usually a flop? It’s because the pan isn’t hot enough yet!

Substitutions

Use active sourdough starter if you don’t usually have discard, or if you use the levain method. In that case, definitely use weights (we always encourage weights for any baking!) as active starter is lighter than discard for equal volume.

To make the crepes gluten-free, use a good GF flour blend and gluten-free starter. You can make buckwheat crepes but the amount of flour will differ slightly, so you’ll have to experiment a bit.

Use a good vegan butter and milk for a dairy-free option. Oil works in a pinch but will make for slightly greasy crepes.

Sugar is optional. Add it if you want sweet crepes, leave it out if you’re going for savoury.

Sub vanilla powder for extract if preferred (as pictured). If using powder, add it with the dry ingredients.

Filling Ideas

• Serve straight up drizzled with maple syrup like pancakes.
• Fold into quarters and top with berries and whipped cream or yogurt.
• Roll with scrambled eggs and cheese.
• Spread with chocolate-hazelnut spread and roll.
• Stuff with peaches, cream cheese, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
• Drizzle with chocolate syrup.
• Spread with jam or lemon curd and roll.
• Fold with your favourite sandwich fillings like ham and cheese, turkey and Havarti, or chickpea salad.

More Sourdough Discard Breakfast Recipes

Sourdough Banana Bread
Sourdough Waffles
Sourdough Blueberry Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel
Sourdough Starter Pancakes
Sourdough Morning Glory Muffins

If you make this recipe, let us know by tagging @baked_theblog + #bakedtheblog on Instagram! We love to feel like we’re in the kitchen with you.

Recipe

This post was originally published in June 2020. It has been updated as of April 2021.