Crêpes are thin pancakes from France, originally from the Brittany region, and the name comes from the Old French word for curled. There are sweet crêpes, which use wheat flour and are often filled with things like Nutella or fruit, and savory versions that can be made with either wheat or buckwheat flour and filled with ingredients like cheese or ham.
In France, there's a special day called La Chandeleur (Candlemas), celebrated every February 2nd, on which occasion people traditionally eat crêpes. The basic recipe calls for flour, eggs, milk, water, butter, and salt. Sweet crêpes will also have sugar and be flavored with things like vanilla, orange/lemon zest, and alcohol such as rum, Cognac, Calvados, and Grand Marnier.
TIME
- Preparation time: 15 min
- Cooking time: 20 min
- Total time: 2 h 35 min
Regardless of what its name might imply, kaiserschmarrn (lit. the Emperor's mess), whether served as a dessert or a main dish, is one of the staples of Austrian cuisine. This light, fluffy pancake is made with eggs, flour, and milk topped with raisins soaked in rum and fried in butter.
The cooked pancake is then cut into pieces, sprinkled with butter shavings and crystal sugar, and caramelized under a broiler. The finished dish is served on preheated plates and dusted with cinnamon and caster sugar.
TIME
- Preparation time: 30 min
- Cooking time: 15 min
- Total time: 1 h
Syrniki, a beloved traditional Eastern European and particularly popular Russian breakfast treat, stand out for their unique combination of a rich texture and sweet flavor. These are not your typical pancakes found in Western cuisine, but rather, they are fried cheese pancakes.
The star ingredient in syrniki is tvorog, a type of fresh cheese that can be compared to farmer's cheese or quark. It's similar to ricotta but denser and with a tangier taste, adding a distinct flavor to the dish. The cheese is mixed with eggs, flour, and often a bit of sugar and salt to form a thick batter.
TIME
- Preparation time: 15 min
- Cooking time: 15 min
- Total time: 45 min
MAIN INGREDIENTS
A true example of how the simplest dishes can become attractive if the presentation is done right, crêpes Suzette continues to amaze every time they get served. This French dessert is basically sweet pancakes drizzled with a sauce called beurre Suzette, made out of caramelized sugar and butter, orange or tangerine juice, and zest.
The final touch is a sprinkle of liqueur — preferably Grand Marnier or Orange Curaçao — which is set on fire or flambéd in front of the guest right before serving. Since alcohol evaporates when ignited, the process leaves a thick, caramelized, mouth-watering sauce.
TIME
- Preparation time: 1 h 15 min
- Cooking time: 20 min
- Total time: 2 h 35 min
MAIN INGREDIENTS
This cheesy potato pancake originates from the French Auvergne region and is made with the following ingredients: potatoes, tomme fraîche, garlic, lard, salt, and pepper. Often, lardons or bacon will be included as well. Truffade is usually a main dish and is typically served with salads and charcuterie.
However, it is often a side dish as well, typically accompanying various kinds of meat dishes.
TIME
- Preparation time: 40 min
- Cooking time: 40 min
- Total time: 1 h 20 min
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Just as American pancakes, the Canadian breakfast staple, pancakes with maple syrup are also prepared by whisking flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, milk and a pinch of salt until you get a homogenous batter. Spoonfuls of the batter, about ¼ cup, are then dropped onto a hot and greased skillet and fried until the surface becomes interspersed with bubbles, at which point the pancake should be flipped and fried for no more than a minute or two.
The basic batter can be upgraded by using buttermilk instead of milk or adding flavorings like vanilla or fruits like blueberries. The pancakes are served stacked, drizzled with maple syrup and often topped with some butter. Pancakes with maple syrup are often served with additional ingredients, most notably bacon or fruits.
TIME
- Preparation time: 10 min
- Cooking time: 5 min
- Total time: 15 min
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Kartoffelpuffer are German potato pancakes that are very similar to American hash browns, Jewish latkes, and Swiss rösti. Typically, they are made with potatoes, onions, eggs, flour, salt, and pepper and are traditionally fried in lard or clarified butter.
Variations are many and are usually a modification of the basic recipe in the sense that the base is the same and various spices and ingredients are added. Kartoffelpuffer can be found in restaurants, are often prepared at home, or sold as street food, usually at local markets, Christmas markets, and during Karneval, a festival taking place 52 days before Easter that ends before Ash Wednesday.
TIME
- Preparation time: 45 min
- Cooking time: 30 min
- Total time: 1 h 15 min
MAIN INGREDIENTS
A stack of fluffy pancakes drizzled with butter and maple syrup is a favorite way to start a day for many Americans, especially on weekends when one has more free time on its hands. Typically, the ingredients needed are just flour, eggs, milk, baking soda, and butter, while some chefs also like to add sugar and vanilla, or exchange milk for buttermilk.
The preparation, which takes no more than a few minutes, is incredibly simple, as you just add wet ingredients to dry ones and whisk until you have a thick batter. Portions of the batter are dropped onto a greased and heated skillet into disks that are 4-inches (10 cm) wide.
TIME
- Preparation time: 15 min
- Cooking time: 20 min
- Total time: 35 min
Crispy on the outside and richly stuffed on the inside, martabak is one of the most popular street food dishes across the Western and South-Eastern Asia. Even though it seems simple at first glance, its preparation — if done traditionally — requires some serious skill.
When it comes to savory martabak, the first step is to knead flour, salt, water, oil or ghee, and sometimes eggs, into a soft dough. After resting for a while wrapped in plastic foil or soaked in oil, the dough is divided into individual portions which will be turned into thin, roti-like pancakes.
TIME
- Preparation time: 30 min
- Cooking time: 45 min
- Total time: 1 h 15 min
MAIN INGREDIENTS
This Ethiopian breakfast staple is popular Ethiopian street food, often served with honey for dipping and ideally, paired with a cup of coffee. The dough is made with flour, salt, and water, although some recipes will also include a small amount of oil as well, to improve the dough's elasticity.
Small pieces of dough are stretched into thin sheets which are then folded to a square and cooked on an oiled cast iron grill on both sides. However, almost as a rule, fatira will also include scrambled eggs, which are either on top of the pancake or inside it.
TIME
- Preparation time: 15 min
- Cooking time: 10 min
- Total time: 2 h 25 min
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 12 Pancake Recipes” list until March 20, 2025, 10,428 ratings were recorded, of which 7,018 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.