Belgian Waffles
Yeast-raised Brussels waffles: tall, rectangular, crisp on the outside and hollow-light inside, dusted with icing sugar.
Photograph credit: Belgian Waffles - Flickr - Jackie L Chan by J c · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Make Ahead and Storage
Cool completely and freeze 2 months. Reheat from frozen in a toaster.
Photograph credit: Belgian waffles - Brussels, Belgium, 2011 (2011-05-22 11.55.35 by Thomas Quine) by Thomas Quine · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Belgian Waffles: The Method
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Whisk the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl.
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Beat in the warm milk, melted butter, egg yolks and vanilla to a smooth, loose batter.
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Cover and leave at room temperature for 1 1/2 hours, until domed and full of bubbles. It can also go in the fridge overnight.
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Just before cooking, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt to soft peaks.
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Fold the whites into the risen batter in two additions. Do not stir it smooth — a few streaks are fine.
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Heat a Belgian waffle iron thoroughly. Brush lightly with butter for the first waffle only.
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Ladle in enough batter to fill about three-quarters of the plate and close it. Cook 4 to 5 minutes until deep golden and the steam has stopped.
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Lift onto a rack, never a plate — a stacked waffle steams itself soft in under a minute.
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Dust with icing sugar and serve, with cream and strawberries if you like.
Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.
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Worth Knowing
- Yeast, not baking powder. It is the whole difference in texture.
- Onto a rack, not a plate. Trapped steam ruins the crust.
- Wait for the steam to stop before opening the iron.
Some Background
A yeasted batter left to rise makes a waffle that is structurally different from a baking-powder one: the fermentation produces both lift and a slight sourness, and the resulting batter is thin enough to fill the deep pockets completely. Folding in whipped whites at the end gives the hollow, almost brittle interior.
What to Put Next to It
Whipped cream and strawberries · Melted dark chocolate · Strong coffee
Belgian Waffles FAQ
How long does Belgian Waffles take to make?
20 minutes of preparation and 20 minutes of cooking, plus 1 hour 30 minutes of resting, so allow 2 hours 10 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 6.
Nutrition per Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. Garnishes, greasing and other items with no amount are not counted. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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