These easy vegan crepes are always a winner in our home! The batter has just two ingredients so it’s super quick to make. This post is full of all our top tips to help you become a vegan pancake making pro.
Traditional French crêpes are made with flour, milk, water, eggs and often cooked in butter or just oil. So they are not usually vegan.
There are many ways to make vegan crepes, but this incredibly simple recipe is our go to whenever we fancy some lovely thin pancakes without any fuss!
We are not morning people, so anything we have for breakfast has to be super easy to make (like our really Easy Vegan Granola). We’ve made these pancakes hundreds (maybe even thousands!) of times and have them at least twice a week. We are firm believers that pancakes are not just for Pancake Day, but for LIFE!
The recipe is really versatile so it works with both savoury or sweet fillings. The crepes themselves are quite neutral in taste, so if you fancy some extra flavour then check out the section on variations for ideas.
Ingredient and equipment tips
Here’s what you’ll need to make your vegan crepes:
- Plain or all purpose flour.
- Vegan milk - we usually use soy milk, as we like the taste best and the higher protein content of soy milk. Oat milk also works and we expect that almond milk would also work well too, but we haven’t tested it.
- A neutral oil for cooking the pancakes, such as sunflower or canola.
On the equipment side you'll want:
- A suitable non stick pan.
- And a thin spatula for loosening and flipping the pancakes. We prefer a large spatula with a thin edge that’s easy to get under the crepes. Be sure to use a spatula suitable for a non stick pan.
Step by step
Here's a visual overview of how to make vegan crepes. You'll find lots of handy hints afterwards and then the adjustable recipe card with ingredient amounts at the end of the post.
Step 1 - Whisk together flour and non-dairy milk into a smooth, runny batter.
Step 2 - Heat up a small amount of oil in the pancake pan on high heat.
Step 3 - Pour some batter into the hot pan.
Step 4 - Immediately tilt and swivel the pan to swirl and spread the batter evenly.
Step 5 - When all the batter is cooked through, flip over the crepe with a flat spatula.
Step 6 - Cook on the other side until the pancake is done.
Step 7 - Repeat with more oil and batter to make more pancakes!
It’s essential to use a non stick pan for crepes, so that they don't stick and fall apart. If your pan is old or worn out, you will find it difficult to cook crepes easily. We always use oil in the pan when cooking pancakes, but if you have a pan with a very fresh non-stick coating, you can use less oil, or possibly none. You also use a cast iron pan, as long as it is very well seasoned.
If you plan on making crepes more than just once, we highly recommend a dedicated pancake pan as it makes cooking them so much easier! A crepe pan is designed with a low rim which makes it really easy to tilt the batter around the pan, and to get under the pancake to flip it.
You want a runny batter to get nice thin crepes, but you don’t want the batter to be so thin that the crepes don’t hold together when cooking. The absorbancy of flour varies depending on the type of flour and the humidity, so as a result your batter may come out a different thickness even if you use the same gram measurements as we do.
You can adjust the thickness of the batter by whisking in more flour, or adding more liquid. Aim for a pourable batter that is similar in thickness to cream, and is thin enough to spread itself when you tilt the pan.
Top tips
Making these vegan crepes is a simple process when you know how, but here's our three top tips to help you cook them trouble free.
1. Heat up the pan. The pan being too cool is the most common reason why pancakes stick, and this is often the case with the first pancake. Always be patient and wait for the greased pan to heat up before adding any batter. When cooking these crepes, we use a high heat of 7-8 on our induction or full heat on our gas hob.
2. Master the tilt and swirl! In order to get a nice thin crepe, you want to add the batter into the centre of the pan, then immediately pick the pan up and tilt the batter around the pan.
By tilting and rotating the pan, the batter will spread out to cover the base of the pan. When you’ve mastered this action, you’ll be able to get thin pancakes every time - watch the video to see how we do it.
If you are finding your batter doesn’t spread out, then it may be too thick (in which case you can adjust with more liquid) or the heat is too high so that the batter immediately cooks and can’t spread. If your crepes are still too thick, then you may be adding too much batter.
3. Know when to flip over. If you try to flip your crepe too soon, you'll end up with a mess. You should wait until the batter on the top is fully cooked and no longer liquid, and then until the thin edges are starting to crisp and turn upwards. If you are used to making non vegan crepes, don't expect them to brown in the same way, as these are naturally paler.
Use a spatula to loosen the pancake all the way round the edge and give the pan a shake to make sure the base is free, and then it's ready to be turned. Slide your spatula underneath and flip it, or, if you are feeling bold (and lucky!) pick up the pan and flick your wrist to flip.
Variations and substitutions
We mostly just use the basic two ingredient batter because it's so simple, and goes with everything, but you can vary the flavour of these crepes to your own taste. Here’s some ideas:
If you want a sweet crepe batter add 1 tablespoon sugar or a bit of maple syrup.
If you like a thicker crepe with a slightly fluffier texture you can add a ½ teaspoon of baking powder, and use a bit more batter for each crepe.
For a richer taste you can cook the crepes in melted vegan butter rather than oil. Vegan butter can burn more easily, so watch out for that and reduce the temperature if needed. You could also cook them in oil, and then just brush them or reheat them in vegan butter for flavour.
