The Best Waffles on Planet Earth (w/Sourdough Option)
Ben Starr, the Ultimate Food Geek, shows you how to easily make the crispiest, fluffiest waffle of your dreams, whether you have sourdough starter or not!
Printable Recipe:
TOYS IN THIS VIDEO:
All Clad Belgian Waffle Maker
(“SMART” Version)
My favorite kitchen scale (restaurant grade, takes AAA batteries or plugs in)
Danish Bread Whisk (Brotpisker)
Non-contact Infrared Thermometer
(As an Amazon associate, if you buy something from one of my links, I’ll make a few cents. Thanks!)
RECIPE:
Non-Sourdough Version – The night before (or several hours in advance), mix in a bowl:
4oz/113g AP flour
4oz/113g water
Cover securely (plastic wrap, pot lid, etc.) and sit at room temperature overnight.
Sourdough Version – On cook day, measure into the bowl:
8oz/227g sourdough starter (MUST be at 100% hydration for proper results. If you’re a regular feeder, you can use discard. Room temp or refrigerated, it doesn’t matter.)
Into the bowl, add:
4oz/113g buttermilk or kefir (or 2oz sour cream or yogurt diluted with 2oz milk)
3oz/85g oil (or clarified or brown butter, melted and all water cooked off BEFORE weighing)
1 large egg
1oz/28g/2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract (or any flavoring extract you wish)
Incorporate ingredients carefully until mostly smooth. It may take awhile to get the starter fully dissolved in the other ingredients. Be patient and work gently.
Into the bowl, add:
1.8oz/51g starch (corn, tapioca, potato, arrowroot, etc. in powder form, not coarse)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp coarse salt (or 1/2 tsp fine salt)
Incorporate the dry ingredients carefully until there are almost no lumps left in the batter.
Let the batter sit, covered, at room temp for at least 30 minutes, up to several hours.
Preheat waffle iron to 375-400F (190-200C) surface temperature. DO NOT spray or grease the waffle iron. (Note: for a brand new waffle iron, prepare the iron the first time based on manufacturer’s instructions. Use this recipe AFTER the iron has been used for the first time.)
Add batter to the iron, making sure all surfaces are covered, but just barely. Excessive filling will cause a spillover as the batter expands. For the All Clad waffle maker I use in this video, 1/3 cup of batter for each of the 4 cooking wells is perfect.
Cook until steam begins to dissipate, then lift the lid to check for proper browning. Once the lid is detached from the waffle, it will not brown much more on top, but the bottom will continue to brown. So you don’t want to remove the lid too early. You’ll get your timing down after a few batches.
Remove the waffle to a cooling rack and keep warm in a warm oven until all waffles are made. Serve immediately!
source
37 Comments
I can wait to try them <3 <3 <3 thank you again for sharing recepies and tips
You are simply the best thing on the internet. PERIOD!!! ❤❤❤
If you’re trying to reduce your sugar intake all starches are bad. What do recommend to replace the starch?
It is a good idea to put the waffles in an oven at 200 degrees to keep them warm before serving, BUT I see another benefit to putting them in the oven, especially if you don't have one of his fancy wafflemakers. So putting them in the oven on a rack, and not on a plate, but the bare rack, you are continuinig to get rid of any moisture from your waffles especially if you have a cheap American wafflemaker which almost everyone has (shame on you), but still, continue to expose heat to rid the residual moisture. And experiment by perhaps bumping up the oven temp to 225 and see what happens, keep track of the time inside, and make a note for future use, or write the temp and time on your written recipe of Ben's. I compare this technique to making Italian biscotti where you bake the cookie, cut them to size, then bake again (twice baked) to remove the moisture for a crunchy cookie. This technique will give you surprising results. And know that the corm starch in the recipe lends itself to a crispy waffle, just like corn starch in a fried chicken batter.Let's Thank Ben Starr for all his waffle input.THANK YOU BEN FOR YOUR WAFFULLY IMPORTANT TIPS! THUMBS UP!!!
Well, I know I'm gonna make crappy waffles because I don't have the All Clad Belgium Waffle maker. I only have the round Cusinart waffle maker. Oh well, I'll just swttle with a bowl of Kellog's Rice Chex for brerakfast, close my syes and pretend the crunch I hear is from Sourdough waffles. Just don't tell me and ruin it for me.
Can you freeze them after you make them?
One of the most genuine people ! thanks for all the recipes
popeye the sailorman eat canned spinach sir
Are sourdough Belgian liege waffles a thing!
