The BEST BELGIAN WAFFLE RECIPE has a crispy exterior and light, fluffy interior! These waffles rival any that you’d find at your favorite breakfast restaurant!
People don’t say breakfast is the most important meal of the day for no reason, you guys.
It’s because waffles exist and waffles are important. 😉
Those frozen waffles are fine in a pinch, but oh goodness, nothing beats a homemade Belgian waffle with a crisp exterior and deep pockets full of maple syrup and melted butter.
The best Belgian waffles just melt in your mouth and if you’re not stopping what you’re doing to head to the kitchen RIGHT. NOW. you are missing out!
But enough about my love for the best Belgian waffle recipe…let’s just get to the good stuff so you know how to make them too! You and your family are going to love this one and I won’t make you wait a minute longer.
Table of Contents
Ingredients & Tools Needed:
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Flour – We use all purpose flour, but a combo of white and whole wheat would likely work, if you don’t mind a heavier texture.
Cornstarch – This helps keep the waffles crisp on the outside and light and airy inside.
Spices – We add cinnamon, nutmeg, and a bit of salt to the batter for flavor.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda – Both work to make the waffles light and airy.
Buttermilk & Milk – We use a combo of both here. No buttermilk? Just add a teaspoon of vinegar to milk and let it sit for 5 minutes. Instant buttermilk!
Oil
Egg – You’ll need to separate the white from the yolk for this one, but we’ll use the whole egg.
Sugar – Just a touch of sweetness.
Vanilla – Like the spices, this just adds a bit of flavor to the waffle.
Waffle Iron – We use and recommend this waffle iron. Easy to use and fairly budget friendly. We’ve had ours over 10 years now.
How to make the best Belgian waffle recipe:
Whip: To start, we’re going to whip an egg white. I KNOW. I hate whipping egg whites. I promise you, this is 100% worth it and is the key to this recipe.
If you have a hand mixer, drag it out and start whipping. This rotating hand whisk works really well, too!
Combine: Once your egg whites are whipped to stiff peaks, you’ll stir together the rest of the Belgian waffle batter and, once combined, fold in those whipped egg whites.
One of the secret ingredients here is cornstarch. It helps to make the waffle crispy on the outside and the whipped egg white makes it light and airy inside.
Cook: Let your waffle iron preheat for a few minutes and spritz it with nonstick spray.
Every waffle iron is different and some will cook faster than others. Mine takes about 3 minutes. I generally just look for the steam to stop coming out of the iron and that’s when I know they’re done.
Serve: As you cook these waffles, pop them right onto the rack of a warm oven. They’ll stay nice and crisp and everyone can enjoy breakfast at the same time this way. Genius, right?
Leftover Hack!
Leftover waffles freezer great! Just place them on a sheet pan in a single layer and freeze for one hour. Place in a zip top freezer bag, squeeze out as much air as possible, and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat in a 325 degree oven for 10 minutes or until warmed through.
How many waffles does this make?
Great question, but the answer is…it all depends on your waffle iron. Some are larger than others and it’ll really all depend on that.
The waffle iron I linked above is large enough that this recipe makes 3 large waffles. I have another smaller iron that makes 4 waffles.
It never hurts to double the recipe, just freeze any extra waffles for later and reheat in the oven!
More Breakfast Recipes:
Cake Donut Recipe – My grandma’s famous recipe!
Amish Breakfast Casserole – The secret ingredient is key!
Homemade Biscuits – The ultimate recipe!
Sausage Gravy – We make this for dinner too!
English Muffin Bread – Spread with butter and jam!
Biscuit Donuts – You won’t believe how easy these are!
The Very Best Waffles
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/4 cup milk
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large egg separated
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 200°F and heat up the waffle iron.
- Mix the flour, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Measure the buttermilk, milk, and vegetable oil in a measuring cup and stir in the egg yolk. Set aside.
- In another bowl, beat the egg white almost to soft peaks. Sprinkle in the sugar and continue to beat until the peaks are firm and glossy. Beat in the vanilla.
- Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed. Drop the whipped egg white onto the batter in dollops and fold in with a spatula until just incorporated.
- Pour the batter onto the hot waffle iron (My Belgian waffle maker takes 2 1/2 ice cream scoops of batter, but your mileage may vary) and cook until the waffle is crisp and brown.
- Set the waffle directly on the oven rack to keep it warm and crisp. Repeat with the remaining batter, holding the waffles in the oven (don’t stack them). When all the waffles are cooked, serve immediately.
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Information:
This recipe was lightly adapted from Fine Cooking.
This post was originally published in May 2012. It was updated in March 2019 with new photos and a video. Old photo below:
Janine Jones (Sweet Janine’s) says
I just made these – and I was skeptical because of a few reviews but they looked amazing & the recipe seemed promising. So I made them and they are SO dang good! I always tweak recipient based on my taste so I left out nutmeg & cinnamon but added vanilla AND vanilla bean paste – because I’m extra like that. I tasted the batter but it wasn’t sweet enough for me. So I increased the granulated sugar to about 1/2 cup. Perfect! They were delicious and I’ll make this recipe over & over again!!
Karly says
Sounds delicious with the extra vanilla and sugar! 🙂
Liz says
This is by far the worst recipe I have made for waffles.. please don’t waste your time. The waffles will taste so plain and nasty. What a waste. It’s also embarrassing because the guest I had over also didn’t l like them. Never again.
Karly says
Hi Liz, sorry to hear these weren’t to your tastes. Not sure what may have gone wrong as this recipe consistently gets great reviews and is one we make often in our home. The waffles are supposed to be ‘plain’ as we didn’t add any other flavors…you top them with buttery and syrup and/or fruit. Not sure what you were looking for, but this is just a good, classic waffle with a crisp crust and light interior. Maybe you were looking for something like a liege waffle or something?
Carol R says
Out of several waffle recipes I have tried, this the best and only one I now use. They are crispy outside, fluffy and light inside! Love this recipe!
Karly says
Thanks, Carol!
Marvin says
It’s closer to a French toast recipe than waffle. There are a few problems, the main problem is the waffles deflate after heat leaves the waffle more than normal. The flavor is fine, but different with the addition of cinnamon and nutmeg which is found more in French toast recipes than waffles. the ingredients need tinkering to get a crisp outer shell that does not deflate. I was using a vertical Belgium waffle oven and I tripled the recipe.
Karly says
Hi Marvin! We haven’t had an issue with the waffles deflating at all. The reason we love this recipe is that it has that crisp outer shell. Did you whip the egg whites as directed? That’s key here.
BusyBaker says
We have made this at least a dozen times. It’s our go-to for birthday breakfasts and special weekends. For a family for 4, we double the recipe. One tip, for small edges with extra crunch, fill the iron only halfway. Love this recipe!!
Karly says
So glad it’s such a favorite! 🙂
Kristi says
Great recipe! Crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside. My waffle iron takes 1 cup of batter, so I got 3 large waffles out of it. Thank you!
Karly says
Thanks, Kristi!
Pati says
How do you even measure 0.4 cup of cornstarch?
Karly says
This recipe calls for a quarter up, which would be .25 cups. 🙂
Jonny Physer says
By the way as a point of reference. 1 cup = 16 tablespoons so 1/4 cup is equivalent to 4 Tbs. of volume
Sara Leppert says
This has become my go to waffle recipe. This recipe is the only reason I now have buttermilk on my grocery list. We have had family brunch where I served these to a crowd, X4 the recipe and still ran out! SO SO good!
Karly says
Yay! Love to hear that! 🙂