Vanilla extract, rum or orange blossom water are commonly used in French crêpe recipes to boost the flavour. Add about ½ - 1 tsp to the standard quantity of batter.
Some orange or lemon zest, a pinch of cinnamon or some chopped fresh herbs can be a nice addition too.
To make green crepes, you can blend in spinach or other leaves, check out our Vegan Spinach Pancakes recipe for the method.
Serving
These vegan crepes are best served fresh straight from the pan. Fill and fold into quarters, or roll them up - the choice is yours!
If you want to serve them all at once and keep them warm until serving, place a heatproof plate in a warm oven (around 200F or 100C), and as you cook each pancake slide it onto the plate, and cover with a kitchen towel. You can separate the crepes with parchment paper between them if desired, but we don't find them to stick.
Sweet vegan crepe fillings
- Apricot jam - this is one of our favourites and is traditional in Austria.
- Chia jam - great for a refined sugar free option.
- Melted chocolate or leftover chocolate fondue
- Vegan ice cream (perfect for special occasions!)
- Fresh or frozen fruit
- Maple syrup - we buy organic maple syrup online for better value.
- Lemon and sugar - a classic topping for British pancakes.
Savoury vegan crepe fillings
Savoury pancakes are totally a thing. Combining different fillings can make for an awesome lunch, or even an indulgent dinner. Here are some ideas:
- Our smoky and delicious tofu bacon
- Sautéed vegetables such as onions, peppers, courgette/zucchini.
- Vegan cheese (you can add this on top of the crepe after you have turned it over, then fold over one side to get the cheese to melt inside)
- Spinach or rocket/rucola
- Our homemade vegan chorizo
- And this totally yummy mushroom pate
Storage
Leftover batter can be stored in a covered container in the fridge for 1-2 days. Stir it up again before using.
If you have cooked crepes leftover, you can store them in the fridge for up to 3 days, then reheat in a pan with a little melted vegan butter or oil.
We hope you enjoy these easy vegan crepes! Tell us what you had with yours in the comments. Love, Sophie & Paul
If you are a big fan of vegan pancakes like us, we can also recommend these other recipes:
📖 Recipe
Easy Vegan Crepes
Ingredients
crepe batter
- 1 cup (125 g) plain or all purpose flour
- 1 ¼ cups (300 ml) soy milk
for cooking
- 1½ tsp vegetable oil
Instructions
Crepe batter
- In a bowl or jug, whisk together flour and soy milk into a smooth batter.TIP: Start by adding just about half of the liquid and whisk it in, before adding the other half. This results in a smoother batter.1 cup (125 g) plain or all purpose flour, 1 ¼ cups (300 ml) soy milk
Cooking
- Heat up ¼ tsp oil in a pancake pan (or flat non stick frying pan) on high heat. Spread out the oil to cover the whole pan.TIP: The pan is hot enough to cook the pancakes when the oil is just reaching its smoking point.
- In one fluid motion, pour about ¼ cup of batter into middle of the hot pan, then tilt and swirl the pan around to distribute the batter evenly.
- Cook for about one minute until fully done and there is no liquid batter left in the pan.
- With a flat spatula, loosen the edges of the crepe and gently shake the pan to make sure it is not stuck, then flip over the pancake and cook for about one minute on the other side.
- Take the pancake out of the pan, spread more oil and cook the next crepe.
Serving
- We like to enjoy them immediately, but If you only want to serve the crepes after they are all cooked, keep them warm by stacking them on a plate in the oven at a low temperature (around 100°C / 200°F).
Notes
Batter thickness
You want a runny batter to get nice thin crepes, but you don’t want the batter to be so thin that the crepes don’t hold together when cooking. Humidity, flour type and the way you measure your flour (use weight for best accuracy) can all have an effect on the consistency so you may need to adjust. You can adjust the thickness of the batter by whisking in more flour, or adding more liquid. Aim for a pourable batter that is similar in thickness to single cream, and is thin enough to spread itself when you tilt the pan.Variations
We mostly just use the basic two ingredient batter because it's so simple, and goes with everything, but you can vary the flavour of these crepes to your own taste. Here’s some ideas:- Instead of soy milk, you can use oat or other plant-based milk. We find the texture best with soya.
- If you want a sweet crepe batter add 1 tablespoon sugar or a bit of maple syrup.
- If you like a thicker crepe with a slightly fluffier texture you can add a ½ teaspoon of baking powder.
- For a richer taste you can cook the crepes in melted vegan butter rather than oil. Vegan butter can burn more easily, so watch out for that and reduce the temperature if needed. You could also cook them in oil, and then just brush them or reheat them in vegan butter for flavour.
- Vanilla extract, rum or orange blossom water are commonly used in French crêpe recipes to boost the flavour. Add about ½ - 1 tsp to the standard quantity of batter.
- Some orange or lemon zest, a pinch of cinnamon, a pinch of salt or some chopped fresh herbs can be a nice addition too.
- To make green crepes, you can blend in spinach or other leaves, check out our Vegan Spinach Pancakes recipe for the method.
Nutrition
This information is calculated per serving and is an estimate only.
Melanie Parslow says
This was the easiest recipe and made the yummiest pancakes 👍🏼👍🏼
Sophie and Paul says
Thanks so much Melanie! Delighted you found our recipe 🙂 We had them for breakfast both yesterday and today!