This is an awesome Waffle Recipe , which I will try this week. I love my Waffles with Powder sugar and Whipcream. Even so I been living here in the USA close to 40 years I can't esr Waffles with Syrup and Butter. I think these Wzffles would taste marvelous with your Homemade Vanilla Icecreamin yoir Icecream Maschinr. It definitely worked overtime in my Household this Sommer. Thanks for all your awesome Recipes.
Be well
Elke
Love to see video notifications from your channel, Ben!🎉
My starter has been sleeping for a couple of months. What a perfect reason to wake it up! Can't wait to try these!
Curious if your starter has a name? 👀
Thank you Ben!!
I like crisp outside and fluffy inside‼️ can't stand soggy waffles!!
Not only is your recipe flawless, your education of butter vs oil, buttermilk vs milk and vinegar, and sugar is fantastic. You've just improved my entire kitchen game not just waffles. Thank you!
Hi Ben – As a new sourdough baker, I love your channel! Please do sourdough pizza & focaccia videos!
Ben Starr! Imagine my delight when I stumbled across you on YouTube! I just recently started watching Master Chef from the beginning and I think you were on episode 1 or two? Anyhow, it’s great to see you with your own YouTube channel doing what you do best!
I must try these. I have never gotten a waffle recipe to work in my Belgian waffle maker unless I whip up a couple egg whites and fold them in.
You, sir, are a genius! I made these for breakfast and my hubby said they remind him of funnel cake. I love how crispy the outside is, but the inside is almost like custard. I made them in my $40 Oster waffle maker and they were amazing. I don't think I could stand it if they were any better : ) And the smell in my kitchen when they were cooking was euphoric!
Just made the Sourdough one (added blueberries) and my wife loved them. I reread the recipe multiple times making sure there was no extra flour to add, couldn't believe it was only starter (I used discard). Easier than my previous SD recipe, so this moves to the top. Thanks, Ben! (also for your entertaining videos)
AMAZING!!! Just made them for breakfast. Family is still raving about how light, crispy & fluffy. We used the Cuisinart Double Flip Belgian Waffle Maker on the 4 setting. The recipe is definitely going into our cooking/baking arsenal. PS: We used rehydrated buttermilk powder and it worked perfectly.
THAT WAFFLE IS CRUNCHY
Is it still able to work if baking soda and baking powder are not added into the ingredient? I wander the sourdough starter may be strong enough for levaining.
So happy to see a new video, Ben! ❤
👍🏼👋🏼🫶🏼🧇☕️👍🏼
put a cup of blueberries into the batter. topped w/butter and maple syrup. that is a true waffgasm.
Trying these right now!! The batter is sitting for it's 30 mins…..so excited!
Absolutely love your channel. I've got a jar of sourdough starter in my fridge, thanks to you.
I never thought to add “gasm” to my other favourite things! 🤪🤪
I rarely comment twice on the same video, but this must be said:
The video title is spot-on. My daughter and I had these for supper, and I'm throwing out my other recipes.
Sourdough PIZZA PLEASE. Love these waffles 😊
So wait, what is 4 oz of flour and 4 oz of water going to do, is this with starter? I would think that isn't safe if it is without starter, the good stuff isn't in there yet~
Thank you Mr Ben for your wonderful recipes! This is Heike, who asked you for help using my mother's Römertopf to bake my Sourdough Bread in. It worked out perfectly. For nearly 40 years, this vessel sat on top of my kitchen cabinet as a memory of good times and delicious meals. Your words opened the door, took the 'chicken" out of me and unleashed a sourdough bread maker. I was so afraid to bust up this Topf into pieces by putting it into the oven. Thank you so much for your immediate response and help. A couple of hours ago, I watched the delicious recipe for sour dough cookies. I cannot wait to make them. And now, the recipe for waffles… WOW 😊 Thank you for your time, the effort and patience it takes to teach us all your secrets. You are Amazing
You had me laughing at the very start! Waffles in the morning tomorrow!
Thank you, Ben!
❤❤❤
Making them tomorrow, I need to find strawberries🍓
Thanks from Cali, so happy I found you on yt🎉
P. S. My 1st sourdough tomorrow😊
Hello friend…
Another Ben video!!!! Click on video…. click on Like…. watch video….. DROOOOOL!!!! Perfect timing… I have been craving some waffles and these look divine!!! ❤❤❤
You are simply the best! I started watching your videos after almost quitting sourdough because of having to work my whole day around it. I found your lazy sourdough video and haven't looked back! Thank you! Looking forward to the waffles!