Martha Stewart Chicken Crepe Recipe

This is what happens when leftover chicken meets French technique. Martha Stewart’s Chicken Crepes are savory crepes filled with shredded chicken mixed into a Gruyere bechamel sauce, layered with garlicky sauteed spinach, rolled into cylinders, and baked until bubbly with more bechamel and melted Gruyere on top, all done in about 35 minutes.

This chicken crepe recipe is one of Martha Stewart’s smartest leftover chicken recipes and I make it when I have cooked chicken in the fridge and I want to turn it into something that feels like a real dinner instead of reheated leftovers. The whole thing takes 35 minutes because the chicken is already done. I make this in the winter when crepes sound like exactly the right kind of cozy and nobody can believe it started with yesterday’s chicken.

Try More Chicken Recipes:

• Chicken Divan
• Chicken Pot Pie
• Chicken Tetrazzini

Why You Will Love These Chicken Crepes:

• It turns leftovers into something fancy: Martha calls this a great way to use up leftover chicken and she is right. You mix shredded chicken with bechamel, roll it in crepes with spinach, bake it with cheese on top, and nobody knows they are eating yesterday’s dinner. I have served this to guests and gotten compliments I did not deserve.
• 35 minutes because the chicken is already done: The only cooking you do is wilting the spinach and baking the crepes. The chicken is already cooked. The crepes and bechamel can be made ahead. This is really just assembly and baking. I spend more time eating it than making it.
• The Gruyere bechamel is the best part: It goes inside the crepes with the chicken AND on top before baking. The broiler at the end turns it golden and bubbly. I thought the bechamel was going to be heavy but it is smooth and nutty from the Gruyere and ties everything together.

Chicken Crepe Ingredients

• Savory crepes (6 crepes, homemade or store-bought)
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced (1 tablespoon)
• 5 ounces baby spinach (5 cups, lightly packed)
• Gruyere bechamel sauce (about 1 1/2 cups, homemade)
• 1 1/2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
• 1/2 cup Gruyere, shredded
• Chopped fresh parsley, for serving

How To Make Martha Stewart Chicken Crepes

1. Cook the spinach: Heat the oven to 400 degrees with the rack in the center. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the garlic and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the spinach and stir until it wilts. Move to a cutting board, chop it up, and set aside.
2. Mix the filling: In a bowl, mix 3/4 cup of the bechamel with the shredded chicken.
3. Fill and roll: One at a time, lay a crepe flat. Put about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture and 1 heaping tablespoon of spinach down the center. Roll it into a cylinder. Put it seam-side down in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Do the same with the rest of the crepes, leaving about 1/2 inch between each one.
4. Bake: Spoon the rest of the bechamel over the crepes. Sprinkle with the Gruyere. Bake until bubbly, about 15 minutes.
5. Broil and serve: Switch the oven to broil and cook until the cheese is golden brown in spots, about 5 minutes. Take it out and let it cool for a minute. Sprinkle with parsley.

Recipe Tips

• Use leftover chicken: Martha says this is meant for leftover chicken and I agree. Rotisserie chicken works perfectly. You need about 1 1/2 cups shredded, which is roughly half a rotisserie. Do not cook chicken from scratch just for this recipe.
• Do not overfill the crepes: 1/4 cup chicken mixture and 1 heaping tablespoon spinach. That is it. I stuffed them too full the first time and they split open when I tried to roll them. Less is more here.
• Leave space between crepes in the dish: Martha says 1/2 inch. They puff up a little while baking and if they touch they stick together and you cannot serve them cleanly. I learned this the messy way.
• Watch the broiler closely: 5 minutes goes fast. The cheese goes from golden to burnt in about 30 seconds if you look away. I stand in front of the oven door for this step every time.

Why Crepes Are Easier Than You Think

I used to think crepes were a big deal until I actually made them. A basic savory crepe is just eggs, flour, milk, and butter in a blender, then cooked one at a time in a nonstick pan. It takes about 20 minutes for a full batch. But if that still feels like too much, store-bought crepes from the grocery store work fine and nobody will know.

• The bechamel sounds fancy but it is just butter, flour, milk, and grated Gruyere. You melt butter, stir in flour, add milk slowly while whisking, and stir in the cheese. Five minutes. I was nervous about it the first time and now I make it without thinking.
• I make double batches of both crepes and bechamel and freeze them. When I have leftover chicken, I pull them out and assemble these in about 15 minutes. It is the kind of meal that makes me feel organized even when I am not.

This is the recipe I make when I want to feel like I am eating at a French cafe but I am actually just cleaning out the fridge. A chicken fricassee is the only other recipe that gives me that same feeling.

What Goes Well With These Crepes

The crepes are already rich with bechamel and cheese so I keep the sides very light. A simple cucumber salad or some steamed green beans with a squeeze of lemon are all I put next to them.

A glass of white wine honestly does more for this meal than any side dish. The crepes are the main event and they do not need much help. I tried adding rice once and it was too much food.

How To Store Leftovers

Cover the baking dish with foil and put it in the fridge for up to 3 days. The crepes soak up the bechamel overnight and get softer, which is not a bad thing. The Gruyere on top firms up but melts right back when you reheat. I would not freeze baked crepes because the filling gets watery, but you can freeze them unbaked and bake from frozen with about 10 extra minutes in the oven.

Reheat covered in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes. The broiler step is not needed the second time because the cheese is already golden. I eat leftover crepes for lunch and they reheat better than most baked dishes because the bechamel keeps everything moist.

FAQs

• Can I use store-bought crepes? Yes. You can find them in the bakery section or near the tortillas at most grocery stores. Martha’s recipe calls for her savory crepe recipe but store-bought works just as well for filling and baking. I have used both and the filling is the star anyway.
• What can I use instead of Gruyere? Swiss cheese is the closest swap because it melts the same way and has a similar nutty flavor. Fontina would also work. I would not use cheddar because the flavor is too sharp for the bechamel. Martha uses Gruyere for a reason and it is worth finding.
• Can I use a different filling? Martha says to experiment with other savory fillings and I have tried mushrooms with thyme instead of chicken. Ham and cheese also works. The bechamel and spinach stay the same. The crepe is basically a wrapper so whatever you put inside it will taste good.
• Do I have to use the broiler at the end? You do not have to but you should. The broiler is what gives the cheese that golden, crispy top. Without it the crepes are still good but they look pale and the cheese does not have that crust. Five minutes under the broiler makes a real difference.

More Chicken Recipes:

• Chicken Marsala
• Chicken Fricassee
• Chicken Alfredo

Nutrition Facts

(1 crepe, makes 6)

• Calories: 250
• Total Fat: 14g
• Saturated Fat: 7g
• Cholesterol: 75mg
• Sodium: 380mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 12g
• Protein: 18g